Well, as usual, the Thanksgiving weekend was a whirlwind of indulgence. At the very last minute, I decided to cash-in a few of my vacation days and take Thursday and Friday off to prepare a mini feast at our place with a few close friends. We had already made plans to celebrate with a large group of friends on Saturday, but I couldn’t deny my urge to keep up the tradition of cooking a warm meal of all of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes on the same day my family back in Texas would be doing the same. So I did.

I managed to scavenge all of the ingredients I needed for green bean casserole and grandma’s cornbread stuffing, plus some cranberries for cranberry sauce and a perfectly-sized turkey for the 6 guests that joined us at our table that evening. I also whipped up some mashed-potatoes, corn and a little turkey gravy to go along with other sides, and I had the foresight to bake up another batch of oatmeal raisin cookies to supplement my botched first attempt at a pear tart (next time I’ll make my crust in advance).

All in all, a wonderful dinner was served among friends. We busted out the good wine and toasted a bit of champagne to all that we’re thankful for in our lives. It’s so easy to get caught up in all the little things that are missing in our homes, wardrobes and wallets that we rarely stop and reflect on all the wonderful people that we see everyday. To me, Thanksgiving is a day made just for that – remembering to be thankful for the people we share our lives with. I was glad to be able to do that twice this year, which merely reinforces the fact that I’m one lucky girl with lots of friends - near and far.

And, now we’re gearing up for Christmas. It makes me so happy knowing that in just three short weeks, I’ll be snuggling up and lounging around with 3 of my 4 nephews! Hasn’t this year just FLOWN by?! It’s kind of crazy how quickly summer became fall and fall became winter, and once again Paris streets are lit with festive Christmas lights and decorated sapins noël. Just yesterday I saw a full-on Disney Christmas show from my office window with Mickey and Minnie singing and dancing to holiday music in front of the fancy hotel across the street.

And, in case you missed it, it’s become a veritable winter wonderland in these parts. Although we’ve avoided the piles of snow other cities up north have experienced, we’ve had our fair share of frozen flurries and snowy white rooftops. Despite the frozen temps, I’ve been rather prepared for winter this year – looking forward to it, even. I think it has a little something to do with the whole “urge to settle down” thing I mentioned recently; I guess lately I'm just a little more content with going with the flow of things. (Let's hope that lasts!)




We overdosed on tryptophan all weekend.


I love leaving the office to stroll down the decorated street under snow flurries.