So, This Is Thanksgiving

Americans love their holidays, and none is more "American" than Thanksgiving. In the year1621, after surviving a brutal year colonizing the new world, pilgrims invited the native americans to join them in a feast of harvest bounty. After 400 years, the origins of the first Thanksgiving no longer matter to most folks. Now, the holiday is just about family and food. 

So, here is a typical Thanksgiving feast, courtesy of my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law.

First, the good china is brought out, and the table is decorated....

Next, every available burner is put to use on the stove. The oven is filled  early in the morning with a turkey. When the turkey is done, rolls, sweet potatoes and dressing have to cook....they are the last things to get done.

Here, there are potatoes boiling for mashed potatoes, fresh green beans are cooking, and a creamy mushroom sauce is simmering.

There are usually so many dishes and desserts that there is hardly enough space to even set them all out in one spot. This is the small table in the breakfast nook. There are four pies, a cake, and cole slaw, along with the uncooked sweet potato casserole and the rolls, all crowded together.

When the turkey comes out of the oven, it has to sit and breath for just a bit before it is carved for the table. I am not sure, but I think this turkey is about a 18 to 20 pound bird.

I am not sure why, but only the men carve the bird....which is fine with me. The women usually start the meal in the wee hours of the morning, so by the time the turkey comes out of the oven, they are glad for any help they can get.

Here is the result of a whole day in the kitchen....

clockwise starting at noon:  green bean casserole with mushroom sauce, turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potato casserole, cranberry sauce, cauliflower and cheese sauce, and cornbread dressing.

There is no way to eat all the food that has been prepared, so the host family has left-overs for several days.  Yummy!

This is basically all Thanksgiving is about...

There are still some people who remember that the purpose of this holiday is to thank God for his care and his provisions, and I am one of those folks, but when you get right down to it, there is no arguing that most people just focus on the food.

So, I want to take a moment and thank God for all he has blessed my family with. We appreciate all his care, the health he has given us, the family and friends that surround us, and the blessing of living in a beautiful land....
Happy Thanksgiving!

Pecan Pie...A Thanksgiving Tradition

Although Thanksgiving is a singularly American holiday, let us all give thanks for the good things God has blessed us with. I am thankful for the simple things....our home, our jobs, food on the table, and most of all, our family. 

Unlike some holidays, Thanksgiving does not rely on glitter and gifts. It is just a time for family to gather around the dinner table. The family cooks fix fabulous meals that are almost identical every year. At our house, we have turkey roasted in the oven, mashed potatoes and giblet gravy, cornbread dressing, sweet potatoes with marshmallow topping, rice and broccoli casserole, homemade dinner rolls, and pecan pie. 

This year, the pecans came from our own trees. We harvested them as they fell, then Richard shelled them.

Here is Joe, our grandson, learning how to make a pecan pie.

I make my pie crust from scratch. That means I do not use a mix, and I do not measure exact amounts. I put some flour in a bowl, then cut in some Crisco until the texture looks about right. I add about 1/2 teaspoon salt for each pie crust, and several tablespoons of icy water. I mix it all until it forms a ball of dough.

After lightly wetting the tabletop, I put down a sheet of wax paper, which will not move around if the table is damp. Then, I sprinkle flour on the wax paper and put the dough ball on the paper. Joe and I each had a rolling pin, and we took turns rubbing flour on our rolling pin, then rolling the dough. After we rolled it out a little larger than our pie plate, we cut the dough into a circle and put it into the plate.

Next, we pinched the edges of the dough to form the top crust. Joe wasn't quite sure how to pinch the dough, though. Next year, I am sure he will do better. Before adding the pie filling, I take a fork and poke holes in the pie crust so it does not bubble up in humps as it bakes.

There are lots of recipes for pecan pie. Mine is pretty simple.

1 cup Karo syrup      1 cup white sugar     3 tablespoons brown sugar   1/3 cup butter
3 eggs                         1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix the ingredients. Then line the bottom of the pie shell with about 1 cup of pecans. They will rise to the top as the pie bakes.

Pour the filling over the pecans. Place the pie on a cookie sheet to catch any spills as it  bakes and cover the edge of the pie with foil so the crust does not get too dark. Bake the pie at 350 degrees for somewhere between 50 and 75 minutes. You will just have to look at the pie and see if it is too jiggly when you shake it. It can jiggle a little bit, but not too much. It will continue to set as it cools.

Joe was very proud of his first pecan pie. I will treasure the memory of teaching him how to bake a pie, and I hope he will always remember cooking in his grandma's kitchen.

That is what Thanksgiving is all about....family and love, for which I am very thankful.

Hiram Wilson Pottery...a Guadalupe County Treasure

Just a few miles southeast of Seguin off Farm Road 466, in the small community of Capote,  you can drive past one of the greatest archeological treasures of Guadalupe county. For there you will find the remains of the Hiram Wilson pottery.

Hiram, and his brothers Andrew and James, were  the slaves of Prebyterian minister John McKamie Wilson before the Civil War. They learned how to make pottery from the rich Guadalupe clay from Reverend Wilson, and after the war, they established their own pottery.
This was one of the first business owned and run by freed slaves in Texas.

While browsing boothes at the Pecan Fest trade days, I came across several tables filled with old pots, including at least one Hiram Wilson and Company pot.

The Wilson brothers began their business in 1869. The Wison pots were utilitarian service pieces made of a salt glazed stoneware. They are highly coveted by collectors. Here is an example of the brother's work, with their company name stamped near the rim.

Scattered Showers and a Showy Sunset

Big, white, fluffly clouds backlit by the setting sun are just the precursor to....

Rain....falling over the fields and roads in scattered showers, while the sun sets in a fiery display of color.

Monarch Madness

This has been a great week for butterfly lovers. I have spent several days visiting Walnut Springs Park just because the butterflies are out in force. From experience, I can tell you that it is possible to go for long periods of time and not see hardly any butterflies at all. Then, BAM! Something happens and the butterflies are everywhere. 

Most of the butterflies I spotted in the last couple of days are the showy orange Monarchs. There were also a few Pipevine Swallowtails, which never sat still long enough for me to get a good shot....their wings flutter so fast. So, today, I present the Monarch. I hope you enjoy!

The Amazing Grace Baptist Church Pecan Feast

 There were many events staged across Seguin in honor of the pecan harvest during October 26 through 28, 2012. For the second year in a row, one of the local churches sponsored a free feast to anyone who wanted to eat. Barbeque ribs and sausage, potato salad and beans were served to several hundred folks.

The church wanted to feed people both physically and spiritually, so food was not the only thing that the church offered. There were several hours of gospel music, a few people spoke to the crowd about God and his impact on their lives, and the Gideons passed out Bibles to anyone who would take one.

It was a wonderful time of fellowship and love. I was blessed to be a participant in the program. Here are some of the other people who attended....

First, here are some of the cooks and the "muscle" who moved tables and chairs into place.
Kenneth, on the left, is the drummer for the church praise band. Next, Kevin provided and cooked the ribs. They were delicious! Ed, wearing the blue jacket, and Dean, on the right, also helped out.

 Debbie is the church bass player, but she also plays the accordian. Her rendition of "I'll Fly Away," with the church praise band, got the crowd excited.

There were also musicians who are not members of the church who came and sang for the crowd.

The Kingsbury Trio, three men from Kingsbury, Texas, sang the old-time gospels songs in great three part harmony.

 Evelyn, also known as "Bee-Jay" gave a testimony about God helping her through a dark time in her life when she had a heart attack. It was very moving.

The Bride of Christ, a group of ladies from Seguin, listened to Bee-Jay while they waited for their time on the stage.

This lady really knows how to play the saxaphone. The Bride of Christ has accomplished musicians and singers who love to share their talent with others.

At 4:00, the servers donned their aprons and hair nets. After the pastor, Brother Terry Davis, asked God to bless the food, folks got in line to be served. There was enough food to feed 1000 people, though there were not that many in attendance. That just meant that everyone could have as much as they wanted to eat!

 Carol and my husband, Richard, were two of the servers.

Here is Brother Terry serving one of the guests. Next to him, Laura gets ready to serve some fruit cocktail.

  Walking among the people as they ate the meal, I could not help but notice all the smiles.

 The weather was cool, but not cold, so everyone was able to enjoy the afternoon in the park.

One of the members of the church, Rex, is a retired jeweler, so he offered to make some pecan earrings. He even modeled a pair of the earrings, himself. He has a wacky sense of humor.

As the afternoon progressed, more people shared about God and Jesus. Joe was very passionate about how important it is to make God a part of  a person's life.

Looking at the crowd, I saw that people were moved as they listened.

The sun began to set when the final musicians took to the stage. They sang a combination of old hymns and contemporary praise songs. It was a time to worship.

So, as the day wound down, it seems the Pecan Feast was a success, for people were fed wonderful food for both their stomachs and their souls. Praise God.

Pecan Fest features Lions Club Car Show

Pecan Fest 

October 27, 2012

Seguin's annual Pecan Fest, celebrating the pecan harvest, includes a car show. The Lions Club sponsors the show and car enthusiasts come to drool over everything from vintage hot rods to souped up corvettes. 

Here are a few shots of some of the cars. I can't tell you much about the cars, themselves, because, although I love cars, I don't know alot about them. I own an older model corvette, myself, and when someone asks me what size tires it has, for instance, I reply, "They're big tires." Guys laugh and shake their  heads. So that's how it is....

With that confession, here are my favorite shots of the cars parked around the Central Park square. There was a red 2012 corvette which the owner said has 750 horsepower. Then, there was also a mustard yellow 1955 Studebaker. There were sleek black hot rods, and souped up muscle cars. Enjoy!

Pecan Fest Heritage Days Celebrates Harvest Time

Seguin claims the title of the pecan capital of the world. I can attest to the fact that there are pecan trees in abundance...we have five pecan trees in our tiny yard. It makes sense, then, that Seguinites party when the harvest begins to come in. That time is now. We have been outside picking the pecans out of the grass every day, and I have already made my first pecan pie from our bounty.

Pecan Fest is the annual harvest celebration here in Seguin. There were so many different pecan related events going on, this weekend. Here are a few pictures of some of the folks I saw downtown, where the semi-annual Trade Days shared the town square with the Lions Club Car Show. 

These folks did not have their really cool 1956 Chevy entered in the car show. It was parked on a side street leading up to the square. Nonetheless, someone (probably the man in the flannel shirt) detailed the car until it shone. 

Around the town square, there were many vendors selling a wide variety of goods. Folks wandered around in a leisurely fashion, looking for bargains and looking for something they could not live without.

One booth that is a staple at the Trade Days is the Gretchen Bee Ranch Honey store. Mark and Thien Gretchen have quite a few local bee hives, so if you want local honey, they're the people to see.

 I had to smile when I spied this cowboy...Here he sits, wearing his black felt cowboy hat and his scuffed work boots, taking care of his business on his laptop. Technology and Texas, you gotta love it.

Finally, here is a shot of a fellow photographer taking a picture of one of the vintage cars that were parked around the square. Do you see that he has TWO cameras? That's right, two cameras. Each one has a different lens so that he can take different types of photos without having to change his lens every time he wants a wide angle shot or a close-up. Someday, I will be carrying around two cameras, too. Not yet, but someday.