Countdown to Turkey
image via retro renovation
Something tells me you dear readers share my deep and abiding love for Thanksgiving. On Sunday, window shopping in a fancy food shop with a friend, I suddenly got an anticipatory thrill so moving I hopped a little. Not up and down, but just up, once.
Thanksgiving wasn’t always my favorite holiday, but it became so when I was about 14. The day took on a hodgepodge element that made it more unpredictable party than overstuffed family function. My sister brought seemingly-glamorous (to a 14-year-old) college friends home, cousins in their 20′s would take the bus out to the country wearing black leather jackets, carrying cheese plates, and with a friend or two in tow, a fix-up could well be in the works, and a to-the-death game of Trivial Pursuit was a sure thing.
Things have settled down a bit over the years as attendees have grown up and coupled off. Sebastian makes a mean green bean casserole, my mom’s mashed potatoes are inspired, and there’s usually almost as much stuffing on my plate as I want. This year my sister is being held hostage in Montana. For the first time, I can’t count on her bloody marys and bold accessorizing. But two of my favorite eaters are driving up to sit at the long table, and I bring with me not a boyfriend but a husband. After the fast-paced flurry of a wedding, it will be good to sit down and have long chats with friends and family over a slice of pecan pie, a midnight bowl of mashed potatoes and gravy, and a glass of wine or five.
What’s Thanksgiving at your house like? Do you host? Is it friends, family, or both? A somber affair or an event where someone always dances on a table? Music for the table dancing after the jump…
alliemarien: thanksgiving has definitely changed over the year for me too. some of my cousins have kids of their own, others bring their girlfriends…but at least the food remains the same. sometime i wish i could go back to my childhood, but i guess it’s never really left in the first place.2 years ago
Christine S.: It really depends on the year. Usually, every other year my kids are with me in PA – in between years, either with their dad in TX or his side of the family in KY. Last year was the first year I had every hosted my own family to Thanksgiving dinner and it was wonderful! Living most of my adult life in Texas never really lent itself to travel home for such a brief visit; and, since all of my sibs live here, my parents didn’t want to travel down to Texas.
This year we are with my brother’s family – all 15 of us – which includes my siblings and our families, our parents, and all of my brother’s in-laws. It’ll be fun because everyone gets along really well!
Oh, Texas Thanksgivings were always “immigrant Thanksgivings” – meaning, all those people who weren’t living near family joined together at someone’s home, rotating years. It was so much fun! And, really was a nice replacement for all of us – in fact, it was family!2 years ago
Julia (Color Me Green): i seem to be alternating thanksgivings at my parents house and at my boyfriends parents house though i really want to host it in my own home. i always tell myself maybe next year…2 years ago
Michaela: love your website…it makes my day a little brighter to read your posts
http://imnosuprman.blogspot.com/2009/10/and-it-begins.html2 years ago
Karen: We travel to have Thanksgiving with my husband’s family (and usually a friend or two stops by). It is a big family so there are between 30-40 people depending on the year. It is a bit crazy when we are getting all the food on the tables (usually three banquet tables are set), but we have a lot of fun!2 years ago
Kristina: I love the idea of “favorite eaters.” After all, what’s a friend if you can’t enjoy eating with him/her?
This is our second year of hosting, and our fourth year of having two Thanksgivings– a slightly tipsy and jovial one down near Baltimore with my husband’s extended family, and a smaller, vegetarian one in our house. Thanksgiving 1 is on Thursday, Thanksgiving 2 (our house) is on Saturday. It takes some planning, but it’s worth it!2 years ago
Nikk: This Thanksgiving it’s just going to be me and my husband since he is deploying to Afghanistan in the very near future. I got a little 3 pound turkey breast and am making a mini feast. Leftovers are a thanksgiving tradition that I don’t want to break.
2 years ago
Adrienne: I am looking forward to the “someday” when I get to host Thanksgiving, but the cooks in my family can be a mite territorial… until I’m allowed to wield the pots and pans, I bring the bread. Since it’s my only job, I am making three different kinds
2 years ago
anne: I dearly love Thanksgiving. None of the gift buying/wrapping pressure. Just food and family. Although I love my husband and appreciate his family, they’re just not quite as much fun as my own.2 years ago
Shannon Hughes: Your sister & I must live very close! Looks like YNP, Gardiner Perhaps?????2 years ago
Roxy: This past Thanksgiving(since canada’s was last month) was spent just me and my husband. Since I had only been post-surgery for a few weeks, travel wasn’t in my best interest. The food was kept pretty simple since I wasn’t able to extend my arms. We had a small roast in the slow-cooker, oven-roasted potatoes, mashed carrots, and boxed stuffing. I just had my husband do the physical stuff…like mashing.2 years ago
Samantha M.: I’ll be braving my first time cooking the Thanksgiving meal, albeit on the Sunday after due to my mom-in-law working the holiday. I’m alternately thrilled and scared! I talked the grocery clerk’s ear off about it while my groceries were being rung up, haha. I do look forward to spending the actual Dia de Turkey with my stepgrandma, who’s an expert at good soul food sides, so I know I’m guaranteed at least one good meal for the day of… and hopefully I’ll cook a good one for my husband’s family also on Sunday!2 years ago
pattyskypants: I dislike traditional holiday food, but this year I thought I’d try it. I’ll be dreaming of a big, juicy sirloin cheeseburger with black diamond cheddar and clausen pickles on a kaiser roll. Maybe a little lettuce. YUM! My friend Kay will be making big pots of homemade noodles and gravy, Dora’s favorite! Dora, the daughter who lives in Astoria, is here for the holiday and this year brings a BOYFRIEND, a lovely Italian/Irish boy from the Bronx. I think it is his first visit to the Heartland. I wonder if he’ll ever be able to stop rolling his eyes! The biggest treat: watching the Macy’s parade and the dog show on TV. Reminds me of when I was a kid living on West 88th Street. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Cheers!2 years ago
Evon T.: Our Thanksgivings rarely change from one year to the next and we love that. We go to my parents’ and I help my mom cook the sides. It’s so much fun to watch the Macy’s Day parade and smell the aroma of celery, onion, and green pepper. This year, I fixed my own sort of mini Thanksgiving feast tonight (Wednesday) so that my beau and I can eat off the leftovers instead of running back and forth to my mom and dad’s just to fix a plate. I’m glad I did it. There’s nothing like easy access to leftovers.2 years ago
Katie L: This isn’t my first time hosting Thanksgiving, but it’s the first time with my boyfriend of 2 yrs and in our new home together. It’s usually a time to stuff your face but also it’s a day that I actually think about what I have. Thanking God every moment for it.2 years ago
geek+nerd: Thanksgiving, for the past few years, has always been at my parents’ house. Recently it’s been a smaller affair, as we all couple off and have in-law functions to attend, but the past few years have been all about babies. This year, I sat my one year old nephew on my lap and banged out some Heart and Soul on the piano. Too fun.
My mom is a professional cook, so she’s pretty organized as far as the actual meal goes, however I am ALWAYS in charge of one thing: PIE. This year I made a Chai Spiced Apple Pie, which was scrumptious if I do say so myself. I was also pretty impressed with myself for trying (and not failing) a decorative crust this year, picture here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/geekxnerd/4135294168/
And then there is music. My husband and I moved an hour and a half away from my parents’ in September, so car music was a necessity. After a rousing sing-a-long to Alice’s Restaurant we popped in a disc “Pink of Perfection Thanksgiving Mix 2008″ made last year, after you posted your song suggestions. We sang and laughed and bopped along the whole ride up to New Hampshire. So *YOU* are a part of our Thanksgiving tradition, how fun is that?
Wow – and I just wrote a novel. I guess I do love Thanksgiving.2 years ago
Katy: Sarah, Thanksgiving just wasn’t the same without you, our family, and Trivial Pursuit!
p.s. “o”s the noodles are shaped like os.
Shannon: close, indeed! I think I took that picture near norris.2 years ago