bring it.

oh, how i love me some food. isn't that what the holidays are all about? eating and conversing with family and friends? not completely gorging yourself during the holidays is just so un-american.

here's my list of things i love to eat:
1. black olives - they are usually gone long before we actually sit at the table to eat. my mother-in-law even buys me a can of black olives even though no one else in the family likes them. she loves me. and i actually like eating them at her house more because i don't have to wrestle my sister and adorable nieces for them. i can have the whole can to myself!

2. sweet potatoes - my mom makes some DELICIOUS sweet potatoes. she douses on the brown sugar and teeny marshmallows and bakes it until golden. i eat what i can during the dinner and then eat the rest of them for lunch the next day. it's the best lunch ever - sweet potatoes and dr. pepper.

3. some sort of gooey roll with nuts on top - i have no idea what it's called, but my mother-in-law makes them. we eat them on christmas morning at her house and i could seriously eat the entire pan. they are sticky and gooey and just plain awesome.

4. my mom's pies - she usually makes a lot of them - apple, cherry, pumpkin, and sometimes chocolate. the crust she makes is so good. it's not thick and doughy like store bought pie crusts. one of my favorite memories from this past thanksgiving was watching little mama and my mom put together the cherry pie. mom let leah decide whether to make a "regular" top to the pie or a lattice top. little mama chose a lattice top and so she and my mom got to work. it was so fun watching the two of them create it together. it wasn't perfect to look at, but it was made with 110% love and tasted fabulous (except for the pits that my sister kept finding.).

5. carmel apple cider - i don't normally drink starbucks, but i do like to indulge in a tall carmel apple cider during the holidays. it is oh, so delicious and i'm sure sports about the same number of calories as a piece of my mom's pie.

i eat nonstop beginning on halloween and ending sometime after the first of the year. i put on a few extra pounds during this time, no doubt. but what is winter without a little hibernation fat to keep you warm?