Day 29: Thanksgiving 2009

We are back at home from our wonderful Thanksgiving holiday in Crockett. We had a wonderful time with only a couple minor catastrophes. The weather was a little chilly but otherwise very nice. There is always an uncertainty with the weather here in November. It may be 80° or it may be freezing rain. We lucked out completely considering we ate every meal outside…more on that later.
We left home on Tuesday afternoon about an hour later than we had hoped to. It doesn’t seem late when you are heading out at 3 pm, but by the time we arrived it was almost dark and we wanted to be set up before dark set in. I was hopeful we would go into town and get some libations since we had missed our last chance stop along the way. As we were heading down the road to the camp we heard a very strange sound that turned out to be the leveling jack on the rear of the trailer. It had gotten caught on a very tiny stump of cedar and twisted backwards completely (minor catastrophe #1 and we had only just arrived!). By the time we were set up, Jayme didn’t want to go into town so I had to settle for a back rub and some spaghettios.
The next morning there was work to be done before everyone else arrived. Pattie had honored me with another night from hell, although it really isn’t her fault. She and I are both waking up coughing our heads off lately. In any case I was very groggy and grumpy and had previously broken the carafe to the coffee pot in the trailer. I tried to make due with a substitute but made the WORST COFFEE EVER which did not help my mood. Jayme had said he needed to chip up some wood piles to clear the paths for walking so the boys headed out to do that while Pattie and I finished dressing for the day in multiple layers. My mom called to say they were heading out so we had 2 ½ hours longer to wait before seeing Mike, Wendy, Noah and Audrey.
I went over to where the boys were working and Jayme said we could go to town when he finished the area he was in. He said it would be about 30 more minutes, and then when we got back he would do the last area that was bad before everyone got there. I asked him where that was and he told me so I went to check it out. I practically ran back to tell him there was no way we could leave the mess that was over there for my mom to see. It would have killed her pissed her off made her very upset! So town was delayed again and I helped the boys finish up the chipper work in time. The first vehicle in the convoy arrived a little later and just my dad was in it. I asked him how many other trucks were coming and he laughed. He had actually left the house last and passed the others on the way. My brother was driving Mom and Dad’s van with Mom and his family in it. Daddy said they drove right past the turn off but he was sure they would figure it out and be along soon.
Within a little while everyone was there and it was so nice. My mom’s face was just lit up with happiness at having us all together for the first time in 8 years. There were only 2 kids back then!! Wendy and I ran into town after a while and caught up and enjoyed the booming Crockett Walmart. When we got back some of the others were gone to the house we rented down the street to check in and drop off luggage and whatnot. We were going to have a weenie roast for dinner so we started getting things together for that. Mom came back and was very upset. The lady who rents out the houses had come up and said we had mislead her about how many people were going to be at the house and she told us we couldn’t eat there (minor catastrophe #2)! She finally agreed to let us cook there when Mom told her we had rented the damn house so that we could have an oven to make THANKSGIVING DINNER in. I mean my trailer has an oven, but you couldn’t fit a chicken in there, much less a turkey. Poor Mom was so embarrassed even though it had nothing to do with her; she just had wanted everything to be perfect and now we were truly at the mercy of the weather.
Thanksgiving morning dawned cold and crisp and absolutely gorgeous. We had a continental style breakfast at the camp and went for walks in the woods and watched the kids run around and play until it was time to go start the turkey. We all went down the rented house and Mom started the turkey while I made cornbread for the dressing, then I made some spinach artichoke dip to snack on. Wendy started her macaroni and cheese dish while I put together the green bean casserole for them to finish in the oven later. Pop, Jayme, Mike and the kids (minus Pattie) went fishing but I had to go back to the trailer to make the dressing. After a while they all came back down to the camp and had to wait on me to finish up the dressing and Meemaw’s sweet potatoes (with marshmallows). Everything tasted so good!!! I have always said that everything tastes better when you are camping, but Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings outshines them all. After dinner we sat around the campfire…well, the kids were in the trailer raising all kinds of hell and my grandparents had retired for the evening but Mom, Dad, Mike, Wendy, Jayme and I sat around the campfire and laughed so much my sides hurt and tears were streaming down my face. Of course that would set off another coughing fit which made Jayme laugh and it was just a big vicious cycle. It was the most wonderful night.
When you are camping it always feels later than it is. Pattie fell asleep in my lap at the fire and everyone else was winding down so we said goodnight and they went off to the house and we went into the trailer. It was only 7:00! Jayme fell asleep almost immediately (too much wine, love?) but unfortunately Pattie had woken back up. So she and I watched some SpongeBob DVDs and the boys finally went off to bed around 9 as well. The next morning we had agreed Mom would make the bacon at the house and when she brought it down here I would start the hashbrowns and eggs. When I brought the last of the breakfast items out to the table I was extremely irritated to see that Jayme had left all the leftover dressing and green beans out all night (minor catastrophe #3). I had asked him to bring them in and he had said that Mom and Dad were taking them. It was cold enough that night that they were probably fine and to prove that he ate some and since he didn’t fall over dead get sick, I guess he was right…but I was still mad!
You could not imagine our surprise later that day when a familiar, yet not right away recognized, truck pulled into camp. Jayme’s brother Baron, dad Wayne and nephew Zak stepped out to our great surprise and joy. They had been at the family Thanksgiving in Trinity (about an hour away) and decided that if they could find our place without having to call for directions it would be a wonderful surprise and it was! It meant the world to Jayme who has been dying for Baron to come up and see the place. Jayme took him on the whirlwind tour while Wayne gabbed with us at camp and Zak ran off in the woods with the other kids. I had to go with Mom back to the rented house to get my things from it and help them get it all cleaned up. I hated to think about them leaving so soon and its imminent happening was making me a little panicky.
All good things must come to an end and no amount of happiness and fun could change the fact that Mike and his wonderful family live very far away and they had a plane to catch the next morning. After some very heavy goodbyes and many promises not to wait so long to get together again, they all drove away. After everyone else left, w e loaded up and went into town to fill our propane tanks and grab some burgers for dinner and resupply a few things at Walmart. We laughed about how we had gone shopping on Black Friday after all.
Saturday we decided we would go to see the Caddoan Mounds State Historic Site that isn’t very far from our place and afterwards we hiked the 2 ½ mile trail at Mission Tejas State Park. The boys got in some fishing while Pattie took a nap and I got things a little more ready to go home the next day. Leaving is always bittersweet for me. On the one hand I am usually ready for running water (without limits) and my own bed, but on the other hand there is the mountain of laundry, and all the things in the trailer that have to be brought back inside and put away when we get home. This time I may be able to leave some things since it looks like we may be back in a couple weeks to camp again…weather permitting.
What's that old saying, "It ain't over til it's over"? On the way home we had minor catastrophe #4 after filling up with gas. As Jayme pulled away from the pump we clipped it with the trailer and broke the nozzle. Of course, most people would have simply driven away, but the attendant was standing!right!there! So we moved to a safer parking spot and gave her our insurance information. *sigh*
In any case, now we are home and life returns to its normal daily routine for a couple more weeks until Christmas break brings a flurry of travel and fun. It's now time to put up the decorations and finish the shopping and plan out the baking and enjoy!