Getting Ready for Thanksgiving

Two weeks from today, it will be Thanksgiving in our house. Literally. It will be a small gathering, but we won't be traveling this year. My daughter has a clear vision of what Thanksgiving looks like and what the food is and is supposed to taste like.

Which is why her grandmother is bringing the pumpkin pie.

And I've been informed I am not allowed to even attempt to make it, as it won't taste "right". (I can't argue with her - my cooking skills have yet to bud, let alone blossom.)

Fall Thread Painting by Julie Clark 2011

China will be on the table and the dog underfoot, hoping for a spoonful or two of sweet potato casserole to hit the floor. We have traditions we will follow aside from the dinner menu - how we spend the morning, how we dress the table, as well as ourselves.

Tradition is a good thing in our home. As the years go by, I know what my kid looks forward to, what makes her look to certain events with anticipation. And knowing we will be with some family, knowing the menu will be predictable, and that many other things will hum along according to an unwritten script lift her spirits.

Now that our plans are finally coming together, I can sense her relaxing a bit more. It isn't turning out how she originally had hoped, but it is working out. And there will be a traditional Thanksgiving feast on our table. And I, for one, am thankful my daughter isn't in college yet, as there are fewer of these moments left to savor.