We sadly didn’t have any company this year, so it really felt like a very laid-back holiday. We watched the Macy’s Parade and played parade bingo and then took in the dog show while I puttered about, getting things ready…I set the table extra early this year, so that was a task done long before dinner:
I found some time for Animal Crossing…I always like to hang out with Roald on a holiday!
And then time for dinner! I think this was one of the better turkeys I’ve ever made, and all of our regular side dishes were delicious, too:
We watched Holiday Inn while we cleaned up and I boiled the turkey carcass for turkey soup. And then we had pie! My choice of cranberry-rhubarb was just as tart and delicious as I hoped it would be!
Today began just as yesterday ended…with more pie for breakfast!
Chickadee and I went to the town Santa Parade, which is always a fun time:
When we got home, we had our traditional turkey sandwiches for lunch:
And I had lunch dessert, which I think should be a regular thing!
For dinner I made our day-after-Thanksgiving turkey soup:
And then Moose, Chickadee, and I went to the town tree lighting:
We also visited the Christkindlmarkt:
And checked out the gingerbread displays:
The storefronts were looking good, too!
Back home we had one more round of pie:
And now I’m exhausted, but the fun is just beginning, because Advent starts on Sunday!
Another Thanksgiving has come and gone far too quickly!
Our annual celebration started with Pie Day(s). Like I did last year, I split the work of the pie baking up over two days…we made 10 pies plus the cranberries and stuffing.
I love that our table looks a little bit different every year!
I wasn’t sure how much time I’d have later, so I checked in with Franklin to see how his dinner preparations were coming along:
Bunny wasn’t able to join us until Thanksgiving Day, and had to leave again this morning already, so we did things a little different. We ended up watching the Macy’s Parade twice on Thanksgiving Day (only one game of Parade Bingo, though), along with the dog show and a few of our favorite Thanksgiving shows (Mad About You‘s “Giblets for Murray,” Gilmore Girls‘ “A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving,” The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s “Talking Turkey,” Scrubs’ “My Day Off,” A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and M*A*S*H‘s “The Yalu Brick Road.”).
We had our traditional dinner…turkey and gravy, stuffing and mashed potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and green beans with almonds, cranberries, and rolls:
It’s always a pretty plate!
And so many pies to choose from!
I went with pecan, Nutella, and pumpkin:
I had enough time to pop back into Animal Crossing to help Franklin procure the final ingredients for dinner on the island:
This morning started with pie for breakfast…this time, Nutella and Biscoff cookie butter:
Chickadee and I went to the town Santa parade:
I love a turkey sandwich on rye the day after Thanksgiving!
For lunch dessert, I tried the caramel apple pie:
The Lego Winter Village set was built over the course of two days…I have mixed feelings about this year’s model (I really wish it was just a post office, not Santa’s post office), but I do think the mail sorting system is really cool, and I love the hot air ballon. We got a bonus set of a delivery truck, and it’s really cool, too!
Dinner was turkey soup (of course):
And then Moose, Chickadee, and I went to the town tree lighting:
We also enjoyed checking out the gingerbread house contest…here are some of my favorites:
And one more piece of pie for dessert!
We get to have another leftovers dinner tomorrow (and more pie of course!), but that pretty much wraps up this year’s Markel Family Thanksgiving…on to Advent and Christmas!
I was thinking to myself the other day how funny it is that over half of my children are now in college, and they’re going to three different schools in three different states!
Today is Turkey’s first day at the college to which he transferred! I got to go with him on Friday for orientation, and I had a fun time walking around the campus, meeting some of the faculty, and especially getting to see the mascot!
I can’t to see what the next two years have in store for him!
I have always been intrigued by the way Turkey’s and Chickadee’s ages line up, from the time he was nine years old and she was nine months, to the brief few days last year when he was 20 and she was 10. We have another fun age coincidence now that they’ve both celebrated birthdays in 2024…their ages of 12 and 21 are flipped, and I’m amused!
I can’t believe it, but today is Turkey’s 21st birthday! We actually celebrated yesterday, starting with opening gifts after church. I was especially excited about the Steamboat Willie pocket watch we gave him:
Since we had already changed the day we were celebrating, we also flipped the order of things around, and had his birthday (cheese)cake at lunchtime. He chose a Black Forest cheesecake, which is one of my favorite new recipes:
For dinner, as is tradition, I made a turkey dinner, complete with stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, cauliflower (his favorite), and rolls. He requested the “Piko Piko Slammer,” a type of pink lemonade with notes of lemongrass and grapefruit, from our new Sonic The Hedgehog Official Cookbook to go with dinner, too.
It really doesn’t seem possible to me that one of my children is already 21…I remember it all just like it was yesterday. Those years certainly did fly by quickly, and I’m so proud of the young man I get to call my son!
I’m feeling sentimental again, because it’s time for Bunny to return to college after a month-plus of Christmas break, so I’m thinking about one of my favorite things that Turkey and Bunny and I like to do.
I’m not sure when we started going for boba tea…maybe last year sometime? But no one else in the house likes boba tea, so it’s become an “us” thing, and we occasionally go out for boba guilt-free, because we know no one at home will be missing out!
We’ve enjoyed trying out different places when we’ve been out running errands, and also trying different varieties. Most recently, I tried popping boba, which is so much fun, and also flavorful and refreshing! And they’re always pretty drinks, too, which make them even more enjoyable! I’m really glad this is a thing that the three of us started to do together, because even if it isn’t a common indulgence, we always really appreciate it when we have the chance!
“And that’s how Milly and Mr. Macy started a new holiday tradition. It looked a little like the old country, and a little like America, and a little like something entirely new.”
That quote from Milly and the Macy’s Parade describes pretty well how I felt about Thanksgiving this year. Our holiday was a little different, because this is the first time we’ve had a child away from home who returned to us for the holiday celebration. It was kind of familiar and kind of new, and still lots of fun!
One thing that was different this year was that instead of having “Pie Day” on Wednesday, I started my annual pie baking on Tuesday…I made three pies that day (two s’mores, another new thing because I’ve never made two of the same pie before, and a chocolate hazelnut) plus the cranberries. I got to work on baking early so that I wouldn’t have to be in the kitchen as much once Bunny returned home on Wednesday. The other six pies (plus the stuffing) were made that day, and Bunny even had time to make the caramel apple like she usually does!
Thursday was pretty normal…we watched the Macy’s Parade (Bunny and Ladybug tied at parade bingo) and the National Dog Show and some of our favorite Thanksgiving shows that we didn’t have time for on Wednesday. Chickadee took care of folding the napkins while I set our tables:
And dinner was even ready a little earlier than I expected, which is much better than it being done later! We had a fairly standard meal…turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, green beans with almonds, cranberries, and rolls. I also made roast fennel for the first time, and it was delicious!
Another change this year involved our Lego Winter Village set. Usually, we build it the day after Thanksgiving, but Bunny had to leave pretty early that day, so we built it after dinner. I love that it looks like it was lifted right from the Alps, and it has so many lovely details…the fireplace is especially cool!
Here’s a look at the previously-mentioned pies. The pineapple pie was the only new addition this year, and it was a good one…I will definitely be making it again!
In the evening, we also played “Chandler’s Dumb States Game” for the first time. I was the undisputed champion…all 50 states in four minutes, and my children are still wondering how I did it! Of course I also had to check in with Franklin and my Animal Crossing neighbors before the day was over:
The day after Thanksgiving started with one of my very favorite traditions…pie for breakfast!
We went to see Moose march in the town Santa Parade for the last time…Bunny was able to stay long enough to see the band, which was nice. After all these years, I can’t believe he won’t be marching in it again!
Of course we had turkey sandwiches for lunch:
And more pie for lunch dessert:
Dinner was another favorite…turkey soup:
After dinner, Chickadee and I went to the town tree lighting, which is always a nice event.
We walked through Christkindlmarkt:
And checked out the gingerbread houses on display on Main Street. There are some very creative and beautiful pieces done by some very talented artists!
Back home, we had even more pie:
Last night, we had one more leftovers meal…Thanksgiving casserole (one of the few casseroles I actually like!):
And one final round of pie for dessert:
So, our celebration was a lot the same, but a little bit different. But we were together for the holiday, and that was the most important thing of all!
I’m not going to lie…I’m feeling sentimental because Bunny is moving out this weekend to finish her college education. That has me thinking back over how quickly the years have gone by, and I can’t look back without remembering how Turkey and Bunny have been my “almost twins” since the day she started crawling after him.
They were born one day short of 16 months apart. And Bunny was determined to chase after and keep up with Turkey since she began moving. It didn’t take long for strangers to assume they were twins when we were out and about, and in a lot of ways I viewed them that way, too…I even started Bunny in kindergarten with Turkey, and they were classmates all the way through.
They were each other’s first friends, and it hard for me to imagine them not together. I know that I will adjust to our new normal, but it’s going to be a big adjustment, and one I’m not entirely looking forward to.
