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| I was too busy to take any pictures until afterward. This was the only thing left before I remembered. |
Some of you have asked how the big Thanksgiving dinner for 30 people (and two babies) went. In a word, WELL. We had a good plan for both before and during that minimized the hitches.
Here are some of the details. These are probably more than you want to know. It's more of a brain dump for my benefit.
Parking: We reserved a space up front for my FIL and told others where to park to minimize the effect on neighbors. We also contacted the neighbors to let them know that several cars would be at our house. Luckily, they were all going somewhere else for the day.
Coats: We cleared out two closets for them and stocked them with ample hangers. This kept the guest room bed free for diaper changing, etc.
Tables and Chairs: Among banquet tables and table tops fashioned by Ward, we had four tables that comfortably sat 30 people. We had two upstairs and two in the basement. Miss Landers loaned us enough white tablecloths for them all, and Aunt Martha helped by lending us things to help decorate them. We borrowed chairs from 4 different people to get enough for everyone. We had planned where a few extra people would go if they showed up, but we didn't need to use the plan.
Name Tags: Since this was a diverse group of people, several of whom had never met, I printed up nametags ahead of time. In the beginning, I was able to introduce everyone and explain the relationships, but as time went on, I was too busy for that.
Food and Drink Staging: We put all the drinks on our porch. Luckily, the temps were in the 50s, so some people stayed outside on the porch or explored the yard for a while. Afterward, we made coffee. However, we forgot to offer the tea we had prepared for. I don't think anyone missed it.
Ward fashioned a tabletop for the washer and dryer, where we put all the desserts. The food was served buffet-style from the kitchen counters. I had wrapped silverware ahead of time that was on the tables. We left the kitchen table clear for a drop spot, which was handy. We had tags available for people to label their dishes since the crowd had some dietary restrictions.
Food: Ward smoked two turkeys the day before and sliced and picked the meat. We reheated them in the oven the next day. This resulted in some tasty turkeys, but I underestimated the amount of time it took to reheat them. Dinner was about 1/2 hour later than intended, but that wasn't a problem. However, the minimal appetizers that we put out were almost gone. I had made 15 lbs of make-ahead mashed potatoes that I put in two crock pots. The rest of the guests brought dishes. If anyone asked (and almost everyone did), I suggested what they could bring to round out the meal. It was a typical Thanksgiving with plenty of food.
The craziest part of the day was trying to get everything hot when it was time to eat. Luckily, we have two ovens that we had going with reheating stuffing, baking rolls, etc. Aunt Martha was a big help as she ran the oven in the basement while I ran the one upstairs. We also had two warming trays from Aunt Martha. And luckily, we have two fridges to keep things cold that needed to be. I think most of the food was served at the desired temperature.
People continued to mingle over dessert, and a few set up in the living room with guitars and mandolins to play some music.
Overall, I say it went well. We had many comments about the good time people had and what a good party it was. We didn't think of it as a party, but I guess it was. :)
The next day, I was tired but had to go to work. Ward started the clean-up, and we finished yesterday (Monday).
Would I do it again? Maybe, but it was a lot of work. However, as usually happens, it forced us to clean up some things we had been putting off - especially since people were all over the house. We couldn't just shut off most of the rooms or the garage. So now the house is in order, and we're enjoying the clean-up we did beforehand.
Now, onto Christmas preparations.
Until next time...
