a not-so-martha thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is tomorrow!  And we don't have to travel!  This is an added bonus of moving to the town where my in-laws live.  No mad crowds to fight at the airport or on the road.  Just the crowd at the Drumstick Dash (5K in downtown Roanoke to benefit the Rescue Mission).  This is our first attempt at the Dash, though I think it'll be more of an amble than a dash.  We're walking, of course, with stroller.  But only one stroller, which means The Girl must walk the whole way by herself.  How likely is it we'll make it?  I think the odds are pretty even. 

Normally, my Thanksgiving preparations involve packing and little else.  This year there's a dish to prepare, but just one.  I don't typically decorate for the season.  Heck, I don't do much decorating for any season.  My Man does most of that.  I look at blogs full of all kinds of beautiful ideas for transforming one's home into this magical wonderland of seasonal beauty, and I love it.  I really do.  I would love to have my house look like that.  But when it comes down to it, I don't have the time/money/patience to deal with it.  Not for something that will be packed in a box or thrown in the trash in a few weeks and will just get in the way when it's up.  Bah humbug, I know. 

Still, I like the idea of seasonal touches.  My mother-in-law gave us a set of fall tablecloths and napkins this year.  They're really lovely, but I must admit they spend more time on a shelf or the floor or a chair than actually on the table.  Our dining table is used for everything, so they're always being moved out of the way.  I am not one who is constantly putting stuff back in its place.  I wish I were, sort of, but the thought of it just makes me tired.  So the lovely decor sits on the floor.  *sigh* 

But for some reason, I got it into my head the other day to make some turkeys for our table.  I made placecards - placecards!!  That is so not me.  But I had this empty wrapping paper tube and it was begging to be used, I guess.  We also had this pumpkin left over from Halloween that we never got around to carving.  My kids had no jack-o-lantern this year.  See - not very Martha Stewart-y of me.  We thought maybe we'd carve a turkey into it for November.  But November is almost gone and still no carving.  Really, what's wrong with us?!  So yesterday, The Girl and I transformed our pumpkin into a much easier turkey.  And she's just as happy with our thrown-together-with-tape version.  So for a brief moment, our dining room looks a little festive!  I had to take a picture, but don't be fooled - this is not what our table usually looks like!

Can you tell in my dark, grainy picture that The Girl decorated the turkey's body?  It says, "I love turkey," with a few stars and a heart.  She decorates EVERYTHING!  I've had to threaten to take away the markers.  Seriously.  Her last decoration was on the panel by the toilet.  In pen.  At least it's a heart and not a peace sign.  She's started coloring in the peace signs for me (hence the colored-in-heart above) because I hate them.  Truly, I hate them.  And it's ridiculous.  I remember being taught as a young teen that they were a sign of the devil (upside down cross with arms broken), and though I recognize the craziness of this now, I've still been imprinted with a hatred of the peace sign.  *sigh*

But I digress.  The one month-long Thanksgiving decoration we've had is a Thanksgiving chain.  We each add one link to the chain every day (or thereabouts), writing one thing we're thankful for on it.  The kids have loved seeing it grow and grow.  It started out on a wall (in our dining room of course - the center of our home), but now drapes over to the doorway. 

So that's the Thanksgiving spirit in our home.  What about yours?  I hope you have a wonderful day with loved ones tomorrow.  As my daughter has taken to saying, "Peace!"