Mom's Thanksgiving Dinner 2009

Here is my Mom yesterday at her Thanksgiving dinner at my brother's home in Greenville, South Carolina.  I am so thankful that my Mom had a proper Thanksgiving with friends and family. 

Bless her heart.  After all those years of doing for others she is now being treated like the queen that she is.  I'm so happy for you Mom!  I love that smile.

Rainy Sunday

As the rain beats against my window this Sunday morning, I am again reminded of how fortunate I am to have this warm, cozy and secure home. This morning I am reviewing the files on my old Gateway computer to transfer to my new Dell computer. This is a job I’ve been procrastinating for a few days but I have no excuse today. To me cleaning out these old computer files is akin to cleaning out a closet or a desk drawer. I would rather be updating my genealogy files. That is a pastime I literally can spend hours doing.

Thanksgiving came and went. As you know if you’re a regular reader of this blog, I spent the day (3 PM to 11 PM) at the front desk at the hotel where I work in Lewes. The hotel was about two thirds occupied. As in past holidays, especially Thanksgiving, the guests were gentle, sweet and appreciative. Most of the guests during the holidays are grandparents visiting children and grandchildren. This year we had a few gay couples, some singles and a group of airplane re fitters from Dubai (originally from England) who are long term guests. I like these guests because they always so pleasant an agreeable. No drama from the aircraft guys.

Monica, the assistant manager, brought me in a Thanksgiving platter directly from her family dining table. This is the second year she has so favored me with her kindness, and again the meal was delicious! Monica is one good cook. The platter consisted of turkey, mashed potatoes (so smooth), gravy (also very smooth), stuffing, green bean casserole, whipped sweet potatoes, and cranberry sauce. What more could I ask for? I wolfed that meal down in record time. This was one night shift in which I didn’t go home hungry.

Friday, Bill and I visited our friend Bob C. for dinner at his lovely, quaint historic home in Milton. Bill and I live in a new, open floor plan modern house. However, upon entering Bob’s place, we did feel nostalgia of one of these houses that oozes history throughout its timbers. The ceilings may be low, and floors may creak and the windows may be uneven but it all just adds to the charm of these unique houses. It was a wonderful night of camaraderie among good friends. Bob regaled us with stories of his recent cruise to Egypt (he was amazed at the size of the Pyramids) and Greece. Bill and I left around 8 PM into the darkness of that Friday night infused with goodwill from our good friend Bob.

Saturday morning, Bill and I had our regular weekly breakfast at Zorba’s at the Food Lion shopping strip on Rt. 1 as you go into Rehoboth Beach. Maggie, our usual waitress (who was a former student from one of the East European countries – I’ll have to ask her which one the next time I see her), greeted us as we walked in the door. We didn’t need a menu. She knows what we order. Bill has has an egg sandwich with a double order or mayonnaise (Bill loves his mayonnaise) on white bread, not toasted. I get one egg over hard (I hate runny whites on eggs), scrapple (I love my scrapple), home fries (which I split with Bill), and an English muffin. Bill gets regular coffee, I get decaf.

After breakfast I tackled a job which I have been putting off for too long. I had to get my fall bulb plantings in the ground as well as plant winter pansies. I had 170 tulip bulbs to plant, a few of which were chewed on by the resident mouse who has been residing (no longer since last night) in my shed. The winter pansies are my favorite because they bloom on any nice stretch of mild weather days during the winter and burst out in a glorious display of color the first days of spring. They keep producing until the intense heat of the summer. Then, at the height of the summertime a whole new crop of flowers take over the bed in front of my house. I got my trowel and knee pad out and went to work as soon as I got home from the garden center, where I purchased the pansies (as well as two winter barberry bushes.) Yesterday was a beautiful day to work outside. The sun was out but there was little wind and not a lot of activity in the neighborhood. Only the occasional car that went by, slowing down sometimes to observe this dedicated gardener on his knees, slaving away. Four and a half hours later, I was finished. My back was finished too.

At 6 PM I was ready for bed. I was exhausted. I remember the day when I could go all day from sun up to sun down. Those days are long gone. But yesterday’s effort was well worth it. My reward will be in the spring when the front of my house will be the first in the neighborhood to explode in a mass of festive color. Not only do my neighbors and I get to enjoy the flowers, but the early spring honey bees have their first source of food and sustenance.

After dinner last night I made my piece de resistance dessert, Hawaiian Wedding cake. No, no one is getting married but this is one of those desserts that one simple cannot get enough of. I take the regular recipe for Hawaiian Wedding cake and put a few “extras” in it. I make a butter cake instead of the usual yellow cake. Instead of draining all the pineapple juice, I soak about half of it into the cake. I also add a layer of bananas to the cake right before I put the crushed pineapples on top. Then the cream cheese, vanilla pudding, Cool Whip topping. On top of that I add coconut, chopped walnuts and maraschino cherries. I dare anyone to eat just one bit of this heavenly concoction. Forget about your diet when you eat this cake.

Normally I meet my friends on Sunday night at the Purple Parrot in Rehoboth. I’ll have to take a pass this night. It’s raining now and the rain is forecast for the rest of the day. I don’t like driving at night because of the oncoming headlights. They all seem to be on high beam, especially the newer cars with the laser lights. But driving at night with headlights reflecting off of the road wet with rain makes it almost impossible for me to navigate the road. No need to tempt fate tonight with another accident on the infamous Route 1.

Bill dragged out the Christmas candles from the attic and they are now all in place in our many windows. I would have put the white twinkle lights on my lone tree in the front of the house yesterday but I ran out of time and daylight. The Christmas decorating season is upon us again. Every year I say I'm not going to put up any decorations but I do anyway. I hate taking them down in the cold of January. But they do look so nice in the weeks before Christmas. Besides, I don't want to be the only Scrooge "Bah humbug!" neighbor in the neighborhood.

This week I work Monday and Thursday. Tuesday I have a dental appointment (teeth cleaning) in Dover. Tom (my Computer Guy) comes over Wednesday to complete the setup of my new Dell Computer. I’ve decided not to get that very intrusive test at the urologist in January. Then I’m ready to settle in for the winter. It looks like clear sailing until spring. Snug as a bug in a rug.
Life is good.

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving is here again. Doesn’t it seem like it arrives faster and faster? Why it seems like only yesterday it was witches and hobgoblins cavorting around celebrating the Halloween madness. This year as in years past I think back on previous Thanksgiving celebrations. For many, many years Thanksgiving at home was Mom cooking up the big turkey dinner for our family; Pop, me and my two younger brothers. Then, as my brothers and I moved away from home, we would visit Mom and she would still whip up the big diner for our ravenous appetites. Turkey, mashed potatoes, corn (from Pop’s garden, lovingly frozen during the summer and brought out at this special occasion), cranberry sauce, string beans, and the special treat – Mom’s homemade biscuits with homemade gravy. At the end of the meal my brothers would good naturedly fight to see who could sop out the left over gravy in the gravy bowl with their biscuits.

As the years passed, my brothers and I too to celebrating Thanksgiving at our respective homes with our new families. Occasionally one of two of us would visit Mom for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. However, as Mom got older she found it difficult to handle the stress of cooking a big dinner. After my father died, my divorced brother moved in with Mom to take care of her. Thanksgiving dinner would just be the two of them. I would go over after their dinner and she would have a dish made up of the Thanksgiving goodies for me and Bill to take back to my home.

In 2003 I accepted an invitation from a longtime friend to join him and his family for their Thanksgiving dinner. In the past I had always turned down this invitation because I assumed Thanksgiving dinners were for family only. I wasn’t a member of his biological family. I didn't think it would be right for me to attend his family’s Thanksgiving dinner. However, I knew his wife was a fabulous cook so I took him up on his offer. What a wise choice that was! Thanksgiving dinner at my friend’s house was one of the best, if not the best Thanksgiving dinner I ever had (with all due respects to Mom – she is a pretty darn good cook too.) The difference with my friend’s dinner was who was in attendance. Around the beautifully set out dining room table were my friend, his wife, their two adult daughters, his Mom, his aunt, his brother and his wife and her mom, and his single cousin. I was added to this mix and felt right at home.

His house was warm and comfortable. The aromas wafting in from the kitchen were positively heady. Laughter abounded everywhere. Chaos reigned but who cared? We were family.

I called my friend last night to wish him and his family a happy Thanksgiving. He extended his invitation again as he had many times in the past. To my great regret, I cannot take him up on his invitation this year because I am working later today. Also, there is a significant geographical separation between us now. His family lives in southeastern Pennsylvania and I live in the southern peninsula of Delaware.

Even though I am working today and may not be enjoying the traditional sit down Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family, I will give thanks for the many blessings that have been bestowed upon me. Good health, financial security, a wonderful home in a wonderful state. But, of all my blessings, the one I am most thankful for are my friends. They have made my life a joy. Thank you all.