Thanksgiving - 2011 Cranberry Smackdown

Thanksgiving -it's the berries!

OR IS IT?

I give you...the 2011 Cranberry smack-down:
As you can see - it was natural vs. canned this year, and as the following photos will attest...

constantly tended cranberries:

horribly scarred wooden spoon:

Disgusting "cooking" evidence on my counter:

It's CANNED for the win!! Not only did I have to deal with the horrifying mess above (which yielded a mere 3 cups of sauce), I had to endure the unappreciative faces of my family, who announced my final product either " too tart" or "too sweet"! I even added alcohol!! Whatever!

of course, I also made my famous Butterscotch Pies...
and I SLAVED over the stuffing as well:
Then it was over the river and through the woods (about 3 miles while listening to KOIT 96.5 Christmas music) to my sister's house, where I was greeted like this:

Everyone was very excited for the feasting to begin:
The decorations and table looked great...

and of course auntie kept the small fry entertained and out of the way for as long as I could...with assorted crafts. The annual "design your own cup" craft:
which created a friendly contest of sorts:

and some ornament crafting with beads and wire. The 11 year old niece had to assist Auntie in figuring out this craft, and the results were pretty cool:
Some people, I WON'T SAY WHO, were a little obsessed with only one table item:
After devouring the turkey and trimmings, I tried to get some random photos of the kids while the adults sat around digesting:
my 13 year old niece took over the camera for a bit and did a great job with the following shots:

Then auntie recovered enough to take some shots while the desserts were being set out:

showing off her purple nails:
Here's a cool shot of dad with the kids, passing down Thanksgiving knowledge:Some people, I WON'T SAY WHO, were a little obsessed with getting a free handout:
and then the annual "Pie Envy" event began:
Critic:
and finally, the saddest Thanksgiving face ever...
Please note: It's HIGHLY unlikely this dog was denied turkey. Or rolls. Or stuffing.

The Small Fry is Saved! (and just in time!)

The smallest of the small fry is getting big! The deed could be put off no longer - she must follow the path of her three older siblings and be officially baptized!

So the family gathered at the river.....I mean church...and prepared to welcome this particular small fry into the fold.

As soon as we entered the church, she very much got into the spirit of things:

She and her sister were even inspired to stand still for a nice portrait together:
of course, this mood could not last long, and her natural instincts soon took over:
Then it was on to the big moment - she seemed a little unsure of the whole upending process, but took it in good spirit and didn't shame herself with any tears:
the result:
The it was off to the rest of the ceremony. Now, the priest told us he had never in his 16 years of baptizing kids seen a toddler pull this next move and he was deeply moved by her "re-blessing" of her own parents:

It moved everyone to tears, it was so cute and heartfelt! A moment of reflection for the newly baptized child followed:

Then the glory of the moment was upon her!

SOME PEOPLE, I WON'T SAY WHO, weren't impressed by her new found holy attitude:
Time for a family portrait:
and big brother got a chance to share the spotlight:
Her holiness was full of smiles as we ended the picture session:
Then it was off to the house for a new outfit and new attitude:

The usual suspects showed up to help celebrate:
and while the adults reminisced about catholic school days and drank toasts to the small fry's new status - the older smaller fry worked off the energy they saved up while sitting still in church:

The star of the afternoon, after waking from a well deserved nap, was all smiles as she spied the pile of gifts:

And of course, big sister was RIGHT THERE to help her open gifts:


and that, as they say, IS THAT!