I guess it's all relative. I would love to have 15 guests! There's only 5 of us tomorrow, but I've made enough for 50. :)

I wish Thanksgiving lasted a little longer. My family comes over an hour or two before dinner and leaves an hour or so after dinner. Though by then I'm so tired I just want to go to bed anyway!

We only have 15 this year, 10 short of the whole family. My ideal is when we are all together, which always occurs Christmas Eve. My SIL is the only one who lends a hand, but she’s one of the 10 not here this year. It’s going to be a long day. So I guess my ideal would be if everyone would help out rather than sitting on their butts. Sorry to rant. Have a great day.

We have a small family. Our son and wife in the Virgin Islands won’t be here, just DH, son steve , his girlfriend and her daughter. I’ve also cooked enough for an army, but it’ll be eaten! Melinda works at Walmart pharmacy, so she has to go to work at 5. It’s fun for a while, because she is always laughing about something, and we love her ! I hate messing with the turkey carcass, picking the meat off, etc., but it has to be done. The reward is pumpkin pie !! It’ll be a good day if my feet hold out!!!

It depends. Some years I enjoy a huge chaotic party with my large extended family. Others I am grateful I have to work that day and can avoid it. This year it is somewhere in the middle. I am off work so I was recruited to cook the whole thing but it will be a small, less fun group of people. Just my parents, and my sister and her family. I am not really looking forward to it but it is what it is. My brother and his family will usually come but his wife cant walk very much due to something with her back so I imagine travel is out of the question for her. He usually carves the turkey. I am already gritting my teeth. If he is not there,my father will want to do it, and I really dont feel like standing around waiting for an hour while he fiddles around, eats pieces of it and gnaws on the bones while he is doing it,while all the rest of the food gets cold. I am hoping maybe my sister will do it,though they are always late. Deep breaths. I keep reminding myself that Christmas is coming. Christmas is coming. Christmas is coming.....

The huge chaotic get together is only fun if you are not the one responsible for cleaning the house, shopping, cooking, washing dishes and cleaning up the aftermath. I loved it when my entire family would gather at my mother’s house for a fabulous meal. However my mom would sit there looking exhausted. I guess my truly ideal Thanksgiving would be having friends and family together for a meal that is catered in a house that had been cleaned by house cleaners. I’d also like to have a house big enough to accommodate all those folks!

My ideal Thanksgiving is just having a great meal with as many friends and family that are available.

Growing up, it was just another family dinner.......just our immediate family. Mom, dad and my two sibs. We had no other family in this country. Now as adults, we do have a large extended family but it is spread out and each little branch has its own familial obligations so it is not possible to have a big extended family T'day.....it is very rare we ever see that even at Christmas!

Today will be a small gathering, just 9 of us. Part family and part local friends that are T'day "orphans". We will gather together later this afternoon to drink wine, chat and enjoy a wonderful, everyone contributing something meal. TV is unlikely to be part of the mix but there will be a jigsaw puzzle if anyone feels inclined. No one needs to travel more than about 10 minutes to get home and not even any ferries involved! It will be a great day!

This one. We are invited to my DD's BF"s parents. Looking forward to meeting the family and being a guest.

I enjoyed making a cheesecake, an apple cake, and a pumpkin pie to bring.

nhbaskets, why don't you say something? I did last Christmas. Told the kids they would be making the seafood crepes and they did.

dedtired- that's funny! I AM the one who hosts, does all the shopping, cooking and all the cleaning, but I truly love entertaining.

The whole reason I'm on gardenweb was because I was designing a kitchen years ago and kept looking for advice.

My kitchen was designed specifically for entertaining. I have 2 full size dishwashers, 3 full size ovens and two full size refrigerators.

I live for days like today!

Appetizers are ready and waiting on the wet bar now.

One of the best ever was when we went to my in-laws for Thanksgiving. My son drove up from DC where he worked, DD took the bus down from college in upstate NY. Why was it so good? Well, first of all, there were a lot of us. Having grown up as a only child, I always hated Thanksgiving-for-Three! I only have two children and my son is rarely able to come for Thanksgiving, so there are usually only 5-6. We had 10 at this dinner.

But the best part was that my MIL had a wonderful cook in the kitchen who had been with the family for more than 40 years. Oh my but Ruth could cook! And I had to do nothing but get dressed appropriately for the meal (a dress, stockings and heels). No preparation, no serving, no clean-up and a delicious home-made meal served in a lovely DR with a pretty table.

My idea of heaven for a holiday!

Back when my favorite aunt was alive, she would come to town and we would go to my cousin's country club for rack of lamb. No cooking, no dishes, and sure beats turkey!