My Favorite Holiday

Wishing You and Yours a
Happy Thanksgiving!

Courtesy of
The Graphics Fairy

Thanksgiving Traditions - The Turkey Platter

Besides the traditional meal of turkey, cranberries, sweet potatoes, and more, Thanksgiving reminds us of many things:

falling leaves

pumpkin pie

visits with extended family

eating too much

the kids' table

Christmas is almost here

Mom's retro platter.

Of all these, there is another Thanksgiving tradition that may be the most often overlooked:  the turkey platter.  You know, the special platter that is used to carry the beautiful bird to the table.  Everyone says oooh and ahhh and then the bird is carved to bits.  Just because the platter is covered with turkey meat doesn't mean it should be ignored. 

My mom has a beautiful Thanksgiving platter.  The tradition is, she never uses it!  It hangs on the kitchen wall, a retro holiday look available all year round!  Unless you go in Mom's kitchen before Thanksgiving dinner, you never see the whole bird.  Mom slices and delivers the turkey meat on an oversized white plate.  That's OK mom, we love you anyway!



My sister's turkey platter,
similar to Mom's.



My sisters and I have always loved Mom's turkey platter.  My sister Sharon managed to obtain a platter for herself that is quite similar to Mom's.  Very nice, and the colors are beautiful.

My own Thanksgiving platter is a lovely Johnson Brothers pattern called "His Majesty."  The turkey does look rather majestic; it must be because he's unaware of his future.  Unless, that is, that he's one of the guys who received a White House pardon! 

The platter was a gift from my husband in the early years of our marriage.  He was rather tickled because it was not too long after I received the platter hubby actually saw a wild turkey in our back yard, which is basically all woods.

Families have many traditions.  At this time of year, we revisit those traditions and recall why they warm our hearts. 

Whether your Thanksgiving platter is generations old or brand-new from WalMart, whether it's used all year round or never leaves the cabinet, in some way it is part of the family's scrapbook of holiday memories. 

Be sure to treat it as a treasured guest.

Thankful Thursday - Four Days Early

So Thanksgiving is almost here!  I had planned on a "things I'm grateful for" post.  Then I read that Randy Seaver at Genea-Musings put out his Saturday Night Genealogy Fun challenge, so I knew I had to follow through.  Even though I couldn't get it together in time for SNGF, here are my answers to Randy's challenge:

Courtesy of
The Graphics Fairy

1.  The ancestors I am most thankful for:  Well, I have lots of interesting ancestors.  They led challenging lives and stayed tough through hard times.  They were brave people, they crossed oceans for a better life.  But the ones I'm most thankful for?  Has to be my mom and dad.  Hands down and 'nuff said.  (No, there are no Pilgrim ancestors; she's for decoration only!)

2.  The author I am most thankful for:  Well, I'm so new at this I'm still very much at the Genealogy for Dummies level.  But the authors I'm so thankful for must be all the wonderful, busy people in the genealogy blogging community.  What an amazing bunch of folks!  Do they ever sleep?  New posts all the time, full of family memories that make me smile or blink back tears.  Tech tips to keep me learning something new every day.  Overviews of latest research experiences.  Reminders of upcoming events.  And every person I've interacted with is so nice and so helpful!  Plus, honestly, when I began my blog a month ago, I was sure it would basically be a writing exercise for myself.  But some kind people are actually reading it.  What a supportive community!  For them, I am grateful!

3.  The historical holdings I am most thankful for:  I'd say it has to be the Latter Day Saints' collection.  Besides their own FamilySearch.org, they are responsible for fueling much of what I find in other places, like Ancestry.com.  Plus, they're just nice folks. 

I'm also grateful for and to our local Genealogy Discussion Group.  Since I had my "basic training" there, so many have welcomed me and shared their tips with me.  Another fun group of people!  (Noticing a theme here?) 

Despite the many things I may complain about, there are many other things I'm grateful for:  my dear family and friends, my wonderful husband, my furry little cat, my great boss and job, medical advances, having my health...  Really, my life in general is pretty darn good.  Compared to life for my great-grandparents, grandparents and even my own mom and dad, I've got nothing to complain about and everything to be grateful for.  Now is a good time to appreciate my blessings and reflect on that.