I hosted my first Thanksgiving this past Friday. It was a bit intimidating at first, to be following in the footsteps of some excellent hosts who have way more experience in the kitchen than myself. But, I have to say, it went great! My husband smoked a turkey and a brisket on our Traeger grill, and I made garlic herb mashed potatoes in my slow cooker. They all came out DELICIOUS. Thanksgiving is a potluck type affair in my family, which makes it so much less stressful for the hosts, and it gives each household the ability to put their spin on the traditional Thanksgiving fare. It was so wonderful to welcome my family into our home and give back to the people who have given me so much throughout my life. Now that I've got one successful Thanksgiving under my belt I feel so much more confident to do it again. Maybe this will become our new tradition. :)

I'm starting to feel very festive as Thanksgiving nears. My neighbors put a pretty white Christmas tree up on their porch yesterday, and I was so tempted to follow suit and go into full force decorating myself. But, I refrained as I can't bear the thought of jumping over one holiday to get to another. There is so much to be thankful for this year and every year, and I cherish the one day a year we really focus on that. 
This will be our first Christmas here in Orange County and I can't wait to enjoy all it has to offer. We are so lucky to have such beautiful, mild weather here during the winter. I think back to this time last year... I was freezing my buns off back in NYC! Brrrr! Today I was in flip flops and shorts, sweeping off my front porch, basking in the warm sunlight. What a lucky lady I am, what lucky people we are, to live in such a beautiful state! Here is a great list of holiday happenings here in Orange County, hope to run into you at one. :)