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Being alone, as we are now, my wife & I with only our children in Saint Louis, the shackles were off and we didn't have to prepare a Thanksgiving meal. With a short, 3-day week and a long 4-day weekend we were looking forward to doing what we enjoy the most: Nothing at all!
Alas, this was not meant to be. My in-laws called to tell us they'd be here for Thanksgiving. My wife made it very clear to them, "We're not having Thanksgiving dinner this year." They were fine with that, they wanted to come anyway. And just as I suspected (and though it wasn't admitted), they didn't come alone. My mother-in-law brought her parents. My father-in-law asked me to put them up in a hotel room close to the casino, so I did. And despite my wife cleaning the house for two days, we had a really nice dinner and visit.
Last night I grilled with smoke Cholula "Chili Lime" salmon, lemon pepper salmon, & plain, unseasoned tilapia with mashed turnips & cauliflower. It was devoured! The next day everyone showed up around 1000. I spent several hours cleaning the grill (I went from using it three times a week to not having used it in a month) then grilled with smoke three sets of boneless, skinless, chicken breasts. A Cholula "Chili Garlic", a roasted garlic, and uh...another set of plain, unseasoned. I served this with grilled asparagus, and the wife made mashed sweet potatoes & baked apples w/cranberries. It was a nice, if not traditional, meal. Then while the kids kept their grandma busy, and her dad read a novel in the other room, my wife's grandmother shuffled together two decks of cards and we played various card games the rest of the evening. This would have been a perfect time for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
galinda822 to show up, alas, she was having so much fun at her mother's, we didn't get the call until just after everyone packed up and left. But that's ok, because we get her Friday night for 'BSG day." w00t!
The next morning everyone came over for pancakes. I separated four eggs, whipped the whites until stiff, then later added them to the buckwheat mix I'd made for some very fluffy eats. I grew up on buckwheat pancakes, and was surprised to discover that no one else there had ever had them. They fixed a leaky outside faucet while they were here, then packed up and drove back to Wichita. We'll see them in about three weeks.
Worked outside for about 4 hours, it was a beautiful day and I got a lot of the wife's list marked off. Cleaned the gutters, dug up the rose bushes in the front flower bed, and mulched the leaves again. Dismantled a part of the flower bed which wasn't allowing for good drainage and generally tidied up the outside of the house. Of course I'm not used to so much manual labor, so when all that was done I took a shower and sat my ass on the sofa the rest of the evening. And that right there, was the highlight of my Thanksgiving holiday.
I thank God for all the undeserved blessings he bestows upon me each and every day.
Alas, this was not meant to be. My in-laws called to tell us they'd be here for Thanksgiving. My wife made it very clear to them, "We're not having Thanksgiving dinner this year." They were fine with that, they wanted to come anyway. And just as I suspected (and though it wasn't admitted), they didn't come alone. My mother-in-law brought her parents. My father-in-law asked me to put them up in a hotel room close to the casino, so I did. And despite my wife cleaning the house for two days, we had a really nice dinner and visit.
Last night I grilled with smoke Cholula "Chili Lime" salmon, lemon pepper salmon, & plain, unseasoned tilapia with mashed turnips & cauliflower. It was devoured! The next day everyone showed up around 1000. I spent several hours cleaning the grill (I went from using it three times a week to not having used it in a month) then grilled with smoke three sets of boneless, skinless, chicken breasts. A Cholula "Chili Garlic", a roasted garlic, and uh...another set of plain, unseasoned. I served this with grilled asparagus, and the wife made mashed sweet potatoes & baked apples w/cranberries. It was a nice, if not traditional, meal. Then while the kids kept their grandma busy, and her dad read a novel in the other room, my wife's grandmother shuffled together two decks of cards and we played various card games the rest of the evening. This would have been a perfect time for
galinda822 to show up, alas, she was having so much fun at her mother's, we didn't get the call until just after everyone packed up and left. But that's ok, because we get her Friday night for 'BSG day." w00t!The next morning everyone came over for pancakes. I separated four eggs, whipped the whites until stiff, then later added them to the buckwheat mix I'd made for some very fluffy eats. I grew up on buckwheat pancakes, and was surprised to discover that no one else there had ever had them. They fixed a leaky outside faucet while they were here, then packed up and drove back to Wichita. We'll see them in about three weeks.
Worked outside for about 4 hours, it was a beautiful day and I got a lot of the wife's list marked off. Cleaned the gutters, dug up the rose bushes in the front flower bed, and mulched the leaves again. Dismantled a part of the flower bed which wasn't allowing for good drainage and generally tidied up the outside of the house. Of course I'm not used to so much manual labor, so when all that was done I took a shower and sat my ass on the sofa the rest of the evening. And that right there, was the highlight of my Thanksgiving holiday.
I thank God for all the undeserved blessings he bestows upon me each and every day.
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ps: Sorry I missed seeing everyone. Hope you told them "Hi" for me.
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And look at you, being all productive plus getting relax time. That is a good day in my book. :)
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