Thanksgiving



Hello, Beautiful Homemakers!  This is the perfect time to decorate or clean your house while listening to Louisa May Alcott's An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving:


It's also a great week to think about printing out your Christmas card list and gathering supplies, and to buy Christmas stamps while you mail long-distance package. 

For those who are interested, remember that Laine's service will be streamed on FB on Friday 11/22 at 1 pm PST. 

 

Plan your menu and which dishes will hold what food.  Write a little list that you can keep in a homemaking binder to reuse year after year.  I have little index cards that I’ve cut into fourths that have the name of the food on it, to be placed on the correct dish the night before so that I do not forget to make something, or do not forget to take something out of the fridge that day.

A typical Thanksgiving menu (for my non-American readers who don't know):

  • Turkey
  • Mashed Potatoes and gravy
  • Green beans
  • Corn
  • Cranberry Sauce
  • Dressing (aka Stuffing)
  • Rolls
  • Pumpkin bread
  • Pumpkin pie

   

Reach out and invite someone new to share your table.  Don't worry about the house being perfectly clean, or about not having pinterest-worthy table settings.  Just use your best china and make it festive and joyful.  

This is a day of rejoicing!  A day of gratitude and thankfulness.  A day of blessing others while sharing food.  Remember, it is not about what is on the table, but WHO is sitting in the chairs!

 

 Have a Joyful Thanksgiving!  Don't get overwhelmed, just do a little each day.  

 

Here’s my list of what to do in the days before company arrives:

  • Set up children’s table
  • Set out food dishes and utensils with notecards for dish name
  • Make sure china is washed and clean and any silver is polished
  • Porch swept; porch light cleaned of cobwebs
  • Clean bathrooms
  • Mop
  • Dust
  • Vacuum
  • Clear up the clutter and paper piles
  • Help child clean his room (okay, not any more, but in the olden days)
  • Meal prep such as making a salad, chopping vegetables for stuffing, etc.


 
The morning of:
  • Make beds
  • New towels in bathroom
  • New towels in kitchen
  • Trash cans emptied
  • Set main table and child’s table
  • Chill water, make sure there is ice, set up drink station
  • Start the dinner (peel the potatoes early and keep them in water until ready to boil)


  • ME! Be dressed in something nice in case neighbors drop in, have make-up done and jewelry on.
  • An hour before company is expected get dressed, and wear an apron to prevent a clothing disaster.


 Don’t forget to do easy crafts, such as tracing your hand and your child’s hand and making it into a turkey. You can do this with everyone, and have people sign their name under their hand, and list at least one thing they are thankful for. I did this one year when my grandparents and dad were still alive, and I’m so glad that I took the time.

 

You can also write what you are thankful for on paper leaves and hang them up on your dining room wall.

 

One year we stuck colored feathers into a pine cone and made a little turkey head for it. So cute! 

 

The first Thanksgiving Proclamation

Happy Thanksgiving, my American friends! I hope you know what YOU are serving on Thanksgiving Day, and that you won’t stress, but have fun, and let it be what it is supposed to be: a day of thanking God for His care and for all He has provided.

If you don’t live in the USA, you can still set aside any day for giving Thanks to God in a special way with your family and call it Thanksgiving.

May God bless you as you make your home a Thanks Giving Home!  Janine

Comments

  1. What a festive home! All of your Thanksgiving touches and ideas are so lovely. And I appreciate your reminder that it's not what's ON the table, but the others who are AT the table with us that are most important. It's so easy to become overwhelmed and distracted by so many details and it's a great time to just enjoy those we love. Thinking of Laine's family as they approach their first Thanksgiving and Christmas without her at their table. But, knowing she's now at God's table is such a comfort. Have a great rest of the week!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It has been our tradition to have the youngest at our table who can read turn to the book of Psalms in the Bible and read Psalm 100, which is perfect for giving thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Janine! I had my Thanksgiving last month because I live in Canada 🇨🇦 but I wanted to say Happy Thanksgiving to you! I hope it's blessed. 🙏

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