Wedding Bells and Turkey Day Pies and 1 Great Pumpkin Disappointment

Happy Thanksgiving a few days late!

I hope your day was everything you hoped it would be and you gave all the thanks you wanted to (and then some).  I was so full post-dinner (which was actually lunch, as we ate at 1:30), that I couldn't even eat leftovers that evening!  And that NEVER happens.  Yowza, my pants were tight.

So in this Thanksgiving blog, I want to thank you for reading, commenting, voting, taste-testing (for those who are so lucky), and being just plain awesome.

So first off, I ventured home for my sister Sarah's wedding last Saturday (10 days ago Saturday, not 3 days ago... it's been a little while).  I don't think any of us could have asked for a more beautiful day... the weather was perfect (snow, where in the H are you?); Sarah was gorgeous; and everyone laughed, cried, danced, ate, and smiled until our faces froze.  A lovely, lovely day, and I am so blessed to have played a part in it.  Sid and B.I.L., you two are fantastic, and I wish you so much happiness and love... great big bear hugs worth, in fact!

So another thank you goes out to them and my parents and everyone involved in making the wedding so lovely!

After the wedding I was busy, busy, busy, and I haven't yearned for sleep so badly in a long time.  It wasn't quite the "vacation" I was hoping for, but I had a blast anyway.

The next thank you goes out to my family for such a great time at home... I love spending time with you :)

So after all the wedding madness was over, Thanksgiving madness began!

And I do NOT say thank you to Meijer, because you were out of pumpkin and therefore turned the pumpkin pie I was so excited to make into a frozen one made by Marie Callender.  BOO to you!

Not mine.  Stupid.  But still tasty.

Although I found out that there's been a pumpkin shortage due to the crazy weather we've had this fall, so I guess it's not entirely Meijer's fault, but STILL.  BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, HISS!!!

So instead of making pumpkin pie, my dad and I made the infamous Blackberry Apple, as well as a good 'ole Pecan Pie!  This pecan pie recipe was different than the last, so huzzah!  New pie!

Lydia sent me the recipe for this one, and I must say it turned out nicer once baked instead of the near-catastrophe of last time.  So THANK YOU, Lydia!  I like this "thanks" theme :)

We had to improvise a bit, since I didn't have the dark Karo syrup the recipe called for (we had light instead), so to make up for it, my genius dad swapped out some of the regular sugar for brown sugar.  Bum ba da dah! Pecan pie!  I even made a super fancy crust that actually turned out!  Woot woot!

 

The other pie also turned out rather well, although my dad and I both decided that something was missing... it was like it lacked that final punch or something.  It was good, but definitely not as great as it could've been.  Lack of cinammon maybe?  We couldn't quite put a finger on it, but it just didn't have the "wow" factor it usually does.  However, we FILLED the crust and made a pie worthy of Pushing Daisies... it was all round and giant and delicious-looking.  AKA, win!

 

YUM!

So as I said, my dad and I made these pies together, and it was interesting as we swapped techniques and tricks and discovered that while I learned pie-making from him, I do things a bit differently than he does.  It was especially interesting, as both of us took charge and it wasn't as though one of us was delegating to the other.  It was a good experience, and I had fun... it was a bit strange though, making pie with someone else after making them on my own so regularly for the past 3 months (!).  But thanks, Dad, for being my pie buddy for the week!  I had a good time!

So the wedding was a win, Thanksgiving was a win, I saw some great movies (Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Blind Side), I got to see my favorite people... a lot of things to be thankful for!

The final thing to be thankful for here?  MY NEW CHAIR!!!  I swiped my parents' old recliner that has been in storage for a few years and it's now sitting proudly in my apartment.  I love this chair and have huge sentimental attachment to it... it's where I read Deathly Hallows, after all!  It reminds me of the dad's chair on Fraser, just minus all the duct tape.  Awesome City!

Ooh, and I just finished decorating for Christmas!  This holiday is the best!

Final quick story before I let you go... so my mom and I were shopping on Wednesday for our Thanksgiving meal, and I grabbed canned fruit off the shelf and threw it into the cart.  Well, we got home, and we suddenly couldn't find the fruit, so I searched the car while my mom searched the house, but still no luck.  Upon checking the receipt, my mom discovered that the fruit was never purchased, though we both distinctly remember putting it in the cart.  The only explanation we can think of?  Amidst the chaos of last minute grocery shoppers at Meijer, I threw the cans in someone else's cart!  Haha, I hope they were pleased with their surprise purchase, and thankful for it too!  :)