Turkey Day Favorites

Here at The Sampson House, we LOVE the holidays! With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we wanted to reflect on what our favorite things were about the holiday. Every family has its own traditions and special moments that create memories for a lifetime! Here are some of our team’s favorite things about Thanksgiving.

Val:

I'm pretty traditional when it comes to Thanksgiving. Some of my favorite things are hosting Thanksgiving dinner, coming up with a delicious menu, (although it usually consists of the same traditional favorites like - green bean casserole, au gratin potatoes, ham, stuffing, etc.), and spending the day being extra cozy in pj's, watching movies, online shopping, and lounging. We always kick off the big meal by saying what we're thankful for. Fun fact: Jeff proposed to me 15 years ago at his family's Thanksgiving dinner while going around the table saying what we're thankful for. :) 

Mikena:

My favorite thing about Thanksgiving is for sure the side dishes and how everyone contributes something they personally love and want to share with family and friends. I always look forward to the tried and true recipes like my aunt's cream corn and my mom's sweet potato casserole! However, I also love bringing in new recipes like buttery parker house rolls and cranberry jalapeno salsa to make each year feel refreshed. By the end of the day, my plate (and stomach) are always full.

Jeff

A few things I love about Thanksgiving are the stuffing and pumpkin pie! I also love to eat prime rib instead of turkey, or sometimes both (that’s a tradition from Val that I have adopted). And who doesn’t love the smell of Fall.

Reva:

My favorite Thanksgiving traditions are Spending time with my family, watching football, homemade stuffing, and breaking into our Costco wine advent calendar early to sample all the different wines.

Jaci:

My favorite Thanksgiving traditions include big family meals and our annual popcorn prayer about what we’re thankful for this year. My family is a big shopping family, so on Thanksgiving Day, we have dinner and drinks over planning our Black Friday stops! Some of my best memories are spending time with my family while having a couple of glasses of wine and delicious appetizers and laughing together going through all of the Black Friday ads. 

I also love ALL the scents that are associated with Thanksgiving and the fall season. I love cozying up in comfy clothes and smelling the freshly baked goodies in the kitchen.

Kerry:

My Thanksgiving Favorites are spending time with family and definitely the leftovers! :) I also love making Pomander Balls, which are cloved oranges. And then in a week or two we'll slice, bake and make tree ornaments out of them. The baking of the cloved oranges makes the house smell soooo good!

Huong:

Fall is my most favorite season of the year. And as Thanksgiving happens in the transition between fall and the first snow, I just love the holiday itself a lot. The warming smell of pumpkin candles or the charcoal spicy woody from the fireplace always makes me feel so homey and relaxing. I even bought myself a perfume named "By the Fireplace" by Replica, just so I can wear it during this season. 

I love Thanksgiving for the meaning of it. It's a special holiday that I receive and give note cards saying how thankful I am. As I don't have my family here with me, I tend to spend Thanksgiving with my friends. We do the Friendsgiving celebration instead. This year, I'm going to do a potluck with groups of my friends. We're gonna cook, eat, do karaoke, and wine. 

We hope you all have a great Thanksgiving celebrating your own family traditions and enjoying time with those you love! And take time to reflect on the things that you are truly thankful for this season.