Well, Turkey Day 2018 has come and gone, but not without a lot of planning, good food, and great memories.
If you recall, I used a Thanksgiving Planner from Etsy to really minimize the stress and strain of the day, and I want to tell you...it worked!
Having thoughtfully procured lists, leading up to the actual event was genuinely a perfect way to have an enjoyable day. In fact, my husband was grateful because he didn't get "yelled" at during any point in the day! (Can any of you relate?)
Having these checklists, and writing my own additional ideas helped to keep me on track. I went to the grocery store once, and we DID NOT have to make emergency trips at any point in the process...that in itself was amazing.
The preparation actually started on Wednesday. Since we were eating at noon, and since I was cooking and preparing the turkey, ham, mashers, carrots, stuffing, green beans, corn, fruit cup, cranberry (canned), drinks, and two of the desserts, I knew that starting the day before would give me a head-start to the big day.
So...on Wednesday, I did all the chopping and bagging of ingredients for each of the dishes I was preparing. This was simply a matter of combining any dry ingredients in small labelled baggies as well as any chopped and/or wet ingredients in labelled baggies, and placing them in a refrigerator bin in the order in which I would need them.
This is what it looked like during that stage:
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My long counter was used as a buffet area. The crock pots actually cooked the food right here, and were used as warmers. I labelled where each of the different items would be placed, and included the laminated recipes on top. I pulled the recipes as I was preparing that food item. |
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My island was where the main preparation occurred. You can see the baggies started, including the veggies that were stuffed into the cavity of the bird. It was super easy to just chop and bag. On Thursday, as I started each recipe, I simply pulled out the corresponding bag(s) and dumped them in. Not having to chop anything was great! In fact, the chopped veggies, like the carrots, celery, and onions for my gravy base, had a chance to really "meld" together, making the recipe(s) richer and heartier. |
Hubby helped by periodically cleaning and washing items as I needed, keeping the trash dumped and bag replaced, and putting away cleaned and dried items. He ran the dishwasher twice on Wednesday in order to keep up with it all.
Once all the food preparedness was complete, I could finish my decorating.
I started by setting my places and placing the floral arrangement I had created Tuesday night in the middle of the long table.
I used a trough built by my oldest bonus son, lined it with plastic, and then wet floral foam, to create this arrangement. It had a combination of real pink and white roses, dried hydrangeas, live cuttings from the bushes around our home, Dollar Tree plastic pumpkins (some spray painted pink), feathers, acorns, and Dollar Tree battery operated string lights in yellow.
I covered the table with a green and creme striped table cloth (Marshals) and then used brown paper as a runner down the middle. The best part about using the paper was that the roll will also be used as wrapping for Christmas! I originally was going to write little quotes on the paper, but decided I liked it bare. I let the centerpiece be the "star."
I used my Fostoria Champagne glasses as an electric candle holder, filled with split peas from the grocery store.
The napkins and rose gold utensils were tucked into small paper bags with name tags attached.
Throughout the living area I had little vignettes placed to decorate the day. This rustic framed image came from the Dollar Tree. It was placed on the table where the games were waiting for guests.
Each guest wrote what they were thankful for and hung it on twine hanging across the sliding glass door. They also had to take a Thanksgiving riddle and hold on to it. We shared those during dinner. (Which helped with eating too fast!)
We teamed up and played the "Build a Turkey" game by rolling dice in an effort to get a certain number to build a turkey.
The funniest game was discovering their new "Turkey" name.
Each guest wrote their name on a sticky name tag, and we laughed at the funny combinations like "Burnt McGiblets" and "Deep Fried St. Cranberry."
It was a great day with family and friends, and I would gladly do it all over again.
The planner was an indispensable tool, that made they preparation easy. On Thursday morning, I used their hour by hour organizer to execute exactly what had to happen when. It allowed me time to get ready myself, and still have everything ready at the appointed hour.
Of course, one of the best things about hosting and cooking most of the food...
Leftovers for Friday's dinner!
I cut up the turkey and mixed it with cream cheese and cranberry salsa to make a great filling for Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. I reheated the sides while they baked in the oven, and voila! Dinner is served.
I hope your Thanksgiving was a joyous time spent with many blessings.
Now it's time to start working on that Christmas Planner!
BONUS:
I have included some up close photos of the floral arrangement. Enjoy!
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