It isn't very often that my mom, dad, brothers, and I get to spend an entire weekend together. I always look forward to Thanksgiving because we all head North to our cabin in Cadillac, Michigan. There is something so fun about wearing sweatpants for two days straight, unplugging from your IPhone, and sitting by a wood-burning stove with a cocktail in hand!Everything Up North is really casual and that is just the way I like it. Thanksgiving Dinner is serve-yourself style and eaten in the pole barn on paper plates. With my family, there is no need to fancy things up. The focus is on the food and there is usually a debate going on about which turkey is the best. My dad does one on a Weber and the other in an infrared cooker. This year, the infrared won and O-M-G it was good. Every year, his turkey gets better and better.
After we eat, we usually linger in the pole barn for a few hours and talk about how full we are while we taste-test all of the pies. This year, Cody volunteered to bring a raspberry cream, peanut butter, and pumpkin pie from Essenhaus (an Amish bakery). It has always been his family's tradition to buy Essenhaus pies for Thanksgiving. His dad's favorite is raspberry cream and his mom's is peanut butter. Inevitably, he always grew up having a slice of each. He brought his family tradition to ours this year! All three were delicious but the peanut butter pie was everyone's favorite.
Naps are a requirement at the cabin, especially on Thanksgiving! I almost felt guilty for taking such a long nap smack-dab in the middle of the day, but I quickly got over it! By 7:00 p.m., we were all awake and curled up on the couches watching football, reminiscing about old cabin memories, and snacking on the leftovers.
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because of its simplicity. No shopping, no gifts, no running around like a chicken with your head cut-off, just eating and relaxing. More than anything, I love spending uninterrupted, quality time with my family. I must have done something right in a past life because I have been blessed in this one. I am thankful for that.