Beyond Betavia: Thanksgiving 2011

We had the privilege of having Tim's family over for Thanksgiving dinner. It was a wonderful holiday where I cooked my third turkey ever and the rest of the family brought some side dishes. I had fun setting up the table with these corn husk centerpieces and my grandmother's china.

Plus the two-seater "kid's table" in the corner of the dining room.

I remember as a child having Thanksgiving at my Grandmother's house and we were always sequestered to the "kid's table" as there was not enough room at the main dining room table with the adults. Since the kids can feel separated from the main table, I wanted to make sure they still felt special with their own centerpiece candle. This two-seater could actually be a romantic dinner setting for two adults as well.

Tim had his niece read Abraham Lincoln's Proclamation of Thanksgiving. I had not realized that it was Lincoln who declared the third Thursday of November our National Thanksgiving holiday during his presidency in 1863. This proclamation was stated amidst the Civil War and more of a prayer with Lincoln's eloquence in honoring God above all. This proclamation is worth the time to read if you click on the link above, but following is one quotation of many that I loved:

Here are some photos of the table decorations in celebration of so much to be thankful for.

Colorful leaves from the front yard we used as table decoration

Real and non-real pumpkins mixed together

We set the table three days before Thanksgiving to save time

Fall leaves mixed in with the centerpiece

The old and new mixed together

Place settings added to gold beaded fruit

Since the table was full with guests and not much extra space, we served the food buffet style rather than pass the food around the table. Here's what I did for the buffet table and utilized an overflowing horn of plenty.