Thanksgiving a little early.

Even though Thanksgiving is next Thursday, I am getting SO excited. I love this time of year. Cool, autumn air, crisp leaves and pumpkin recipes!! Plus, I know Christmas is not too far away.

I don't really care about the food (even though it is tasty) as much as the memories, so I wanted to share one memory with my boys that recently happened. We made turkey hands and the result is just too darn cute and will forever be etched in my heart and mind. Check out how Grant's turkey seems to be chasing Schafer's. Truly precious.
See picture below:



I remember one special Thanksgiving with my husband's family. We stayed in Estes Park, Colorado and I was VERY pregnant with Schafer. It was the first time I got to meet my nephew, William (who was 6 months old then) and I made him laugh by simply clicking my tongue.

I believe it was the first time I introduced my southern style of Thanksgiving food to my hubby's family and they really enjoyed it. I made Southern-Style Green Beans with bacon, and Dressing (we don't call it stuffing in the south because we don't cook it in the turkey and it is not made with only white bread). I learned all of this from my mommy. She was such a good cook and I am grateful that I received some of her recipes as well as my Mamaw's too before they left this earth.

This year I will make the Dressing and another dish I am famous for: Hominy Casserole. I am not really sure why Dressing is called Dressing. I guess because it dresses the turkey really well?

I decided to share my Mom's Dressing recipe on here if anyone would like to try it. It is actually surprisingly EASY! So I hope you enjoy it!

Deb's (DeLynn's) famous Southern Dressing recipe:

Cornbread (boxed or homemade) cooked
4-8 slices of white bread (torn into pieces)
4-8 stalks of celery
1 medium white onion
4-6 raw eggs (can use egg substitute)
Broth-Turkey or chicken
Sage and Poultry seasoning to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
Optional: One regular sized tube of sage sausage

Boil celery and onion in water and add a 1/2 tsp of poultry seasoning. Cook until tender. Meanwhile, cook sausage until done. In a 9x13 aluminum or similar baking pan, crumble cornbread and mix with white bread. Add onion and celery, mix well. Add sausage, mix well. Add broth until the dressing is wet, but not soupy. You want to thin the dressing but not make it too wet or dry. Add seasonings and taste. When you can taste the seasonings and salt and pepper, stop adding them. Add eggs to hold dressing together, mix well. Bake at 350 for about an hour. Check dressing in the first 45 minutes. It will usually crack on top. Cut middle with a knife and check consistency. If it is firm like cake and comes out clean then, it is done.

ENJOY!

There is so much to be thankful for this year and my heart almost bursts as I think about all the gifts the Lord has given me: Beautiful sons, a loving husband, great In-laws, a nice home, GOOD HEALTH, incredible views, a chance to be home with the boys, truth about who I really am,readers for my blog ;) and so much more!

From my heart to yours, I hope you have a very thankful, fun and happy Thanksgiving!