Oh, Boy!

Happy Thanksgiving! My favorite holiday of the whole year! Thanksgiving holds my best childhood memories. We would always go to Aunt Betty's for the day, play croquet, dad would put the turkey on the barbecue (the year it burned was the best tasting turkey ever) my grandma would request my cousins to play It's a Small World on the piano (it was her favorite), and at the end of the day, my aunt would sit down and play some Christmas Carols for us. You know, I used to think it was too early for Christmas Carols then but now the Christmas celebration starts before Halloween and we aren't really calling it Christmas any longer...It's Happy Holidays and schools have "Winter Break." I will jump off my soap box before I say things like it's a "Christ Mass" and hurt myself.

In high school, Dad took us to Missouri to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving. We got to miss school, fly on a plane, Aunt Myrt would have a back porch full of pies, and if we were really lucky, we would get some snow. One year it started snowing around 10-11 pm. My brother and I just stood out under the streetlight catching snowflakes with our tongue. I am sure if any neighbors saw us they thought "Those California people are really crazy." However, for born and raised desert rats, snow was a treat. (After living in Massachusetts, I now understand why my dad would always say "I hate snow.") One of my aunts had a bowling alley so we could play pinball and bowl to our hearts desire. I felt very grown up when my aunt would turn me loose behind the snack bar counter...I got to heat up the Honey Buns for her customers and slather them with butter...craziest thing I had ever seen but after tasting it, I could see what all the fuss was about.  I wouldn't ever eat one of those calorie laden buns again but it sure is fun when you're a teen not worried about calories.

Now...Roo is filling up my kitchen with yummy baking smells emanating from The Pioneer Woman and Ina Garten's recipes. There was a firing of her sous chef, Hannah, for laziness and deserting her post. Matthew took up the place of H for a few minutes before we all ditched Thanksgiving preparations for a UAH hockey game. It is time to pass on some Thanksgiving memories for my kids...I'm praying they love Thanksgiving as much as I do. I am sad they will never know the joy of a leisurely day without checking electronics...I wonder what their Thanksgiving will be like in 40 years...

Have a wonderful and blessed day, everyone!