Happy Thanksgiving!

Our day started bright and early as the turkey went into the oven.  (The second bird had been in the smoker all night.)  When everything was ready we went to my Grandparents' house to eat with the rest of my Dad's family.  Here's the roasted bird via Alton Brown's recipe.  It was pretty and delicious!

After lunch, the boys played.  Now the Barclift boys have been known to scuffle a little now and then and sometimes get a little rough.  Up until now, Andrew has always kept his distance from the wrestling matches.  Notice I said "up until now."  He has officially been infiltrated.  :)

They had so much fun.  

Next we went outside because my aunt wanted to get some pictures.  I took my camera too.  The magnolia is perfect for climbing!

Here's one of the cousins.  Caden, Will, and Sam

And what's a day without a ride in the mustang?

It was a great day spent with the people we love.  We are so blessed!

Christmas Photo Shoot

Andrew and I had the privilege of having our pictures taken by a new, up and coming photographer in our area.  Her backdrops were wonderful and she did an excellent job.  You should check her out: Tiffany Leath Photography. Here are some of my favorites from the shoot.  You'll have to wait and see which one made the Christmas card when you get yours in the mail!  

 This one is for Drew.

Thanks Tiffany for the great pictures!

A Boy And His Dog

Paw-Paw and Andrew like to spend their days together outside.  This particular day, Andrew helped Paw-Paw move the bird feeder.  He was more than happy to hold the power tools.

 Paw-Paw's little helper

Although he enjoys helping Paw-Paw, he mostly loves to hang out with "his" dog, Bella.  I don't think I've introduced you to Bella Black Dog. (Andrew named her)  This dog showed up at Mom and Dad's the day we got here from Hawaii.  It was really weird because she looks just like my lab I had growing up.  Granted she's a mix,  but she has the same white triangle on her chest and everything as my dog.  (Julie, my lab, died a couple of years ago.  She was just 18!)  What's even weirder...when we first spotted her, she was sitting by the fence, where my Dad buried my lab!  Crazy huh?  So we kept her.  She's a great dog and she LOVES Andrew.  She constantly follows him around the yard and stays right with him.  It's like she feels like she has to protect him.  It's really sweet. And Andrew loves Bella too! The first thing he wants to do every morning is play with Bella.  He says she's his "very own dog." So it looks like we'll be taking Bella with us wherever we end up.

Happy Veteran's Day

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day, which means today is the Marine Corps Birthday.  (Happy Birthday Marines.)   I was reading in the local paper about all the Veteran's Day programs going on at all the different schools.  They all said "All veterans and their families are invited to attend."  I thought about going but then decided against it.  I miss Drew too much to go to a program that honors him and all the other brave men and women who have served and are still serving our great Nation.  (Can we say emotional breakdown?)  So I will officially honor those men and women here on the blog.  THANK YOU for all that you do!  If you haven't already done so today, please take a moment and pray for those who are out there fighting right now.

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

I love pumpkin pie.  Sure, I've made them before using that stuff in the can, but since I sliced my finger open carving pumpkins, I had an extra just sitting there on the counter, staring at me.

So I cut it into pieces, scraped out the "guts" and took them outside to Paw-Paw and Andrew to feed to the cows.

Then  I roasted the pumpkin.  Look how beautiful!  And it tastes good too!

Somehow I managed to miss a picture of the puree.  There was a lot of moisture so I had to squeeze it through a cheese cloth...much better!  Then I added my top secret ingredients and ta-da...pumpkin pie!

I even made my own whole wheat crust and made "tartlets" in the mini muffin pan.  They were so yummy that they disappeared long before I ever took a picture of them!  The guy above only lasted because I hid him for dessert.  

No blog post would be complete without a cute pic of the lil man.

More Halloween Fun

Friday night we carved our pumpkins.  Shortly after carving this little guy, my camera died, so all other photos were taken with the cell phone.  Shortly after starting on the second guy, I stabbed myself and "almost" had to go to the ER for stitches.  I managed to stop the bleeding and hold myself together again with some second skin!  (TMI?  Sorry)  

Saturday night was trick-or-treating in Albertville. Here's Andrew holding up the Fire Department. 

After returning home, I made some sugar cookies and cake balls for Granna's Sunday School class.

Pumpkin cake balls...yum