A Tucker Family Thanksgiving

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I am so excited about this post today! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I'm pretty sure my family does it best. We clearly love food, so Thanksgiving is like the Super Bowl of meals. 
I've put together a replica of our meal with recipes I found around the internet which are very similar. Then I found a few recipes that are either inspired by or put a twist on some of our classic Tucker Thanksgiving dishes.
I am all about traditions and like to stick to them. We have been making a majority of these recipes every year since before I was born. When someone tries to suggest we don't make one of our Thanksgiving staples, it never goes over well.
-Creamed corn (everyone's favorite side dish)
-Brussels sprouts with pancetta and chestnuts (this is the exact recipe we use)
-Mashed potatoes
-Sweet potatoes with marshmallows and pecans
-Cranberry sauce
-Dressing NOT stuffing (they are the same thing, but depending on where you are from depends on what you call it.
-Pumpkin Pie (recipe is on the Libby's can)
-Sister Schubert rolls (nothing fancy, they come in the freezer section but nothing is better!
-Pecan pie
-Apple pie
-Chocolate pudding pie (just for my cousin Dillon)
We have a lot of memories with these recipes. I think my family's favorite is..written on the recipe for the dressing there is a note that says "Bruce fix the toilet." About 20 years ago when someone was handwriting out the recipe they felt the need to make note that my uncle needed to remember to fix the toilet!
Everyone has a job too. I make the pumpkin pie, my dad and Kathleen make the dressing, my aunt Gina, Claire and I make the apple pie (no recipe involved) and then it's usually all of the kids standing over the counter peeling potatoes for the mashed potatoes. 

Now for a twist on some of our classics like creamed corn, mashed potatoes, dressing, sweet potatoes, rolls and pumpkin pie! If my family dared to mess with tradition, I would suggest some of these recipes.

-Brown butter mashed potatoes (this may actually be happening this year)
It's time to start prepping for Thursday. Maybe my family's Thanksgiving menu inspires your family! Let me know if you try any of these recipes.
xo annie

Bites of My Life

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It's Thanksgiving week! I only have two days of school left, then it's full-fledged holiday time! 
Last week was the perfect mix of lazy and productive! I got everything done I needed to, plus I had lots of time to lay around and do nothing. Some kind of cold hit me towards the end of the week, so I spent Thursday night at home with my parents napping on their couch and cooking the yummiest dinner!
A snow/sleet/ice storm blew in this weekend! Two of my roommates and I took this as making it perfectly acceptable to lay in our room all day watching Scandal. It's official, I'm addicted. 
{Bites from Last Week)
-The OKC pop-up shops start this weekend! This is a project I got to help a little bit with in my internship this summer. The store I work at now will have a pop-up December 19-22! I will be working that Friday and Saturday, so if you are in the area come visit. It is going to be quite the site.
-New prints at The Social Club. I can't get enough of them. We even have a few christmas themed ones.
-Spending one morning last week planning blog posts with these great organizers my sister sent me. 
-Had a pre-Thanksgiving dinner last week at a sorority event! 
-The amazing Autumn Chopped Salad my parents and I made for dinner last Thursday. The left picture is after we topped it with the butternut squash dressing, and the picture on the right is it all laid out like a traditional cobb. You can find the recipe here.
-My festive little party planning friend and I. I was giddy we she texted me a few weeks ago asking for my help with the treats for the christmas party she was planning! The party involved all of our best friends, christmas pjs and lot's of food!
-The cutest banner hung up at the party made for the perfect photo op!
Start searching for your stretchy pants! Thanksgiving is T-3 days away!

xo annie

Everygirl loves to Shop

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Did you hear?? The Everygirl 2.0 launched yesterday! The new site is similar to the old aesthetic with similar colors and a simple layout, but was designed to make it easier on viewers to maneuver as well as some new added features. 
The new Everygirl homepage.
Not only did they do a site redesign, they also added an Everygirl Shop! Right now they have various prints and the cutest phone cases all under $35.

I'm dyyyyying over these cases. Unfortunately they only fit the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s. I'm not kidding I went into AT&T yesterday to see how much it would be to trade in my old phone and get a 5, just so I could buy one of these phone cases.
Joy's inspired iphone case is even featured in the To & From gift guide I talked about yesterday.
They used quotes by some of our favorite Everygirls like Joy Wilson of Joy the Baker and Glitter Guide's Taylor Sterling. Then with the help of Molly Jacques' amazing calligraphy the cases were designed. Check out the new site and do a little pre-christmas shopping in their new shop! 
xo annie

The ULTIMATE Gift Guide

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I had been thinking about putting together my own gift guides for the blog, but was struggling to find enough content to make them worth while. I still may give it more effort and post a few once December comes, but as for now I have the best gift guide to share with you.
To & From started a year ago by Meg Biram and Katie Anderson. These two bloggers had the grand idea of creating the ultimate gift guide! They contacted several bloggers and had them contribute to the guide. This year's issue went live yesterday and is stocked with 214 pages of amazing gift ideas. The issue has several categories like gifts for grandparents, gifts on a budget, gifts for the fashionable foodie etc. that make your searching easier!

I have never found a gift guide better or even similar to this one. I gathered up some of my favorite products I found and may even be gifting this year! Some things are pricy, but most of the features are at great price points! 
All of these can be found in the Holiday 2013 issue of To & From.
-"Do What Matters" Print $20.00
-Kate Spade coffee travel mug $18.00
-Serena & Lily Backgammon game set $195.00
-Yoga starter set $69.50
-LEIF tassel bracelet $52.00
-Danielle Nicole Purse $94.00
-Rifle Travel America wall calendar $26.00
-Yosi Samra flats $84.00
-Macaron making kit $40.00

Warning, you may find yourself glued to your computer for the next hour as you sift through the pages!

xo annie