Family Thanksgiving Dinner Nightmares

You'll shoot your eye out!

Okay, so i have one very interesting aunt ... there was the one year we arrived to a family gathering to this aunt screaming at the aunt hosting Thanksgiving and storming out.

A few years later the same aunt was apparently mad at everyone in the family  and still showed up, sat off to the side reading a book, meaningfully ignoring everyone.  She got up when dinner was served - served herself, ate still reading and not speaking to anyone and left after.  Even better was she didn't bring a thing to contribute to dinner and most certainly didn't thank anyone when she left. 

Did I mention that she's interesting? She actually has mellowed a bit in the last few years but, wow, i was a kid and I knew her behaviour was out of line. 

Couldn't be more timely of a thread.

Having 26 people to the house and my sister in law calls at 10 am this morning that her in laws have no place to go. Sure, more the merrier. Well, 2 more people turns into 6 more people with cousins, aunts, blah, blah, etc.  Love having a chaotic house, but just not sure that we will have enough food for 32 people.  I do all the cooking by scratch and have it down to science (gantt charts, per person consumption etc.).  These extra folks mean well and are nice enough - but think the Simpsons - come early, leave late and bring nothing to help the cause.

Have huge amounts of extra high alcohol beer to get me through this day - can you say Belgian quadruple?

No cam, but maybe I'll tweet

I think it's going to be OK. My mom apparently knows, she was laughing when she called yesterday to talk about dinner. Overall they get along OK, so as long as my dad doesn't say something stupid it should all work out.

I'm getting on the trainer to burn some calories and relieve stress. Hope everyone else has an enjoyable Turkey Day (except the turkeys).

My side of the family has issues.  parents divorced over 15 years ago, but still haven't been in the same room with one another since, and dad still refers to mom as that b---- wh---- mother of yours.  dad recently is housed in the pokey for 1d assault with firearm (big shocker, noone saw this one coming.)  my brother is bi-polar, and difficult to form a relationship with as he is in and out of reality.

My wife and children spend thanksgivings at my in-laws house.  It's much more peaceful that way.  

On a twisted note, it would kind of be fun to get my whole familly in a room around a turkey dinner and sit back and watch it all go down.

After reading this thread, I would like to gleefully mention that we don't do Thanksgiving or Christmas, and that my family, including in-laws, live 17 hours flight away.

And sometimes that is too damn close.....

I learned a long time ago what I need to do to avoid drama at my inlaws:

Stay out of the kitchen, don't help unless a request is made.

Wash the dishes, don't ask where anything goes, just wash the dishes.

Never try to tell the boss she does not remember something correctly. Big mistake, Huge mistake. Just nod my head, smile, accept the blame and move on.

A close call today over craft time but I referred to my list - nod, smile, move on.

Are you my sister-in-law??  We seem to have the same in-laws!

Sigh . . . I too struggle with my sister in law.  To add to your rules, I come late and leave early and while I'm at their house I go into the backyard and clean up after the dog.  I'll probably get in trouble for this last if my SIL finds out; its that kind of relationship . . . more sighs.

This year I'm grateful for being woken up at 4:30 am by Shuria prayers over the loudspeaker.  No Thanksgiving celebrated in Bahrian but there is one American in residence giving thanks for being here.

Worst Thanksgiving Ever:A long time ago but still memorable......

I was a teenager and belonged to a youth running club in a nearby city that put on a local turkey day race as a fundraiser for our club's travel expenses. So that morning, as usual, I stood around in freezing damp cold for a few hours doing last-minute registration. Got so cold I ended up registering myself and running. With a mile to go, I had to stop because a train was crossing the tracks. Several of the top women, including a few girls in my age group, and this friend of my dad's I had an onging rivalry with all caught up with me and it became a 1-mile sprint. I can't remember the final result but I did win my age group......

That was as good as it got. On the way home, my dad wanted to stop for brunch at a chain restaurant that shall go unnamed. They had a Thanksgiving special (turkey, etc.) and my parents ordered it. I was pissed because I was cooking Thanksgiving dinner as a home ec class project. Thought they were dissing my cooking in advance or something. I got breakfast instead, we went home, and I got the turkey started. A few hours later, started on the trimmings. With about an hour to go, both parents became violently ill with food poisoning and spent the rest of that night and much of the next day in bed and vomiting with me (only child) being the nurse. The turkey was already past the point of no return so I ended up having turkey solo with nothing else for dinner. We finally had the actual dinner two days later.

We survived. Only got weird once, when they started talking about dating. Not each other, though. That was a bit uncomfortable, at least for my sister and I.

Could have been worse, went to pick up my kids at her parents and my ex and her mom were in a full-blown fight. Not sure the kids have ever been happier to see me.

My in-laws used to fly in every Thanksgiving until a couple of years ago when my wife and father-in-law has a big blow up.  He was so pissed off he secluded himself in his room, never coming out even to eat, until the next day for a very uncomfortable drive to the airport (the visit was shortened a few days).

He doesn't visit anymore.  My mother-in-law visits solo on occasion which is a lot more pleasant!

Brian

My nightmare Thanksgiving was more of a dream.  I was in 1st year college and I invited three Danish and one Swiss female classmates to have Thanksgiving dinner with me.  I was as alone as they were in Toronto, Ontario as my family were all on the west coast.

I'd never made a turkey before nor pumpkin pie but I cooked the turkey, stuffing, potatoes etc and baked two pies (had to call my ex-wife for instructions) and I bought a couple bottles of wine.

The ladies had a great time and it was a really nice evening.  The dinner was great and they really loved my pies.

Don't really have any from personal experience... Unless you count the ex-nieces and nephews who all ate too many olives and puked. All over the house.

But some one I work with was talking about some one in his family that comes to EVERY Thanksgiving dinner bringing only one thing -- Tupperware. Empty. Tupperware. So he can take home left-overs.