I wrote recently about being a guest teacher in Meagan’s classroom; I jokingly told the class they could call me the Old Mrs. Smith and Meagan the Young Mrs. Smith.
Well, this morning we added yet another person to the Teaching Line up of Smith Women: the lovely Miss Smith!
Today was Sarah’s first day to go back to her High School as a tutor/teacher assistant. Quite a change of pace for her to enter those doors as a high school graduate and college student. She will work there two full days a week which works out well great since her job at Food Lion offers her fewer hours during the off-season.
So proud of our girl!
Have you ever been asked to bring something to a potluck meal or party and all you could scrounge up at the last minute was a box of brownies? Yep. Me too.
In fact, just last week I was to take something to a meal and didn’t have a clue as to what to do. To make things worse, I hadn’t been to the grocery store and the cupboards had little to offer save for a box of dark chocolate brownie mix. So I grabbed the box, added a teaspoon of vanilla to the batter, threw some toffee bits over the whole pan and then added pecans and sliced almonds to selected parts.
Then I cut the brownies into strips instead of squares and voila! I had Dark Chocolate Nut Toffee Fingers instead of brownies.
So here’s your Cooking Tip for the day.
Make brownies. Cut them into a shape other than square. Sprinkle something on top of them. Call it a day.
With that sort of gourmet advice, I’m truly surprised the cooking shows are not beating a path to my door asking me to do a few episodes for them.
Friday night I was invited to a Holiday Gala at another church on the island. About a dozen women in that church volunteered to sponsor a table and to decorate it with a Thanksgiving or Christmas theme and then invite seven other women to join her at her table for the evening.
I was invited by the wonderful Linda Taylor who is one of the world’s best decorators. (And as an interesting aside, she and her family used to live in the house we currently live in.)
I felt so special having my ornament and name tag. (And we got to take our ornament home with us!)
She used burlap for her table-cloth and featured a burlap-clad reindeer as the centerpiece.
The reindeer was much more charming in person than this picture gives it credit for—if a reindeer can, indeed, be charming.
Isn’t it all so lovely?
Here are a few other tables.
What are your plans for Thanksgiving? Staying at home? Traveling? Cooking the whole meal? Cooking a little? Looking forward to it? Dreading it?
Add your voice to our community!
Way to go, Miss Smith! That must have been so exciting for her!
This Thanksgiving we are going camping in Cherokee, NC with family and close friends. This will be our 3rd “Campsgiving” in a row. There will be 21 of us, at last count! We’re so looking forward to spending some time in the mountains! Have a blessed Thanksgiving, Smith Family!
Gayle in AL
Congratulations to Miss Smith! Onward and upward!! 🙂 And best wishes to you all for a happy Thanksgiving!
We don’t celebrate or observe Thanksgiving in my family, so I will be spending the morning running and spending the afternoon on the beach with a garbage bag, gloves and a shovel, doing a beach cleanup. It’s a good day for a cleanup since the beach is usually very empty, except for the diehard surfers, and one can make a lot of progress.
Denise,
How great that you are doing a beach clean up! There are so many careless people who spend their lives doing “beach mess ups” that people like you are a true blessing. Thank you!
loved seeing all those gorgeous tables….. but, wondering what yummies you dined on.
I declined a lovely invitation to be with two Goddaughters and their extended families on Thanksgiving… too many people, and just too “nervousing” when I can’t understand what is being said. However, I will have a nice get together with one Goddaughter and her precious new chocolate lab puppy on Friday…. looking forward to that.
Hope lovely Sarah enjoyed being a teacher.
Mrs. Pam,
All of the table hostesses could choose one main dish to make–ziti or a chicken casserole. (Recipes provided.) Then all the chicken was put in one serving container and all the ziti in another. The church provided salads, rolls, a veggie and delectable cheesecake. There was also a table full of appetizers to get the evening started off right. 🙂
Becky I hope you and yours have a very thankful thanksgiving. We will be with the fam in Goldsboro.
Congrats on Sarah’s new job I wish her all the best!! I know you’d so proud!! Have a great week!! Catherine
Catherine,
Greet your family for us!
Like the brownie idea. I have been just buying the Pillsbury Brownies already made at Sam’s. They are wonderful. Not sure if I will cook (bought a turkey but what do 2 people need with a 12 pound turkey) or if we will go to Cracker Barrel. Will only be Jim and me this year for the first time since we have been married (30 Thanksgivings). Will seem unusual as we will not have parents on either side this year for the first time. I may put up the Christmas tree after lunch or just watch football. We will have a good day. Pray you and your family do also.
Ann,
That will be quite an adjustment to be just the two of you at Thanksgiving; I know we miss our parents a lot more at the holidays, don’t we? Hugs to you both.
those brownies sound great! We have festival of tables each year at our church here in Kenly NC at Free Will Baptist – sounds very much like what you went too. We normally have 12 tables with 6 to a table and I love to see how each is decorated so different. We have the food catered and the husband or grown son of the hostess serves the ladies at her table. It is a wonderful time had by all and we always have a guest speaker and of course singing with the piano. I know you had a great time
Becky,
Yes, I’ve heard of different churches doing similar ideas and you’re right, it IS so much fun to see all the creativity and talent involved in making those tables look so amazing.
Congrats to that sweet Miss Smith!!! XOX I wish her many fun days tutoring. Becky, how lovely you were invited to such a fancy Gala! The tables were gorgeous and I love your ornament. How special! I am SO glad you enjoyed it! I LOVE reading your stories and enjoy all the photos you provide for us! Thank you!! XOX to you too. Hope you are feeling better these days. I hold you all close to my heart.
Bea,
Awwwww, you are so sweet to always say such nice things. I’m so glad to know you enjoy the Smith stories and pictures; that makes me happy.
Our Usual….Old Country Buffet, movies and then home where I will heat up a store bought pie (all the cooking/baking I do on thanksgiving!). And this year, we will get to watch the Seahawks play on Thanksgiving.
Nicole,
I haven’t been to an Old Country Buffet in a very long times since we don’t have them around here. I miss them!! Eating there plus watching movies sounds like a good plan to me. (And no kitchen to clean!)
Congratulations, Sarah, and welcome to the wonderful world of teaching!
I love your brownie idea, Becky. I tend to try things that are way beyond my culinary ability, and for some reason I never get the result I want. I must take the Becky Approach and keep it simple, because your results are spectacular!
Going to my son’s house for dinner; I thought I’d try a new recipe for pumpkin cheesecake. Wait a minute…what did I just say about keeping it simple???
Jan,
Pumpkin cheesecake? That sounds wonderful! I think every once in awhile we can give ourselves permission to walk on the nonsimple side. 🙂
Congratulations to Sarah on her new job, she is really carrying a full load, 2 jobs and a full time school schedule, you must be SO proud of her…….I am flying on Wednesday, from NC to Kansas City ,to pick up my son and my daughter’s dog and head back in his car….unfortunately my daughter cannot join us, she is working at Petland this semester and their big season starts on Friday, many people shopping for little puppies and kittens for Christmas, have a lovely Thanksgiving!
Dale,
Sounds like you have got your work got out for you–but fun work, since it involves being with at least part of your family. So sorry your daughter can’t be with you . . . I know I will be sad the first Thanksgiving Sarah can’t be with us!
My daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter will be here for 3 nights!! Can’t wait! The only way that it would be better is if my son and his wife and our grandson would be here as well. I know we have to share though….
We will have a mostly traditional dinner but will do stuffed chicken breasts instead of the turkey. So much easier and my daughter isn’t a turkey fan. Fine with me! This will be her last trip home before her second baby is born. (Travel ‘restrictions’ go into force December 1st). It will truly be a blessed holiday. 🙂
LeeAnne,
I love the idea of stuffed chicken breasts although to me it sounds terribly difficult. I’ll have to give it a try sometime and see if I can pull them off. Enjoy that granddaughter! (And everyone else gathered around your table.)
For the first time ever we will be traveling to Gulf Breeze Florida! I have never been away from my family for any holiday and I have to say I am a little emotional. We have been married for thirty years and his mother recently moved to Florida. Looking forward to some warmer weather though. It has gotten a little cooler in NC than I like. Hope you guys have a great Thanksgiving!
Sandra,
How exciting to do something new for Thanksgiving although I truly understand the complexity of emotions that accompany doing that new thing. Gulf Breeze sounds like a fabulous place to be while the rest of us North Carolinians shiver. Make some new memories!
Very creative with the toffee-topped brownies. Lovely tables and know you enjoyed. Blessings!
Thanks, Vernie. It’s fun taking something plain and simple and making it a teenier bit fancy! 🙂