Favorite holiday traditions

[birddog 68]

As others noted tradition's usually fade away with time.
My fondest thanksgiving tradition was heading to northern Pennsylvania for the buck season opener on the following Monday. My uncle had a large camp and there were many people. Rifles were sighted in and then lots of food! He's passed and the camp sold.
Years later I would always take my dog and go pheasant hunting. Just me and my BFF wondering around hunting new ground. Unfortunately my dog was forced into a early retirement.
Nowadays it's just me the wife and my mother eating a big turkey dinner and being thankful for everything that we have.
My thanks to LRH, I've met some wonderful people here and many friends.
Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[Crockett12]

I'm now 78 years old but when I was younger, I moved far away from my family. One of our family traditions had been for everyone to have Thanksgiving dinner at grandma's house and catch up on everyone's lives! It was always an enjoyable time with a warm and welcoming family! They were all in the east but I'd always dreamed of living & hunting in the wide open spaces of the west -- so when I had the opportunity in my mid 20's, I moved west - into the far west. The one holiday that was always the most difficult for me was always Thanksgiving. I did make friends who occasionally included me into their Thanksgiving dinners -- but it was never quite the same -- even though it certainly helped and I'll always be thankful for them including me! I eventually married a woman many years later with a family of her own and now I'm included in their own warm and welcoming family! I'll never forget those alone times during Thanksgiving which is why I am so thankful for my adopted family!

 

[eastbank]

growing up on our farm we had a pretty large get togather with the relitives and a few of us would hunt rabbits in the morning and be back for a large dinner(three turkeys) with all the trimmings, this went on for over 25 years. but as the older one,s died it slowed down and with the passing of my mother in 2003 and dad in 2007 it all but died out. now at 81 i enjoy going to my oldest daughters home and having only direct familey members there for the thanksgiving dinner. i do miss the old days very much.

 

[Ace Quackhunter]

Getting up at 4:00 a.m. to check on the turkey that I started smoking the evening before. Depending on the weather would go hunt deer for a few hours that morning and check on the turkey when I return. When crew starts to show up around noon or later, we gather Infront of the big screen for some football. Later when the wife makes her announcement, we gather at the table to bow our heads and give thanks. So, after eating way too much I will lay in the floor with a pillow under my head and my eyes closed as I watch football.

Ace

 

[TRexF16]

Not much tradition at our place, but I'll be leaving on Thanksgiving day for Coues whitetail hunting in south AZ. I'd like to make THAT a tradition but you gotta get drawn for that to happen!

Rex

 

[Hard Head]

When I was a kid we had the Holidays at my grandparents,I called them Ma and Dad,evryone of the aunts and uncles would come over wit card tables and lots of food,we would watch foot ball while the women prepared the food all the furniture would be moved aside and card tables put up along with the chairs,the adult men would smoke and have a drink and the kids would lay on the floor and listen and watch foot ball, I can still hear my grandpa say those teems in the mid west have those big farm boys on the line strong as oxes!! That was 70 years ago, they are all gone now even a lot of my cousins. My moms 97.lives at home and still has her brain and drives to the store every day,complains that she has no friends....then says they are all dead. Times change ,my daughter lives in Arizona,my son lives in Billings Montana, we live in Wisconsin and my Mom lives in Anacortes, Washington where I grew up to hunting Elk in the Oak Creek game range on the Eastern side of the Cascades near Yaki ma,my how times have changed. We celebrate another year,me going to the range and still trying for that 5 shot 1 hole group!! I love life,enjoy people and wish more would, I wish you all a Very Happy and Healthy Holiday Season,Grab your loved ones HUG em and tell them so, Pete

 

[Terry Lightle]

Quail hunting when I was a kid,now deer hunting.Killed 2 does yesterday morning in less than 5 minutes

 

[Ricky C]

Hey, it's family, friends and food for us. Had Thanksgiving with my brother and his family last Sunday. Tomorrow Thanksgiving with my wife's family. We've only carried on a couple things from when my parents and grandparents were alive. Home made chocolate pie with grandma's/mom's recipe and fruit salad with mom's recipe. I cook the turkeys, always one oven cooked and fried for many years, now one is smoked. Being in the Army and supporting the Army as a deployable civilian for 39 years, I truly love the time spent with family. God bless us all
Take Care