This is Nate soaking up the sun Thanksgiving Day..NOT IN OHIO.
There is by a brand new author, Kathryn Stockett, who has zoomed to #1 in the New York Times bestseller list. I haven't been able to put down this book once I opened it. It is called .The Help I hope you can get it and that you will enjoy it as much as I do.
We have booked the Hilton Head beach house for next Thanksgiving. There will be more than twenty of us. We planned it on Thursday and everyone is making plans to have five or seven fun filled days together. Life is good!
I am almost finished with the book Bed and Breakfast by Lois Battle. I liked it very much. I ordered Dorie Greenspan's new book, Around My French Table. It is a BIG, heavy book. I am going through each of the 530 pages of this book because I recognize many of the places in Paris that she mentions. She entertains a lot so I enjoy her descriptions of these get-togethers while comparing it to my experience of feeding the French Bisquick...well, not just Bisquick, but it was my crowning glory. I've been to London and Paris over one hundred times but have not been back to either since 2005. I don't miss it. Usually, when I am done, I am done, rarely looking back.
This week it is Thanksgiving and I have fewer than twenty people to enjoy. Probably eighteen or so. I'll do two turkeys, one to cut up for the guests to take home, and one to accompany the standing rib roast slashed with garlic, red wine, olive oil, fresh herbs, resting in the frig for two or three days before roasting at a high temperature to a medium rare condition. I am blessed with relatives bringing sides and pies, but I can't resist adding to the groaning table. The guests come around 1:00 for starters and drinks. About an hour later they can select from four different soups or stews, salads, and crusty breads of various kinds. Around 6:00 we light the candles and sit down to pretty tables to enjoy the feast, good wine, and fine desserts. It all ends around 10:00 pm and I am done! I am so blessed with nieces who whip the kitchen and dining room back to pre-eating conditon. They are fast and efficient and they are greatly appreciated. I must mention too, the guys, George, who is the master carver, and Joe Firetag who makes the best Bloody Mary's I have ever tasted. Tom and the rest of the guys are famous for eating... a lot. The car carvan leaves for Cincinnati and some of our boys go to work. It is a full and happy life, when you play the cards that are dealt you. Thank God.
