You Know It's A Great Thanksgiving If....

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if everyone who walks through the door raves about the good smells coming through the kitchen. Wayne, who didn't have the benefit of coming in from outside, still proclaimed it one of the best smells ever. He even suggested someone should make a room spray called "Thanksgiving Morning" but I told him that might not sell in August.

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if the cranberry jell jells. It's Wayne's grandmother's recipe so it has a long-standing tradition on the family table and while it usually sets up just fine, I have been known to have cranberry soup. This year it jiggled and wiggled as it came out of the mold onto the plate. I'll confess to a sign of relief.

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if a "turkey selfie" is in order before the carver wields his knife. Those are two of my favorite turkeys right there...and the bird was pretty good too. Don't you wonder what we'll all think of the selfie craze in thirty years though?

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if we're ready to sit down to eat before 12:30p.m. I always aim for noon but it never happens. In fact, it's become something of a family joke although dinner is never hugely late. This year the kids didn't have to rush off to another family gathering so it didn't matter quite so much but I was happy to be "on time"....somewhat, anyway.

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if the majority of diners are asleep on the couch/loveseat/recliner by mid-afternoon. A big turkey dinner will do that. It's almost as much of a tradition as the meal itself.With Brad living here now we all enjoyed a leisurely afternoon, relaxing and catching up on college stories, the new store and what's on tap for December. Turns out it's a lot.

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if the recipe experiment is a success. The Thanksgiving menu is pretty much set in stone. I can't subtract or substitute but I can add and this year my addition was this Dark Chocolate Cranberry Cake. It's dense and fudgy and pretty tasty but rich. I'm not sure it rises to the level of a new tradition but definitely worth making again.

You know it's a great Thanksgiving if by Sunday night there are no left over leftovers. Everyone took a stash with them when they left and Wayne and I have been enjoying a second and third go-round of the rest of the holiday meal. The last of the turkey went in the freezer tonight, destined for a pot of soup on some future cold night. Also in the freezer is a container of stock from the turkey carcass, the base for our annual gumbo night in January or February. That turkey was good to the very end.

Yes, it was a great Thanksgiving. Now on to December.