Thanksgiving with My family

Thanksgiving means a lot to me and my family because we gather together to spend time, and we get to say what we are thankful for. Every year we cook a turkey and mashed potatoes, corn, rolls, stuffing, and desserts. My favorite thing to make on this holiday is pies.

I love cooking with my family because we get to help each other, and I learn new things from them. My mom was the one to teach me to cook, so every time we are in the kitchen cooking, she teaches me new things and new seasonings to use.

On Thanksgiving, the job that my big sister and I have to do is to set the table; it is one of my favorite things to do. It allows me and my sister to try to work together to get something done.

Since my immediate family lives in Texas and most of my extended family lives in Arizona, not many of us are together at Thanksgiving, just my mom and dad, my sister, and my grandparents.

It is not many, but we make it work. We will call some of our family members and tell them Happy Thanksgiving and how much we love them. One of the things I like to do is visit my dad's grandparents’ house because I get to see some of my family and spend time outside. Sometimes we also go to the park and play.

I don't get to see these grandparents much and they are getting older. My grandma Catherine has dementia, so sometimes when we visit, she doesn't' know who we are all the time. And when that happens, we take out some pictures and we just sit and talk with her for a while.

Back at my family's house, we do Thanksgiving lunch, and after that is when we sit down eat a lot of pies, cookies and other desserts. I love to see how I did with my baking to see what I can do to improve.

And after we are all stuffed and our bellies are settled, my grandma, my sister, and I go for a walk.

And we just walk, but sometimes in the past, we would go bike riding, but to me, I like walking better.

This Thanksgiving will be different because, since last Thanksgiving, my sister now lives with her boyfriend, and this year we are adding to the table.

And my mom and her mom, my grandma, are cooking a lot more food. It is funny to watch them in the kitchen because my mom and grandma like to see who cooks a recipe the best. Then, they ask everyone who did the best job of cooking; I just say both, not wishing to hurt anyone's feelings.

When it comes to the end of the holiday, we say our goodbyes and wish everyone well, always with some food to take home because there is always so much left.

Thanksgiving is a special time to spend with my family and catch up with them and fill our bellies.

What I am most grateful for is my family and how they have always been there for me.