Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Tomorrow's Thanksgiving. We're going to have a very small dinner this year. Just me, the wife, kids and father-in-law. You see, my wife's mother died on July 3rd after a long battle with cancer.

So this year, we're staying close to home and celebrating quietly. I may smoke the turkey, but most likely, I'll do it in the oven using a recipe from last year's Bon Appetit magazine for "Roast Turkey with Prosciutto-Hazelnut Crust." I made this last year and it was excellent. Of course there will still be the home made cranberry sauce and stuffing, but it won't be a massive food feast.

I'm not sure we're doing the right thing by keeping the holiday small. My wife wants a quiet day, so that's what we'll have, but I know the kids are disappointed. Last year we had 18 people (which is just some very close relatives) for the day with a 27lb turkey. (This year I bought a 13lb turkey which my daughter said looks like a chicken.) I cooked for at least 24 hours straight and made food for two different houses with another 4 in the second home.

I hope this is the right way to mourn, keeping things small, but I wonder if a return to normal would be better. Last year's Thanksgiving was marred by my wife's aunt's stroke (she lives in the apartment upstairs) and Christmas was marred by my mother-in-law's cancer diagnosis. I know I'm ready to return to normal, but I still have both my parents. So, we'll keep it small and see how it goes.