Everybody coming for Thanksgiving when we were kids.

[fuzzybuddy]

Thanksgiving is coming up soon. I got me thinking. When I was a kid, I had 16 aunts & uncles, partents, grandparents, and 10+ cousins running around. We rotated having Thanksgiving at each of my aunt/uncles' homes. All those people made it seem like a holiday. It was kind of like a tribal meeting. Today, with much smaller families, holidays don't seem to be such a big deal-you aren't feeding 30+people.

 

[IrisSenior]

I fed 30+ family/friends in the past too; I miss it! Mostly we just celebrate with my daughter's family.

 

[MountainRa]

Growing up, Thanksgiving was a huge extended family affair for me too. We started preparing cakes and desserts several days in advance. Nowadays, there’s only about six of us to gather.

 

[Murrmurr]

When I was a young man, I always took the kids to gramma's house. There'd usually be around 30 people - my siblings and their spouses and kids, my grandparents, and some of my parents' neighbors. Mom was such a fantastic cook. The guys watched football while the ladies cooked and told tales in the kitchen, and the kids played outside, sneaking in to steal a cookie if they could.

This year, Michelle and I will have our first holidays together. She wants to cook, so I hope the kids can come. Liam and his wife usually have to work on Thanksgiving (but not always Christmas). If they work this year, I'll go get the kids and bring 'em here for turkey.

I hope you all enjoy as much as I plan to.

 

[Beezer]

Mom Thanksgiving Trick-

My Mom used to pick out the prettiest leaves that had fallen in the backyard and place them under the glass dinner table top for Thanksgiving Dinner. It really added a lovely ambience to the whole occasion.

 

[Kika]

Growing up we had Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner with my father's family.
Many aunts & uncles, Grandmother, cousins, etc. The Aunt's had been cooking for days. The Uncles watched football, took naps, and then they played cards. After dinner us kids were left to ourselves usually playing board games in the hallway.
Great days, good memories.

 

[Alligatorob]

I think we have more now than when I was a kid. Back then it was mostly just us, my parents and 2 brothers. We were usually in Florida and family in Louisiana too far to travel back then.

Today we probably average a dozen or so, some years more than 20, a mix of family and friends.

 

[Don M.]

We hosted Thanksgiving and Christmas for years. Now, the daughters do these holidays. Our families all live within a reasonable driving distance, so it works out well. With the in-laws, we have to "rotate" these holidays, but it's no big deal if we have to get together a few days earlier or later every other year. Presently, our "crew" consists of 15 people.