Thursday 13: Confessions, volume IV, Thanksgiving edition

I know it's customary to talk about blessings on Thanksgiving. In fact, I did it last year for Thursday 13 (see here), and the thing is, the big blessings haven't changed. They're still great and I'm still grateful for them. So let's say "ditto" to blessings and move on to some Thanksgiving confessions...

Cute! Photo credit.

1. Turkey isn't my favorite. Shhh, don't tell my family. For the record, I like turkey fine. It's just that as a carb-fiend I have so many other yummy things to keep my taste buds busy. Stuffing, taters, pie. Oh, the pie.

2. I'm a reformed stuffing hater. Now, I didn't always like stuffing. In fact, I used to find the in-bird variety dis-gus-sting. Thanks to my dad's sage/sourdough magic, I'm a stuffing hound. Mmm!

3. I eat mashed potatoes so I can have gravy. I love mashed taters, don't get me wrong, but on Thanksgiving, I use them mostly to hold my little lake of gravy. Just like my sister Emily. (This is a readership check. Em hates gravy.)

4. My favorite part about Thanksgiving is it being over so I can finally decorate for Christmas. I know, I know, but it's true! I look forward to decorating all year long, most especially on Thanksgiving because the Christmas cheer is so close! If only T would let me decorate early. (On the list of things that will never happen...)

5. I've never been shopping on Black Friday. And I never will! Mostly, my plans involve decorating, but the thought of getting up at the crack of dawn to engage in often-ugly interactions with others over STUFF is abhorrent.

I didn't realize there was a whole anti-Black Friday campaign
emphasizing anti-consumerism. Cool. Credit.

6. I forget that Thanksgiving is synonymous with football for some people. Truly. I'm always surprised when someone has the game on.

7. I'm rarely up early enough for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. I'm sure I've seen it once or twice, but I usually forget about it until it's too late.

8. An average Thanksgiving involves three turkeys for me. Thanks to split families, in-laws and good friends, I typically scarf at least two or three big meals at Thanksgiving and Christmas. This phenomenon is directly related to #9 and I swear, this year, I'm going to exercise moderation.

9. It's inevitable that I gain 5 pounds on Thanksgiving. I blame Deb Russell's whipped sweet potato casserole. And pie. And the fact that it usually rains and I feel like lounging in a food coma and not going to the gym. However, this year, I am going to Zumba twice this week so the damage will only be four pounds. (ha!)

Ick. Naturally, it's a texture thing. Photo credit.

10. I hate sweet potatoes. Hate. With the exception of Deb Russell's casserole and I really only like that because the sweet potato taste is disguised by whipped cream and nuts and brown sugar.

11. Canned cranberries freak me out. Cranberry sauce shouldn't be cylindrical. Period.

12. I'm in charge of green bean casserole. I'm not sure how it happened, but I am usually assigned to bring green bean casserole to family gatherings. It might be that I adore green bean casserole and advocate for it yearly, but that's just a guess. I've been contemplating a health upgrade to the standard Campbell's cream-o-mushroom with French fried onion glory, but I'm undecided.

13. I really am grateful for all of the blessings in my life. All that stuff I mentioned last year, it's still true. I am so grateful for life, freedom, family, friends, school, love, health, time, and all the wonderful people in my life. Thank you all!

Any Turkey Day confessions to share?

xoxo,
shawna