Thanksgiving Dinner Traditions – Some Are Never Lived Down

We have a Thanksgiving-Day tradition at our house. Every year, as the rolls are placed on cookie sheets to rise, numerous threats are made to poke a hole in each one. Why?

It goes back several years, to when my boys were almost four. One left his mark on each roll, causing them to go flat. This was of course, a year when we were hosting dinner for about 22 family members. We served really flat rolls.

It took several years for the truth to come out, but eventually, my son David confessed to poking his little finger into each one. We tease him about it every year. It is likely one of those things that will stick with him for life.

I don’t remember the incident, as well as I remember the story. It was probably 1971 or 1972 when my mom made gravy, and used self-rising flour. I’m not sure of the chemistry at work here, but the gravy had lumps. Tons of lumps. Lumps may not actually be the right word. Dumplings is probably more accurate, as the lumps were the size of golf balls. I believe it evoked tears at the time, but it has brought plenty of laughs, revisited at Thanksgiving dinner every year since.

Are there any funny (or better yet, embarrassing) stories or traditions your family remembers fondly?

My best to you and your family, as you celebrate the holidays, and take pleasure in those little things that can go wrong, but somehow become a family tradition.