Kontan Jou

For this very special Thursday I offer you thirteen things about our Thanksgiving celebration. Some will be memories and others will be insight into the quirkiness of my family. So, in no particular order…

1.

Caramel cake. My absolute favorite. Now, it can’t be just ANY caramel or just ANY consistency. I require my caramel to be simply made and then poured over the top of each layer of the cake where it will harden into a solid shell. It is perfect with a side of vanilla ice cream. Every birthday and every holiday Gran made this for me. One of the things I truly miss b/c no one makes it like Gran.

2.

Pumpkin pie. Love it. Jem is currently making pies for tomorrow and upon special request he is making my pumpkin pie. The rest of the family doesn’t enjoy it like I do, but hey…I’m special so I get the special request.

3.

Backyard ball. Every Thanksgiving the cousins would go out back for a insanely competitive exciting game of football. I learned at a very early age to either run fast or enjoy the taste of dirt. Just because I am considerably smaller than them, my cousins had NO mercy. That’s a group of boys for you. There was one time my accident prone thrill seeking cousin decided to hand off. It was prefect…other than part of his front tooth was stuck in my head. Didn’t hurt until I saw the blood.

4

I’m thankful for the fact that Mr. Thrill seeker has managed the last several holiday’s without injury. As a child he spent most holiday’s in the emergency room. Happy Holidays. :-/

5.

The chaos. It is a love-hate relationship here. My family is a little on the large side.

6.

The first Thanksgiving with my husband. It was actually just after Thanksgiving. We were not married yet. (Totally crazy, but I had only known him a month.) I travelled with him out of state to visit his family for a birthday/Thanksgiving celebration. You really get to know someone during a 5 hour road trip.

7.

My family’s cooking. Everyone is used to what they are used to and they like what they like. I like my family’s cooking. I don’t want gourmet…I want Southern. If you haven’t had it then you just don’t know what I mean.

8.

On that note, I hate celery.

9.

I prefer Thanksgiving to be a cool sunny day. I do not enjoy wearing shorts or T-shirts on Thanksgiving or Christmas. Here in the South, that is a distinct possibility. Tomorrow- Sunny and 66.

10.

I like the music. Currently I am listening to Canadian Brass Christmas. (If you know me, you know I like to keep it instrumental.) Thanksgiving is the start of the holiday season. Most of the time I really enjoy the atmosphere between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

11.

The Salvation Army bellringers have GOT to go. I don’t like that part. I don’t mind donating…just stop ringing the $%#& bell!

12.

Back to the family. I love the fact that we are completely open. You never know who is going to be there. If there are a few extras no one notices. It doesn’t matter what race, religion, or level of strangeness you are…welcome aboard. The last time all of the cousins were present it was a little eclectic. My oldest cousin and her Middle Eastern husband are B’hai. The next to oldest is a complete goofball and worse than all the kids combined. Just get them together. The next…well…let’s just call him confused. His friend was a psychology student. Oh did she have a lot to analyze. The youngest of that group was Vegan at the time. Now he’s just weird. Another friend of the family, who has since been sent home due to an expired visa, is from India. Being Muslim he lost out on the delicious ham. Then the kids…all except for the confused one has two or more kids. Let me not forget my Aunt and Uncle…the pleaser and the agnostic. At the dinner table we stay away from religion and politics. College football is off limits too… War Eagle!

13

As I mentioned Djembe has been making pies. Watching him work with the girls by his side…he is so good with them. I hope they will look back on our holidays together and fondly remember the craziness that is our family. They will not know their real grandparents like I wish they would…but I hope that we have done a good job of making holidays a time of joy for them.

To the Americans reading…Happy Thanksgiving…to everyone else I hope you are having a wonderful day and thank you for indulging me in my rambling. I would love to know if you stopped by so feel free to say hi even if you aren’t participating this week. If you are a Thirteener, leave your link.