Thanksgiving feast reimagined...

I hope all you living in the States had a very nice Thanksgiving.   We had a small, but happy gathering with our sons and middle son's girlfriend on Thursday.  We've forgone the traditional turkey meal for I don't even know how long now, and this year settled on the idea of having a Taco Bar.  It was so much fun with everyone in the kitchen at one point helping to pull the various components together for our meal of make your own tacos.

As is usual when we have family get togethers, we played some games.  My favorite games are ones that get people to talking - especially if people start talking about themselves, or about memories that come up during the game.  And of course, laughter is a must - so nothing too serious, or too long or complicated for that matter.  Before we ate, we played A Fake Artist Goes to New York.  A long, goofy name for a very simple and funny game.  And after our tacos, we played So Clover!  Why oh why do I not think in the moment, to snap some pictures?   Here are links to explanations of So Clover! and A Fake Artist Goes to New York if you're curious about them.  

It was a good Thanksgiving Day.  Over too soon, but that always seems to be the way it is anymore.  I feel it more keenly the older I get.

Below is a picture of my dad (in 1986).  His tradition was to cook the Thanksgiving and Christmas turkey every year.  I suppose we all pitched in once we were older, but since I was a little girl until she couldn't do it anymore, I remember Mom made traditional hearty sides including oyster dressing at Thanksgiving.  That dressing was my favorite part of our Thanksgiving feast.

Though we did all look forward to the turkey 

that Dad roasted and basted to perfection.  

There is something to be said for keeping to traditions.

~~~~~

On the crafting front, I recently finished the Sweet As Can Bee blanket I started a few weeks ago.  It's a nice midweight afghan, perfect for slightly chilly evenings, and it puts a fun pop of autumn color in the living room for this time of year.  I'm so glad I finally made it:

And now I'm on to decorating the Christmas tree, 

and starting a new crochet project!   

~~~~~

Thanksgiving - after the table was cleared...

Thanksgiving meal was ham, green bean casserole, sauteed zucchini and summer squash, corn casserole, and rolls.  Followed with pecan and pumpkin pies.  A simple meal by some standards, but it was so good.  I only wish I'd gotten a picture of the set table.

After finishing eating, we cleared the table and enjoyed several rounds of Zendo and Century Spice Road - both new games to us.  Then the guys poured over some pictures that husband brought home from his mother's earlier this week.  We ended the evening with stories of when my husband and I were first married.  The guys were pretty good sports as we reminisced.  It helped that we had some doozy stories to laugh at.  

It was a good Thanksgiving.  I'm feeling so very thankful for my family and special times together like this.