1. Turkey or ham?

2. Stuffing or dressing? (is there a difference?)

3. pumpkin or pecan?

4. early morning shopping or sleeping in?

5. Macy’s parade or Hallmark Christmas movies?

Everyone who does the quiz is entered to win a copy of In Good Hands!

The cobwebs must go, and the dings, gouges and black marks on the walls . . . because you want your dysfunctional family to think that you live in a magazine, right? I’m not sure why most of us get into this frenzy of preparation, but we do. And then everyone arrives to create chaos. 

Little Irwin spills grape juice on your couch. Susie drops her Barbie doll onto a hot burner on your stove, and shrieks to the heavens when her sequined-clad butt grafts to it permanently.  (Barbie’s, not Susie’s, thank God.) And to top it all off, your cousin, who talks with her hands, sweeps the pumpkin pie off the sideboard as she tells a story. Splat! Um, ice-cream, anyone?

The oven door may be fixed, but a hinge on a cabinet door will malfunction, leaving it hanging drunkenly just in time for pictures. The toilet may now flush, but the coffee pot will die. And the new rug looked a lot better without burnt-orange smears all over it.

Are you feeling thankful? I am.

I’m thankful that my dogs have already gotten mud all over the deck that I slaved for hours to paint last weekend. I am thankful that the outdoor cushions I scrubbed are already re-growing mold. I’m thankful that the new plants I put in the front beds are hanging out with the wrong crowd: weeds.

Murphy and his Law like to laugh at people before the holidays. What can you do?

Seriously? Be thankful. For your family, your home, the blessings you’ve been given, and for the opportunity to have people mess up your house! They’re there because they love you . . . and everyone knows that you don’t live in a magazine. Get real!

Wishing you the very best for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday–chaos and all,

Karen Kendall

My husband is big on the traditional Thanksgiving meal, and I honestly don’t mind. Though, I do like to throw in something new each year. Last year it was a really easy cranberry dish. This year, I’m thinking about two different dishes one for the holiday and one after.

On Thanksgiving, I’m going to make some stuffed mushrooms. One of our favorite Italian places has the best stuffed mushrooms. I’m stealing their sauce, which is vodka sauce, but I’m going to try something different on the inside. Since I’m making stuffing, I’ll just put some stuffing in the mushrooms and sprinkle some cheese on top and some sauce. What do you guys think?

After Thanksgiving, I want to try to make a Turkey Shephards Pie. Doesn’t that sound good? I’m thinking I’ll start with a good pie crust (good as in I bought it at the store). Then in a big frying pan I’ll mix the left over turkey, gravy and any veggies we might have left over. I’ll add some sauteed onions and mushrooms. I’ll add a bit of garlic, cajun seasoning and cumin (I love the combo of cumin and turkey) and heat everything through. I’m hoping the gravy will thicken around all the goodies. Then I’ll put in the the pie crusts (maybe two) and put the left over mashed potatoes on top. Then I’ll stick it in the over for a half hour or so on medium heat.

I don’t know if either one of these will work, but they sound good in my head.

What is your favorite part about Thanksgiving and do you have a favorite dish? Feel free to share recipes. And someone who comments here will win an autographed copy of Model Marine, and all who comment will be entered to win an e-reader and other great prizes. (You can find details on my blog at www.candacehavens.com)

And tomorrow is Veterans Day, so let’s take a moment to remember those who put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms.

Unfortunately,one’s first impression of me is that I’m a flighty, bubble-headed, “Blonde”. Because I tend to be happy and optimistic. However, that is a misconception. I am a HUGE list-maker, very organized, and like to plan ahead. My critique partner, Pam, despairs of me ever being spontaneous.
And this specific information about me was a long way around to tell you this. I love to make lists.
And the best list I ever made was as a gift to each member of my family for Valentines one year. It was 10 Things I Love About You.
Both my parents said it was one of the best gifts they ever got and that they cherish their lists and have them tacked up on the wall in their bedroom.
The next best list I ever wrote was for me. A Gratitude List.
If you’re ever feeling down, or life has just gotten the better of you lately, try making a Top Ten List of Things You’re Grateful For. Perhaps you’ve already done this. If so, you can attest to how life-changing it can be. When we focus on the good things in our lives, it helps us get through the rough patches.
And since this is Thanksgiving weekend, I thought this was an appropriate time to pull out my list and share it with you. And if you want, maybe you can tell me a couple of things you are grateful for in your life.
Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Top Ten List of things I’m Grateful For
1. Hugs from my kids (Hugs from anyone!)
2. kisses from my hubby
3. chocolate
4. listening to a great song
5. reading a really great romance
6. family vacations (includes mom and sisters)
7. being with enthusiastic writers and talking writing
8. shopping for furniture
9. meeting my writing goals for the day
10. Unexpected reprieves or income—free time or money you weren’t expecting to have

Most people do this kind of reflection around the New Year and make resolutions. But I have a different way of looking at it. This is a time of year when we need to remember that it’s important to be thankful during the good times and the bad times.

The instant I begin to feel sorry for myself, and I mean within minutes, I’ll see an article or a friend will call, and their problems will be way worse than mine. I’m grateful that I have the life I do.

Why I’m thankful:
1. I may be working three jobs, but they are all jobs I love.
2. My kids might drive me crazy, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything in the world. And I love that they are good men.
3. My husband might also drive me crazy, but he’s a good man and very supportive of my career. (Though, he keeps saying, “When can I quit my job and fish all day while you work?” LOL. I tell him I’m working on that.)
4. I may not sleep much, but I’m grateful that my brain goes 220 miles a minute and is always filled with ideas.
5. I have parents who also drive me crazy sometimes, but they are my biggest fans and have always told me I could accomplish anything I put my mind to. My entire extended family is this way. I wish everyone could have a family like mine.
6. I get to live in different worlds with my writing. I’m thankful for my ability to lose myself in these world and write the stories that I do.
7. This should have been higher on the list but I’m too lazy to go back and re-type all the numbers: I have the most amazing friends. These are people who are 100 percent there for me – always.
8. I work with great people at my publishing houses. Sure my editors can make me cry with revisions, but they always make the books better.
9. I’m grateful that I had the courage to go to Grad School. It’s so freakin’ hard sometimes, but it’s opened my world in ways I can’t even begin to tell you.
10. I’m just grateful to be alive. I don’t take very good care of myself, but that’s about to change. No, for real this time. It isn’t about being slim, it’s about feeling good. And I really want that for myself.

So share the things that you are thankful for and don’t be shy!

Happy Holiday’s Ya’ll

How about you? US Thanksgiving is coming up and the Canadians already had theirs, so what pie is going to be, or already was, on your Thanksgiving table? I’ll give away a copy of my December Blaze, A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS, to three commenters who talk pie today.
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And the random number generator has picked Linda Henderson, Cim Hardt, and Colleen as the winners of A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS!
E-mail me your address at Heather(at)HeatherMacAllister.com Thanks for talking pie!
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What is something UNEXPECTED this year for which you are thankful?

Usually, I’m thankful that SOMEONE ELSE is making the food that is so fabulously arrayed before me. Usually, I’m thankful for my family and friends, my recent contracts, my generally wonderful life. Yadda yadda. Okay, so I’m blessed. But this year, something incredibly weird happened.

I’m thankful that I AM able to try and cook something this year. Yes, for my vegetarian daughter I’m going to try and cook a vegetable pot pie. The recipe was in Vegetarian Times to which we subscribe. But…you see, I don’t cook. Well, maybe microwave popcorn, but that’s the extent of it. In fact, I’m becoming something of a raw-ist not because of principle or anything like that. But because I’m too lazy to do more than pull spinach leaves out of a bag. Add some pre-shredded cheese and I’ve got dinner.

So the fact that I’m motivated to try to cook something as elaborate as pot pie…well, that is a shocker indeed. And kudos to whatever urge struck me hard enough to get off my duff and try. So THANK YOU to the mysterious urge. I’ll let you know later if the experiment causes other people to thank me for NOT doing this again next year.

UPDATE: Vegetarian Pot Pie was edible. Barely. Was welcomed to make it again for next year, so long as I’m not hurt when no one eats it. But I tried, so I feel like it was win!

Seriously, how can you not nap on Thanksgiving Day? The food, from those carbs in the yams to the Tryptophan in the turkey is tailor made for snoozing. And it forces one of those drooling-on-the -pillows-zombie kind of zonks. You know what I’m talking about. If you wake up and you don’t have serious pillow case lines on your face, it wasn’t a real nap. It’s the only time I’m rude when there are guests in the house. If they aren’t gone an hour and half after Thanksgiving lunch, I have to excuse myself with a headache (all that stress of preparing the meal, ya know), curl up with a good book and then get my nap on. (It’s important to get as much rest as possible on Thanksgiving Day, because the next day is all about shopping. I’ll talk more about that in another post.)

So here’s how it usually goes down here in the Havens house:

If we’re having the meal here, and we usually are, I’m up early to make sure the turkey and the roast are on. Then I start preparing all the side dishes. I don’t have to do many of those, because it’s pot luck and the rest of the family brings sides and desserts. There are HAVENS STAPLES for every holiday. These include Cheezy Green Beans, cranberry sauce (I’ll share the recipe for my favorite in a bit) and some kind of sweet potato/yam dish. The food is put out in a banquet style, because at the minimum we’ll have 20 peeps to feed, and it’s usually more. We have family spread out all over the downstairs at various tables and it’s a blast. The more people eat, the sillier they get. My face usually hurts I laugh so much. And then everyone leaves and it’s nap time. It’s a really wonderful day.

I want to hear about how you spend your Thanksgiving Day. Do you help out at a soup kitchen? Do you have favorite foods? What traditions do you have?

To show my thanks for you guys hanging out on the Blaze Blog here’s one of my favorite recipes for Cranberry Sauce. I found it in the November 2007 issue of Domino Magazine.

Cranberry-Clementine Sauce
Serves 8-10
2 clementines
2 packages (12 oz) fresh cranberries
2 cups sugar
Slice clementines thin (with skin on) and then place in a sauce pan with the cranberries, sugar and 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to simmer and cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool before serving.

It’s so easy, and so tasty! People will think it took you forever to make.

Happy Thanksgiving, Ya’ll