On the day before Thanksgiving I'm always drawn to thinking about past family gatherings. Some from my childhood, some from my adult life, but no matter the time those memories always make me smile.

I think about driving to my Grandparents home outside Omaha, and being SO excited to see what Grandma was making in the kitchen. And the memory of opening the door for the first time, and those smells...

I recall the times living on campus at UCSD, just waiting to finish my last class and tests so I could head back home to see my Mom. And experience those exact smells walking into her house as I did as a child years earlier walking into Grandma's.

My love of family, and food, is a big part of the holidays. So are sports. The fact that there are always football games on Thanksgiving is another fond memory of mine. I recall the first time my Mom hosted turkey day at our new house, with white carpet (who has that anymore?), and my Uncle Bill got so excited about a play that he knocked into a table spilling red wine all over the white carpet...and not caring a bit which caused a family riff for years. But I think that was caused by the same dear Uncle actually stabbing my older brother in the hand, drawing blood, about an hour later because he was reaching across the table to get Grandma's butter pickles during dinner. Good times and good memories indeed.

However, this Thanksgiving I'm staying home. Doing some cooking, baking, watching sports and creating new smells and new memories of my own...I wonder if my cat will remember them in the years to come?