happy thanksgiving...

a very happy, blessed, and thankful thanksgiving to all...

thankful...

i am thankful. thankful for so many good things in my life. making an entry daily to my "i am thankful for..." list this month has made me become more aware of how much i have to be grateful for and how many blessings i have in my life. being aware of what i have to be grateful for makes me realize how very many blessings i have, which, in turn, makes me more aware of how blessed i am and more grateful. and on and on... being thankful and giving thanks makes me feel much more blessed and happy!

again, happy thanksgiving! be happy and be thankful...

talking turkey...

this is a vintage lacer to stitch up your stuffed turkey before baking it! i remember my mom stitching up a turkey and i've done it too but not with one of these lacers. i've just used needle and thread. i love the color and and the detail to it! it's amazing to me how something quite ordinary is so appealing to look at. new things just don't have this look.

speaking of turkeys, i heard on the food network that to have a really moist turkey you should soak it in a brine of water (enough to cover the turkey), 2 c salt, and 1 c sugar for 12 hours. i want to try that! hope that you have a moist turkey for thanksgiving!

sharing food and joy...

these pictures are from the children's book "one little, two little, three little pilgrims" by b.g. hennessy. to me these pictures depict the sharing of food and joy at a thanksgiving feast. i love that!

i hope that we are all able to share in the food and joy of thanksgiving with our family and friends and also with those who are less fortunate than ourselves. to count our blessings and to be a blessing to others. isn't that what thanksgiving is all about?

thanksgiving greetings...

thanksgiving greetings to you... again! another thanksgiving postcard to show you today. this one is sitting on top of our breadbox in the kitchen. the color is so good and the turkeys so realistic!

i found the teapot, creamer, and sugar bowl at an antique shop in red lodge, montana when my husband and i were on our honeymoon. they are the pattern of my dishes. i call them church dishes because you used to see them at every church and have even accumulated some of tehm from a neighboring church that closed. i don't know the name of the pattern or who made them. they are plain and simple and cream in color. i love them! they're the only dishes i have and i am always on the lookout for replacements or pieces i don't have. to me they look good whether i'm serving an everyday meal or a thanksgiving feast!

another thanksgiving greeting...

here's wishing you sincere thanksgiving greetings! i love these old postcards and am always on the lookout for old holiday postcards. i love the color and the detail! i like to set them out wherever i can around our home.

they are so pretty to look at and it is fun to read the greetings that have been sent to friends and family in years gone by. as much as i love getting a card or letter in the mail, i can only imagine how much the greetings were appreciated in days past when there was so much less communication!

a frosty morning...

it was a frosty and foggy morning here on the prairie! both the frost and the fog were incredibly beautiful, almost surreal. the earth is looking more and more at rest all the time, and also so peaceful. i love that about this time of year. the earth slows down, the days get shorter and colder, and i am able to be in my warm, cozy home.

the frost and the fog are both gone now but what a show they put on! i'm looking forward to another show tomorrow morning! have a warm, cozy day...

inspired...

it was a beautiful sunday here on the prairie. feeling inspired after church and by the sunny day, i was ready to bake an apple pie! i have apples from our neighbors and my mom's friend. i've made apple butter, apple crisp, and apple cake with the apples. but not a single pie! until today....

i really enjoyed making the crust, peeling and cutting up the apples, and putting it all together. like i said, i was inspired from being at church and the sunny day. it smelled heavenly as it was baking, and looked like this when it was done! i was pleased! and it tastes as good as it looks!

tom turkey on a platter...

and here is the tom turkey that is the most special to me! this is a thanksgiving platter that my dad bought for his mom when he got out of the army. that makes this platter over 50 years old. isn't is great? i love it!!!

i had been looking for a turkey platter for awhile and mentioned to my mom about wanting one. she told me about the one dad had and the story behind it. the platter had been tucked away and i had forgotten about it. i was excited to see it and knew i had found my turkey platter! i asked dad about it and he said i could have it after thanksgiving last year! so now i have a turkey platter! lucky me!

another tom turkey...

here's another tom turkey that decorates our home! this one is a candle. i've also seen other novelty thanksgiving candles including men and women pilgrims and men and women indians.

there'll be more tom turkeys to come...

thanksgiving is only 2 weeks away...

november is nearly half over and thanksgiving is only 2 weeks away! where does the time go? i'm looking forward to thanksgiving, as i always do. i love to get together with family and eat! the food at thanksgiving is just the best! this year we will spend thanksgiving day with my husband's family. he comes from a family of 9 boys and so there is a lot of family and a lot of food!

this little turkey is a creamer that i've had for awhile now. i don't remember where i got it. i like to decorate seasonally and for the holidays so my intention when buying tom turkey was to decorate. and he is doing just that on my kitchen windowsill! now i'm thinking that using tom for his original purpose of serving cream is a great idea for thanksgiving day. what a tasty treat to add a little cream to a strong cup of coffee with a piece of pie! tom is a turkey of many trades. ya gotta love him.....

tasty tuesday...

i love autumn! for many reasons! soup is one of those reasons! there's nothing better than soup on a brisk autumn day to warm you up all over! i love to make soup and i love to eat it. this potato soup is one of my favorites! it's sooo easy to make!

potato soup

8-10 potatoes

1 t salt

boil the potatoes and salt together for 45 minutes.

hand mash the potatoes and then add:

1/2 c butter

1 c sour cream

1 t salt

pepper

stir and add:

2 c milk

simmer until reheated.

garnish with bacon pieces and shredded cheddar cheese.

here are my secrets! i use yukon gold potatoes from our garden which i think makes the soup extra tasty! i fry my bacon with some brown sugar and maple syrup. i add the brown sugar and maple syrup when the bacon is almost done. it gets sticky but the flavor is incredible! i hope you like it!

this is the little owl my friend amy gave me. she knows i like owls so when she found this owl at a thrift shop she had to buy it for me! she also wrote a poem about owls that she gave me with the owl. i named him owen. owen the owl! isn't he cute? i think so! happy day.......

a peaceful thanksgiving...

a peaceful thanksgiving.....that is something i wish for everyone this thanksgiving. a peaceful world to live and love in. peace in our hearts, souls, and minds. peace in all that we think, say, and do. peace.

what the world needs now is peace, sweet peace...

little house on the prairie

i live on the prairie and i grew up watching "little house on the prairie." i also grew up with the whole "little house..." book series. i have been to the laura ingalls wilder museum in desmet, south dakota and was in one of the houses they lived in. it was interesting to see some of their actual possessions! i was able to meet the illustrator (garth williams) for the book series. i was also able to stand under some of the cottonwoods pa planted! these trees are near a field where locals perform a pageant based on one of the books from the "little house..." series at dusk on weekends thruout the summer. it is an incredible experience!

today i've been outside working around the yard, getting ready for winter. in between doing those chores and some chores around the house, i've been watching, you guessed it, little house!!! it has been on all day on the hallmark channel! i looooove the hallmark channel!!!
it started with several of the programs from the series i watched as a kid, starring michael landon and melissa gilbert. and now the "little house on the prairie" movie hallmark made is on! i'm a happy prairie girl!!!

between the beautiful day outside and "little house..." inside, it has been an incredible day! life is good! it doesn't get much better than this! the day could only be made better with popcorn!

and that's coming later! hope you're having as an incredible day as i am!

sunrise...sunset...

here is the sunrise this morning. i know i 've bragged about about our sunsets but our sunrises are as beautiful. it was another beautiful day here in northeast south dakota.

and here is another beautiful sunset! living on the prairie with these sunrises and sunsets is truly a blessing. and as beautiful as they look in a picture, to actually see them, doesn't compare. there's lots of reasons to visit south dakota but i really think you'd love our sunrises and sunsets!

i'm thankful for.... list

it's another beautiful autumn day in northeast south dakota! what a blessing! i'm thankful for these past few beautiful, sunshiny days. it is the season to be thankful and today i've started an "i'm thankful for..." list on my blog. it is a good way for me to really think of what i have to be thankful for. today i've listed my family. i have a greaaaat family. i am thankful for the family i grew up in and i'm thankful for the family i have now!

i hope my list of what i'm thankful for inspires you to consider what you are thankful for...

a season of gratitude

thanksgiving is soon approaching. this is a wonderful oppurtunity for all of us to count our many blessings. november is a beautiful time of year. the color is gorgeous, the sweet, spicy scents that fill the autumn air are incredible, and the days are brisk and short which bring us inside sooner to enjoy our warm, cozy homes and spend a little extra time with our family friends. these are all blessings for me.
i have many blessings in my life, too many to count. altho i have too many blessings to count, each day this november i am taking note of a special blessing each day. my special blessing for today is the first follower on my blog! i am sooo excited! thank you, laura, for being my special blessing today! i wish you and your family many special blessings this thanksgiving season....

another sunshiny day...

another sunshiny day! that makes 2! in a row! that hasn't happened much here this autumn! it is sooo good to see the sunshine come streaming thru the kitchen window. i'm sure my fern is almost as happy as i am about the sunshine!

these plants are in the window where our computer is. they both have come in from outside after the weather got cold. i cut the geranium back and the asparagus fern has really decided to grow!

south dakota has beautiful sunsets. this was the sunset we saw last nite after our first sunshiny day! it was beautiful sunset after a beautiful autumn day!

there's nothing better to end a day than to be able to watch the sun set. as thanksgiving approaches, i am reminded to be grateful for the blessings of a sunshiny day and a beautiful sunset.