27 November 2009

Thanksgiving at My House



I kind of fell into my first time hosting Thanksgiving. We were going to go to family in Tulsa, but that sort of fell apart. When I found out that my friend would be in town, and that she had invited a few student friends over to her (tiny, table-less) place, I said, "Hey, we should do it here!"


I was very excited. I like using my good china for special occasions.


I like having an excuse to cook fancy things like turkey and gravy.


[You remember how I explained that turkey is easy-peasy? Gravy is equally so. Take your pan drippings. Get one of these. Pour the pan drippings minus the fat into a saucepan. Heat. Whisk in cornstarch. Whisk vigorously, or it will be lumpy like mine. But who really cares if it's lumpy when it's so darn tasty?]


I thought I had been giblet gypped. I found the turkey neck in the cavity, but no giblet bag. Booo. Upon carving the turkey, I found the giblet bag hidden under the neck fat. Grr. Today I am thankful that the turkey processing company packages their giblets in paper bags, instead of plastic.


I like hosting. I'm an introvert, which means I like people, but... easy. They make me tired sometimes. When I'm hosting, if I get people-tired, I can just clean up.


I made coffee to go with the pie. I made decaf and didn't tell anyone. This is my confession. But really, shouldn't decaf be the default? Like brownies with no nuts? People who eat brownies with nuts can just as easily eat them without, but not so in the converse.


We (no, I was cleaning) They played a Jenga-type game, Catchphrase, and the Story Game, which is quite entertaining.


Babby was quite the charmer. Once she woke up from her nap, she ate turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes, and a little cranberry with us, while smiling and waving at everyone. She is seven months old today. Wow.


The running gag of the day:

That's right, they threw it on the ground.

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