Gobble, gobble!

I probably will not be on the 'puter much this weekend with all the festivities going on. The in-laws arrive today. We've got a pre-Thanksgiving spaghetti dinner over at a friend's house that we go to every year. I did not make my grocery run yesterday (the balls of my feet were worn out from my Hobby Lobby run and I can't concentrate at the grocery in heels). So I've got to go this afternoon on my way home from work. My list keeps growing. For tonight, I'm making my yummy spinach artichoke dip. There are tons of different recipes out there for spin-arti dip, but this one is sooooo easy and quick, and it's always a huge hit...


Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:

1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained and cut in half (you can cut up into smaller pieces, but I like mine chunky monkey style)

1 -10 oz. package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayo

1 garlic clove, pressed (I just spoon in some of the jar kind - I'm lazy.)

3/4 cup grated Parmesean cheese



Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Combine all ingredients and spoon into a pie baker (I also add shredded Parm to the top before sticking it in the oven.)

2. Bake 20-25 minutes or until heated through.

3. Serve immediately with pita chips or bread slices. Yields 10-15 appetizer.



Yum-O!

So that's tonight... then for tomorrow I'm making horseradish mashed potatoes and macaroni & cheese. I use Patty LaBelle's mac and cheese recipe. It's cardiac arrest on a plate, but it's delish! And I've totally gotten into mashed 'taters with my new mixer! So fun. I'm experimenting with all different kinds, but so far horseradish is my favorite. Plus I don't use any butter at all with those, so I figure it'll save a few calories on Turkey Day - just a few. It's basically gold yukon potatoes with sour cream, prepared horseradish, and salt and pepper. So yummers. Oh and my chair cover/sash thingees turned out great - I put one together last night and cut the rest of the fabric for the others. I'll take a pic once they're all set up. I'm rather proud of myself - it's my first project with fabric.

After Turkey Day, we are gearing up for midnight madness at the outlet mall not far from our house. Most of the stores open at midnight and it is craziness. We don't really do any serious shopping here - it's more for the fun and the experience. But Pottery Barn is doing 40% off the entire store... Banana Republic is also 40% off... J Crew has some specials but honestly, that crew outlet sucks ass. I'm always totally disappointed when I go in there. I can get better sales through the main store and all that junk is "made for the outlet" anyway - it's not like actual discounted J Crew stuff. Anyway... we'll be heading up there, Starbucks in hand, to join the madness! The hub is totally leading the way - believe it or not, he loves it. Some of our friends even bring walkie talkies - too funny.

Then Friday I will be recouperating and getting ready for my bestest's arrival EARLY Saturday morning. She's flying into town at 6am - yikes - from Hawaii. So the hub and I will pick her up at the busiest airport in the country and then head to breakfast. I'm hoping the airport won't be too bad at 6am! Then Saturday is the Georgia/Georgia Tech game - so we'll be watching that somewhere and hopefully celebrating a big win over those socially inept, calculator-loving nerds. Go Dawgs!

THEN, Sunday afternoon, bestest and I are hosting a trunk show at my house. So we will be going nuts getting ready for that. I've been putting stuff together for it all week and I'm hoping I can get it all done! The trunk show is really 80% her stuff - she does beautiful handbags, accessories, items for baby and kids, and all kinds of stuff. And then I'll be selling some stationery packs and gift tags and such. My stuff is made-to-order, so this is the first time I've made stuff ready to sell - so it will be interesting to see how it goes! I also made these display boards showcasing a selection of my past work. They turned out really cute! And we're also going to have a ball decorating... we're going for the whole preppy pink and green feel. I've got my pink Christmas trees ready and I'm also making a ribbon topiary (Belle-ah - you totally encouraged me with your daughter's birthday pics!) The topiary is almost there - it's looking great so far. We also are serving up cosmos during the trunk show - keeping with the "pink" part of the pink and green. And we'll do a few munchies to keep our shoppers' tummies happy. Any suggestions for some easy and fun girly treats? Emphasis on the the *easy* part as we have so much else to do!!! I will take lots of pics of our setup - I'm uber excited.

After Sunday, I'm taking Monday and Tuesday off to spend some quality girl time with my bestest. Monday, we're going to Intimacy at Phipps for bra fittings. Then we'll probably hop around in Buckhead and probably Atlantic Station too, since she hasn't seen that yet. I'm not sure exactly what all our plans are, but I do know they'll be good and girly!

And perhaps at some point this weekend we'll attempt to get that Christmas card shot again... we'll see. Well, I wish all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving Day tomorrow! May you take a moment to reflect on all of your many blessings and say Thanks! And in keeping with that, I wanted to name five things that I'm especially thankful for...

1. My wonderful husband who makes me smile everyday. He is the biggest dork and I love him for it!

2. My amazing parents who love me endlessly and would do anything in the world to make me happy.

3. Our three silly doggies that put joy into all of our days (and sometimes poop).

4. My fabulous girlfriends that encourage me, laugh with me, and cry with me.

5. My amazing God who loves me and without whom, I'd be one hopeless lunatic.


OK and one more...

6. The amazing deal I got today on these Kate Spade's I've had my eye on... Thank you, Nordstrom. And thank you, Shop-it-to-Me, for your timely sale alerts. I love you.