Thanksgiving feast reimagined...

I hope all you living in the States had a very nice Thanksgiving.   We had a small, but happy gathering with our sons and middle son's girlfriend on Thursday.  We've forgone the traditional turkey meal for I don't even know how long now, and this year settled on the idea of having a Taco Bar.  It was so much fun with everyone in the kitchen at one point helping to pull the various components together for our meal of make your own tacos.

As is usual when we have family get togethers, we played some games.  My favorite games are ones that get people to talking - especially if people start talking about themselves, or about memories that come up during the game.  And of course, laughter is a must - so nothing too serious, or too long or complicated for that matter.  Before we ate, we played A Fake Artist Goes to New York.  A long, goofy name for a very simple and funny game.  And after our tacos, we played So Clover!  Why oh why do I not think in the moment, to snap some pictures?   Here are links to explanations of So Clover! and A Fake Artist Goes to New York if you're curious about them.  

It was a good Thanksgiving Day.  Over too soon, but that always seems to be the way it is anymore.  I feel it more keenly the older I get.

Below is a picture of my dad (in 1986).  His tradition was to cook the Thanksgiving and Christmas turkey every year.  I suppose we all pitched in once we were older, but since I was a little girl until she couldn't do it anymore, I remember Mom made traditional hearty sides including oyster dressing at Thanksgiving.  That dressing was my favorite part of our Thanksgiving feast.

Though we did all look forward to the turkey 

that Dad roasted and basted to perfection.  

There is something to be said for keeping to traditions.

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On the crafting front, I recently finished the Sweet As Can Bee blanket I started a few weeks ago.  It's a nice midweight afghan, perfect for slightly chilly evenings, and it puts a fun pop of autumn color in the living room for this time of year.  I'm so glad I finally made it:

And now I'm on to decorating the Christmas tree, 

and starting a new crochet project!   

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Sweet as can bee...

I know this was supposed to be the weekend that I would take pictures of all the hats I've recently been working on, but that didn't happen.  They're pretty much finished, but I still have to trim some of them.  The hats are still on schedule to be delivered when they're supposed to be, but this post isn't going to include them.  I've got other things to do.  😉

Today we are celebrating youngest son's 23rd birthday.  All three sons should make it for lunch today and then some games - and I'm just so excited!

I do have another finished project to show, though.  I had crocheted this Sweet As Can Bee Blanket (adult sized) without telling anyone, and didn't want to share about it here because it was meant as a gift:

I recently mailed it off to my sister who is undergoing chemotherapy, and I got word this week that she received it - so I can now post a picture of it. 

The back story on the yarn...  A couple of years ago I ordered a lot of this yarn thinking it was a nice shade of blue.  When I received it, I did think it was pretty, but my was it blue!  I used little bits of it here and there, but somehow I just never felt quite confident about using it in a large project.   So it waited patiently for its purpose to be discovered.

When I looked at it more recently I suddenly realized that it would be a perfect color for a blanket for my sister.  I had seen a picture of her in a similarly colored sweater and she looked stunning, so I imagined she'd look equally good cozied up in a blanket of nearly the same color.  I had also recently come across this blanket pattern, and I thought it was a perfect design.  And...  I was pretty confident I had just enough yarn to finish an adult sized blanket made from the pattern.  But it started to look like a race of Yarn Chicken as I got to the border, so I had to think fast.  By adding that one row of slightly darker blue in the edging, I had just enough.  Success! I thought.  I washed it and mailed it off.  

And you know what?  After she received it, one of the first things she said was that she loved the color.  😊  

The yarn,  Deborah Norville Everyday, is one of my favorites for washability and softness.  It's also non-pilling.  All great characteristics for a yarny blanket, in my opinion.  The colorway here is Cornflower.  The perfect name for the perfect color for a pretty lady with pretty blue eyes.  And the stitch pattern...  it's as sweet as can bee!  

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They made it!   Picture added Sunday night - after post was published.

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