Family arrival

As usual, we are hosting Thanksgiving at our house again this year.  We are expecting Spouse's sister and her husband and their 3 kids (ages 15, 17, and 21) late tonight.  Then on Thurs we are expecting Spouse's mom, brother and sister-in-law.  So that means 5 people tonight and Wed night, and 8 people Thurs night, plus Spouse & me.  Thank goodness we have 4 full bathrooms and a powder room!

Oddly Spouse did not take off work tomorrow.  I think he was concerned there would be no one in his office/dept if he took off too.  I am also working tomorrow.  So I'm not sure what his family will do tomorrow with both of us at work.  They've been here plenty of times so they know how to get to the grocery store and outlet malls, but its supposed to rain and be quite rainy so I'm not sure that will be an appealing idea.

Now that the "kids" are older I actually enjoy having them visit even more.  All 3 of them are very smart, keep up with current events, and have a good sense of humor so we are sure to have a good time, as we always do.

Spouse and his sister will do the majority of the cooking (turkeys, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, mac-n-cheese) and I will make my usual sweet potato shuffle and corn casserole.  Spouse's sister-in-law will bring the pies on Thurs.

Here's hoping that your Thanksgiving and holiday travel go smoothly and are enjoyable for you.

Thanksgiving preparations

Today our office closed at 1pm in preparation for Thanksgiving. I had a property showing appt at 12:30 (just 1 house) so that worked out well for me.

Then I ran home to meet the guy from the gas company who had come to take a look at our gas fireplace. It hasn't worked since last winter. I suspected the pilot light had blown out. Spouse & I had tried to figure out how to restart it but weren't successful, and I surely wasn't going to try and light it with a match! The fireplace guy showed up, flipped the switch, and the flame came on. I couldn't believe it. He turned it off and on several times and it worked just fine. Fortunately he was a nice guy and said he wouldn't charge me for the service visit since he was already in my neighborhood. Sweet!

Next I began cleaning the house. I'd already washed all the sheets and towels and made up the guest room beds, so today was all about vacuuming, dusting, and straightening up.

I realized that Spouse had forgotten a few key ingredients when he was at the grocery store, so I went to the store to pick up the items I needed for tomorrow's big meal. I'm making Paula Deen's corn casserole and sweet potato shuffle, both guaranteed crowd pleasers that are a staple for all of our holiday meals.

Later tonight 1/2 of the family will arrive. Spouse's sister and her husband and their 2 sons are expected between 10:30-11pm tonight. Then tomorrow Spouse's mother, brother, his other brother and sister-in-law, and his neice will arrive before noon. In case you've lost count that's 9 people coming AND STAYING WITH US for 3 days. They're all leaving on Sat.

Lord help us...

I get along great with Spouse's family, but its hard to have 9 people staying in your home for 3 days/nights. There's people sleeping in every room but the kitchen and its never quiet unless everyone's asleep. Then there's 3 meals and multiple snacks per day for everyone. But considering the lack of relationship I have with my parents/siblings, I should be happy to have Spouse's family here.

Here's wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving!

Pre-Thanksgiving

I'm off work today but need to go to the office anyway. I need to copy, scan, and email some documents for deal #10, AND we're having our office Thanksgiving luncheon.

I made sweet potato shuffle, a recipe I got from my aunt Mary a few years ago. She's brought it to Thanksgiving and other holiday dinners for years. Its a family favorite, and I don't think anyone whose every tasted it didn't like it. I think the recipe came from an old issue of Southern Living magazine but I won't swear on it.
Here's how to make it:

Sweet potato mixture
6 cups (2 40-oz. cans) of sweet potatoes (I use Bruce's); drain and mashed in bowl
4 beaten eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk; or 1/2 cup Half-n-Half and 1/2 cup milk
2/3 stick melted butter
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla
Combine with a hand mixer and spread evenly into a greased 9x13 baking dish

Topping mixture
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
1 cup self-rising flour
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
2/3 stick melted butter
Combine with a fork, then spread evenly over sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes. If a knife comes out of center clean, its done.