Glowing Pinecone Bouquet

Putting on a traditional Thanksgiving spread in the Belgian countryside when we were kids was no small feat and Mother called on special powers to do so…

Precious Plates

Gleaming Bowls

In our eyes, she was part magician (having to conjure up a turkey in a country where they ran wild, Butterball being something you picked up at the local farm to spread on homemade bread!) and part Midas, as our table usually glowed with golden touches like gilded branches, acorns, fruit and nuts.

Golden Pinecones

Gilded Leaves

Some of our fondest memories are of our mother in the kitchen directing our very English cook in the baking of pumpkin pies and the making of stuffing – not quite the standing rib roast and Yorkshire pudding Mrs. Jansen was famous for!

Fabulous Figs

These days, we’re in charge of making our own “merci donant” (that’s Thanksgiving in French!) and we hope our children’s memories are as magical and golden as ours…  How do you make your Thanksgiving special?

Photos via Martha Stewart, Michael C. Fina, Friend & Company, Chicago Home + Garden, Crate & Barrel and Williams Sonoma