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Okay so this is probably not how most Polish people spend their Thanksgiving so the title is slightly misleading but it is how WE spent out Thanksgiving so it is fitting in a way too! 🙂
Thanksgiving is a national holiday and I was not introduced to it until I came to the US 9 years ago. As I mentioned in my post about things I am thankful for, my family is scattered all over the place – not just Poland. I have family all over Europe so holiday time is pretty uneventful and lonely compared to the feasts and family gatherings that other homes have. I can’t help but feel a tinge of envy as these are the times I miss family time the most, but I enjoy spending time with my parents so we always try to make the most of it.
I was woken up at 8 in the morning by the McDonald’s Thanksgiving Parade starting right outside my apartment. I was still super tired and I willed myself to sleep more. Surprisingly, it worked. I didn’t wake up again until 10! I started the day off in a jolly mood and to start my celebration of the holiday, I prepared myself a bowl of pumpkin protein oats as I edited some photos from the night before.
Sadly, the oatmeal sucked and half of it went in the trash. Oh well.
I made my way to the suburbs around noon where my mom surprised me with dessert! The pumpkin muffins she made were amazing! Seriously, they tasted just like something I would buy at a bakery. She said she reduced the sugar by half and added applesauce in place of some of the oil. It’s ridiculous that the recipe called for twice as much sugar and extra oil because these muffins were still pretty sweet and very moist!
Then I opted for some pumpkin tiramisu. It turned out delicious as well except the mascarpone felt too heavy for me. It was a great creation though and I applauded her for making it, it was creative and different! Apparently this recipe called for 3 times the sugar she used! Man, I can’t imagine how sweet it would be if she used the full amount – this tiramisu was very sweet already. Sigh.
Anyway, my dad got home from work and we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather to decorate the house. It’s been unseasonably warm these past couple of days but I am not complaining. If the weather stayed like this all winter I’d be happy. (note: the very next day, Black Friday, the temperature dropped by 32 degrees and it even snowed… typical Chicago, so bipolar) Even nature is confused by this warm weather and I noticed there were a few flowers growing on our neighbors front lawn! Crazy.
After decorating the house, we decided to play a game of Scrabble – something we do together on most holidays. It’s fun.
After an epic WIN, it was dinner time! Main attraction: an amazingly moist roasted turkey breast fresh out of the oven.
Roasted sweet potatoes, onions, and mushrooms.
TJ’s Cranberry Sauce.
A delicious salad.
It all looked so pretty on my plate. I gobbled it all up.
We hung out together some more while watching National Geographic. They had some awesome stuff on, we learned a lot about wild cats and water predators. It was interesting. I really like watching animal shows. I used to do it allll the time when I was a kid. My favorite were wild cats.
Around 8 pm, we decided to drive by each of the big stores near us to see if any people were camped outside and ready for the Black Friday madness. I participated in the Black Friday shopping but I never did the whole camp out/big store thing – I simply woke up at 4 or 5 and went to the mall to try and score some good deals on clothes and stuff. It was a fail each time so I gave up. Besides, most stores I shop at started their deals on Wednesday. There was a pretty big line starting at Best Buy and we were a little surprised. But not as surprised as we were when we drove by Target. Holy wow, there must have been nearly 200 people standing outside in line. Did I mention it had just finished raining by then?
Walmart was already open at 8pm and we decided to stop in. We didn’t plan on buying anything but my parents were curious to see how it was inside. The store was madness and there were lines in-store for different deals that were going on. Way too many people in one place for me.
When we got home I went with another pumpkin muffin – this time it was crumbled over some yogurt, almond butter, and jam goodness.
IFC was playing Trapped In the Closet by R Kelly and I decided to watch it since I haven’t in a few years. My mom joined me. She actually loved it and stayed up to watch it until she was almost falling asleep. I love the creativity behind the show. We called it a “soap opera that’s straight to the point and with good singing” haha basically sums it up right? We didn’t get through the whole thing of the hip hopera but we recorded it so next time I come to the suburbs, we will finish watching it. If you’re not familiar with the series, here’s the first part (out of like 23… they get crazier and crazier each time but they are hilarious and I totally recommend it!):
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFosUj6A22c]
- How was your Thanksgiving?
- Have you seen Trapped In The Closet??
