Thanksgiving Wrap-Up: 5 Pies

This Thanksgiving we hosted dinner in our little apartment in our little town. I looked around the table, and I was so thankful for the people sitting around it. I have spent the last three Thanksgivings away from my family of origin--the last two years I spent with Eric's family and the year before that I was eating turkey with my American brethren in San Jose, Costa Rica. So it was extra special to have them all there. Plus, as time goes by, the distance I have put between myself and Arizona becomes more palpable. I didn't just go away to college. I really moved away. I actually live far from home. Somewhere in my subconscious I knew that this is what was happening in late August 2005, as I cried and cried after my going away party. I knew that I was really leaving then, but in college you go home plenty, and everyone is far from home, and its just normal and it just seems like a phase and the truth of it fades. But the truth of it is clearer to me now. The realities of distance are clearer to me. And I know now what it means to gather your loved ones from far away into one place.

So, the people around the table: We had my brother there, who had just successfully completed his Basic training at Ft. Knox, and who found it generally easy and enjoyable, unlike everyone else ever. We had his girlfriend, who had made it through 4 months separation on nothing but letters, a few phone calls, and a few days in October. I truly don't know how she did it. My dad and my mom, who I appreciate more and more as I grow up. My friend Natalya was there too, who is from Kazakhstan and was very patient with us as we explained American Thanksgiving to her, even though I'm sure she heard the same schpiel last year. And next to me was Eric, my co-host who will sit next to me for many Thanksgivings to come.

We ate dinner. And then we ate pie. I made three pies: pumpkin (recipe from the Stokely's can), maple bourbon pecan pie (courtesy of Martha Stewart, and also my mom who took the reigns on this one), and cranberry apple.

Ta-da!



Now, the title of this post says 5 pies, because last Sunday I made another cran-apple pie for Friend Thanksgiving, and also because my mom and I can't count. I knew I had to make 3 pies, so naturally I made enough for 6 crusts. But this neglected the fact that there is no top crust for pecan or pumpkin pie. So we had 2 extra crusts. So we threw together the fruit we had--frozen berries and leftover apple/cranberry filling and made a 4th pie on Black Friday. The guests are now gone, but hey--I have berry-cran-apple pie! That should help get me through the next 3 weeks of school insanity.