Ten Thanksgiving Things

1. Thanksgiving Eve

The night before Thanksgiving we went to the Jazz game. Sometimes Scotty is able to get free tickets, so we try to go whenever we can. It was a warm night, so we were able to get the kids downtown comfortably and without a lot of hoopla. There's always a basketball game going on while we're there, but the real sporting event is climbing up and down from the nosebleed section to cater to my incessant pee-er. On the third bathroom trip, we decided it was time to just leave. We made it through the end of the third quarter, though, and that's a new family record!

2. Thanksgiving Morning

On Thanksgiving morning, Scotty and Nicky went to play football with some guys from church (I played the role of "supportive wife" and made 40 orange flags for the event). I stayed home with the girls and finished reading a book (blog post to follow).

When Scotty got home, I left for an hour to go walking with my friends. We decided that we would take advantage of the "day off" and go walking in the light (we normally walk at 5:30 in the morning).

3. The Weather

The weather on Thanksgiving was a real treat! The temperature was in the 60's, so we were able to dress lightly and not worry about coats. The kids played outside throughout the day. It was wonderful!

4. The Meal

We had our Thanksgiving dinner at Scotty's mom's house. All the siblings came but one (there are 7 in this portion of the family), so it was a good sized group. We stayed there for a few hours and then headed to my uncle's house (where my mom was) for pie and games.

5. The Food Assignment

For the past two Thanksgivings I've volunteered to do the potatoes. While I was mashing the potatoes, I realized something about myself - I enjoy preparing food in masses!

A few months ago, Daisy was baptized, and we had brunch at the church after. My step-mom asked me about the food, and when I mentioned my cooking process (I'd baked the breakfast casseroles before the baptism and covered them with foil and put them in the oven, which I'd heated slightly and then turned off, to keep them warm, and I'd made funeral potatoes (four recipes' worth) in the crock pot so they were piping hot when we got to the church), she said, "You did all that? Why didn't you ask someone for help?" I didn't really have an answer for that, so I just said, "I dunno." But now I know the answer - I wanted to do it myself! I liked doing it.

I enjoy the challenge and the feeling of accomplishment that comes with making a dish that feeds a huge group of people! I love the process of forming a strategy (How am I going to boil and mash 25 pounds of potatoes?) Several years ago a friend told me that she halves her chocolate cookie recipe so it only makes one dozen. I remember thinking that was really weird because I use a recipe that makes 4 dozen, and I double it so I get 8 dozen (now granted, cookies aren't my thing, so if I'm going to make cookies, I'm going to make cookies). Ultimately, I would rather make 8 dozen cookies and freeze a few dozen and feed half my neighbors than dirty all those dishes for just a dozen cookies.

Food by the masses! This is my new motto.

(But I do have to throw out a disclaimer here, I like to prepare the food, not plan the food. So don't put me in charge of the next ward dinner. I will make ten casseroles, but someone else has to do the math to figure out that we need ten casseroles. I have no talent for that).

6. The Movie

On Thanksgiving night, we got our kids all pajama-ed up and went to see Coco. I really liked it. Not in a "buy it and watch it over and over" kind of way (it's rare for me to like a movie in that way), but in a "tell people they should go see it" kind of way. So go see it!

7. The Shopping

I'm not a huge Black Friday shopper, but I do like to keep my eye out just in case. I will not fight the masses or stand in lines or do anything crazy or strenuous, but if I see a good deal online that's easy to snag, I'll do it (I won't spend my time creating an account, though. I have "account creating aversion," so if something requires me to type my name and address or enter my credit card info, it's gotta really be worth it. So Amazon or bust, in most cases).

I ended up buying some Rubbermaid for myself, a gift for Eva, and a gift for my nephew. I also took advantage of the 20% off promo for Chatbooks (I already have an account) and put all of my cell phone photos in a book for each kid (I did this last year as well, and they LOVED getting their books for Christmas, especially Zoe. She hauls our Chatbooks everywhere - I may need to order reprints so I can have a "nice" set for posterity and a "reading" set for Zoe).

I was able to talk myself out of about $600 worth of impulse buys. I had some major purchases in my cart, and then I remembered that we are broke and heavily burdened by "stuff" already. I guess I don't need a robot vacuum... or do I?

8. Friday

Scotty's new job (of six months) allows him to have the day after Thanksgiving off, which is sooooo nice! I talked him into working on our floor. He got the floor laid in the kitchen in September, and then we put our renovation on hold while he traveled to Memphis and Paraguay for work. Now we need to finish extending the floor into the living room. He worked on that on Friday, and got the first third done.

9. The Transition to Christmas

I am one of those people who prefers not to listen to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving. I will occasionally indulge and listen to a few songs the week of Thanksgiving (usually I sneak in Maroon 5's cover of "Happy Christmas"), but for the most part, I steer clear. The day after Thanksgiving, Christmas music is fair game, and I usually throw out a few decorations.

10. The Decorations

I used to go all out with Christmas decor, but over the past three years, I've gotten rid of most of my decorations. I went from four Christmas bins to one (with a few things that don't fit in the bin - such as wreaths, a doormat, and a big wooden sled). Since I patched all the holes in my walls when I painted, I've had to adjust my holiday decor. It can't go where it used to go because the holes aren't there. I decided I'm going to photograph my Christmas decor this year so I can look at it next year and see if I liked where I put everything, and then I will know the answer to the question, "Should I hang the garland over front door or leave it off?" because I'll have a visual (blog post to follow).

Part of my decorating process is changing my blog banner and my profile picture and cover photo on Facebook (I'm still off social media for the month, but I wanted to get all of my stuff changed at once).

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Thanksving 2017 was a success! I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday as well.