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You are here: Home / Archives for Thanksgiving

Grey Thursday: Invading Thanksgiving Day

November 14, 2012 by Tracy

Grey Thursday: Invading Thanksgiving Day
Grey Thursday: Invading Thanksgiving Day

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

As I ignore the Christmas decorations already in stores, refrain from playing Christmas music around the house, and refuse to allow a Christmas decoration in our home before Thanksgiving, I’m so disappointed with the retailers choosing to invade Thanksgiving Day.

Having heard recently how only in America can we be thankful on Thursday and greedy on Friday, I am not surprised by Grey Thursday. I understand that the economy is terrible and now there is not much hope for any improvement, but do we need to ruin Thanksgiving Day?

My heart goes out to the employees, who are required to work on their Thanksgiving Day. With stores opening earlier or staying open all night, why not just begin at midnight?

In case you are wondering which stores are participating in Grey Thursday, I refer you to this list posted on the Krazy Coupon Lady’s website. Heather and Joanie give you the available times, but you may want to consult your store’s advertisement, website, or store for their participation.

On a side note, I’m enjoying the term, “Grey Thursday.” It sounds dreary and boring. If I were to name a day, I would at least choose a bright, inviting color, like yellow or purple. 😉

I realize the times are changing, but I am not bending this year. Though I am choosing to refrain from the stores on Thanksgiving Day, Paul may venture out later in the evening. Some deals at Walmart are just calling to him. 🙂

In using time wisely this Thanksgiving Day, may you, whether shopping or not, choose thankfulness this Thanksgiving season. Happy choosing!

Question: What do you think about Grey Thursday?

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving: Soup Celebration

November 29, 2011 by Tracy

In serving on a parent committee at my son’s school, I get to work with a fabulous group of ladies. We plan events and programs for our parents, teachers, staff, and students. Our planning sessions together are thorough, so we are all on the same page preparing for the next event.

For the Thanksgiving program performed by our students, our committee handled the details of the luncheon held on the last day of school before the Thanksgiving break. My part of the festivities included making tea and broccoli and cheese soup.

Gallons of Tea

As the queen of tea making, I gladly offer to bring gallons for our events. For this Thanksgiving event, I brought 5 gallons of sweet tea and 1 gallon of unsweetened tea. At the end of the luncheon, there was not a drop of sweet tea left. I know because I went searching. The lemonade was also running low, so we had very thirsty participants. For the next event, I will adjust the amount and bring another 2 gallons of tea to be on the safe side.

Stock pot of Broccoli and Cheese Soup

In preparing for the luncheon, I made 5 batches of soup in rounds. I used two non-stick Dutch oven pots for the first two rounds. As I finished the soup, I poured it into my large stock pot. After making the fourth pot, my stock pot was filled. When I took the soup to school, I brought the filled stock pot and a full Dutch oven.

Though transporting the soup was uneventful, the heating of the soup proved to be difficult. The gas stove heated the pot quickly and burnt the bottom. Once the soup was stirred, the burnt flavor was distributed throughout the soup. Though it still tasted good and most people would not notice it, I tasted the difference.

Along with the broccoli and cheese soup, the committee also provided corn chowder, tortellini, chicken noodle, tomato, vegetable chili, and beef chili. The display was very colorful and flavorful. If we make soup again, I might consider pouring the soup into smaller containers to reheat to prevent burning.

In working with these different events, there always seems to be adjustments that can be tweaked to make our next gathering better. I really enjoy these event planning opportunities. Working with these ladies is fun, beneficial, and rewarding. As you plan your next event, gather with your friends and enjoy the planning process. Happy planning!

Question: What events are you planning? Please add your answer to the comments.

Filed Under: Assisting, Event Planning, Thanksgiving Tagged With: Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving

November 24, 2011 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Flickr (bonus living)

I give thanks for you! 

Thank you for reading and following along on this journey of life as we work through projects on a quest to using time wisely.

In this season of gratitude, enjoy these moments with those close to you. In spending time with family and friends this holiday, take time to give thanks.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!  Psalm 105:1

Time is precious, so continue using time wisely.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Thanksgiving

Scheduling: 2011 Thanksgiving Feast

November 23, 2011 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Flickr (Emiliano Lobanco)

With the turkey thawing and the grocery shopping complete, my Thanksgiving plans are underway. With today’s activities planned, I can concentrate on timing the baking and cooking for Thursday’s meal.

Our celebration of thankfulness will include our family of five with my husband’s parents. Since my in-laws have graciously offered to provide the corn on the cob, Jello salad, and green salad, my preparations will include the turkey, gravy, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, bread, and beverages. Whew! Though the long list can be overwhelming, I break down the parts into time blocks for easy execution on Thursday morning.

Thursday

 

9:15 a.m. Turkey baking in the oven.
10:00 a.m. Peel the potatoes.

Make the stuffing.

Prepare the sweet potatoes.

Set the table.

Place butter and cranberry sauce into serving dishes.

11:30 a.m. Cook the potatoes.
11:45 a.m. Remove turkey from oven.

Place bread in oven.

12:15 p.m. Remove bread from oven.

Bake the stuffing and sweet potatoes.

Start making the gravy.

12:30 p.m. Mash the potatoes.

Carve the turkey.

12:45 p.m. Remove the stuffing and sweet potatoes from oven.

Prepare the table for our meal.

1:00 p.m. Feast time!

This schedule will keep me focused and organized on Thursday morning while preparing for our Thanksgiving meal. Having a written schedule to refer to allows me to concentrate on other items while following my plan.

Though your plan will look different from mine, just start from meal time and work backwards. By knowing what needs to stay hot, you can adjust your own schedule to fit your preferences. However you celebrate, I wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving Feast. Happy planning!

Question: How early do you plan to be in the kitchen on Thanksgiving morning? Please feel free to add your comment.

Filed Under: Event Planning, Coordinating, Miscellaneous, Thanksgiving Tagged With: Thanksgiving

Event Planning: 2011 Thanksgiving Feast

November 22, 2011 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Flickr (1600 Squirrels')

Turkey week is here! In an effort to stay on top of the details, I have sketched out a plan for the next few days. This plan is tentative and open to changes. But having a schedule keeps me focused and ready to do the next thing. My tentative plan begins today.

Tuesday

  • Remove the turkey from the freezer.
  • Start defrosting turkey in our large stock pot. Hubby really likes the turkey brined. Since he has agreed to do the work, he will be putting together the brine mixture. On Thursday, we are going to try bagging our brined turkey. I will give you the results of this experiment on Facebook.
  • Complete grocery shopping.

Wednesday

  • Feed bread starter for sourdough bread on Thursday.
  • Make 3 pies. I will definitely be making 2 pecan pies. The other option has not yet been decided. Usually that pie choice is made by whoever is helping bake the pies in the kitchen.
  • Mix bread ingredients with starter for rising throughout the night.

When spreading out the Thanksgiving meal preparations throughout the week, the tasks can be completed between meals, play, and sleep while using time wisely. Planning the meal does not have to be difficult. By working through the details and assigning tasks for each day, I find the execution ends up being the easy part. 🙂 Happy planning!

Question: Are you experimenting with a recipe this Thanksgiving? Let me know that I’m not the only one.

Filed Under: Event Planning, Coordinating, Thanksgiving Tagged With: Thanksgiving

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