Journal to a Muse

What changes a few decades make. Now that DH and I are of a certain age, when it comes to holidays or most any kind of social event, we do what we want. Parents are either out of the picture or too far away to insist that we comply with THEIR expectations. And my children were too far away this year.


So it turns out that what we wanted to do was have a traditional feast -- all by ourselves.

You might want to try it sometime. In the morning we took a long leisurely drive to enjoy the beautiful Fall weather and leaf colors that finally arrived. Then I made what is ironically known as "Mom's" stuffing and DH stuffed the turkey.

(After a half century of opportunities in the kitchen, he admitted he'd never done that before. He did a magnificent job. (i.e., the turkey didn't blow up.) Similarly, he made his first ever mashed potatoes. Where had that boy been? They were lovely, too. Given adequate butter and half and half, I don't see how you can go wrong. (Oh, and with the help of the food chanell we added lots of parmesan cheese. Nice texture, not so much flavor in my opinion.)


Unlike the days of my youth, there was not a case of wine to be drunk. Nor were there 14.5 rounds of cocktails. Didn't miss them. Pumpkin Nut Bars will prevail over pumpkin pie in the future. Homemade cranberry compote IS worth the trouble if you are a cranberry nut like me.

Oh, and carrots with butter and nutmeg were yummy.

Maybe next year I can re-discover the traditional broccoli, onions and cheese recipe. But for this year, the balance between old and new, comfort and challenge, was absolutely perfect.

I hope you still have fond memories of YOUR Thanksgiving celebration, and that every day you find new blessings to add to your list.