Monday, November 30, 2020

T Stands for Thanksgiving Weekend

 Hi everyone.  Tuesday and T Day have rolled around again, and today's post is a bit long for me. Just warning you!

For T, I thought I would share some snippets from the long Thanksgiving Holiday weekend in my world. It was a fun escape from the usual: my house got really messy, I ate too much food, I didn't get online very much, I relaxed and I got some major exercise. 

The quote in this first photo is true for my house both on Thanksgiving and the day before. It is the only room I seemed to clean up after the Thursday.


I recently bought a split pie plate that makes 2 halves  of 2 different pies. This way  I could make more flavors of pie and not have huge amounts of each. Normally I would make full sized  pies, but with this stay home Thanksgiving, it was just my daughter, my husband and myself. I wanted to be sure 


I made half pumpkin and half black bottom pecan. I had a bit of extra pumpkin filling (as I made half of each recipe) so I baked it in a ramekin. You can also see my first drink related image here too.

I always measure dry ingredients with a scale, which makes it easy to use recipes in both English or metric. This is drink reference number 2.



I also made these sourdough dinner rolls with a recipe from King Arthur. They were ok, both times I tried them. I would have prefered a roll a little lighter in texture than these came out. 

And I did make an apple pie. This one was full sized because it is the only pie everyone eats. I do wish however I made the pumpkin a full sized pie though. My daughter who told me about 10 times she does not like pumpkin pie, changed her mind this year and told me she liked the pumpkin better than  apple. Go figure.
If you are wondering why the top of the pie looks lumpy it is because I made my top crust by cutting our leaves with a cookie cutter and overlapping them.



Onto Thanksgiving.

That  day was a bit chaotic at first. When I got up and found my husband on the couch, he told me  that he had been sick a few times. Not knowing if it was something he ate or one of those covid symptoms (because I know that's how it started when my mom got sick), I wasn't  sure if I should even make the traditional turkey dinner. My daughter then decided she was going to go home so she wouldn't get sick. Luckily when she left she phoned her beau, and he talked her into coming back. I was really down when she left, especially since my husband, who had been up half the night, went back to bed.
(Originally my daughter and her beau were going to visit both his parents and then us on Thanksgiving.  With covid so bad here right now, my daughter decided it was best to skip her boyfriend's family and just come home. Some of you may not know my husband had a kidney transplant in 2017, and he is really immunosuppressed because of that. My daughter was trying not to come into contact with other people before she came here for Thanksgiving.)

I spent Thanksgiving morning disinfecting out of paranoia.


Once Katie (my daughter) returned, I cheered up. She and I made dinner, even if at that time we thought it would just be the 2 of us eating it. 
She is NOT a cook, so I love seeing her in kitchen helping me out.


My husband got up around one feeling much better.  He even carved the turkey. 


We all had a wonderful meal and NO ONE was sick. I think my husband must have eaten something on Wednesday, and his lack of much immune system got the better of him.


And in this photo above is my drink reference photo number 3. 


Friday we went and chopped our holiday tree and also put it up. Then my daughter left. (I wrote about this day here Christmas Tree if you are interested.)

My last big weekend plans were on Saturday morning when I met 3 of my work friends, and we went for a hike. Now that I am retired I don't see them that often, and it was great to catch up.


The plan was to walk up to the Stonehouse Pond overlook and then take the rest of the loop  back to  the parking area where our cars were. The landscape was rolling, and the trail was nice, although in some places it was covered with a lot of leaves. 
The overlook was quite pretty.



After an apple break, we headed  back. Not too far on the opposite side of the loop we came to a fork in the trail  There was a bright yellow sign with an arrow showing the trail going right, and some logs and branches down on the other branch of the trail more or less blocking it.
So we turned right and walked on. Luckily my friend who coordinated this walk realized she had never been this way before. (This trail is close to her home and she has walked it a couple of times before.) We pulled out our phones and yup, we were heading in the wrong direction. Not that trail maps online are always accurate, as we discovered when we each pulled up the online map. Each of us had the blue dot  showing our location at different points. Mine even had me standing in the middle of a nearby lake. 
Of course we had walked a mile off trail before this point and had to walk a mile back to the right trail.
Good things we had 4 smart brains to figure this out. Ha-ha.

We needed to go around all the branches in the trail and head that way.  I don't know what those branches were all about, but they could have been a really bad thing, (and  not just for us) had we walked a lot further and ended up far away from the parking area.


We passed a few bogs. 


And lots of  forested rolling hills.
Along the wrong trail we did pass this large glacial erratic rock covered in this really cool lichen.



And later on we saw this great lichen too.


Finally we came to this sign for the SELT trail. We knew we were back on track.


Even if we did have quite away to walk still. This sign was half way down the right trail.  We were heading to the Merry Hill Road Trailhead.


We did make it back to our cars though. We ended up walking about 8 miles, or just under 13 km. I checked my fitbit when I got home and at that point I was over 21,000 steps.

 My husband made me a yummy grilled cheese, I showered and then decided to lounge on the couch and watch  Jurassic Park:The Lost World. We'd been talking about that Jurassic Park sequel while walking, and I hadn't seen it for awhile. It seemed a good way to wrap up my day.

And if we don't get snow, one of my friend's birthday is on December 12th, and we are talking about another hike that day. I'm keeping my fingers crossed the weather holds a couple more weeks. 

OK, this is probably way too long as it is. Don't forget to stop by   Bleubeard and Elizabeth's    blog            and join us for T.

And Happy December to all of you!











17 comments:

kathyinozarks said...

Hi Erika, I have never seen a pie pan divided that way before-pretty nifty. enjoyed reading about your thanksgiving and all your doings-the hike sounded really nice-strange that all the phones were different on the map-that's scary.
Happy T wishes Kathy

Mae Travels said...

It’s hard to remember the days before GPS and iPhones could let you know when you were lost! Good that you made it back to the parking lot.

be well... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

Linda Kunsman said...

Oh it IS so frustrating when someone gets sick anymore....
glad it all worked out for all of you and hubby felt much better for Thanksgiving!
Oh and there is nothing like a walk and fresh air in nature as well. Happy T day!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

What a great new pie pan, Erika. So glad you bought it. I know you will use it in years to come, too. I'm not a fan of apple pie, but I love pumpkin. Everything you made for your Thanksgiving meal looked good and very traditional, too.

Loved all your drink references and enjoyed seeing your daughter in the kitchen and your husband feeling better as the day progressed. Thanks for all the drink references for T this almost Tuesday.

I noticed Scott has GPS on his phone. That's how we knew we were lost or had gone too far when we went to Fort Scott. I was impressed that the GPS even talked to Scott. Technology has left me behind, but since I never go anywhere, I'll stick with my antiquated systems for the time being. At least until we have a cure for this horrible disease.

Valerie-Jael said...

You made some wonderful baked goods, and I love the divided pan, great idea. Sorry your hubby felt bad, and glad it passed over quickly. Great that you could catch up with your friends and go for a hike. Good that you found the way home in spite of different blue dots! Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

Iris Flavia said...

You really made me get up and look in our kitchen - sign will be up tomorrow :-)
Wow. Our pies are much smaller! Clever idea, though!

Oh, oh, oh. I´m with you. Hubby is chronically sick (managing without meds most of the time, YAY!). alarm bells go off quickly.
Glad it was false alarm!

Oh, what a walk!
How do you do a yummy grilled cheese? Would you like to share?
Happy T-day!

Anne (cornucopia) said...

I'm glad your Thanksgiving turned out okay, after the rocky start to the day. I like that half pie baking dish. Your Christmas tree looks fantastic. What a beautiful trail to walk on. There are a lot of trees down on trails around here in Connecticut, I think due to the various high wind storms we had in August / September. (I hope you fared okay with yesterday's storm.) I hope the snow holds off, so you can go out walking on your friend's birthday. (This Winter, my goal is to try to go out on trails with snow on them, instead of hibernating like I usually do.) Happy T-Day!

Kate Yetter said...

I love the idea of a split pie dish. I have never heard of one but I bet it is handy for more than just making pie. I love that you baked the rest of your filling in ramekins.
So glad that your daughter was able to spend Thanksgiving with you. It doesn't feel like a holiday unless other people are present. And that is wonderful that your hubby started feeling better!
The scenic overlook that you visited with your friends is lovely! That lichen is certainly a eye catching ground cover. Sounds like a great weekend.
Happy Tea Day,
Kate

Divers and Sundry said...

That split pie plate is a genius idea! Your pies all look tasty. I'm glad your husband had such a fast recovery. Being sick is no fun, but on a holiday it's just miserable :( Your meal looks quite the traditional feast, and a FiestaWare plate is how we served ours up, too :)

That area looks like the perfect place for a walk. Beautiful view! I appreciate how many different trail options you had. 8 miles would be far for me! I'm not sure I could go that distance. Well, to be honest, I'd only be sure of half that ;)

Happy December and Happy T Day!

DVArtist said...

Ohhh I enjoyed this post so very much. I want that sign about a messy kitchen. LOL I have never seen a double pie pan before. I guess if I baked pies I would have. LOL It is so nice to see you place with you and your family. Wonderful photos too. Just an overall happy post. Thank you.

Let's Art Journal said...

What a fabulous idea to split the pie in half and wow, your Thanksgiving meal looked so delicious, I'd happily join you ...lol 😀. Your tree looks so beautiful too! Happy T Day wishes! Hugs, Jo x
p.s. sorry I haven't been visiting lately, last week I was suffering with bad migraines and couldn't cope with the brightness of the laptop screen so no blogging for me - boo hoo! I'm still not a hundred percent so I probably won't be able to catch up on all the posts I missed, many apologies. xx

Eileen Bergen said...


The split pie plate is a great idea; though I guess you have to make sure the varieties you choose need the same baking time and temperature. Apple pie is my favorite and I'll never change my mind on that.

Your plate is overflowing and everything looks delicious. You've got your tree up already?! I'd better get going. Nice photo. I love the vintage tool display on the wall.

Beautiful lake views. I'm glad you worked out the navigation. I'm one of those people who can get lost on the way to the store. It's a good thing you didn't have me with you. 21,000 steps - good for you!

Happy T-day! Stay safe and well. Hugs, Eileen

Lisca said...

I love long blog posts like yours. I enjoy reading about your life and seeing the photos of your kitchen, your pies and the walks of course.
I had never heard of a pie dish divided in two. Very clever.
I too always weigh my ingredients, as it is the norm in Europe. Only American recipes come in cups. I have bought a set of cups for that purpose.
Oh my! You had a shaky start to your Thanksgiving Day!But all was well in the end and your daughter even helped you cook. That was special.
It was fun seeing your (messy) kitchen. I totally agree with the plaque and my kitchen is messy too. (and we are very happy). It was also good seeing your hubby carve the turkey (and the dog waiting expectantly for a scrap).
I love the photo of you & Katie at the tree. Gorgeous!
The photos of the hike are awesome. I had to smile at the four smart brains and the not so smart phones.
Have you found out what lichen those are? Very interesting. I am interested in lichen (don't ask me why) Whenever I was on a geological field trip, often I would be on my knees looking at lichen, rather than concentrating on whatever the field trip was about. I have never seen these type before.
Sorry I'm late,
Happy belated T-Day,
Hugs,
Lisca

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

That two-halves pie plate was also a first-see for me and while it sounds like a good idea I'm not sure I would try it as I prefer making a whole pie of one type. That sound, your apple pie looked great even with the bumpy leaf topping, vanilla ice cream would go well, just saying. Glad that your husband felt better and could join you and your daughter for turkey dinner. I am envious of your colorful pots (cast iron?) And going for a hike the day after was probably something we should have done, but didn't, so kudos to you.

Iris Flavia said...

Shoot. Popping in from Stevenson. Kitchen sign... I forgot, like totally! Next Wednesday... I took the pic NOW. Hope the neighbours don´t call the police as the flash went off - 06:54 am here, suspicious move...)

Sami said...

I like that kitchen sign :)
I had never seen a two-halves pie, but you get to eat two pies instead of one :)

Stevenson Q said...

Dearest Erika, you have such a beautiful home! I love to see that kitchen sign which someday I would love to have something like it when I have my own home too :) Love the dinner and the family time and truly the walks you did! A late greeting of Happy Thanksgiving!