After Joni finished carving the turkeys, she started cleaning up. She grabbed the giblets and the neck and started for the trash can. That’s when we all heard my Mom scream, “don’t throw away the neck!”  We all stopped in our tracks and looked at Mom like she was crazy. Some people use the neck to make gravy with, but not my Mom. She saves it for last and eats it like a cob of corn.

We quickly cleaned up, arranged the tables, grabbed our jars of change, and dealt the first hand of Texas Hold’Em. Hours went by and my pile of coins dwindled quickly. I was told that I needed to work on my poker face. I guess I am not very good at being serious, not even in poker. The big winner of the night was my seventeen year old son. He won eight bucks and felt mighty proud of himself for beating seasoned pros like my good friend Erika Rich and her husband Charles.

The time we have with our family and friends is irreplaceable. I am so thankful for my  two beautiful children, my parents and brother and the best friends a person can have. The memories we make each year are priceless.