Thanksgiving: I do what I do, if you don't like it don't come (states, relative)
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I guess it was either missed by many or, more likely, I didn't make it clear, but invitations were extended weeks ago. Three said "No!", one said maybe.
So food plans, menu and scope, were made for a total of three after checking with the one who said "Maybe".
Now the other three are reconsidering. One is saying they want to bring another person. One is making a fuss regarding my wife's plans. Still no definitive answer whether it will be one Sibling joining us, or four Siblings and a guest. Maybe just the two of us, maybe seven diners, or some quantity in between.
Still no offers to bring anything other than themselves, empty containers for leftovers, and maybe a guest.
“The deadline for making reservations closed. We do not offer unreserved seatings.”
This will be the first Thanksgiving without our mother who was the head of the table that we orbited around. In most latter years I cooked the turkey in her house & split the sides' duties with one brother, alternatively another brother & his wife may have hosted the dinner some years too.
Now they are getting divorced. Mom passed away the year before covid isolation canceled last year's holiday meal, all that is left are 3 bachelors. I have a stable home for 20 years while the other two guys are getting settled in two different locations & still unpacking. I'm a good cook according to past holiday reviews but I live in the city where suburban SUV addicts don't want to look for parking & can't even imagine taking a very convenient train. Train? Their world is empty streets bordered by many, many parking lots. I can't even imagine that life of constant driving anymore.
We are still negotiating but I know I will be taking a train & not cooking a turkey.
After being haranged by her Sister for not roasting a full Turkey (our household only likes white meat), for making the Stuffing in a casserole dish or on top of the stove, for only having one vegetable, and only two pies, my wife finally had enough!
For weeks now her Siblings have said they were not coming to our house for Thanksgiving, so my wife planned the menu for her and I and ample left-overs. Now realizing my wife will not be pressured into cooking a multi course meal and transporting it 2+ hours so they can gorge themselves with zero effort or cost, the four of them might be traveling to our house.
Assuming any of them will allow their car to be used for the 300 mile round trip, or someone will pay for the gas, or someone will drive, etc.
Don't you just love this time of year.
Comme ce, comme ca. This time of year has been interesting over the years.
Growing up, it was over the hills and through the dales to Grandma's house we went.....via a small airplane, that is. It was a grand time for 3-4 days at her house. About '93, though, my brother was being a prat to his first wife, so the parents and her went to grandmother but I elected to stay home just incase he wanted to get together with someone. He didn't, I knew the odds were low, but I believed that the whole family should not abandoned him.
On that day, on that very cold, rainy day, I ran in the Thundercloud Clubs Turkey Trot. The weather had driven off most of the crowd which made it much easier to get a door prize, two turkeys (gift certificates). One I used for myself and one I used to give to the food bank. From this, I learned how the single person can do turkey.
Speed up to the present. With almost no family left in the area (and cats to take care at home), mine is often the pre cooked, pecan pie, and maybe some stuffing. I don't go any further than that for that is enough food for one person.
As far as my siblings coming over? Well, they know that this is ....... The Hill Country Home for Wayward Cats.......and they know that the cats rule here. So, not likely. Besides, even when they are in the region, the ranch seems to be too far out of them to come this distance....so they say.
As far as my siblings coming over? Well, they know that this is ....... The Hill Country Home for Wayward Cats.......and they know that the cats rule here. So, not likely. Besides, even when they are in the region, the ranch seems to be too far out of them to come this distance....so they say.
I have one sister. For about a eight years we drove 7 hours each way for Thanksgiving dinner with my sister, her son and husband and our mother. The traffic from Boston to southern New Jersey was always a nightmare.
My sister had a tradition of everyone stating what we were thankful for. My family would say something bland like "we are thankful for being together today" or "we are thankful for Aunt's feast." Some inclusive and politeness towards our host.
When it got to my sister it always was "we are thankful for my wonderful child" and then my mother would add "yes, we are so thankful for him." Of course, my kids felt like chopped liver. But hey, we used to make fun of it.
Then her husband got a turkey deep fryer which made the turkey taste like French fries. One year my mother wanted dinner at her house. She brought a prepared meal from Wegman's which was better than her own cooking.
They never wanted to come here. In the decade, they visited me once in Boston. It was a one way street.
We moved back to NY. We learned that her son was an extremely picky eater. If we used the wrong pasta, he had a complete meltdown. He only liked his mother's cooking. And, that was that!
We gave up on Thanksgiving family dinners. Honestly, I don't know why it took so long to give it up!
After being haranged by her Sister for not roasting a full Turkey (our household only likes white meat), for making the Stuffing in a casserole dish or on top of the stove, for only having one vegetable, and only two pies, my wife finally had enough!
I call it "Thanksgiving bigotry"
The BS idea that everybody has to do Thanksgiving the way it's done in the movies or you should be kicked out of this country.
Well, I believe in freedom and I'm going to use my freedom to celebrate Thanksgiving however I want
It will be two of us and our furries on Thanksgiving. Pizza. Yes, pizza but with the best ingredients I can scare up, velvety merlot and something for desert. Maybe lace cookies rolled over a broomstick, ends dipped into chocolate and filled with bourbon whipped cream. Cognac and peace and quiet.
It'll just be my husband, me, our two kids and Mom (one of us will run over to he place & pick her up) for Thanksgiving. The other relatives are too far flung to try to spend the day with.
Our kids are both working on Thanksgiving, so we'll be sort of shoehorning Thanksgiving dinner in between their work shifts. We did it that way last year, too, and it worked out pretty well. We'll have on the football games and the kids can come and go as needed. The next day, Black Friday, my husband, me and the kids will likely all be working.
I picked up the Turkey today and popped it in the freezer. I'll bring it out to thaw when it gets closer to the day. I've got my menu planned, bought some pretty Thanksgiving Day plates for dessert and also napkins. I also have some special Snickerdoodle coffee that I'll brew to have with dessert.
Our kids are both working on Thanksgiving, so we'll be sort of shoehorning Thanksgiving dinner in between their work shifts.
Last Thanksgiving was around our kids work shifts. It was still fun.
This year the kids are in different states and working the day before and the day after. Our first Thanksgiving alone.
Quote:
Threestep2
It will be two of us and our furries on Thanksgiving. Pizza. Yes, pizza but with the best ingredients I can scare up, velvety merlot and something for desert. Maybe lace cookies rolled over a broomstick, ends dipped into chocolate and filled with bourbon whipped cream. Cognac and peace and quiet.
Our family has never had the drama others have had regarding holidays or anything else -- we are all very polite to one another 99% of the time -- but that being said, although I do miss not having any family at holidays, I am very happy to enjoy the holidays EXACTLY as my husband and I like to celebrate them without any worry about pleasing anyone but ourselves.
Our family is like that, no drama. The only person who EVER complained about the meal was my MIL, she didn't like that her son smoked the turkey instead of the oven, and didn't like that I made fresh cranberry sauce, she liked canned.
The response, while polite, boiled down to "tough."
If I had planned a meal for just my family, and family I didn't really like decided to come to my house, I would just tell them "no."
This year will be the first in awhile where I am not expected to make the whole meal (I did it because the kids loved it, and I was fine with that), this year we are in a new state, and the family that is coming is all cooking too.
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