The Evolution of a Thanksgiving Dinner...

Thanksgiving day dawned snowy and foggy, but as family began to show up, the sun kindly broke through and, though it lit the blonde prairie with its thin November light, it didn't warm it up much! But, the men were warm enough out by the turkey deep-fryer to nurse a couple beers. And all was warm and toasty indoors, where we had the sense to drink punkin spice coffee.

All my brothers and sisters, my parents, my brother's two girls, and two of the boys' friends from school joined our ten children, my husband and me for Thanksgiving dinner. We were cozy with the woodstove crackling and the warmth of comfortable conversation and laughter. And, let me tell you, there were calories to burn!

Everyone contributed to the feast. Unfortunately, we didn't do a bird this year ourselves, because the oven at the old farmhouse is acting up, but we did the pies, the mashed potatoes and the sweet tea. My mom brought her famous Green Beans, Daddy Salad, and Sweet Potato Fluff. My sister brought our family classic, Apple Rings dessert, and her own Basil Dinner Rolls, which were scrumptious! And my brother brought an awesome Portobello Mushroom dish.

I'm sure there was more, but that's all I can come up with off the top of my head. I'll try to get some recipes and post them, as many are wonderfully festive for Christmas, too.

Here's how it looked, in a walnutshell:
Three of my four brothers waiting for the "pot to boil" so they can deep fry one of the three turkeys that were brought by extended family.

The potato-peeling brigade, working on the twenty-five pounds of potatoes to be mashed, the remnants of which have been made into today's traditional VAT of potato cheese soup!
The table set, before the food is all brought in. Don't you love the shabby (really shabby!) chic mix-and-match-chair look? Two farm tables put together didn't quite accomodate the 23 people who shared the bounty and blessings. All the odd chairs and extra table get stored away tonight. The gang just after Grandad offered the Thanksgiving blessing, and before the "Great Devour."Fifteen pies (a couple are missing in this pic), a plate of coconut fudge, and a fruit compote. The great pie-makers (Jon, Michelle and my brother's girls) received a round of applause at the "reveal," and then several moments of silence while everyone dug in!


Missing are the vignettes of the dishwashing and clean-up crew (though I have a video of it that's so hysterically representative of our day that I may have to try to download it), the games of cards, the squealing, playing children, and the grown-ups lying around with their hands on their bellies too tired and full to chase after them.


The day ended with a sing-along. Following, I'm making my first attempt to download a video of some of it, so let me know how it works!