Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Yes, I know it’s Wednesday, but this is the only Thanksgiving I’m going to get here in France -- and it’s actually shaping up to be a pretty good one!

I’m going to make a Thanksgiving-esque meal for my host family for dinner tonight. (I couldn't do so tomorrow because I have to work all day!) I’ve made them cookies, but this is going to be a full-out meal. It’ll only somewhat resemble a normal Thanksgiving meal, but it should be good (I hope!). Actually, I think this is the first time I’ve been in charge of making a meal: menu, shopping, prep, and all. It’s fun, but ten times harder because, 1) everything’s in French (including measurements!), 2) I'm in a foreign kitchen, and 3) things are packaged in the French way -- if they even exist over here! (I’ve been obliged to change the menu a few times.)

And now for the super good news: I walked home from the store this morning in the falling snow! Or rather, in the littlest flurries you can possibly imagine. But I was giddy about it, anyway. People here have told me that it might snow every other year here -- might. So I was trying to prepare myself for no snow at all, and I was surprised to find that I disliked the prospect more than a little! Anyway, I got my fix on my faux holiday, which makes me very happy. PLUS they say that it might *actually* snow tomorrow or the next day. IhopeIhopeIhope!

Oh, and here’s a picture of the back yard today. There are tiny flakes coming down, but you can’t see them, of course. I just think it’s interesting because the grass is green (as it is all year round) and the bare mulberry tree has Christmas lights in it -- and you all get to see my back yard. :o)

the backyard

Happy Thanksgiving, you all… tomorrow. :o)

10 Comments:

At 23/11/05 8:58 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Happy Thanksgiving, Kate! Way to go on fixing a dinner for your host family... I bet they will love it. : )

-RT

 
At 23/11/05 10:25 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

How did that van get parked where it is? It looks completely boxed in.

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving to you, too. I am thankful for my daughter Kate.

-dad

 
At 23/11/05 2:01 PM, Blogger Kate said...

I am thankful for so many things! For faith, family, friends, and a God who provides for all my needs, every day, all year long. Praise God for His many blessings!

I am thankful, too, that the meal today actually came off as planned! How often does that happen?? Nothing was burnt, the changes I made to the recipes didn't screw anything up, and the family liked it (or at least SAID they did... over and over). *whew* And it was fun for me to do. Very fun. Oh -- and a BIG THANKS to my wonderful mother who gave me lots of help from the other side of the Atlantic. THANK YOU, MOM!!!

DAD: If you look at the larger image, you can see that there's a gap between the wall with the greenery and the shed. There's just room enough for the van to drive straight ahead to where there's a gate that leads out into the street. (The house is behind me.)

 
At 23/11/05 2:05 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Any pictures of the meal? No? How about at least sharing the menu with us. Congratulations on pulling off your American feast.

Happy T-day.

BESS

 
At 23/11/05 2:14 PM, Blogger Kate said...

I just missed you, Bessie! The family took a photo or two of the meal which I'll try to share on here tomorrow. For now, the menu! (Remember, it's just "Thanksgiving-esque".)
-Ham Noodle Casserole
-Green Bean Casserole
-Mashed Potatoes
-Cranberry Sauce
-Dinner Rolls
-Dessert: Banana Bread

 
At 23/11/05 3:41 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm so proud of you, Kate! I know that I would have been daunted to try to prepare such a feast, but you did a great job figuring it all out.
Thanking God for you,
Mom

 
At 24/11/05 2:51 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Happy Thanksgiving, Kate! I was working like you, but I'm impressed to hear that you ventured out into the shopping realm of France (everything looks different and is not marketed the way you think...example: the brown sugar might be by the bananas!)

I think your green bean cas. is the one making my mouth water as I imagine your mom's recipe.

Looking forward to photos.
J

 
At 24/11/05 6:29 AM, Blogger Kate said...

Let me tell ya, I did a lot of searching, standing, staring, and furtive checking of my pocket dictionary in multiple supermarkets in the days leading up to my wannabe Thanksgiving. I would go to the store for an hour and return with maybe one sack of groceries. But what a great way to learn about culture and vocabulary – seriously! Plus now I know the store layouts tons better. :o) Next time will be i n f i n i t e l y easier.

 
At 24/11/05 9:47 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

What kind of tree is that?
--Mom

 
At 25/11/05 2:40 AM, Blogger Kate said...

It's some kind of special mulberry tree. It has leaves too (when it's warmer out) and was cultivated to provide the maximum amount of shade for its size, or something. That was as much as I could understand from their answer when I asked them.

 

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