Gina B.: My daughter broke her elbow the day before Thanksgiving, and we were in the hospital most of the night. We had offered to bring two turkeys to someone’s house for Thanksgiving Dinner, so when we got home from the hospital, completely exhausted, we had to start cooking. Once the turkeys were cooked, I put them on the back porch to cool, and was sitting with my daughter looking out the back door only to see Gertie, our yellow lab, running all over the yard with one of the turkeys in her mouth, shaking her head back and forth with it. Horrified, we quickly ran outside and discovered that the other turkey had a big bite in it. The decision…do we cut the turkey up before we leave for our dinner or just go without?! We did end up cutting it up (the one on the porch) and displayed it beautifully on a tray. Don’t think people were too happy to have it cut up but hey!
Paul S.: We had our family over for a holiday dinner a few years ago, and one of the guests brought a one-pound box of fancy Italian cookies from Angela Mia Bakery. We put the box on the kitchen counter, and after dinner, when we were going to serve dessert, the box was missing. We looked everywhere for it. Eventually, we located it: it was behind the living room couch, completely empty, with a big hole in it. The guilty party? Our chocolate lab, Ed, who had at some point during our dinner jumped up to the kitchen counter, stole the box and gobbled all the cookies. He definitely had a good dessert!
Kristen D.: I’ll never forget the Christmas morning my pajamas caught on fire. My in-laws had stayed over the night before and I made homemade cinnamon buns, coffee and mimosas. I laid it out on a table and lit a few candles on that dark early morning and one of my sleeves caught on fire. I was able to extinguish it fairly quickly but it was pretty scary. It wasn’t the calm, festive atmosphere I was going for.
As an inexperienced cook, it was my first time hosting Thanksgiving for both my family and my in-laws. My table was beautifully set with linens, plates, and flowers. I managed (barely) to handle the timing of the various dishes. My mother-in-law helped make the gravy and spilled some on my kitchen floor. I slipped in the gravy and fell flat on my back. I looked up to see 10 concerned faces looking down on me in my crowded kitchen. I was fine, and we called everyone to the table. Once seated, I realized I hadn’t set the silverware! I was overwhelmed. I don’t host Thanksgiving anymore. I prefer to host Easter brunch instead!
Andy B.: One of the most embarrassing moments (and there are many) occurred one Christmas when Katie, our eldest daughter, got a gecko as a pet. The entire family was over — aunts, uncles, cousins, grandmas. We had just finished dinner and were sitting in the living room when I heard an “Uh-oh!” from the other room. I went into the girls’ room to see what had happened and there were 75 crickets (the gecko’s food) jumping around on the floor… Katie had been looking at the cricket container and put it down when the dog knocked it over, freeing all of the crickets! Uncle Chris yelled, “Let the gecko go — he’ll eat them!” Even grandma was on the floor rounding these things up.
Michelle R.: My very proper Aunt who has perfect etiquette came to Thanksgiving dinner at our home when I was a teenager. She did not hear my mom yell, “Stop, wait!” Turkey grease had just spilled all over the floor after the aluminum pan folded from the weight of the turkey. The floor was like a sheet of ice and we were still in the midst of cleaning it. Needless to say her feet went one way and her body went the other. “Slap!” is all we heard followed by my mother screaming. My sister and I ran out of the room holding in our laughter, tears pouring down our faces and my mother glaring at us. It is awful that we laughed I know but she just was unbearable when we were kids. Glad she did not get really hurt so we can still laugh about it today.
Beth O.: The first time I ever cooked Thanksgiving dinner (as a newlywed) I didn’t know there was anything inside the turkey that needed to be removed so I cooked it with the plastic bags (neck, giblets, etc) still there.
Related: That’s Entertainment! Host like a pro this holiday season, with tips from the experts
