Happy Thanksgiving!

I slept in on Thanksgiving (it was another rough night) and finally got out of bed at 8:00 AM.

I cleaned up the mess from last night's dinner and made a pot of coffee. Then I started watching the Detroit Thanksgiving Parade. When it ended I started the mid-week wash.

My sister-in-law Jean called but the voicemail picked up before I could. So, I called her back. Since I was already on the couch with the phone book in my hand, I decided to call the rest of my immediate family and wish them Happy Thanksgiving, too.

I mostly talked to voicemail, but I did get a chance to talk with my daughter Amy, and my brothers Jim and Joe and their wives. Then I decided to take a nap. Big mistake!!!

I woke up at 3:30 PM (and I was supposed to be at Jake and Carla's at 2:00) I gave them a quick call and then jumped in the shower. I dressed as fast as I could (I even forgot to put my belt on) and hit the road. I arrived there two hours and three minutes late (as Carla reminded me periodically throughout the rest of the day).

I did remember the wine, though. My job this year was to bring wine, so I had checked with the sommelier at the Wine Palace nearby as to what would go with turkey, stuffing, etc. He suggested a German wine, Gewurztraminer and/or a French wine, Beaujolais Nouveau (made and sold only around Thanksgiving).

For after dinner, he suggested Korbel champagne. So, I had bought all three yesterday and had them in the car (Thank God!)

As late as I was, they were still putting the final touches on dinner (or they held off until I showed up). So, while I talked with them and petted the dog, they got the dinner ready.

The dinner consisted of:

* A huge fresh turkey Jake smoked outside for hours
* Carla's mother's recipe for cornbread stuffing
* A side dish of Parmesan green beans and kale
* Roasted acorn squash (but peeled and cut into cubes before roasting)
* Cranberry dipping sauce (I loved that stuff - I kept dipping pieces of turkey in it)
* Mashed potatoes (run through a ricer)
* Homemade turkey gravy
* And, pumpkin cheesecake for dessert

It was fantastic!

And, the wine? Jake liked the Beaujolais Nouveau (he thought the Gewurztraminer was too sweet). I liked the Gewurztraminer (I don't normally like "sweet" but I thought it had a nice spicy back-taste). And I don't remember hearing Carla's preference...

After dinner, they began to clean up and I was relegated to the couch. In spite of my early afternoon nap, I fell asleep again for about 1 1/2 hours (turkey always does that to me). They asked if I wanted to watch a movie or go home. Since it was like 7:30 PM and dark outside, I chose going home.

Jake had a huge leftover bag for me. I made my goodbyes and asked that they tell Carla's Mom I said hello (the number I'd called this morning was disconnected).

I got home just in time to get my friend B__'s Thanksgiving call. I explained my dinner and he, too, was interested in getting Carla's cranberry dipping sauce recipe (Come on girl, cough it up!) I was a little upset over how he categorized my visit, though. He said it sounded like a "drive-by" because I arrived late, ate the food, then went to sleep and then went home. I hope that's not how Jake and Carla viewed it.

Back home, I was too wide awake to sleep so I stayed up until 2:00 AM and then finally went to bed...