Thanksgiving in Ireland

No, they don't celebrate Thanksgiving in Ireland, but they do celebrate great friends!

Anne and her roommates in the dinner aftermath.
Left to right: Anne, Grace, Amy, Ally, Emma.

I am lucky enough to have met a wonderful girl at church named Anne.  As soon as I open my mouth, people know I'm American.  On my first visit to the church, some of the members were welcoming me and said, "You have to meet our other American, Anne!" It didn't take long before she was talking to me about a possible Thanksgiving celebration.  Apparently she and the other 4 girls in her house tried to do one last year, but didn't get it quite right.  They were up for the challenge again this year and wanted to get it just right, just for Anne (because she's that awesome).  They also invited Hubby and I, as well as 6 other guests, some of whom were also American.

Seeing these girls together made me miss my college days where I was living with a bunch of girls, and they did up this dinner like only girls can do.  Not only was the dining table gorgeous next to the roaring fire, but it was also filled with details like decorated place cards (Hubby and I didn't get to sit together, but it made for great conversations), napkins folded like turkeys and roses, candlesticks everywhere, and pre-warmed plates so our food wouldn't get cold.  I wish I had taken more pictures.

They did a lot of work on the food, including making 2 turkeys, and enough gravy that it had to be served in a pitcher!  All the food tasted very authentic and delicious, even though they were unsure about some of it.  This was the first time Amy made, or event tasted I believe, a pecan pie, but it was perfect!  Grace couldn't understand why anyone would put marshmallows on a casserole (which I've heard from other Irish people as well), so left them off of the sweet potatoes, but they didn't even need it because she pre-roasted the potatoes.  Like a typical Thanksgiving, we eventually left clutching our full stomachs and waddling out to the car.

We didn't eat all the meat off of two turkeys, but not for lack of trying.  This is after they picked off all the leftovers.

We decided to go around the table and say a few things we were thankful for, but we weren't allowed to repeat something already said.  It took us a while to get going because we were all a little self-conscious about it, and felt the pressure of coming up with something original, but when we finally got going you almost couldn't get us to stop (partly because it got derailed into a should we/shouldn't we get a puppy for the house debate).  I have to say, I have never ever laughed so hard while giving thanks...but in a good way :)  We had a fabulous time, and are so thankful to have been included in this celebration!