Thanksgiving done differently

Happy Monday-after-Thanksgiving to all!

I hope that if you had to travel home from visiting with family and friends over the long holiday weekend that you made it home in one piece!  I didn't travel over the weekend, but am leaving on a business trip later this morning, so wish me luck!

My wife and I had an interesting Thanksgiving this year.  Our son and his family traveled out of state to spend time with our daughter-in-law's family.  We tentatively planned to visit with my mother-in-law on Thanksgiving but for a variety of reasons did not travel to see her.  So, for the first time in many years, it was just my wife and me for the holiday.

We inquired of one restaurant that had endlessly promoted their Thanksgiving dinner and found that seating was very limited.  So we resigned ourselves to visiting another restaurant that was open for their regular hours and serving a meal especially for the holiday.  Not a bad option, but not quite the special occasion we would have preferred.

Thanksgiving Day in central Kentucky was sunny and somewhat mild, so I decided to mow our lawn one last time, mostly to pick up the leaves deposited by two trees in our neighbor's yard (we no longer have any trees, so it's a little annoying that the house next door, a rental, is currently vacant and therefore the yard untended).  When I came into the house after completing the job, my wife asked me what I thought about going to Shakertown, more formally known as Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill.  I responded that it would be very nice to go, but were they even open?

A phone call and we learned that, indeed, they were open and serving a preset menu of turkey and ham and all of the trimmings, so we made a reservation and off we went later that afternoon!

I should explain that Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill was a colony of Shakers in the 1800's.  The Shakers were strictly religious and believed that men and women should not live together, but they were very skilled artisans, producing well-crafted wooden furniture and other household items.  They also were known for their farming abilities, as they grew large crops to make their settlements self-sufficient.

I went there once as a child on a school field trip, which was interesting but difficult to understand.  Upon meeting my wife I discovered what a special place it can be for a family meal built around a special occasion and it's still a favorite in our family.

Anyway, we made the forty-minute drive there about an hour prior to our dinner reservation, and walked around the historic and well-manicured grounds.  It was already decorated for Christmas and I took a few photos:




Dinner was as good as we expected, featuring turkey with gravy and dressing, country ham, mashed potatoes and a host of other side dishes.  Plus a dessert of your choice, which meant the Shaker lemon pie for me!

Perhaps the best part was the unexpected nature of our visit to Shaker Village, as we had not planned that until a few hours before actually visiting.  So my wife and I were very thankful for a special way to celebrate our gratitude for all of the blessings that life has bestowed upon us.

Now, back to work!


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