(SIDE NOTE:  My annual holiday recipes from friends and family are posted on The Joy-Cafe – head on over and check them out!  Send me some of your faves and I’ll post them there, too.)

I have no idea where I’m spending Thanksgiving this year. The closing on the new house came to a screeching halt when the title company discovered the land is listed in the 6 kids names. They had to overnight papers for signature to California and places in Arkansas. OK.  They *could* all be back before Thanksgiving but I’m preparing for either house!

I discovered some amazing NEW recipes I’m going to try this year – very exciting.  I love trying new recipes as long as the old standards are still included.  But I ask you:  if you hear the words “Whiskey-Glazed Carrots” wouldn’t you try them too??  Here is The Pioneer Woman’s picture of her recipe.  It will also be on my table this year!

Then we will be having our family favorite which we discovered a few years back – TURDUCKEN.  We order ours from Louisiana from the online store, Cajun Grocer.  If you’ve never tried truducken, you owe it to yourself to order one.   You might want to wait until after Thanksgiving since you’d pay a premium for shipping right now – but oh my.   A turducken is turkey, duck and hen – a semi-boneless turkey stuffed with a deboned chicken and deboned duck breast.  Our stuffing this year is Seafood Jambalaya (crawfish, shrimp & rice) stuffing between each bird.  There are several stuffing choices (or none).

This is my first year without my mom (she moved on to heaven to join Dad in March).   She loved the holidays and had some great recipes she’d collected over the years as an Army wife.   The very best is her cornbread dressing.   I’ll post that recipe at Joy-Cafe later today.

And don’t forget sweet potatoes!   This year I’m incorporating a side dish that isn’t sweet – sweet potatoes with sauteed onions, garlic and red peppers (salt & pepper).   Oh major yum.   Then mashed potatoes and baby peas.  We will also have the traditional sweet potato casserole – Alpha Hubby’s recipe is yowzers.  I’ll post it on the Joy-Cafe website later today or tomorrow.  It is very rich in butter and flavor.

I’ll have some delish rolls from Pouparts in Lafayette LA and ice tea.  So that’s it for now unless I get newer recipes to try before Thursday.  I am thankful for so many things, most especially for how good God has been to us this past year.   I am thankful for health, family, friends, and more than enough in my life!  I am thankful for an amazing son and his beautiful girlfriend.

Most of all, I am thankful for Alpha Hubby for 15 (almost 16) amazing, unbelievable, stupendous, miraculous, happy, passionate, thrilling, and FUN years.  BayBay, it’s just going to get better and better.  You make it all so much wonder.

I’m hooked on you and so grateful you’re in my life to help me experience days of heaven upon the earth!