Turkey belly...

The long weekend is over and I am the proud survivor of Turkey Days I and II. Ask me to cook or eat another bird and I just may hurl!

It seems that the predominant theme over the past five days has been “food”…and not of the healthy variety either.

Hubby and I kicked off the Thanksgiving weekend in fine voracious style by taking two vacation days to visit Kingston for a much-needed break and rest before the weekend turkey madness. Turns out a little excursion was just what the doctor ordered. The fall colours were out in force, Indian summer was in full swing and we spent the bulk of our time wandering about town, shopping and enjoying the quiet. We also took advantage of the wonderful weather by taking a three-hour lunch cruise of the 1000 Islands; coupled with some very ‘reasonable’ drinks prices, it made for a fun afternoon! Tack on a haunted walk of Kingston and a visit to “Fort Fright” (Old Fort Henry à la Halloween); it was a very relaxing and fun little getaway. Of course, we also decided to jumpstart our digestive systems by consuming as many sugar-laden goodies as we could possibly find, on top of some pretty spectacular breakfasts at the B&B. Even I have to admit that, “we’re on vacation,” is not a justifiable excuse for visiting the local bakery and dessert shop two nights in a row to eat chocolate vanilla-bean cheesecake and drink mocha lattés…Oops!

On Sunday the feast continued with a visit to my brother and sister-in-law’s new home for the newlyweds’ first-ever family Thanksgiving dinner. It was a lovely spread and, no matter how you slice it, a 20 lb bird is quite an accomplishment for any first-timer, let alone a seasoned Thanksgiving turkey veteran!

Monday marked the second and final day of gluttony with Thanksgiving II cooked chez nous. While the day was busy and I spent most of my hours in the kitchen, I can honestly say that this was the easiest that one of my turkey feasts has ever come together. I think hubby and I are finally getting into the turkey groove; it’s truly all about timing. I am proud to say that dinner was on the table at 6:29 p.m. exactly one minute earlier than promised. Tasty, tasty, tasty! My only slight disappointment, is the fact that I made two pumpkin pies believing that my father-in-law was a big fan, only to discover that he hates the stuff (last time I listen to hubby). Sadly my family hates pumpkin pie, although my brother was kind and gulped down a huge slice. I was a little sad because it was the first time I ever made pumpkin pie, not too shabby tasting either but I don’t think I’ll be repeating it in the future. The company did, however, polish off one of the nine damn apple pies that I baked and froze last month…only eight more to go.

Today I was foolish enough to hop on my scale. BAD idea! Looks like I’ll be wearing stretchy pants this week….seriously, who gains THAT much in a week?