This is an open thread. Welcome!
I am enjoying a glass of white zinfandel and thinking of Thanksgivings past. Tomorrow, I will be making the trip down the PA Turnpike east to Harrisburg and then onto 83 South to make my way to York County, PA—where most of my family lives. We will wake up bright and early. I will be bringing bread that I buy from a bread specialty shop—cinnamon swirl, cranberry orange, 9 grain, and honey white. In addition, there will be pumpkin roll! Recipe to be found below the squiggle!
As I talked with my husband this evening over sesame beef and wine, we discussed memorable Thanksgivings. The one I remember most fondly is the one several years ago. My dad had 6 by-pass surgery the previous June. He’d had a time on the OR table that he had an out of body experience, but was brought back. Afterward, he had another surgery on his colon. He did not heal well and the surgical opening for that surgery opened up. He needed lots of in-home nursing care, and it was touch and go. By October, he was finally beginning to heal completely. Thanksgiving was truly a time to say thanks for his presence with us.
And one more. My uncle (only 2 years older than me) had recently received a pet kitten. He was 13 and I was 11. My grandfather, his dad, had passed away the in previous year, and this was the first Thanksgiving without Granddad. Grandma was brave and insisted on doing all the work to make this Thanksgiving special. She had a beautiful turkey and all the trimmings. There were the 4 in my family, Grandma, and my uncle. It felt weird without Granddad. He was a pastor and always said the blessing. My dad said the blessing and we were getting ready to sit down when all the sudden the kitten flew down from the top of the china closet and landed squarely on all fours on the turkey in the middle of the table!! Its eyes were big as saucers as the whole group of us began laughing. The kitten put up quite a fight, as he had his claws dug into that turkey, but between Mom, Dad, and Grandma; they were able to dislodge kitty from the bird. We ate the turkey, fed some to kitty, and began a new chapter in our family’s life.
So, this year I am bringing pumpkin roll from Pittsburgh to York County. This is more of a western PA tradition, and my folks have not had pumpkin roll for Thanksgiving before. I look forward to seeing my cousin, who has come up from Austin; and all the rest of my family.
Come on in and share some wine and some Thanksgiving stories of your own!