Grandma & Poppy
I have a few favorite holiday memories, but the one that sticks in my head is the first time my husband (boyfriend at the time) came to my Big Fat Italian Holiday Dinner. We were late because we had to go to his family first. I was very nervous, my husband had met each of my family members here and there but he had never experienced them all together! As we walked in the front door, everyone yells, “Rachel’s here with her Richie!” Mind you, we did not live in a mansion and I’m sure the people next door also knew I arrived. My aunt and my grandmother must have got into an argument because my grandmother whacked my aunt over the head with her purse, causing my aunt to yell out. My grandma carried everything including the kitchen sink in that purse so it had to hurt.

I have my husband sit in his assigned seat and I head to kitchen to help plate the food and bring it to the table. We were two women short because grandma was in the other room pissed and my mom was in there talking her down so she’d come out and join us for dinner. Besides, grandma makes the gravy so we needed her! My uncle informs my husband he has him covered and there’s a case of beer for just him, he’s going to need it. NICE!! We finally sit and start eating, enjoying the delicious food and someone forgot about the bread which was now on fire in the oven, with smoke filling the kitchen and now coming into the dining room. Screaming time!! Everyone screams “fire”. All 20 of them dart to the kitchen and me, my pop, and my cousin Mike stay at the table and keep eating. My husband asks if we should go help? I tell him to enjoy the peace, eat his food (smokey or not) because they will be back.

We sit for the second time after airing out the house and within 5 minutes, we were laughing so hard our stomachs hurt. The new bread was being passed (tossed) across the table, the wine (and beer) was poured and it was a Thanksgiving I’ll never forget. Many of those people aren’t with us today so it’s a Thanksgiving I’ll always treasure!

The best part was we had our video camera running. I haven’t been able to watch that video for a long time because it was on VHS. I sent it to Yes Video to have it transferred and it will be the perfect after dinner movie this Thanksgiving!

Yes Video preserves all your reels, slides, photos, VHS, 8mm, and any other video you have by transferring it onto a DVD or they can create a hi-definition Blu-ray movie!

You can now take those tapes and photos and make them into gifts for your whole family! It gets better: