Thanksgiving Weekend. Part A.

Part A? Does that mean there will be a Part B?

Hell, yes, it does! Because this is one heck of an awesome weekend, and needs to be documented in full.

I want to AW this gorgeous Dept. 56 bakery that my mom and stepdad sent for our Christmas village. Isn't it beautiful? We also have the old Yankees stadium front and an art gallery. I love adding to the village every year, and I really wish there was a local store for these pieces.



I've been learning a little bit more about my beloved camera. This week, I kind of mastered white balance and my portrait lens. What an amazing difference in the photos. And I do really like the portrait lens. It was being ornery and so I just sort of left it alone, but now, I definitely see it becoming a favorite.

I call this one Emo Pug. He's so misunderstood.



Turtle and I did an impromptu Cookies for Santa photo shoot. I dressed him up in his new Christmas pjs and set him up with a mug (empty) and plate of cookies (full).

It's not easy being cheesy.



I'm just gonna touch the cookies, mom. I'm not going to eat them. Really.



Juuuust checking it out, mommy... Promise.



Double-fisting. See? No bite.



I'm only gonna lick it a little.



Actually, he didn't eat the cookie. He licked the edges a lot, but never took a chomp. Odd. But I guess I can't complain.

He also really loves vacuuming. Go figure. When DH pulls out the Dyson, we hand Turtle the Dustbuster and let him go to town. I hope this continues.



Thanksgiving morning. We gave Turtle a Thanksgiving turkey. He clearly loves it. It's not quite his Monkey lovey, but it's certainly close.



The beautiful cornucopia of flowers DH and Turtle brought home for me. So sweet of my boys.



DH went out early that morning to pick up bagels and munchkins. He took Turtle along for the ride. He gave Turtle a munchkin to eat in the car, and Turtle just... held it. And brought it into the house, and then played peek-a-boo with it.







And then, he shoved the whole thing in his mouth and BAM! It was gone.

Grandma loved reading to Turtle.



Turtle loved reading to himself, too.



After the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, Turtle went down for a nap. And then it was time to take on Turkey. My nemesis.

Hello, Turkey. We meet again.



Turkey didn't respond. I think I was being stonewalled.

So here's how I make Thanksgiving Turkey. I preheat the oven to a nice 325F. I then clean Turkey, get rid of all the innards, and pat dry with clean paper towels. I transfer Turkey to the roasting pan and scour the sink clean. We're all about preventing the spread of contaminants and salmonella. Safety first. :)

Next up, we stuff Turkey. I don't use traditional stuffing. Instead, I chop up the following: red onions, garlic cloves, green apple, celery, lemon, lime, orange, fresh rosemary, fresh sage and fresh thyme. I shove it all in there.



In the meantime, I soften some unsalted butter, and have some minced garlic and rosemary on hand. Very gently, and making what I like to call Raw Turkey Face (imagine an expression of disgust and horror, and that's what I'm making), I work my hand in between the skin and the meat, rubbing in the butter, garlic and herbs and far as I can go. It's awful. But it's worth it.

We're almost there. I continue massaging butter and garlic all over the skin of Turkey. I get in all the nasty crevices between the legs and wings. Then I pour a little melted butter and white wine over the whole thing, sprinkle with black pepper, kosher salt and paprika and into the oven Turkey goes.



Any last words, Turkey?



I baste every 30 minutes with melted wine and butter and then I loosely cover with foil for the last 30 minutes of cooking. Yum.

DH requested we serve Manhattans for his dad and stepmom. I have never made them before. These are 2 oz. whiskey, 3/4 oz. sweet vermouth, 3 dashes of bitters, a splash of cherry juice and a cherry garnish. They photographed well. I think they taste like jet fuel, so I took a pass. Dad and Dottie loved them.



We did light appetizers at 1. Flatbread, hummus, olives, apples, cheeses and brie en croute with strawberry jam. Do you know who loves brie? Turtle, that's who.



Taking a break between courses.



The benefit of the portrait lens is that there is little to no adjusting. So DH can take pictures for me!



And so can Grandma!



Dinner is served.

Turkey's not so surly, now. Isn't it gorgeous???









The full menu was roasted turkey with homemade bourbon gravy, homemade cranberry sauce, stuffing, sweet potato souffle, green beans sauteed in garlic and almonds, spinach patties and yeast rolls. We also had a salad of spinach, walnuts, gorgonzola and raspberry vinaigrette. Oh, so good.

Turtle was overwhelmed.



And not all that impressed by the giant turkey leg.



I call this one Pooped Pug.



After cleanup and whatnot, it was time for dessert. I made pumpkin pie, butter cookies and russian tea cakes and a Martha Stewart cranberry sugar pie (that lumpy, misshapen thing).



Cooookies.



Don't let the exterior fool you. That pie was gooood. A little tart, and the crust was a bear to make, but oh... yumminess.



Which brings us to Black Friday.

I would post pictures of us from 4am to about 7am, but yeah, we were sleeping, all snug in our beds, with visions of sugarplums and not dealing with crowds dancing in our heads.

DH was feeling feisty, so he put Bentley on Turtle's pony. I call this one Pissed Pug.



After Turtle's morning nap, we decided to head out for lunch and to see Santa.

Mimi's rules. The Cheerios for the kids is such a great touch.



Grandma and Pop Pop.



Waiting in line at the Gingerbread Cottage. It was very touch and go.



Posing with the toy soldier.



And then? Then we were in.

DH brought Turtle over to the big guy in red.



Santa was awesome. Totally let Turtle warm up to him.



And then we were ready for the official picture.



This is kind of the look we got in the first shot. That mix of fear and horror and I'm going to cry in just a second... The photographer was waiting for a smile. I told him not to worry about that. Just get him being cute, because a smile wasn't in the cards.



And then, amidst the concerned look and the quiet cries of "stuck! stuck! stuck!," Santa pulled out the big guns. He put his finger to his lips and said SHHHHH.

And voila. We have our Official 2009 Photo With Santa.



Great picture with his grandparents. I love this.



Waiting at the valet for the car. What a great day.



To be continued...