THANKFUL GARLAND

 This year my sister had the idea of a thankful garland.  I’m going to pack this away and bring it out again next year so we can add to it and make some family memories and traditions.

What are your holiday family traditions?  Please share.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Wishing all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving filled with family and friends.  I’m so thankful to all of you who follow me.  This is an image of my Fall mantel.  My Audubon turkey always makes an appearance some where in my home at this time of year.  He’ll soon be returning to storage to make room for Christmas.  

GOBBLE GOBBLE

For many years I've been collecting turkey planters, turkey salt and pepper shakers, and turkey covered dishes.  Normally I use them as centerpieces on our Thanksgiving table.  This year I decided that I had way too many turkeys.  I shared some with my daughter and my sisters.  After they had first dibs, I put some for sale on my new Instagram account, @shopmycollectedhome.  I just started this account so I don't have many followers or many sales yet but I'm hopeful I can make it work.   I need to thin out more than just turkeys.

I did keep some from the collection.  Instead of using them as centerpieces, I let them roost among the plates on my corner cupboard.  I've had this cupboard for years and it's always been in same corner of my dining room.  It's survived many furniture purges.  I think it's safe for now.

VINTAGE CORNER CABINET IN MY DINING ROOM

Can you find the turkeys?

VINTAGE TURKEYS IN MY CUPBOARD

I tucked a turkey covered dish under the curve of the bottom shelf.  I think he's intended to hold some cranberry sauce.  He even came with a small ladle.

TURKEY COVERED DISH

One shelf up I have a salt and pepper set.   

TURKEY SALT AND PEPPER

Turkey salt and pepper in this dark brown color is unusual.

DARK BROWN SALT AND PEPPER

The next shelf up has another covered dish.  It's a perfect match for my cabbage plates.

WHITE COVERED DISH TURKEY

Last is the top shelf and another covered dish in a soft blue gray.

TOP SHELF

BLUE GRAY TURKEY COVERED DISH

This brass sphere has moved around the house a lot.  Right now it's layered in front of my vintage ironstone platter.  

BRASS SPHERE

I've had these brass stag goblets for many years.  They can be turned up side down and used as a vase.  I've never used them as a goblet.  Their antlers form a perfect base when they're reversed.  Love them.

STAG GOBLETS

What do you do for Thanksgiving decor?

I want to wish all my readers and their families a Happy Thanksgiving.

Also, a big thank you to everyone for following along with me.

Thankfulness

I'm having a crowd for Thanksgiving.  Yea!!

I come from a huge family, so a crowd is pretty standard.  You could call us the large loud family.  At gatherings we all talk at once and over each other.   Surprisingly, we pretty much get our info across and get the gist of most of the multiple conversations.   I guess it's just years of exposure, but we hardly notice the noise level.  New guests are a little more sensitive though.  My three sisters and I all share the same story about when we brought our future husbands to their first family get together.  Each one of them had to leave the room and take an outside break from the noise and commotion.  My husband actually said that he wanted to go outdoors for a few moments.  This was in bitter cold Pennsylvania winter weather.  So funny now, but not then.

Well, this gathering will not be any different.  I have to say though that where there's a lotta talkin' goin' on there are also a lotta spills and stains.  I've given up using fancy table coverings that are hard to clean.  We also talk with our hands, and those gestures cause some major mishaps too.

Good old Pinterest has come through again for me for the tablecloth dilemma.

Each Thanksgiving we actually stop talking before we eat and we each share what we are thankful for.
 Yes, only one person talks and everyone listens.  

Well how perfect is this?????  I have a huge roll of brown painters' paper.
 I'm going to cut placemat-size squares from the paper and put one at each place setting to catch
 all the spills--and record the thankfulness.   

Via Pinterest

And, have you ever checked the bins at Michaels??  I always find treasures.  These pencils are one of my favorite finds .  They come in all patterns--snakeskin, houndstooth, leopard.   I have enough for each guest to compose his/her thoughts.  You can really go wild when things are 12/$1.50.

I think I have the beginnings of my centerpiece.

I hope my family members will be as excited as I am about writing down their thoughts and sharing.

(Hopefully, I won't have to use so much Shout after this holiday either.)  

May your Thanksgiving be filled with fun, family, and friends.

Kathy

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours.

My Fall Mantel

I'm not hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year, but this yummy side dish may appear on my Christmas menu.  It's a sweet potato casserole from  Ruths Chris.  Yummm.

Ruths Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

(click on photo or highlighted words to go to recipe)


I hope you'll all follow this advice from Radiant Republic when you begin your holiday shopping.

Kathy

Enjoy your day with your family.