Share a Favorite Thanksgiving Memory

[fureverywhere]

I remember my favorite aunt used to host Thanksgiving dinner. Everything from soup to after dinner peppermint creams was made from scratch. The table would be covered in dishes and she'd still be fretting she didn't make enough. In the spirit of giving she always had a few neighbors as guests. She was an incredible cook. After dinner the grownups would talk and I would go and hide in my cousin's old bedroom. He had been a history major so the shelves were full of fascinating books. The last time she had Thanksgiving was probably 1985. It hasn't been the same since

 

[Bobw235]

When I was growing up in NJ, my friends and I had an annual tradition for several years, a game of touch football in my best friend's backyard. He had a long, straight backyard, just perfect for football and we played many games there. But somewhere along the way, we all got together on Thanksgiving for the annual Turkey Bowl. We'd play until we got called in for dinner, sometimes in the snow, often on ground that was already frozen. Lord how I miss those days, and those guys, all three of them gone way too young.

 

[mrstime]

I was maybe 9 or 10 years old when we had dinner at my aunt's house, there were quite a few of us then and we filled 2 long tables. I sat across from my favorite Uncle and my 2 favorite cousins, and with my grandma and grandpa. Big bowls and platters were passed down one side of the tables and then up our side of the table. I watched as the potatoes got to my uncle, as he dipped the potatoes out a spoonful fell and landed in his pants pocket, very quickly the gravy was passed to him, he then proceeded to pour some into his pocket because potatoes need gravy. I was young enough to fall off my chair laughing. He wasn't normally that silly but he was always funny, we lost him 45 years ago, and he has been missed by his daughters and me too, whenever we get together it is always a walk into the past to laugh about all the things he did and said.

 

[Laurie]

Only one Thanksgiving, so only one memory.

Some American friends stationed in the UK invited us to join them in 1977. We were "famioy" for the day.

A memory indeed!

We learned never tell an American you like something.

When we left we could hardly get in the car - every time we expressed a liking for something it was into a cardboard box and into the back of the car!

A bit early but I hope you all have a whale of a time.

At least one Brit will be remembering!

 

[Vedaarya]

It was back in the 1990s - one of the American teachers who taught English here couldn't join, for some reason, his family in the USA for Thanksgiving and because of that was extremely miserable.To cheer him up, we prepared a surprise feast for him, with roast turkey and apple pie (pumpkin wasn't popular here and difficult to get then). I don't remember if he enjoyed the meal, but I will never forget how happy and joyful it made this, rather reserved by nature, man. I think that Thanksgiving is to Americans what Christmas Eve is for Poles.
And here, I'd like to wish all my American friends Happy Thanksgiving.

 

[Aunt Bea]

My memories are pretty standard I think. When I was growing up we were always surrounded by family. We had the adult table in the dining room, the grandparents at a table in the living room, children's table in the kitchen and always a few teenagers balancing a plate in the den! I remember when I got upgraded to the table in the dining room, I got a chair straddling a table leg, one of the chipped plates and goblets but I had arrived, LOL!!!

 

[Victor Meldrew]

My Thanksgiving memories are all the same.

Go to parent's house (mom's house now), watch a little bit of the Macy's Parade, sit around until food is all ready, eat a whole bunch, help clear the table, go back into TV room, either watch football with bil, or since he passed away, lie down on sofa and watch something else.

Spend rest of day doing pretty much the same thing.

Snack a little here and there throughout the day until either time to leave and drive back home, or spend the night there then drive back the next day.

 

[fuzzybuddy]

For me, it's got to be the Macy's Parade. I was living in NYC, and went down to see it. On TV, you really don't get a good sense of how huge the balloons are. If you're on the sidewalk, you see them coming and going. But when you're underneath them, they cover the sky. Those handlers are pulling like hell to keep them from hitting a building.
Of, course, we had family gatherings. I can't remember one special one.

 

[Marie5656]

In 1980 it was my mom's last Thanksgiving with us. And she spent it in the hospital. So, I spent the day cooking our Thanksgiving dinner. Before my brother and Dad and I ate, I took a picture of our table, and of the turkey before my dad carved it. Then my brother and I packed a cooler with every thing needed for a turkey dinner to go. Including a thermos of grave, and real plates. We packed enough for mom, and the nurses working that day. When we got to the hospital, while I was setting up mom's plate, my brother and dad went to the nurses station and surprised them with a hot, home made dinner with all the trimmings. And an entire pie I have made extra (OK, I took it from the box and put it in the oven). The nurses were eternally grateful, and said no family had ever done that. At the time, my mom had been in the hospital about 2-3 weeks, and stayed until she died on December 7th. After she died, we got a condolence card from the nurses, with a special thanks for the dinner we brought.

 

[jujube]

Thanksgiving at my grandmother's house. The table would be groaning with goodies. After dinner, everyone would need to take a nap and my father always got the couch (everyone knows that napping is best done on the couch). Then we'd watch King Kong on the tiny little TV. For some reason, one of the local channels ALWAYS played King Kong on Thanksgiving Day and we would ALWAYS watch it. Then it would be time to start eating again.

There would always be a small present for each kid to open.....my grandmother liked to start Christmas early. She would have loved living today.....she could have started in August and no one would have looked askance at her.

 

[Bobw235]

I recall one other Thanksgiving tradition when I was younger. The local TV station showed Laurel & Hardy's "March of the Wooden Soldiers". A classic. Fun to see it today, so many years later.

 

[Carla]

My husband enjoyed cooking and Thanksgiving he would get up very early to chop and dice and prepare the stuffing and stuff the turkey. He would have it in the oven by the time I got up. We would usually have both our Mothers over and would have to pick them up and bring them here. I would prepare the rest of the meal while everyone chatted.

My husband made the the best sausage stuffing, he made it his way and even though I know what was in it, I could never duplicate it. He was an excellent cook but I generally did most of the cooking except for holidays. We kind of had a rule--never two cooks in the kitchen.