Enjoy every moment this holiday
As the week comes to an end, everyone is settling into Thanksgiving weekend with their bellies and hearts full. It won’t be long before the holiday rush picks up again. Thanksgiving week is the perfect opportunity for all of us to slow down and fully enjoy every moment spent with family. It’s also a time to reflect on past memories, celebrate with special traditions, and catch up with family.
It is tradition for each member of my family to make a few of their favorite dishes to bring to Thanksgiving, and one member is in charge of the turkey. My mother always cooked the turkey, but the torch was passed on to me. In my family, I am deemed the designated procrastinator when it comes to holidays. I always use the excuse that I got it honestly from my Dad. In the past, I would wait until two days before Thanksgiving to put the frozen turkey in a sink full of water to thaw out. However, this year, my goal was to be organized and prepared, so I put the turkey in the fridge Saturday night to thaw. It certainly is less stressful knowing I will not have to worry about the turkey being completely thawed in time for cooking.
That is where the second Thanksgiving tradition comes in, which I think most women can relate to on Thanksgiving: waking up at the crack of dawn to start cooking the turkey. Being part of a family of seven brothers and sisters meant that the Thanksgiving meal and turkey were enormous. It never failed that the turkey was at least 15-20 pounds and always took at least four to five hours to cook. The turkey was the first thing that went in the oven in the morning. Second, were the side dishes and decorating the tables with the best silverware and dishes.
My favorite Thanksgiving dishes are dressing, squash casserole, sweet potato casserole, and asparagus with cheese sauce. This year, we will add a few low-carb dishes because I am on a low-carb diet.
My daughter Emily enjoys making pumpkin pie and her grandmother’s famous mac and cheese. The recipe is simply too good not to share.
Recently, we’ve been celebrating Thanksgiving at Emily’s place in Tuscumbia, AL. I will be traveling to prepare the Thanksgiving feast the day before. I hope everyone will have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.
I would like to share some quotes I have come across over the years.
“We should just be thankful for being together. I think that’s what they mean by Thanksgiving,” Marcie, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
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“Thanksgiving Day is a good day to recommit our energies to giving thanks and just giving,” Amy Grant
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“True forgiveness is when you can say, “Thank you for that experience,” Oprah Winfrey
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“Be thankful for everything that happens in your life; it’s all an experience,” Roy T. Bennett
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and my most favorite quotes...
“there is always, always something to be thankful for.”