HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
This is the embroidered wall hanging that I display on the inside of my front door every November. I look at it all the time and wonder how I had the patience and time to do this detailed work.
Thanks to certain members of my family I have beautiful seasonal bouquets of flowers in my kitchen all year long. I love the deep maroons and rusty colors of Autumn. Now the foliage is gone and the days are getting shorter and the weather feels kind of ominous. I love this time of year when we're waiting for Thanksgiving and Christmas to come.
A few weeks ago Chris and I went to NYC for a long weekend to celebrate our 26th anniversary. We had a wonderful time and I got to play Moonstruck again. I look forward to going to the opera all year long. This year we saw Rigoletto. It was beautiful, especially the last scene because all of the music was so familiar. To hear it sung live is one of the wonderful experiences I will always remember.
I always have to have something to look forward to otherwise the week days seem too long and the weekends way too short. Just thinking about the next time I go to the opera will get me through the long winter ahead.
We hit just about all of my favorite haunts. We popped into City Quilter and I bought this felt candle mat pattern. Stay tuned we'll see if I ever make it.
The weather was beautiful and Bryant Park was hopping. There are some wonderful unique shops by the skating rink. I bought some lovely Christmas gifts. In the past we've walked by these shops and I wasn't impressed but this year I'm really glad we strolled by.
Sunday afternoon we saw an Off-Broadway play called Perfect Crime. It was very good and something different. All during the show I told Chris the actor who plays the detective looked very familiar. I knew I had seen him many times on TV. Later I looked at my Play Bill and saw he is Richard Shoberg. He played Tom Cudahy on All My Children from 1977 - 1995. No wonder he looked familiar I watched him for twenty years! He's 70 now but you'd never know it. He's still handsome.
After the play we strolled past Radio City while we tried to hail a taxi.
We finally got one and met Kristen and her friends in Little Italy for dinner.
As usual it was packed. It has always been a tradition in our family to go to NYC over the Christmas break but last year and now this year we've decided to put that to rest. As much as we love the City at Christmas time it's just too crowded.
When we were in London several years ago we had Pimm's cocktails. When we travel we always try to eat and drink what is native to where we are. When we were in Paris we drank Kir Royale's. When we were in Italy we drank Spritz's, etc. When we got home we tried to recreate them but somehow they never tasted the same. But when Chris made this Pimm's Cocktail it was perfect. So if we're home for dinner on Thanksgiving and Christmas it's our tradition to sit in the living room and relax with a Pimm's cocktail before we start our feast.
Here's the recipe and promise you'll love it. It hits all the spice notes of the season.
Our Thanksgiving feast consists of all the traditional foods and a bit more. We make homemade cornbread to add to the bread in the stuffing. I buy an extra package of cranberries for cranberry bread and we always have pumpkin bread. I've tried a lot of recipes over the years but I always go back to the tried and true. I have no idea how old this recipe is and I have no idea which Sue owned this book. I know and have known so many Sue's it could be anyone! But regardless which Sue this is, this recipe is wonderful. I don't have a photo yet because we'll make the breads Wednesday when we make our pies. They have to taste fresh when they're warmed up Thanksgiving Day.
From my family to yours...
Have the best Thanksgiving!
