four cousins at thanksgiving!

"Four? Were you in Hinesville this year?"

 

Nope! I was at Tony and Laura's again! He had invited me over.

 

"Wait... I thought you'd been invited to your cousin's house in Waycross?? Was that not correct?"

Well, that had been the plan, but I never heard anything more from Linsey or cousin David about doing that. I don't know what happened on their end, but it's all good! I'm pleased to be with Dood this time! You know what he said to me? I'm come into the back yard where he was smoking the turkey and when he saw me, he lit up! Then he thanked me, right in front of Damon, for being there for him for so many years when he was in Summerville. I tell ya, we were both nigh on to tears as we were hugging. Right place, right time.

 

"I am so happy for you! What a wonderful moment with your youngest brother on this special day of thanks. What all do you have on that plate?"

 

Smoked turkey, dressing with gravy, mac'n'cheese, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes... oh, and two desserts! Quite a feast!

 

"You and your 'dessert with your meal' thing! Is that the pumpkin pie from the Bananas? Did it have any of that fruit in it?"

 

Yes, that was the pie, alright! And it was just a standard pumpkin pie. If there was any other fruit in there, none of us detected it. That's Sebi, Hope's 12-year-old, tucking in to that piece. He ate every bite!

 

"I'm sure he did. He's almost a teen and probably eats anything and everything. What was that other dessert on your plate?"

 

Oh, that was Choco-Flan! Hope made it, as it's a favorite of her kids. In the photo, she's explaining to Tony that it's upper part is like flan, and the lower is chocolate cake. Get this: it's all combined together when it's mixed, but then density is what causes the two different parts to separate. Density!!! She used chemistry to explain it!!! How great is that??? And she even made it with Bert, her 9-year-old, and he understood about the different densities!

 

"How very cool!"

 

Right?! When it cooks, the lighter cake portion floats to the top of the pan and the heavier custard sinks to the bottom. Then, when it's turned out of the pan, the light-colored flan is on top, like a frosting. I really liked it and took a huge piece home! You eat both sections simultaneously, as the custard sweetens the cake.

 

"That's rather different than most American desserts."

 

That may be part of why I liked it. Now, here's a photo that shows Carissa with her two male cousins. She turned 16 in May, the day before my birthday.

And here she is with her brother, Dylan. He surprised all of us when he came today!!! He's so tall and grown-looking! He's 18 now and should have been graduating from high school this year, but he's dropped out. At least Tony serves as an example of an adult who saw the value of that degree, getting his GED while he was locked up.

 

"Oh, I do hate that Dylan has dropped out!"

 

He's got a girlfriend and is talking about marrying her, but hopefully that will wait. I told him about me getting married at 19 and how that was over in just 3 years. Then again, I know folks from high school who have been married since graduation. It all depends on the people and how much work they want to put into the marriage.

 

"That's for sure. Well, I'm thrilled for Tony that he had both of his kids and most of his grandkids there today. I know that means a lot to him."

 

You're right, this was surely a blessed day! i thank You, God!