Countdown to the Big Day

I am so excited. We are hosting Thanksgiving dinner at our house this year and I think about 20-22 people are coming. Here. To a sit-down dinner.
But, you ask, doesn't your table only seat six? You are correct. So we will set up two more tables(somewhere) and then there will be absolutely no room to walk around. Which is fine. We will just stuff ourselves to capacity with turkey and all the fixings (which I will be fixing for two days)and stay at the tables until someone from the outside thinks to call 911 and have paramedics Jaws of Life rescue us.
And did I say that we are making TWO turkeys? How fun is that? Very.
One will be traditional, with stuffing, roasted in the oven to perfection.
The other will be brined (in a vegetable broth, salt and honey mixture) before being grilled outside with hickory smoke essence.
In case you haven't picked up on it, I am beyond tickled about hosting this year.
I bought The World's Biggest Lazy Susan in anticipation of our day. It was at Costco, so right there you have an idea of the size, but it is approximately the size Moorea, an island in French Polynesia. (yes, I have been there, so I can accurately compare)
It could potentially hold our entire Thanksgiving feast for 20. How convenient would THAT be?


Just so you know, I DO realize that Thanksgiving is not all about the food. (Whaaat??) I love that the family looks forward to getting together and sharing a meal. We look forward to laughing and eating and bottle feeding puppies together.
There are so many things I am thankful for this year that I'm in danger of sounding really cheesy if we go around the Lazy Susan and tell what we are most thankful to God for. My husband, daughter and son are a given, but I am so incredibly blessed to have each of them in my life that I may start crying just thinking about it. I am thankful that I have my sister and niece coming over and for our relationship which grows on a daily basis. I am so proud of her and the decisions she has made in her life. (Again, with the tears.) I am thankful for my sweet/funny sister/friend Tambry Lynn who is back home again.
See, I sound like a B-list actress thanking everyone when she wins her Lifetime Movie Award. Gag!!!
But, just so you know, I have loads to be thankful for. And I am grateful to my God, my friend who lavishes these gifts on me every day until all I can do is cry tears of thankfulness.

*********Puppy Update**********
We have named the puppies. Boys: Big Red, Grizzly and Kodiak. Girls: Chennick,(named after my two nieces) Jaslene and Fatty Lumpkin.
Jaslene(named after Cycle Eight's America's Next Top Model winner. Yes, we are that shallow. Please don't judge) is the runt of the litter and is being bottle fed more often than the others at this point. (Lots of hugs and kisses, too)
She just doesn't seem to be able to compete with the Wild Beasts who fight over milk as if their lives are at stake. So we are keeping a close watch on her.


Above and to the left you can see both Jaslenes, gasp over the remarkable resemblance and understand immediately why we had to choose this name for our special little puppy. We love Puppy Jaslene and often find her in odd, stilted poses similar to Model Jaslene. Plus, they are both a little on the thin side. (In Cycle 8 both Amy and I were positive Natasha would win. Frankly, we think she was robbed.Just so you know.)
Off I go to write my Getting Ready for Thanksgiving List.