Thanksgiving, 2009 #1

This year, we celebrated Thanksgiving Day with my family at my brother's house. Jennie (the creative school teacher that she is) made us girls matching aprons to wear while we cooked. Hers says "Mom," Rachel's says "Rachel," and mine says "Aunt Mindy" with both Rachel's and Clinton's hand prints. I absolutely love them! They are so cute, and were the perfect ensemble we needed to embark on the cooking challenge of the year.

This was the first Thanksgiving since my parents' divorce, so Jennie and I really had to step up and prove that we were grown-ups enough to handle a big undertaking like Thanksgiving dinner without my mom around. We were, of course, a little nervous (and a little sad). But I do believe the meal was a complete success.

We didn't even overflow the candied yams with too many marshmallows, like we've grown so accustomed to doing! However, we did forget to allow the rolls to rise, and then did the "quick rise" method that worked so well that they kind of blew up and became big, soft, roll monsters. But they were good! (And funny.) Rachel was our "Big Helper" for the day. She tried to help me peel eggs, and successfully peeled away the entire white part in one swipe, and then licked the yolk. Maybe 2-year-olds shouldn't be in charge of the deviled eggs. Hmm. However, she did offer her great assistance with the Waldorf salad, perfectly placing the diced fruits into the bowl and then helping stir them up.

Jennie impressed us all with made-from-scratch noodles as well as pies. Seriously, she's setting the bar very high. I made the deviled eggs, green bean casserole, and two corn casseroles (on accident. That's what happens when you're not paying attention and you mistakenly double an ingredient). We also feasted on mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, cole slaw, cranberry sauce and a relish tray. You would be surprised how many casseroles can fit into the oven at once! Thank goodness they all baked at 350 degrees.

For the most part, the boys (including Clinton and Chester) all hung out downstairs watching football, but Brad and TJ did take responsibilty for the turkey basting and cutting. TJ, the firefighter, got called out during the last five minutes of the turkey roasting, so we set the oven on low and kept everything warm, while we cleaned up the dishes. It was a weird feeling to be completely done cooking with a clean kitchen but no food to eat yet. But the wait was well worth it. When we finally dug into to our overflowing table, we were completely satisfied. It even took us hours to get up the courage to attack the delicious desserts.

It was great to spend time with my family, including my brothers that I don't see very often. And later in the evening, my mom stopped by for a visit. What a good feeling to see her again! Thanksgiving just isn't Thanksgiving without my mom around - it's her absolute favorite holiday. I'm pretty sure it was the first time I'd seen her since last Christmas, so I really needed that visit. We all sat in the kitchen and talked for hours. She even ate some of the Thanksgiving leftovers we had made, and approved of our cooking! Yea!

It was wonderful to have my whole family in the same house for a bit. As we've gotten older and more spread apart, that's been harder and harder to achieve, even before the divorce. I'm so pleased to know that we're still making wonderful Thanksgiving memories together, even with all the changes going on in our lives. God is so GOOD! And I am so blessed with this family.

Complete Metcalf Thanksgiving Photo Album