It's that season! The season to thank our Father in Heaven for all our many blessings. I absolutely love thanksgiving. It's one of my all time favorite holidays. I love the feeling of love and family. I love the opportunity to think of all the things I'm most thankful for in my life. And of course one those things is Pie!
One of our newest family traditions is Pie Breakfast. We've only done it since we've been married, but we're already in love with it. Here's the back ground. One of TR's employees at The Smokehouse introduced him to this idea. Matt's family is in Maryland, including his Grandmother. Matt's grandma loves pie and was often sad that after all the food and festivities of Thanksgiving, she was too full to eat the pie. So she came up with the brilliant idea to have the pie for breakfast, and whatever was left over could be had after dinner! Genius! Last year we got to share pie breakfast with Matt himself. This year we were fortunate enough to have Hanna, Eric, Brandon, Johnny, and Lindsy come over to our house for pie breakfast! It was so fun!
We had some great pie, some great laughs, and some great company. While I was growing up I remember watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while helping mom roll up her world famous rolls (little ones, just for me), or making pink salad, or mixing this and that and the other. When the parade was over, and just as the house was beginning to fill the aroma of the cooking turkey, and we still had half the food to prepare, mom would pop in her favorite Christmas CDs and we would laugh, talk, sing, and just enjoy the feeling. When everything was almost done, the brothers and sisters would come. Timmy always made the mashed potatoes and mushroom salad, Sarah would take over my mixing job while I got to take a break and play with the kids, and made apple turkeys. I would find a helper or two to bring up the utensils and paper plates and cups to get ready for the big feast. Everyone would pick at the turkey to make sure it was done. The rolls that just came out of the oven were almost gone once they touched the bread basket. Everyone wanted a warm roll with warm butter, especially Glen, and he was willing to fight you for it The warmth wasn't just from the oven, or the heater, but it was in our hearts and our company. We had so much to be thankful for. Now that I'm grown up and don't live at home, I still have vivid memories and hope someday to pass some of those happy feelings and memories on to my children.
Every year, while digesting, the family would gather in front of the big screen and we'd watch the Muppet Christmas Carol. To this day- I cannot watch any other Christmas movie first or the season doesn't seem complete. To carry on this tradition, our little FHE group watched it while enjoying our pie.
I love the new traditions we have, but also cherish the old traditions that I remember growing up. I hope never to forget anything; the smells, the tastes, the sounds, the feeling, and the love that surrounds this holiday. In a time of hardship and sadness for a lot of the world and even a large part of the country in which I live, it's so wonderful to have an opportunity and a specific day set aside to remember everything we're blessed with, and more importantly, give thanks for those blessings.
