The Feast...

 It was a delicious Thanksgiving. 

Rachel and I cooked all day on Wednesday. Amazing Aimee got up early and drove from New Hampshire to keep the Owlet occupied while we worked. We made the spinach dip and garlic dip, scratch pie crusts, pumpkin pie from fresh pumpkin with fresh ginger, my mother's pecan pie recipe, rum cake, chocolate nemesis cake,  sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes (20 pounds of them!), stuffing and green bean casserole. While we were at it, we made a batch of Hungarian Goulash to eat after we had cooked all day. 

On Thanksgiving morning, Chris put his turkey on the smoker before dawn, and I tucked mine (under a buttery blanket of cheesecloth) into the oven. Aimee and I set the tables, the side dishes were heated, and beverages, desserts, and appetizers were set out. Deb and I (mostly Deb) whipped up a vat of gravy. By two, the driveway looked a bit like a used car lot. 

 

The smoked bird.  

The roasted bird, artfully carved by Evans. 

Some family could not come because a last-minute Covid test came up positive. That was sad. But otherwise the day went off without a hitch. As always, I sat back and listened to the ebb and flow of conversation, the lull as people forked into the meal, then the uptick again. It's a happiness that never gets old. 

Deb, John, and Aimee stayed the night. In the morning, Deb and I finished up the soaking dishes, and John helped put the folding table and chairs away. Rachel, Evans, and the Owlet came over, and after noshing on leftovers, we set up to decorate Gingerbread Houses as we do most years. It's a fun kick-off to the next holiday. We like the frosting and candy part more than the baking part, so Deb kindly brings kits for us to use, plus LOTS of extra candy to festoon the houses. Here is my wee house as we began. 

The finished product...

Then everyone was gone, and the house seemed quiet and empty. A cold rain fell, but we were cozy and drowsy. A long nap fixed that. Another Thanksgiving is over. It was a good one. I feel honored that friends and family choose to travel to spend time with us on this day. More than honored, thankful. 

(And thanks to Chris Kaiser and Aimee Brown for some of the photos.)