Employee Recommendations

Gather 'Round for a Story Worth Sharing

Annie P. Shares:

My favorite Thanksgiving tradition is "Soup Day." On the first Saturday of November, my mom, her best friend, my best friend, and I [aka: JAMS : Jenna, Annie, Marta, and Sandi] get together to stock our freezers for the winter. Over the years, this has blossomed into a cherished tradition filled with connection, incredible food, and endless laughter.

How does it work? We each make a quadruple batch of soup, though in my case, I prefer making four separate batches, letting them cool, and freezing them individually so they're easier to transport! At the end of the day, we each go home with four full batches of everyone else's soups, frozen and ready for the cold months ahead.

On top of the cooking, we always tackle a craft together. Over the years, we have done many, but a few of my favorites are origami folding, apron decorating, macramé tying, and creating faux planter pots. We snack, sip, and create, taking a well-deserved afternoon to step out of our busy worlds, catch up, share stories, and laugh until it hurts. What started as something simple has grown into an event I look forward to all year long.

This year marks our 14th annual Soup Day, and the featured menu is mouthwatering:

• Tomato Basil

• Italian Sausage and Kale

• Shredded Chicken Poblano and Black Bean

• Summer Corn and Zucchini Chowder

What started as a simple idea to stock our freezers has quietly become my favorite day of the year, proof that sometimes the best traditions are the ones you accidentally create just by wanting to spend time with the people you love.

Kris shares:

Thanksgiving tradition with my in-laws always includes "meatball night". Wednesday evening, everyone gathers to make homemade meatballs and pickle roll-ups in preparation for Thanksgiving pre-meal snacking. Everyone has a job, and as the kids grew up, they were promoted from pickle roll-ups to meatball rolling (a big deal!). Always a great time leading up to Turkey Day.

Brianna Shares:

It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without green bean casserole!

My ideal November day would be waking up after it has rained the night before and seeing all the leaves that fell during the storm. Bundling up in a comfy sweater and going out for coffee. If the weather is good, I'd open a few windows and let the last bit of fresh air in before the temperatures outside start dropping for the winter. Starting some soup on the stove for dinner, then snuggle up with a good book or movie and enjoy some family time.

Gather ’Round for a Good Laugh

Scott Shares:

One Thanksgiving when I was probably around 12 or 13, my grandparents were visiting.  My Mom and Dad were busy in the kitchen with final prep work on the turkey and side dishes before setting the table. It was always a whirlwind. My Dad always made the gravy, and he heated the turkey drippings and started mixing the flour to start thickening the gravy.  It was clear my Dad was getting frustrated as he kept saying, “It’s not thickening”.  While working on other prep, my Mom would comment, “Add more flour." It got to the point my Dad was just taking the flour container in and just dumping flour into the gravy.  The gravy never got thick enough, but he served it anyway when my Mom said everything was ready. 

As usual, I smothered my turkey and mashed potatoes in the gravy, and I commented: “Gee, this gravy IS really watery”.  I took my first bite and then said: “Huh. This gravy is actually really sweet."  My Mom rolled her eyes, looked at my Dad, and asked, “So what container did you get the flour from?”  He pointed to one on the kitchen counter, and my Mom exclaimed, “YOU USED THE POWDERED SUGAR, NOT THE FLOUR!!" Fortunately my Mom had two packets of the powdered turkey gravy in the cupboard, so Thanksgiving was saved. Interestingly, my Grandpa liked the “sugar gravy” so much he had seconds!!  Needless to say, for several years after that, we always made sure Dad was using flour when making the gravy! 

Emilie Shares:

I baked with my mom for a big family Thanksgiving together. My family was in charge of pies: apple and Pumpkin. I was around 6 or 7 and helping Mom. I was working on my reading and math skills in school. My mom thought it would be a good idea to have me read the recipe and measure the ingredients. 

I’m the oldest of three; my brother was 5 and my sister 2 at the time. They are in the house playing close by, so naturally I am distracted. I want to play Hot Wheels and Barbies too. Eventually we got the pies prepared. The next day we are all together at my grandma’s for pies. My Gramps really liked pumpkin pie, so he had the first slice. “Something's off,” he said to my mom. My mom tried a bite. “Tastes flat; I guess we forgot to put the sugar in!” I don’t really like pumpkin pie, especially when apple is available, but my mom told me I had to try it too. I remember Gramps saying that it was ok and dumped spoonfuls of sugar on the pie and still ate it! We moved to Wisconsin from New Hampshire a few years later. I’m Thankful for the good memories I have with my grandparents.

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