Thanksgiving

Today was our first Thanksgiving without Mike, and the first of many holidays to come. It was just a quiet day but then usually our Thanksgivings were. I cooked a big meal and we just hung around the house, like we usually do. Every year, no matter how hard I tried to time things just right, it never failed that all the side dishes would need to be reheated before we actually sat down to eat. Mike would spend an eternity cutting the turkey up and getting every last scrap of meat of the carcass. We would be sitting at the table saying "Are you almost done?" "Come on, we're hungry. Hurry up." "I'm sure that's all of it." And he'd reply usually "Nope. There's a lot more right here. Not wasting a scrap." And he wouldn't either. Then, when we'd finally be able to eat, he would usually go back for thirds or even fourths before the meal was done. I definitely knew he appreciated all the work that went into preparing the dinner. Thanksgiving dinner will never be the same again. Many Thanksgiving dinners were either delayed or pushed way ahead so he could get in a hunt. I do remember one where he got a deer and really changed our dinner plans! We ended up eating without him. There were a few Thanksgivings without him due to his deployments but we knew the following year he'd be there. It's much harder knowing he'll never be with us for another Thanksgiving again.