15th Birthday Party
the girl
Friday Game Night
Final Game Night
We played Ticket to Ride tonight — a favorite game for all of us. L and K enjoy it because they actually play to win; E and I love it because we play to stop them from winning. Not to win ourselves — just to get in their way. It means there’s a lot of laughs, a bit of frustration from time to time, and lots of memories.
I’ve always associated games with the extended Thanksgiving break. When we went to Nashville to visit Nana’s brother for Thanksgiving, one of the highlights for me was digging through their game closet. They had everything — games we had of course like Scrabble but also games I’d always wanted to play but never owned like Life and Battleship. And of course Monopoly. I loved it as at E’s age just as much as he loves it, and I’m sure everyone else put up with it just like we put up with it.
Thanksgiving 2021
Thanksgiving for fifteen years always included Nana and Papa. We went to Nashville to visit Nana's brother our first Thanksgiving back in the States in 2005. Less than a year later, he'd passed away. We haven't been back to Nashville since.
From that point, we went to Papa's side of the family every year. There were various cousins, aunts, and uncles there -- never the same group -- but there were always two that never changed: Nana and Papa.
During our first Thanksgiving without Nana in 2019, we all went for a portrait and took Nana with us -- the wound was still raw for everyone, but especially Papa. His first Thanksgiving without Nana in forever.
This is our first Thanksgiving without either of them. The plan to go visit Aunt D, who helped take care of Nana when she first came back from rehab, fell through as did our plan to visit with cousins. Our Polish family from North Carolina -- family in all ways that count, at any rate -- had other plans for Thanksgiving, so we spent it just the four of us. Without turkey.
But with games. What's Thanksgiving without games?
Previous Years
Thanksgiving 2020
Thanksgiving 2019
Thanksgiving 2018
Thanksgiving 2017
Thanksgiving 2016
Thanksgiving 2015
Thanksgiving 2013
Thanksgiving 2012
Thanksgiving 2011
Family and Food: Thanksgiving 2010
Interrupted
Fourth Thursday
Thanksgiving Games
Thanksgiving 2006
Thanksgiving 2005
Pre-Thanksgiving 2021
It's been such an odd Thanksgiving Eve. The only thing I did today that was in line with every other day-before-T'giving was to mow. That only makes sense if you're in the south, I guess.
In the evening, the kids played chess. The Boy won the first game on time; that did not sit well with the Girl, who promptly paid more attention to her time management and checkmated him in the second game.
"She is so competitive," K said.
"But look at it this way," I said. "She could have pouted when he won and refused to play with him again. Instead, she was angry and wanted another shot."
L’s New Team
Around the House
Bay’s Mountain
Saturday in Tennessee
Reviewing and Rediting
