Our First Thanksgiving in Ecuador!

See the little head w/mohawk?

We found out about a week before Thanksgiving that my in-laws were going to be able to come celebrate us, we were very excited.  For the rest of the week, I called family members to get the recipes for things like chocolate pie, turkey & dressing, and how to bake a turkey!  Since we can't get things like pie crusts and cornbread here in Ecuador, I felt like Betty Crocker having to make everything from scratch.  Mr. Google was very helpful with the whole process:-)

We had lots of fun making memories in the kitchen & laughing when we saw that the chickens head was also included in the little bag along with its feet!

Found a bag of pecans in their suitcase for the sweet potato souffle!

 

How many does it take to set up a Christmas tree?

We also made a new tradition of setting up the Christmas tree while the turkey was cooking in the oven.  This year we decided to keep it simple and decorated the tree with a pretty ribbon, some home made ornaments, and our prayer cards from other missionaries serving around the world.

We also invited the Ecuadorian family that we will be living with starting in January to partake in our Thanksgiving meal.  Maria (the Mom) taught me how to make a delicious sauce for the turkey made out of turkey broth and prunes!  Very good!

However, the real fun began after the meal.  We taught them how to play card games like Spoons and Uno and they taught us a game or two as well.  We ended the night teaching them how to line dance to the song "Boot Scootin' Boogie!"  We laughed a lot and had a great time making new memories.

Although we were not able to share Thanksgiving this year with all of our family, we feel extremely blessed to have been able to spend it with friends who are beginning to feel like family!  We are so thankful to God for how He has blessed us and for the unending love and support we feel from friends and family back in the States! 

We hope that you also had a wonderful time with your loved ones... Gobble Gobble!