Thanksgiving

So thankful... So much love and kindness all around me, so much care and compassion... And on top of it all -- good food on the table.

Oh dear. No food on the table as of this morning. Not even close. Do people eat Thanksgiving dinner early? Yes? Hmmm.... Oh dear.

Well, let's start with a greeting to the animals great and small. In the barn.

Now, about breakfast: a quick drive to the Batch bakery for a pie and for cinnamon buns and apple cake.

At home, cut up the fruit, roast up the bacon, and we are ready.

Family comes.

Gaga, look what I made for dessert (all by herself)!

Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade is on in the background. Some watch, some play.

Quick, I have to get the herbal mayo prepped, the beans trimmed, the ginger minced, the cranberries cooked, and the muffins baked. All before lunch. Sandpiper helps. 

(I pause when Santa comes to town... along with Mrs Claus...)

The little guy is full of energy. This is when a saunter outside makes sense.

Snowdrop joins him.

Did someone say it's time for lunch? I asked my son in law to be in charge of that. And he was. I mean, he is. Uff! I'm distracted! Sandpiper, do not turn the oven on just yet!

Okay, pause for lunch...

Followed by a little bit of a quiet time. The youngest guy naps, the middle one plays, the older girl reads with mommy.

And I'm back with the dinner: let's get the turkey broth going. Where is that back bone? And the neck? A few veggies? Cook away, broth!

Next -- let's peel and slice the potatoes on  the mandolin. Not the safest gadget in the world given that I lost the safety glove, but oh well. Just watch those fingers so they dont get sliced with the spuds. 

Oops, I lose a bit of pinky and it wont stop bleeding. Many many bandages later, I continue.

What else, what else. I should prepare the root veggies. And set the table. Yes, done!

So now for the bird. Smear on the herbed mayo!

Looks kind of gross, but I trust Kenji the chef!

Is it time for a pre dinner drink yet??

Yes? Terrific! A Campari based spritzer. Yum. Pinky finger feels better already!

Bird goes in. 

Potatoes go in. But not here. They go into the little oven at the sheep shed. I only hope it's still working. No one uses it. Except for Thanksgiving overflow. Cross your fingers for these guys!

Corn. My daughter is to make the corn. I set her up for it. Away she goes!

I tackle the gravy. Have I forgotten something? I do not think so! One year I forgot the cranberries, another year -- I left a whole dish of something in the fridge. (What was that something? I forgot.) But this year, we're good!

Out comes the turkey.

It rests, I work quickly on the gravy, Ed brings back the potatoes, I finish off the beans. 

The corn's ready. The beets and carrots have roasted themselves, not needing anyone's help ever. The gravy is always a bit of a bother, but hey, that's Thanksgiving for you: it needs that extra push at the last minute.

And now to carve the bird.

And we sit down to eat.

"I love every last bit of it!"

Wait, have I forgotten the dessert? The one I did not make? Actually the two I did not make? One is from the bakery, the other contributed by Snowdrop, who then insists on cutting and serving.

And just like that, it ends. Beautifully. Around the kitchen table. On mismatched plates and with some participants choosing to use fists over forks. Still, every minute of it is beautiful.

I hope you had an exquisitely wonderful day. I hope everything went well and you felt the closeness of family, perhaps friends. The weekend is young! May your joy extend well into it, as ours will with the arrival of the youngest family tomorrow.

Happy, happy Thanksgiving days.

With love.