For the first time in a decade or so, we spent Thanksgiving at my parents' house in Thief River Falls. Our boys met us there — Christian driving up from Fargo, and Bergen flying in from Wisconsin via MSP.
And, yeah. It sounds all bougie to say we flew Bergen in to Thief River. But his round-trip ticket cost less than the price of gas to drive up PLUS he didn't have to spend 13 hours on the road. During a holiday. In the winter. So replace "bougie" with "ingenious" and we're onto something.
Also, here's a little vacation tip for you: You'll never find a better deal than the round-trip airfare from MSP to TVF, so you should probably start planning your trip to the fields and prairies of Northwest Minnesota now.
Anyway. The big, fat family Thanksgiving was different than our Thanksgivings of past. Here are two food-related reasons why:
#1. As we planned the meal, I asked what our family could contribute — pie? veggies? mashed potatoes? But because I'm late to the game, all the good stuff is taken. Angie does the pies. Amy brings the veggies and dip. My mom's on the turkey and potatoes.
"I have to bring something," I write in our group text. "How about a side?"
My mom tells me I can bring the green bean casserole. I've never made green bean casserole, but I'm just happy to be included. So I look up the recipe.
Do you know how you make green bean casserole?
You mix canned grean beans with cream of mushroom soup and throw French-friend onions on top. And then you heat it. So I'm pretty much the girl whose been asked to bring the paper towels to the family meal.
#2. But at least I'm not the girl who brought the trifle.
My 18-year-old niece, Gracie, is a burgeoning baker. Her prowess in the kitchen is well storied among the family. She brought three desserts along to the family Thanksgiving: Cheesecake cups, apple bars, and trifle.
But not just any trifle.
If you're a Friends fan, you might already know where I'm going here.
Gracie created a recipe based on the famous Thanksgiving episode where Rachel makes the trifle that, says Ross, "tastes like feet."
What's in it? Lady fingers. Strawberries. Bananas. Beef. Onions. Peas.
All covered in whipped cream.
It sure looked pretty. And Gracie did have some adventurous tasters. My niece Alexa's husband, Zane, tried a healthy spoonful and said it would've been fine if it weren't for the onion/banana combo.
And my 15-year-old niece, Geneva, gave it a solid try before leaning over the garbage and sending it all back out.
Not a soul in that room blamed her.
And, yeah. It sounds all bougie to say we flew Bergen in to Thief River. But his round-trip ticket cost less than the price of gas to drive up PLUS he didn't have to spend 13 hours on the road. During a holiday. In the winter. So replace "bougie" with "ingenious" and we're onto something.
Also, here's a little vacation tip for you: You'll never find a better deal than the round-trip airfare from MSP to TVF, so you should probably start planning your trip to the fields and prairies of Northwest Minnesota now.
Anyway. The big, fat family Thanksgiving was different than our Thanksgivings of past. Here are two food-related reasons why:
#1. As we planned the meal, I asked what our family could contribute — pie? veggies? mashed potatoes? But because I'm late to the game, all the good stuff is taken. Angie does the pies. Amy brings the veggies and dip. My mom's on the turkey and potatoes.
"I have to bring something," I write in our group text. "How about a side?"
My mom tells me I can bring the green bean casserole. I've never made green bean casserole, but I'm just happy to be included. So I look up the recipe.
Do you know how you make green bean casserole?
You mix canned grean beans with cream of mushroom soup and throw French-friend onions on top. And then you heat it. So I'm pretty much the girl whose been asked to bring the paper towels to the family meal.
#2. But at least I'm not the girl who brought the trifle.
My 18-year-old niece, Gracie, is a burgeoning baker. Her prowess in the kitchen is well storied among the family. She brought three desserts along to the family Thanksgiving: Cheesecake cups, apple bars, and trifle.
But not just any trifle.
If you're a Friends fan, you might already know where I'm going here.
Gracie created a recipe based on the famous Thanksgiving episode where Rachel makes the trifle that, says Ross, "tastes like feet."
What's in it? Lady fingers. Strawberries. Bananas. Beef. Onions. Peas.
All covered in whipped cream.
It sure looked pretty. And Gracie did have some adventurous tasters. My niece Alexa's husband, Zane, tried a healthy spoonful and said it would've been fine if it weren't for the onion/banana combo.
And my 15-year-old niece, Geneva, gave it a solid try before leaning over the garbage and sending it all back out.
Not a soul in that room blamed her.
A two-hour drive to Thanksgiving? We could do that all day!
The kids' table has aged up.
Gobble, Gobble.