Thanksgiving

My Thanksgiving-ruining deal unexpectedly got pushed back a week. Hooray!

Since I had cleared my schedule to work on that deal, I ended up having nothing to do and leaving early for Thanksgiving as planned. We went down to my parents' house, as always. Both my in-laws and my sister-in-law's parents joined us, along with the same family friends we have every year. I made pumpkin cheesecake, browned butter chocolate chip cookies, chocolate bourbon pecan pie, sauteed green beans, and a vegetarian entree of roasted mushrooms and caramelized zucchini and onions wrapped in puff pastry. My mom was in charge of the turkey and a salad. She also roasted seven pounds of sweet potatoes the night before and then forgot to serve them. SIL made the mashed potatoes and stuffing. It being my parents' house, the rest was supplied by "Mrs. Costco." (My mother is addicted.) The kids ran around and played hide and seek. A lovely time was had by all. I am grateful for nearly everything in my life right now, but on Thanksgiving I'm always reminded of how thankful I am for my wonderful, kind, drama-free extended family including all the various in-laws and their families. Our siblings chose their spouses well and we all married into happy families.

Friday we attended an annaprashan (six-month baby ceremony) at an Indian restaurant for a family friend's daughter. Part of the ceremony is for the baby to pick an item from a tray that traditionally contains a pen, a book, some dirt, and money, along with whatever else the parents choose to add. The baby's choice is supposed to represent what they'll do in the future. The book was bright yellow and she went straight for it. Afterwards, we headed to the Bronx to see JW's grandmother, then back to the parents' house for leftovers and bed.

Saturday was a full day in the Bronx with JW's family. His aunt and uncle and their three kids had just arrived from New Zealand, and the New York/New Jersey contingent of his family all came out to see them. K hid behind me for a minute, but couldn't resist his rambunctious cousins for too long. At one point, the older kids were roughhousing and K came up and anxiously tugged on my sweater. "Mommy, they're not being nice to each other!" He's such an only child.

Sunday we spent one relaxed day at home, then packed up again and drove to JW's parents' house at night. On Friday, JW found out that one of his close friends had passed away after a long illness. The funeral was Monday. Going to a friend's funeral is an experience I hope I won't repeat for at least a few decades. It was amazing how many people showed up and how every single person talked about how eternally optimistic he was and how he never had an unkind word for anyone. I can't imagine anyone else in my life, including myself, that I could truthfully describe that way.