It's just after 5 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning. I'm a little put off that I'm awake so early, but I guess its true that you need less sleep as you age. I'm sitting here in Amy's house waiting for the family to wake up. The girls and I did a little (read: 'lot of') shopping yesterday so I came up early. Bruce will be here a little later this morning. It's cold an icy outside.
Steve and his family will celebrate at home in San Jose and Kevin and his family will celebrate in Austen. Stephanie's parents and some of her siblings are visiting with them in Texas. I'm sorry we won't all be together today, but I'm thankful they have jobs in our current tough economy.
Our plans today are a little different for us. Instead of cooking ourselves into a frenzy all day, we are going out to dinner. There won't be the leftovers we usually have, but that's better in the long run for us...at least this year. Besides, it's not about the meals...its all about the plan for Black Friday...(sort of kidding here, but not really...)
Later in the afternoon: O.K....erase what I said earlier about no leftovers. We ate at Claim Jumpers and had a ton of leftovers. We brought home those plus our dessert because we were too full to eat them there. Shane made a couple of pies here at the house and Bruce brought a cobbler and a pie from home to share. Amy put together a lovely appetizer tray earlier today and we snacked on that. In other words, I may never eat again.
I've been on a diet the last few months. I put on a lot of weight this year. It seems my thyroid was out of whack, plus it was just a bad year overall. But that is back on track. I've lost nearly all the extra weight and I feel a lot better.
Back to Thanksgiving. I think one of my best ever memories of Thanksgiving was back around 1966. Mom and my sister-in-law Gloria were cooking the meal. It was a pretty big production back then because there were so many people to feed, so many children running about and so much confusion. Everyone was starved and waiting (im)patiently for the meal. Mom and Gloria consulted each other and declared the huge turkey was cooked to perfection. With the precision only time and experience can give, they each took a side of the bird and began to lift it out of the pan onto the platter to rest. The memory gets a tad hazy at this point as to who or what failed. Suffice it to say they both had a look of total horror as the lovely brown and juicy bird fell and slid across the kitchen floor. I observed this activity and can still recall the look they gave each other. The look said more than a thousand words could have. Without missing a beat, they swooped up the turkey, dusted it off, and placed it on the platter. There was an unspoken agreement between all of us that no more was to be said about the matter. The meal went on without another hitch and was declared the best turkey EVER by the family.
I'm thankful for memories like those. I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to be close to my dear sister-in-law Gloria. She passed away a few years ago, and this year would have been her and my brother Jim's 50th wedding anniversary. He had a party with family to recognize the date, but it was nothing like they would have had if Gloria was still here to enjoy it with him. The whole town would have been invited and the party would probably go on for days. She was one in a million and I was blessed to have had her in my life for most of it.
I think the tryptophan is kicking in from my turkey dinner and I'm getting sleepy. It may be nap time, so I will close this for now. I can't do so without saying how blessed I am to have such a wonderful family and extended family. I love them all.
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