A sweet and happy new year

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I love nothing more than big family dinners. Some of my fondest memories are from our big family dinners. Family dinners were always the time we got to catch up with cousins, aunts and uncles who we hadn't seen in awhile. We'd eat great food, drink delicious wine and chat for hours. The best.

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This Rosh Hashana I took the boys to Toronto and invaded my cousin's apartment to host my Canadian family for the very first time. It was a thrill. The best part was...my biggest responsibility was styling the table. MY FAVORITE PART! The ladies in my family are the most incredible cooks. And everyone has a famous dish. So it was like a big old potluck. So awesome.

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My sister and I joined forces as we always do to get the table set and dinner prepped. We took a trip to our favorite place the St. Lawrence Market to grab fresh, seasonal flowers, mini jars of honey and cheese.

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Since Rosh Hashana is the celebration of the Jewish New Year where we dip apples into honey to symbolize a sweet new year, I made a small plate of sliced apples, a triangle of brie cheese, a mini jar of honey and a dipper at each setting. It was perfect.

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For the seating arrangement, I printed a photo of each family member from Artifact Uprising and placed it at their setting.

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And of course served a huge round challah. Divine.

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The best part of our family dinners is they end up being a potluck. Everyone has a famous dish that they cook and they bring it so there isn't one person stuck in the kitchen all night.

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Our menu was: Aunt Sandy's Brisket Aunt Debi's meatballs made by Mandy Boobie's potato salad made by Debi Boobie's Matzo ball soup Steamed broccoli Chinese chicken (Don't ask) Aunt Debi's apple kugel

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The night ended with a beautiful cake that Aunt Debi made to celebrate our cousin Daniella's birthday which was yesterday and then we all helped to clean up which is so fun when you have a huge group to help.

It was another memorable, fun, awesome night. L'Shana Tova. Wishing those who celebrate a sweet and healthy new year!