Tails from Thanksgiving
- sarahwilk24
- Nov 23, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 20, 2025
National Dog Show
183 pieces | LEGO: 3942 (retired)
Assembled by Sarah Wilkinson, January 2025
Interaction Rating: 5 / 5 (interaction with the set is encouraged)
November 23, 2023
Thanksgiving with Sarah's family always involves the tradition of watching the National Dog Show and making fun of the way the handlers run beside their dogs when the judges are evaluating the dogs' stride (there is no way to wear a suit or pantyhose while running and not look awkward). Sarah's sister, Emma, is always nearby to laugh with them about the ridiculousness of dog breeding (which is essentially eugenics for dogs) and the way the long-haired dogs look when they trot (even Fabio is jealous). Hunter knows a fair bit about dog breeds from his time growing up on a farm and having Great Pyrenees for pets (a breed Sarah had never even heard of before she met Hunter), but they always learn about obscure breeds while watching the dog show. It's also tradition to argue with the judges over which dog should have won. At no other time of the year would they consider watching a dog show, but on Thanksgiving, it's a tradition. Unless you're breeding dogs for the championship circuit, the couple highly recommends visiting a shelter for your next pup.
Glass Cheesecake
203 pieces | JAKI: JK5621
Assembled by Sarah Wilkinson, January 2025
Interaction Rating: 4 / 5 (interaction with the set is encouraged, but use extra care)
November 23, 2023
For their second Thanksgiving together, Sarah decided to do something special and make a coffee cheesecake for Hunter from scratch. She even did a smooth coffee glaze on the top. No more than five minutes after she poured the glaze, while she was waiting for it to set, Hunter accidentally dropped a glass storage dish on the counter right next to the cheesecake, causing it to shatter and throw slivers of glass into the cheesecake. Sarah was devastated, as no one had even had a chance to taste it yet, and making a cheesecake from scratch is not a quick or easy process. So, Sarah did the only thing she could think of that avoided throwing the whole thing out: she had Hunter (who felt very guilty) stand nearby, holding his phone's flashlight up to the cheesecake while looking for reflective sparkles and plucking them out with tweezers. They continued this for quite a while, until they couldn't find anything that caught the light. Hunter, with his bowels of steel, took one for the team (the team being Sarah) and ate the entire cheesecake over the next few days, avoiding the outside edges just to be safe. And he didn't die! He'll never live down the "glass cheesecake" incident.
Paddington
121 pieces | MOOXI: 7216
Assembled by Sarah Wilkinson, January 2025
Interaction Rating: 5 / 5 (interaction with the set is encouraged)
November 28, 2024
With Thanksgiving dinner, Sarah's family rarely sits around the dining table to eat. You can usually find them with plates on their laps on the living room couches, watching a movie that they previously picked out (since if they started the selection process while eating dinner, they'd finish eating before actually agreeing on a movie). Sarah and Hunter convinced Sarah's mom and sister to watch the Nick Cage movie, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. In the movie, Nicolas Cage plays himself in an action-packed thriller that ultimately serves as a commentary on the nature of popular film and what it takes to make a movie that will actually be watched. There's a scene in the movie where Nick Cage and his daughter agree, after watching it together, that Paddington II is one of the best movies of all time. It's amusing because Cage is somewhat of a film snob and doesn't believe his daughter when she tries to tell him how good the movie is. The couple later watched the first Paddington movie together and were delighted when Sarah's sister, Emma, turned on the movie as they waited for Christmas dinner a year later. Regarding the second movie in the Paddington franchise, the couple hasn't found it on streaming yet, but they continue to keep an eye out.
Holiday Baking Championship
361 pieces | LEGO: 41393 (retired)
Assembled by Sarah Wilkinson, July 2025
Interaction Rating: 5 / 5 (interaction with the set is encouraged)
After the turkey (and ham, as they are a both/and household) has been consumed and the family movie has been watched, they usually aren't quite ready to call it a night. They don't want to watch a whole other film, so inevitably, Holiday Baking Championship is turned on. It's permissible since the holiday season officially begins with Thanksgiving. The show is a baking competition judged by Duff Goldman, Nancy Fuller, and Carla Hall (at the seasons they've watched) and hosted by former NFL quarterback Jesse Palmer. For some unknown reason, Hunter despises Jesse Palmer. He'll sit through the show with Sarah's family, but his teeth are grinding in frustration every time he hears Jesse talk on the show. The hosts of other, similar shows don't grate him the same way. Hunter never particularly looks forward to this part of Thanksgiving, but when you break glass into the cheesecake, you kinda lose your right to complain.
Gives "smooth as glass" a whole new meaning.
Taking their buddy, Ryder, for a Thanksgiving Day walk was also always a tradition while he was alive. Bonnie is also there; she's just behind the camera.