A Chinese Thanksgiving

 It worked. God blessed. We're tired, but we're so thankful. We had a houseful for Thanksgiving... it felt like family gatherings in the past, but all of our guests were Chinese. It is amazing to realize how many friends we've been blessed with in just 6 months!

Ryan was wonderful in watching Hadassah much of the day so I could clean and cook. It was so much fun, too, knowing I was preparing for a big group! Everything got done in time, turned out well, and Google was definitely my friend - you CAN make Thanksgiving food without many things... no evaporated milk for the pumpkin pie, canned soup substitute for green bean casserole (I had one can Ryan's mom brought, but needed to double the recipe), and everything was created without an electric mixer or a rolling pin. But hey, forks and chop sticks work! :)

The turkey was super moist and so delicious! It cooked 8 hours in the crockpot, with lemon, garlic, sage and rosemary tucked inside and around. And wow. Wow. I'm doing it that way every time I'm the one making a turkey!

The spread. I'd asked everyone to bring something to share, so we had some Chinese food for Thanksgiving this year too! Everyone enjoyed it, too. I thought I'd have a ton of leftovers, but besides the large turkey carcass in my fridge, I just have a tad of this and that left!

A family from the baking class I taught came! They are so sweet.

Ryan's boss came, and helped Ryan carve the turkey

We had a time after the big feast but before dessert to share what we were thankful for. Everyone really got into it, making eloquent mini speeches and clapping after each one shared.

Everyone we invited came - 3 co-workers of Ryan's, our next door neighbors, our upstairs neighbors, a family from our church and my Chinese teacher! A total of 26 people including us!

Thanksgiving would not be complete without pie. I made them on Friday, and while they were cooking, it truly felt like it was Thanksgiving with the smell...

Not having tapioca to thicken the apple pie like I always did in the past, I had to find a new recipe. My Idaho friend mentioned she was trying a new recipe when we skyped recently, and when I searched allrecipes.com, the same one was one of the top picks. So, I tried it, and am so glad I did! Apple pie was always good, but never the one I'd go for first... but this one was out of the park! Almost made me like it better than my favorite, pumpkin!

 Everyone was in good spirits, and the party dynamics were so good. It was loud, which meant people were having a good time. :) The kids played together, people enjoyed looking at our family pictures, and when they were leaving, one remarked how nice it was to meet new friends that live close by, that it was a very friendly atmosphere.

Hadassah was definitely more unsure. Poor girl had a rough day. Between teething and less napping than normal, she was pretty fussy and cried if I left her side for a moment. Though, as the evening continued and toys were out, she got a little more confident. I'm learning it's harder to host as a mom! But, it's so worth it. It's good for her to learn some flexibility. And I was thankful for her early bedtime being at home - she always loves going to bed at night - as soon as I put her in her pajamas, she was smiley and happy and went right to sleep despite all the noise!

It truly was. One to remember.