Team Oakley has MUCH to be thankful for this year. If you follow this blog then you know that we left you in a quite dire Team Oakley situation. We were all sick and feeling it. But we come back to you all healthy and fun! Beka got her tonsils out and has not had a case of strep for three weeks! That may be the longest stretch of winter wellness for her in almost 4 years! HOORAY!
Emery also kicked his cold right out the house! He did have a reaction to his meds, but it quickly went away with lots of love, snuggles, sesame street, and kale. We do it right in the Oakley homestead :) And for Michael, though he was not fighting sick, he was very happy to have his worrier wife and his sunny son back to good health. So I am sure you understand that we are very light hearted and thankful for health, family, and blessings this thanksgiving.
We wanted to celebrate our thankfulness in a spiritual and familiar way.... through food! We love us some grub and know there is no better way to bond than around a table. Even Jesus got his eat on with his besties on many occasion. It is tradition, y'all! Let's get to cooking!
The day before thanksgiving Beka set about the work. She calls her kitchen "Beka's kitchen of goodness" because only good things make it out of there. Michael helps in the kitchen by playing with Emery and keeping out of the way. No one minds this agreement of kitchen duties. Beka knows how to cook! Ask anyone who knows her. So when she donned her apron, everyone got excited. It is special to her because it is from her Dad and Step mom. They found out she wanted to publish a cook book, and gave it to her, with a matching recipe journal, in hopes to give her wings. It has been messied for years since, in hopes to get to that cook book finish line. Until then, though, many will love the tasty process of her journey.
Beka makes and bakes everything with love. That is why it tastes so good :D
Here is what she accomplished this day in her kitchen of goodness.....
Shortbread
Applesauce
Scalloped Squash and Potatoes
Baked Mac and Cheese
Quinoa Casserole
Cobb Salad
Ranch Dressing
Green Bean Casserole
Biscuits
All from scratch, all homemade/handmade, and all VEGAN!
WHAT!?! That is right! Beka cannot eat animal products because of some allergies and health issues, so everything this year was vegan! and OH SO GOOD! If you want the recipes check out Beka's cooking blog
www.cookinglikegrandmahamlet.blogspot.com
She posts the things she cooks, and they are usually allergy free.
Needless to say Team Oakley was VERY excited for thanksgiving. Nom nom nom!
That night, after all the wonderful cooking was done, we headed over to Michael's parent's house to settle in for the night and get some thankful relaxing in.
We had so much food made that we had to occupy the upstairs mini fridge because the downstairs was packed full! Beka is not the only wonderful cook in the family. There was more deliciousness coming tomorrow!
After the food was properly stored for the feast the next day, we all got into our PJs and busted out the board games! OW OW! We know how to party!
Michael and Beka, after Emery was deep in dream land, set out to beat Michael's parents in sequence. Do not be fooled, this is a VERY difficult task! Chalk it up to Josie's master degree, or Craig's years of studying the bible, but they always kick out butts!!! We think it is their 30 plus years of marriage to our five. Luckily Beka had some great tea to keep her happy.
In fact this tea was a highlight of this thanksgiving! It quickly became Beka's favorite. Who knows how much tea she drank in the span of two days. Let's just say that Team Oakley should have bought stock in Teavana prior to this holiday.
Though we lost plenty of times this nights, we did manage to snag one W from the folks. Beka took a photo to remember this rare accomplishment. If you are a board gaming family, we def recommend this one. SO fun!
Once the victory was reveled in, Beka and Michael took their success and turned in for the night. Emery was already asleep in their room. While they tried hard to keep that little angel asleep, their parental ninja skills failed them. They got into bed and the moment Emery awoke and saw them in the same room, it was all over. He needed to be snuggled between them...immediately!
Michael said something that only someone without experience of small children would utter, "wouldn't it be fun if he slept in bed with us?"
Beka literally LOLed, but gave it a whirl anyways. It was just as her years of being a big sister and baby sitter lead her to suspect...total chaos.
Emery hunkered in between his very tired Mom and Dad. He would kiss one of them, and snuggle close, then lay on their face, then sit up, poke their eyes (he is doing VERY well learning his body parts), then move on to the other. After about an hour he was sitting up in between them, a hand on each face, giggling with excitement at what he was able to get away with. After that the Team Oakley parental had had enough. Michael took the lead and rocked Emery in the rocker near by until he was again asleep on his own. Sleeping all together was a night thought, but for us, it was highly ineffective. Props to you co-sleeping families!
Once Emery was finally back asleep and Michael was stealth in getting back to bed, it was very past midnight. This meant that Emery would wake up earlier than usual. This day around 6:30am. Though it sounds counter intuitive, the earlier Emery goes down to bed, the longer he sleeps. We usually put him down between 6:30 and 7:30 and he sleeps until 8:30 or 9. Yes, be jealous. But if we put him down after 8, then he is up at 6 or 6:30! YIKES! So after last night he was up and yelling at us from his crib bright and early. So Michael again got up with the wee babe (isn't Beka a luckily lady!) and was prepared to start his day.
But alas! The grandparents came to our rescue! They were already up, and when Michael came out of the room they gladly demanded the sweet, and wide awake Emery. Michael had no qualms about handing him over, and he joined the very tired, and thankful, Beka back in bed.
Craig and Josie took Emery to breakfast. Emery was one happy guy! Cracker Barrel is becoming the norm for mornings at Nana and Nunu's house. He does not mind!
And as if the blessings could not get any more abundant for Beka and Michael, Craig and Josie came back with starbucks for them! Hallelujah! Amazing! They even knew to get soy/no whip for Beka's oh so sensitive tummy. Could we be anymore thankful for them? Um, NO!
After Beka and Michael were well caffinated and rested, we all set about to making the great thanksgiving of 2012 happen.
Beka started to defrost her dishes and help with the ones to be cooked. Michael and Craig had Emery duty, and Josie was busy in the kitchen, as always. It was the beginnings to a great and FULL day!
Emery, though he had just eaten at Cracks, needed his second breakfast. So he took part of some fruit that was on a beautiful appetizer platter made by Josie.
While Emery was getting his feed on, and Beka and Josie busied themselves around the oven, we caught Michael and Craig having a little photo shoot to capture the magic that is their facial hair on this wonderful day.
After a few hours of tinkering in the kitchen, and music coming from all areas of the house, Michael's sister, Rosanna, and our brother in law, Cassidy, joined the party. Cassidy's parents, Mike and Jeanine were in town so they got to share in the love too. We LOVED having them!
Roxanne, Beka's sister, also joined the party after she got off work. She set about to setting the table in royal fashion. She works at a B&B and has become quite accomplished in table decor. She did a fantastic job at ours!
Emery had made some turkey's before hand, and Roxanne displayed them to all their deserved glory.
Roxanne and Emery spent some time before the meal sharing some love. He is her little loaf, and she is his beloved Nini. We were all so glad to have her with us this year. It felt so normal, like she had joined us in this tradition for years! Though no one else let her hold them. That was awkward.
Once it was time to dig in, we all joined hands to express to God and all the family and friends around us how thankful we were for the blessings that were bestowed on all our lives. After we all came to a very peaceful point of gratitude though prayer and a moment of reflection, we ate with clear minds and happy hearts.
Beka was so jazzed to get a HUGE plate full of food, and it was all vegan! No tummy aches or cramps for her this year! Hooray!
After we had all ate more than enough, we cleaned up the table, and set out to relax the rest of the night.
We had games, a fire, and Emery's artwork displayed proud above the mantle, as everyone here agreed it should be.
There was such a spirit of peace in this house, for this whole day. It was almost tangible. We could blame this feeling on the turkey, but we all know that it was because we all had much to be thankful for. Many of those who made the top of our blessings list were the ones who surrounded us. Emery, of course, was at the tip top for Beka and Michael. We basked in this feeling, and hope that you all could feel the love that we did on this bright and joyful thanksgiving day.
Thanks for sharing in our very special time!
Much love and food to you all!
Team Oakley
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