thanksgiving.

We were going to be sad kids if we didn't have Thanksgiving this year. I was having depressing visions of me and Simon sitting alone in the dark eating from a KFC bucket and calling that our first Thanksgiving together. I told him that I didn't want to cook a turkey or a feast. Solution: he cooked the turkey and we had a pot luck feast with friends. And it was great.

Simon was/still is so proud of his first turkey. He soaked it in a brine and babysat it in the oven himself. Such a big boy. Before we ate, he watched a video online about how to carve a turkey and did a great job. There was not a scrap left on that bird. He was working so hard that I had to pat his brow for fear of the sweat dripping into the turkey and making it too salty.

Stacey & Darrin's first home made apple pie.

Simon found the gizzard and his farm boy instincts told him not to fear those kinds of things.
I have no such instincts.
The boys also ate the heart, carrying on the Indian tradition of using all parts of the animal. They were so caveman-ly curious about it. All the girls protested. What is it with men and their desire for meat? Do they really like it as much as they pretend to?

Some friends.
We had representatives from Australia, New Zealand, New York, Germany, semi-Scotland, and other parts of America. For most, this was their first Thanksgiving. So we taught them all about it the way we were taught in first grade: that the pilgrims and Indians were best friends. We also went around the table and said what we were thankful for.

I've never known anyone more exact and precise than our new German friends. They called to tell me that they had 500g of mashed potatoes per person and our dishes have never been shinier.