Some Thanksgiving Recipes

These are some of the traditional recipes that can be found around our table for most holidays. They can be made in advance. I made the jello today and the potatoes will be tomorrow. So it may be too late to add these to your menus today, but you can use them in the weeks ahead if you want.

I think this jello has been in our family since before I was born. One of my cousins wanted the recipe as her shower gift from my mom. I like this recipe because it has hidden protein and fruit. So for my child that doesn't eat a lot, but will eat jello, I have given him more than just jello.

Jello with More (There really is no name for it.)

Boil two cups of water.

In a blender, Blend, 1 can of pears in light syrup with the syrup
1 stick of cream cheese (we use the light)
1 Lg. red jello (we like the reds the best)
After these are blended, Add the boiling water. Blend again. Make sure to cover
the lid with a towel to prevent a jello explosion.
Pour into a bowl or dish or jello mold of your choice. If I really
want to make sure that the kids eat it, I put mini marshmallows on
top. Refrigerate.


We like this recipe for Thanksgiving because we use a turkey roaster for our turkey and then it leaves the oven ready for this. I hate all the dishes that mashed potatoes use to make, so this gets them out of the way a day early.

Mashed Potato Casserole

2 1/2 lbs. potatoes peeled, cut and cooked

Mash with 1/2 cup miracle whip or mayo
8 oz. cream cheese
1 t. onion powder
1 t. garlic salt

Put in 9 x 13 greased casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes if hot or
1-1 1/4 hours if refrigerated.

I hope you enjoy this holiday. Be thankful for those you are with. Love to you all.

A Time to be Thankful

A friend of mine has posted everyday of November something that she is thankful for as her facebook post. I am inspired. I propose that we spend the next week finding something to be thankful for. Here is how it will work. Every morning before your feet hit the floor, take a minute and think of something you are thankful for. Share it with your kids over breakfast. Ask them to share something that they are thankful for. Post it on your facebook. Leave it as a note on the bathroom mirror. Leave your husband a voicemail letting him know what you are thankful for. Leave a thankful comment on the blog. Lets get our thankfulness on. Lets immerse ourselves in thankfulness. Here is mine for today. I am thankful I have a car that drives. It can get me from one place to another. I can run my errands today with a thankful heart. Thank you God for all the gifts that you give us. Help us today to be thankful.

The Fire Alarm

I was awakened by the fire alarm last night. Why do they always go off in the middle of the night? This was not a fire. It was just the crazy beeping. It awakened me at 4. I lay there listening to see if it was real or a dream. I began to fall asleep and there it went again. I got up, grabbed a chair to stand on and pulled it down. I knew it had a battery too so I pulled it out. I stuck it on my desk to deal with in the morning and returned to bed, turned out the light and Beep. How did it do that? There was no power to it. How was it still going off? I turned the light on and marched it downstairs and into the garage where hopefully it wouldn't awaken anyone. As I returned to bed, I couldn't help but think of my favorite show, Friends, and the episode where the alarm goes off. I thought there must be a hidden camera in my room for sure. If anyone knows why they keep going off, please leave a comment. I have no idea.

This is the clip from Friends. Warning. It does contain some language not appropriate for all ears. You can cut and paste this into your browser to see it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tkY08MhfoU