The Modern Femme Entertains...preparing for the feast

Prepare y'all.  The day of giving thanks is nigh. 

I was up with Bebe at 4am this morning, and my mind started frantically scrolling through all the things that I have left to do before Thursday.  My out of town relatives arrive Tuesday night, and the house is still a mess; Christmas presents that have to be sent back with the relatives are still unboxed, un-tissued, and unwrapped; I totally didn't get around to making the creamed onions and cheddar crackers this crazed, hectic weekend (full disclosure, I'm just keeping it real); all, and I mean ALL of my orange Thanksgiving napkins are crinkled up like fans and waiting for me to iron them; little tumbleweeds of dog and cat hair greet me at every turn; I have to still make butternut squash and plum purees for Bebe before the ingredients spoil; and Mr. MF has to move the Christmas decorations that are blocking our basement fridge, cause I got nowhere for the turkey to go but there.

And this is after a jam-packed weekend that left everyone exhausted.  I've never been so glad to escape to the office on a Monday.  Seriously.

So, when faced with this kind of a to-do list, my mind does two things.  1: Strategically plans for what must be done and what can be discarded.  2: Takes a vacation from reality. 

Let's address #1 first. In the next three nights (and morning of T-G), this is what I'm going to do:

1. Monday night:  Make creamed onions and freeze them.  Make butternut squash for Bebe. Wrap gifts.
2. Tuesday night:  Make cheddar cheese cracker dough.  Clean bathroom.  Gather serving pieces for Thanksgiving meal.  Brine turkey. Relatives arrive - order take-out Thai for dinner.
3. Wednesday afternoon/night:  Clean kitchen. Vacuum and dust.  Iron napkins. Set table.  Run dishwasher. Take turkey out of brine and leave in fridge to dry overnight. Make pumpkin cheesecake. Put frozen creamed onions in fridge to defrost. Kick everyone out of the house and hide in a corner with a bottle of wine.
4. Thanksgiving pre 12:30:  Bake cheddar cheese crackers.  Put turkey into oven.  Make stuffing.  Make ginger punch. Sample ginger punch.  Re-heat creamed onions.
5. Thanksgiving post 12:30:  Drink, eat and be merry! What's done is done!

And item #2.  In the next three nights, this is where I'm going to go, mentally, when it all gets to be too much:

Even though you and I both know I'll be too dang tired to do something as energy-consuming as take a bubble bath. 

Onwards into the festive fray my dears.

xoxo,
MF