I was so excited, and admittedly a little worried, about hosting our second annual All Friends Thanksgiving right here in our very own one-bedroom apartment. Thankfully, our living area is one large open space, so we scootched out the furniture and arranged skinny ten-foot folding tables along the middle of the room for friends to dine banquet-style.

Josh (the blurry guy below) came over in the morning to help get things going in the kitchen. He made a turkey, I made a roast, and then we set to cleaning up the apartment when Kara (below with the fork in her mouth) came to give Josh a break and help me decorate the place. By the time we finished hanging green garland and holly wreaths, Josh decided we really ought to rename the event All Friends Thankschristmas.

After an emergency run to the convenience store for flavored creamer and twinkle lights, all we needed was a little festive music. We listened to my collection of Christmas records, and when Max arrived, we added some Bob Dylan to the mix. Just lovely, I’d say!

Just when the guests began to arrive, Allie and I were covering the tables with aisle runners (like the kind used in weddings) and kraft paper while Kara came behind us and painted cheery stars and greetings with gesso. We lit the tea lights, filled the food table, and enjoyed a casual night of enjoying good eats, drinks, and company.

It was so great to have so many friends in my apartment all at once, even though many people were unable to attend our Sunday evening soiree. In all, we had over 20 people in our home, and thankfully it wasn’t a huge burdon, because everyone pitched in and helped with cleaning up for a seamless transition from eating to playing. Thanks friends! Couldn’t have done it without you.

I’d like to give a special thanks to Josh, Kara, and Allie for helping Phil and I set up, to Brent (beardy man above) for doing so many dishes, and for Catherine and Max for staying late to clean, even though they had to drive back to Cleveland that night. OH! And let me not forget to thank Kyle for the wonderful gluten and dairy free sweet potato casserole and John Finley for the best cake I’ve eaten in my whole life. And I don’t even like cake.

Well, that about covers it! And I am officially zonked, but still so excited for the rest of the holiday season! Yippee!

Hello lovely friends! Sorry I'm being such a blogger bum, but I think you will forgive me when I tell you why I've been away. Today is Thanksgiving, as you might know, and not only do I get one wonderful, food filled Thanksgiving (as seen in my childhood memories above), but I get four! FOUR OF THEM! The last of my Thanksgivings will be on Sunday, hosted in my apartment for the second annual All Friends Thanksgiving. I will try to pop in here once or twice before the week is over, but wanted to let you know what's happening 'round these parts.

So, I'm off to make some delicious green bean almondine before hauling it off to Kent, Ohio for one of Phil's family gatherings. While the butter is simmering, I'll be counting my blessings, thanking God for my family, my home, our jobs, and so much more.

A couple of my very dear friends are now engaged to be married! With all of the excitement of being asked to be in Josh and Kara’s July wedding, and helping them find the perfect venue, I’ve got to say I’m relieved I have no special photographer duties revolving around the big event. Being a wedding photographer is really fun, when it’s not super stressful and time consuming. But sometimes you just want to put the camera down and really enjoy the celebration. Of course, I’ll still attempt to capture some fun times leading up to (and on!) their wedding, and that’s why Kara asked me to tag along for their engagement video shoot with another talented friend, Jamie Campbell.

The morning before meeting up with Jamie and his assistant Sean, Kara and I tore through all of the inventory of vintage clothes I’ve been neglecting to list at Fine & Dandy Vintage. She ended up selecting this rust suede skirt and a breezy, peasant-yoke blouse that was a bit of a departure from her usual style, but still suited her quite nicely. I wore a short polka dotted skirt and a huge chunky-knit white sweater with a plaid shirt underneath. Kara said it was like we switched styles all of a sudden. You know, like in the movies. Which is just perfect, because Kara will be wearing that outfit in Jamie’s movie of her and Josh. The video will be wonderful, I’m sure. And I’m looking forward to sharing it with you whenever production is complete.

P.S. Now I’m rather aching to add videographer to my long list of jobs.

**EDITED TO ADD: You can now find the video up online. There were no photos, just video. Check it out here.**