Supper Sunday-Turkey Soup

Hopefully you have thoroughly enjoyed your Thanksgiving and all the left overs that have been consumed :)  And, hopefully you saved your turkey carcass...  Ugh- that sounds so yucky, doesn't it?  Carcasss...  Carcass... Carcass....  Nope, still sounds ick.....  Turkey bones?  Turkey body?  I digress...  Anyway, I have a treat for you that my sister got me started on several years ago.  Turkey Soup!  When you are getting tired of the left overs this is a great way to get through them without it seeming like you're still eating the same thing :)  If you didn't save your .......a hem... carcass.... this year, be sure to save it at Christmas or New Years or whenever you next make a bird ;)

Turkey Soup

Ingredients:

Turkey carcass

Noodles- make your own if you want!

Left over veggies- carrots, celery, corn, peas, onions (or frozen varieties, whatever you have is fine)

Left over turkey if you have it, but there will be enough on the bones if you don't, so it's fine either way :)

Directions:

Take a LARGE stock pot and place the carcass inside and cover  with water.  Sprinkle in some salt and pepper.  Cook on Med-high heat for a good couple of hours until the bones have released all that yummy flavor and you end up with a huge pot of broth ;).  Some people put onions and celery etc in while this is going on, but I don't, so if you want to you can ;)  I just like my veggies a little crisper....  Remove all of the bones from the broth.  Add in your noodles.  Heat until noodles are done and then add in meat and veggies.  Continue cooking for about 30 minutes longer until all of the flavors have combined...  You can leave it simmering on low for a while if it's not time for dinner yet at this point ;)

Make up some rolls, and maybe some cookies for dessert ;)

GratiTuesday- Health

My Pastor gave a very good sermon on Sunday, and the "after sermon" as it is lovingly termed by parishioners, (the extra stuff he says during announcements LOL)was even better. He spoke briefly about Thanksgiving and why it's important to come to church on Thursday. I'm embarrassed to admit I've never gone to the Thanksgiving service. I'm always busy cooking. This year I think I might. He reminded us that as we go about our normal lives, when we have very little happening that is earth shaking we sometimes forget that we still have things to be thankful for- especially our health. There are so many people who are ill, or nearing the end of their lives, and if you are healthy you should be thanking God for that.

So true! How often do we get down on our knees when we're desperate, or in need of something... How often we praise in Thanksgiving to our God when we're happy with the end result of something.... But the ordinary, day to day life? Well, we're just too busy to thank God for that, or we just plain forget!

I have several friends who are suffering physically, and emotionally. I have many friends suffering from cancer, some nearing the ends of their lives. My healthy body is not lost on me, but I definitely could say thank you to our God more than I do.

So today I am so grateful for my health, and the health of my immediate family. We are very very blessed.

Oh- and did I mention? Fr. D promised a "3 minute sermon"... Yeah... we'll see LOL



This post is linked to Heavenly Homemaker for GratiTuesday.

Family Time Friday- Black Friday

Black Friday is in 2 weeks!!! I'm so excited. I never used to shop the Black Friday sales until a few years ago. Once I went once I was hooked!!! Then about two years ago I found a website that actually gets the ads ahead of time and scans them in. They have a page for the ad scan and the deals listed in text on another page. They also email you when there is a particularly good deal they have come across, or lately the stores have started "Pre-Black Friday Sales", so they email you all of that info too!!!  Black Friday.Info is my go to place to start formulating my plan!  Of course there is nothing like the actually ad in your hand, so I rescan everything Thanksgiving night with my husband and we formulate my plans together.

I've had a hard time trying to figure out what to get my older boys for Christmas this year.  It seems, that they are spoiled rotten and already have everything!  LOL  ;)  Well, as I've been scanning the ads as they've been posted I've gotten a couple of good ideas that I'm going to try to make happen on Black Friday :)

I also am getting older *wink wink* and am getting a little forgetful in my older age, so I've devised a system to keep track of the gifts.  I started a page in my OneNote Notebook that I listed everyone I'm buying a gift for and what I'm getting them, whether I've purchased it or not and whether it's wrapped.  This way I can keep track of where I'm at and shop a little early when I see things are on sale.  I am also shopping for people with more of a purpose, which I feel better about and saves me time.  :)

Last year when I started this list in the computer (which, by the way allows me to password protect that page so not even my husband can see it) I also started wrapping presents as I bought them.  Have you ever bought something and then hidden it, and when you went to do your mass wrapping couldn't find it?????  Yeah....  We've had lots of Christmas presents for the kids turn into Easter presents over the years LOL...  Well, no more of that!  I already have a nice stack of presents on my dresser wrapped and ready for Christmas, and I even know what's in them because it's in my electronic brain- my OneNote file!  WOOHOO...  I'm finally getting this down!

Thoughtful Thursday- Thanksgiving Menu

Thanksgiving is 2 weeks away! Can you believe it??? I can't. Today my older sister came over so we could have out "Annual Plan Thanksgiving Dinner" meeting... We do a big meal, cooking for 16 people and I host it. A little planning is definitely required, in addition to several trips to the store :)

I spoke a little on Friday about Thanksgiving Traditions, but I'm wondering what other people have for "must haves" on their table! So, I'm going to share our Thanksgiving Menu with you and I'd love it if you'd post your menu in the comment section :)

3 12-18 pound turkeys, 1 stuffed

Dressing

Mashed Potatoes

Sweet Potato Casserole

Gravy

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Corn

Green Bean Casserole

Squash Casserole

Frog Eye Salad

Rolls, Rolls, and more rolls

Crustless Cranberry Pie

4 Pumpkin Pies

2 Pecan Pies

Trifle

Banana Pudding

 Holiday Punch- I'm going to try a new recipe and I'll let you know how it is....

Also, during the day we'll have my chocolate fountain running on the cold setting with ranch dressing going through it and a big plate of veggies next to it for dipping, so we have something to snack on :)

Oh- and just for fun- here's a wordsearch to print for the kiddos :)

Your Turn!

Family Time Friday- Thanksgiving Traditions

 

Today I want to talk about Thanksgiving traditions.  I've talked a lot about traditions lately and how they affect your kids.  I've talked about how children take comfort and security in them.  So, I'd like to open up and share different traditions for Thanksgiving so we can all help each other grow.

The food---  Of course, we all have certain food that we eat.  Turkey is the main attraction, but we all have our own side dish (or pie)..  (or both) that is a favorite of ours...  At my house, I always have to make "Frog Eye Salad".  It's a dish my grandmother would make for special occasions, and when we have it, it feels like Grandma is right here with us.  I'll share the recipe at some point for you....  My dad has to have Sweet Potato casserole...  I'm sure there's a certain item that is your favorite too....

The ambiance--  Some people have very formal Thanksgiving dinners, others more casual.  Growing up we had a pretty formal dinner.... and football was not spoken of- in fact it was kind of taboo...  I think because the men probably wanted to watch it and the women didn't....   Now football is a big part of our holiday...  Probably because my husband is a big Cowboys fan...

The activities--  One of my friends gave me an idea to play Bingo.  We did it last year after we were done with dinner and it was a lot of fun!  I'm so glad she shared that with me!  I just got some little items from the dollar store for prizes..  Christmas socks, candy, and some things for the adults too...  I'm going shopping this weekend for our prizes :)

The decorations-- I have a friend who is making turkey feathers and writing what they're thankful for throughout the month of November to display on the turkey display she has made...  We've made turkey handprints, displays, etc...  Get the kids involved- it gets them excited :)

Whatever you do enjoy the holiday for what it is- a time to give thanks for all of our blessings!