My mother does Thanksgiving Day, and she has been doing this holiday for about, let me see, I will be married 40 years, so it is over 40 years.  Good gosh, I cannot believe it am I that old?  It is all about me, you know.

On this holiday three families come together to spend a day of thanks.

Three families who have no DNA connection with each other, yet we all have a connection that goes way beyond DNA.  The gathering is fairly large.

Although this year out of 28 only 17 came, yes, only.

Our children are older and have significant others, so some dined at their homes, but they do a pit stop for dessert.

It’s a good thing my parents have a basement were we can add two or three tables so we can all sit and eat.

My father puts on the cable channel with the 60’s music, every year, the sound of music coming out of the TV is not exactly the sound of music…but no one complains.

The first family member arrives, Owen.  He speaks Maltese to my parents just until the others arrive…You know the calm before the storm.

My sister and Maryann enjoying a chat along with a Cosmopolitan, our Thanksgiving drink.

We enjoy a good Cosmo…I kept them coming.  I finally know how to make a good Cosmo, thanks Chuck for the bartender lesson.Here is my friend Dale.  This is her first time at our Thanksgiving celebration.

I think she will end up becoming a staple at our table.  See no matter what we always end up having a new face added to the group.  We all sit awaiting the word to go get the turkey and all the sides.

As you can see paper plates are essential at this gathering…we stopped using real dishes a long time ago, for spending all day in the kitchen cleaning up, even with a dish washer, was not the way to enjoy the company, and the day.

 Eat and throw away is our Thanksgiving motto.Joey and his son Joseph.

Thanks Joey for taking your father’s place.  See Joe, his dad, was the official turkey carver at Thanksgiving.  Joe took carving the bird very seriously, he would even bring his own carving knife, now that is serious in my book.

However, this Thanksgiving Joe was in the presence of our Lord.

So, it was with great honor that Joey took up the torch, and continued in his fathers footsteps.  We know that his dad was watching him from heaven,  for Joey who never carved a turkey before, managed to handle the turkey carving with great finesse.

Gizmo, my dog, also gets to enjoy the festivities, he gets to eat all the left overs…Gizmo gets stuffed more than the turkey ever does.  My father makes sure of that.

My dog is an eating machine….

It is Sophie and Liam, let’s not forget Christian…This is the room they get to play in without bothering the grown ups, that includes their parents.

Here we all are the girls of Thanksgiving…well not all exactly.  See Liz is missing, she ended up very sick on Thanksgiving and was not able join us.

We all missed her…this picture is not complete without her.  

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.

It is the only holiday that I can spend time with the most important people in my life.  Three families, three generations, no make that four generations, we gather to give thanks and remember the loved ones who have been called to God and the loved ones that God has blessed us with.

Our children and their children.

Life can be bitter, but with a family like this, making lemonade is so easy.