I love Thanksgiving. I love the delicious food, the pumpkin pie, and the beautiful setting. But most of all I love that we all make time to gather together to enjoy and appreciate our blessings.
I don’t really get into Halloween much, so Thanksgiving is the real kick-off to the holiday season for me. I love that I get to host dinner for my family each year and this will be the first year in this home. We were moved in last year, but unfortunately, we all got COVID Thanksgiving week and had to quarantine ourselves. I missed the opportunity to start building traditions and memories so I’m making up for it this year.
My plans all start here, with the tablescape for dinner. I rarely set a full table but on this day, it’s fun to go all out. I bought some new plate chargers and pretty plaid napkins to dress up my daily dinnerware. I found the napkins on Amazon, you can see them here. The chargers, I picked up at Micheal’s. The flatware and dishes have been in my cupboard for a while. I put together a centerpiece with a mixture of faux greenery picks and glass pumpkins from a local boutique.
This one table won’t fit us all. I will have an additional small table set up to the side as well as place settings at the island. All together I am planning on 14 this year. For a crew of that size, we typically set all the food buffet-style in the kitchen. Everyone brings a dish to share and Brent will smoke the turkey outside on the Kamado Joe. We’ve tried several methods over the years from traditional roasting to seasoning injections. But my favorite way is to soak the bird in a brine for a day and then smoke it. It’s a fair amount more to do, but the taste is worth it. Other traditional dishes at our table usually include ham, cheesy potatoes, a seven-layer green salad, and a Jello pretzel dish with raspberries that we all call a salad but is really more like a dessert. And pie. Of course pie— pumpkin, apple, cherry, and chocolate. It all takes about two days to prepare and only 20 minutes to devour. But while food always has the power to bring people together, Thanksgiving dinner is extra special.
After everyone has recovered from eating too much, I like to transition to Christmas and turn up the carols while I put up the tree. The kids used to beg to help me and I tried to find parts they could do. Now it’s reversed, and I have to do the begging for help. But I don’t really mind. It’s sort of a therapeutic ritual to starting the Christmas season.
Later, we might all go to a movie or start on Black Friday shopping. Or maybe just relax. It doesn’t really matter. The pleasure of loved company and a delicious meal is the part I really love. Family tends to linger and visit longer on this day. The calm between storms of cooking for two days and starting the hunt for gifts is a joy that I look forward to every year.
Below are links to my napkins and other items similar to mine. These are affiliate links, if you purchase through them, I may make a small commission at no extra charge to you.
