Happy Thanksgiving! Fortunately for me - and a number of others in my family - my sister Aimee hosted the Healy Turkey Day celebration. No small feat this, as of my 8 siblings and their spouses and our 20 lovely children, 29 individual family members arrived on the scene plus a couple of close friends.
As a token of my appreciation for letting me off the holiday hosting hook, I presented my sister with a bottle of merlot decorated with a scarf made of Modea "Flip". Nieces Megan and Erin also modeled the fun fur scarves I made for them as you can see in the photos.
As is traditional, the menfolk gathered outside under a tent to smoke the turkeys and bond (read drink beer) with little regard for the frigid temperature. Whilst this erstwhile activity ensued outdoors, the rest of the clan sampled homemade mushroom and squash soups along with cheeses and crackers of every description with wine being the beverage of choice.
My DH played frisbee football with a few of the young nephews in the living room. What was he thinking? As luck would have it the football sailed into a candle, knocking it over and splashing sage green wax on my sister's freshly painted cocoa wall as well as the hardwood floors. Getting the wax off kept DH busy and out of any more trouble. He was grateful for the help of my sister Debbie, who remembering a Heloise tip for getting wax up got out the iron and paper towels and painstakingly assisted her errent brother-in-law in the removal process.
As the dinner time drew closer, a flurry of activity took place in the kitchen. Sister-in-law Eileen's sweet potato casseroles were whisked into the oven. I began the process of blanching whole green beans that were later to be sauteed in olive oil, garlic and pepper, doused with fresh lemon juice and then sprinkled liberally with pignolia nuts. Mom whipped the potatoes while Aimee put out applesauce and cranberry sauce. Debbie contributed a basket of delicous pumpkin bread with walnuts and cranberries. Mmmm. Thanksgiving dinner was shaping up.
The birds arrived on the cutting board and Matt did the honors with his cherished chef's knife. Steaming stuffing was soon piled high and gravy simmered in the crock pot. What's Thanksgiving without something made of Jello? The cranberry mold, rich with grapes and nuts, glittered on the sideboard with a mound of homemade whipped cream in the center. A line of hungry Healy's snaked through the kitchen, each one helping themselves to their culinary delights of choice, and then carried their groaning dinner plates to the tables set up in the dining and the living room. Once all were seated, Erin read - for the most part fluently - a blessing that ended with "through Crisis Our Lord. Amen." Very appropriate to our family and I'm sure the Lord didn't mind one bit. Jocular conversation, edging sometimes on boisterous, ensued. As tummies filled we wondered how there would be any room for pie. But eaat pie we did ... apple, pumpkin, pecan, coconut custard and banana cream. We also managed to sample mini-canoli's and cranberry squares baked by one of the friends in attendance.
Sated and sleepy as the tryptophan kicked in, we said our goodbyes and headed for home. A dusting of snow covered our car and it was certainly alot colder than when we arrived. I dozed in the car but perked up enough upon arriving home to finish up knitting a scarf for myself. Just in time to fend off the chill winds of the beckoning winter.
