We Give Thanks
Thanksgiving week 2007 brought temperatures in the upper 60s/low 70s and a brisk wind; perfect weather for jumping in piles of Fall leaves. The boys were worried that the grounds crew would blow the leaves away during their regularly scheduled weekly neighborhood maintenance, leaving none for raking and jumping… and they did blow many of them, but not the ones behind our house. For this the boys were indeed thankful! They spent three days raking, jumping, burrowing, and inventing a variety of games involving leaves. For two little Florida-born and bred lads, inexperienced with leaf-play, they proved themselves to be quite imaginative. This is what I missed most during our 11 years in Florida, celebrating Fall – the brisk temperatures, the colors of the trees, and the crunch of leaves underfoot.
Thanksgiving Day was celebrated just the four of us. Patrick made his de-constructed turkey, a Julia Child recipe that involves removing the turkey backbone and then reforming the turkey over a mound of stuffing before cooking. The idea is that the turkey will cook faster and will retain more of its moisture. Patrick has made the turkey this way for several years now, and it is delicious – extremely moist, but it has never proven to be faster than traditional cooking methods… This year, we finally ate our turkey feast at 8:00 pm! The boys were beside themselves with impatience! Both had been waiting all week for Thanksgiving dinner: Connor for the turkey; Ryan for the pumpkin pie (which he knew he couldn’t have until he had eaten at least a little turkey). In the end, the turkey and all the fixin’s were well worth the wait, but the boys and I have already decided… next year, the turkey gets de-constructed the night before!