I belonged to the faculty women's club when we first moved to Durango when Todd was at the college. One older wife and her husband owned a big mansion on 3rd Avenue (the gorgeous avenue parallel to Main with the big trees down the center). She did a yearly elegant meal for the whole club in her home, using all the downstairs rooms, the drawing room, the parlor, etc. One year she asked me to be the one to help her. While I was assisting her, I was pumping her with questions about her whole hospitality expertise. Hey, why not!
She revealed to me that she always makes Thanksgiving dinner ahead of time, now. She had grown sons and daughters and their children coming from several states, and always felt like she slaved in the kitchen and missed time with them, personally. (Her house was built a hundred years ago, and the kitchen was separate from the area where guests would congregate.) So she switched to doing all of her preps ahead of time, and loved the results. This gets rid of the turkey carcass, all the messy pans, etc. ahead of time—so that on that special day her final detail "load" is simple. She serves the turkey all cut up (on an earlier day she had worn thin disposable surgical/plastic gloves to debone the turkey—no mess on her hands) in a big casserole dish with a bouillon cube dissolved in water poured over it to steam it at the last minute to make it moist, while reheating it in the oven with the cover on, along with everything else she was re-heating. On serving day or party day she walks around calmly, with elegant tables already set (she sets the tables two days ahead of time and drapes a sheet over the tables to keep the dust off), looking gorgeous and exuding gracious remarks to everyone. What a difference in her stress load.
Forward this tip to other mothers, if you'd like.
