The Thanksgiving that Was...and Wasn't

Well, Thanksgiving didn't happen the way we planned, but was very nice anyway.

The plan had been to take dinner to my mother so we could have a family thanksgiving together in her apartment.  This was Ned's idea and better than mine, bringing her here to share Thanksgiving dinner with us.  Ned and Marta were bringing mashed potatoes, green beans and rolls; I was cooking the turkey and stuffing and making the pies.

My mother had never been particularly interested.  I had hoped the idea of having a family dinner would have pleased her, but she had been particularly blasé whenever I mentioned it, merely saying "well...whatever you want."

In the morning, hoping to help her remember that we were coming by in the afternoon, I brought the pumpkin pie, and a floral arrangement for the table.  I sat and talked with her and she said that she was feeling sick to her stomach.  Jeri called and we did a facetime chat and even that didn't help my mother.  She said she felt like vomiting.  It was obvious we needed to cancel our plans.  She said she was going to bed, and I left her lying on the couch looking miserable.  I will go over there today and see how she's doing.

I contacted Ned and he said that he and Marta would bring their food to our house and we'd have Thanksgiving dinner here.  So we did.  I had recently heard of an interesting way of basting the turkey, which is to soak cheesecloth in melted butter and wine and cover the turkey with it, basting a couple of other times with the remaining butter-wine mixture.  It resulted in a delicious, moist turkey!

Ned carved the bird (Walt very happy to turn this task over to the oldest son!)

It all came together very nicely.

I had left the nice floral centerpiece at my mother's but we ate on placemats that we had bought around the world--Ireland, Greece, Croatia, Germany.  And I was able to use our wedding china, which I rarely do because we have only 4 place settings.

During dinner, Tom called and we had a face time chat with the family in Santa Barbara.

And after the pumpkin pie, Walt opened the cherry brandy that we bought in Croatia.

We had eaten early and Ned and Marta were gone before Jeopardy started.  I fell asleep before the show ended and slept until 2:30, at which time I wrote this entry...and will now go back to sleep!

All in all, a lovely Thanksgiving; I just wish my mother had been well enough to join us.  But I suspect she was just as happy she didn't have to. 

 Our Thanksgiving "family portrait"