Thanksgiving has always been a big part of my life. Every year when I was a kid, my parents and I would fly up to Goose Creek, South Carolina, to go see my paternal grandparents. Staying at Grandma and Grandpa's was always fun. Their house always smelled nice and I got to sleep on the comfy pull out couch on the lanai. The pillow that was always sitting on the couch had a little squirrel on it and it said: "My family tree is full of nuts!" She's had that pillow for at least 20 years. They always had old music on in their little house and every day I'd go to the pond on the golf course behind their house and watch the alligator sunbathe. I named it Ally. My whole family was terrified I was going to get eaten.

Almost every year, my Dad's stepbrother, wife, and his four kids would come up for Thanksgiving too. His youngest was 10 years older than me, but we had fun anyway. Grandma has always been the Thanksgiving champion. She makes almost every single thing we eat. Her annual staples are Latvian pīrāgis, mashed sweet potatoes, homemade cranberry sauce, and store-bought pumpkin pie with fresh, homemade whipped cream. I can't remember a Thanksgiving that we haven't had those four things. The one year my Grandma didn't make whipped cream, my dad and I rioted. We drove to the nearest open store in the middle of dinner just to get a tub of CoolWhip. She learned her lesson after that.

Besides the incredible food, the thing I always remember about Thanksgiving as a kid was the great family time and even better football. My family LOVES professional football, and no matter who's playing, we're always watching the Thanksgiving game. As I've gotten older, no matter what changes, Thanksgiving in my family stays the same. We're always with Grandma, we always have pīrāgis, and we always watch football. And on top of that, we always love spending time together.