It’s a Thornton Thanksgiving from Chicago!

Today's post is a guest post by Kendra Thornton about Thanksgiving Traditions:

With the leaves nearly fallen and a cold, crispy snap in the air, thoughts turn now to family and making plans for the holidays and all the cheer this season can bring. Thanksgiving is certainly one of my most precious times of the year because of the strong meaning it holds in my heart: the act of giving and gratitude. This year, at the Thornton household, all our relatives will be visiting Chicago, and I can barely wait.

My visits to Pinterest have borne lovely fruit in the way of finding appealing dessert ideas and appetizers that my children can help make in the soon-to-be very busy holiday kitchen. As they grow older, their desire to help mom in the kitchen seems to also grow. It’s best, though, to keep the food designs simple. Complexity in food preparation tends to create bigger messes and also consumes more time. Fun and fast, I discovered, is the best way to prepare food for this special day.

The traditional Thanksgiving dinner still beats all other alternatives; so traditional it shall be again this year. The staple foods of this holiday will occupy their usual places of honor at the table. That will mean turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and my all-time favorite - potatoes and gravy. My traveling experiences will play a role this year in creating different dishes, too. An article on Gogobot’s blog highlighted what specific luxury hotels will prepare for guests this Thanksgiving season.

I said, why not? I gathered inspiration from these sophisticated but homey dishes and decided to give them my personal twist and flare, including them as special fare in my kitchen. Yes, my fingers are crossed with hope that my special guests will enjoy every bite. One dish destined for the table will be a velvet pumpkin soup with lobster accents from the expert chefs at the Waldorf Astoria in Orlando. This exquisite soup, offered as a pre-dinner treat, will certainly warm the heart.

One of the traditions at the Thornton household is to go around the table and ask each person to give voice to at least one aspect of life they are grateful for. That great humanitarian Albert Schweitzer touched on gratitude in his life when he penned these words: “At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” Perhaps this tradition of mine can become one of your traditions this Thanksgiving. May wonderful memories and delicious food grant you a safe and happy holiday! What will you be serving this year!?

Thanks Kendra for stopping by and sharing your Thanksgiving traditions with us!