Dear Kid,

Happy Day After Thanksgiving!

Thank you Auntie M (and the entire cooking crew) for a wonderful meal and a great evening.

I have a turkey and carbohydrate hangover (like the rest of the world) and I’m realizing that writing through a tryptophan funk is not easy. I wouldn’t have it any other way and I don’t regret eating any of the deliciousness. But trying to put words together in a coherent manner right now is something of a challenge.

This is complicated by not having an actual topic. Or inspiration.

I didn’t watch enough football to have anything interesting to say about any of the games. I didn’t even watch enough football to comment on the beer commercials.

I didn’t watch enough of the parade to say anything interesting about it. (People marched; balloon floated; commentators blathered.)

I don’t plan any Black Friday shopping so I can’t tell you all about my intricate plan for snagging The Best Deals.

I have some very important puppy snuggling on the calendar, but you already knew that.

I thought about including some Thanksgiving jokes, but according to My Friend The Internet there aren’t any funny Thanksgiving jokes. (To be clear, there are lots of jokes listed, but if you’re over 7 years old you’re unlikely to think they’re funny.)

I briefly considered making up my own Thanksgiving jokes, but that kind of joke is not my forte and did I mention the tryptophan?

No matter what day it is, no matter what I’ve eaten that day (or the day before), no matter what I have or haven’t paid attention to on TV, I love you kiddo. And I am very, very thankful to have you in my life.

Have a great Today.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Puppy: WHAT is going ON?
Me: It’s Thanksgiving.
Pi: Do you know what Thanksgiving is?
Puppy: It looks like cooking and football.
Me: That’s part of it.
Puppy: It smells like all of it.
Pi: You left out the parade.
Puppy: We’re going to be in a parade?
Pi: The parade is on TV, silly.
Puppy: I’m going to be on TV? That is fantastic!
Me: On Thanksgiving we get together with friends and family and we think about the things we’re thankful for.
Puppy: What are you thankful for?
Me: I’m thankful for friends, and family, and food. And coffee.
Puppy: I’m family, right?
Me: Of course you are.
Pi: Of course, you silly dog.
Puppy: Of course I am!
Kid: Yup.
Dad: Yup.
Puppy: Which means I get the same love everyone in the family gets, right?
Me: Yup.
Puppy: Which means I get the same delicious food everyone in the family gets, right?
Me: Wrong.
Puppy: What?
Me: Same love, yes. Same food, no.
Pi: Oh, Puppy. You get super special food.
Puppy: I do?
Me: Absolutely.
Puppy: Well, ok then.
Me: Happy Thanksgiving, baby.
Puppy: Happy Thanksgiving!

Love, Mom

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Dear Kid,

Continuing our theme of Thanksgiving food (hadn’t noticed the theme? We talked about Weird Thanksgiving foods and apple pie so far this week), it seems time to talk turkey about turkeys.

Assuming you’re having turkey and not pizza, that is.

Since it’s Thanksgiving, it’s a good bet there is a bird in your near future. It’s also a good bet that many people will hack their bird to unattractive pieces.

Speaking as a hacker, I can attest to the truism that bird tastes just as good no matter how pretty the slices are.

But as many people are quick to point out, we also eat with our eyes, and there are extra points for pretty.

So, being the kind of mom I am, I found a great video of How to Carve a Turkey just for you.

Now you know. So next year, you can plan to carve the bird.

Love, Mom

More about Turkeys from DearKidLoveMom.com

Weird Thanksgiving Food, Pizza, and Talking Turkeys

Puppy Conversations | Puppy Talks Turkey

Happy Almost Turkey Day | How DKLM Helps in Office Trivia

Turkey Tryouts | How to Pick the Best Bird

Happy Thanksgiving | 12 Things You Always Wanted to Know About Turkeys

Turkey and Technology

Don’t Let the Turkeys Get You Down

Puppy Conversations | Puppy Discusses Thanksgiving Leftovers

The Discovery of Tryptophan, Leftovers, and a Good Nap

Eating Through Canada | Wonder of Wonder, Meal of Meals

Weird Thanksgiving Facts

Dear Kid,

Greetings from a post-Thanksgiving, post-tryptophan stupor.

Once upon a time, there was no such thing as tryptophan. Then Frederick Hopkins (June 6, 1861 – May 16, 1947) invented vitamins, including tryptophan.

Frederick did not have an auspicious academic beginning. He was actually expelled from high school for truancy (which when you think about it makes no sense—you aren’t showing up for school so we’re going to make sure you never show up again. Huh?)

Since he didn’t have a degree (and I kid you not about this) he became an insurance salesman. However, Fred was an ambitious sort of fellow and since he was going to win a Nobel Prize later in life he ate his vitamins (even though they didn’t exist yet) and went to night school. He got a degree in chemistry, worked as an assistant in a criminal forensics lab, and eventually saved up enough money to go to medical school.

In 1901 he discovered tryptophan (which is an amino acid).

He was keenly interested (I’ve been trying to figure out how to incorporate the word “keenly” into a blog—success!) in how cells obtain energy in the metabolic process, and in 1907 he discovered that oxygen depletion causes the build of lactic acid in muscles. (Now are you digging this dude?)

He then went on to discover vitamins (kindly read that word with the British pronunciation since our good friend of the vitamin fetish was in fact British).

He discovered that a diet that only included pure proteins, carbs, fats, minerals, and water don’t make for a healthy animal. He figured out that “accessory food factors” were missing. But the advertising world realized that no one could possibly sell “accessory food factors” and vitamins were invented (especially in the Flintstone form).

The Nobel Committee agreed to take their vitamins and to give him (and co-researcher Christiaan Eijkman) the 1929 Nobel Prize in Physiology for Medicine.

During WWI, Fred was asked to study the nutritional value of margarine. Which he did and discovered it was “inferior to butter because it lacked the vitamins A and D.” Ta-da! Enter vitamin enriched margarine. See how these things happen?

But back to tryptophan.

Tryptophan is an amino acid which is a building block for protein. (Pay attention. There may be a quiz later.) Our bodies (ourselves—you’re too young to get the reference. Let it go.) can’t produce tryptophan but that’s ok, because we get tryptophan from lots of food.

And here’s the kicker: Tryptophan does not make us sleepy.

According to WebMD (along with some weird references to Harry Potter movies), tryptophan doesn’t make us tired until mixed with carbs (of which there are plenty on Thanksgiving). WebMD also suggests that alcohol, relaxing with family, and watching football probably make us more sleepy than tryptophan (with or without carbs). And I put in the part about football, not them.

Since you took your nap prior to the Carving of the Bird, I’m inclined to agree that other factors are more influential than turkey.

Happy Leftover Day!

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Puppy: What are you doing?
Me: Making stuffing
Puppy: That smells delicious
Me: Thank you. That’s high praise from someone who eats poop
Puppy: I would like some stuffing
Me: The stuffing goes inside the turkey
Puppy: I think the stuffing should go inside the Booker
Me: The stuffing does not go inside the Booker
Puppy: But, mom…
Me: Yes?
Puppy: I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but the turkey is DEAD
Me: I had a pretty good idea about that
Puppy: So it can’t eat the stuffing
Me: True
Puppy: I can eat stuffing, so stuffing should go in the Booker
Me (pointing): That’s where the stuffing goes
Puppy: Ew. I don’t think the turkey will like that
Me: As you pointed out, he’s dead
Puppy: Still, very undignified
Me: You’re adorable
Puppy: Yes, and I would like some stuffing

Puppy: Mom, will you tell me about Thanksgiving?
Me: Thanksgiving is a day to watch football, eat yummy food, be with friends and family, and be thankful for all the things we have
Puppy: I’m thankful
Me: What are you thankful for?
Puppy: I’m thankful for being rescued, and I’m thankful for my toys and my big pillow, and I’m thankful for being your puppy
Me: We’re thankful for you, too. It’s good to have you as part of our family
Puppy: You mean “pack”
Me: I mean pack
Puppy: I would still like some stuffing

Puppy: What is THAT?
Me: That is the cooked turkey
Puppy: Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes
Me: No. Puppies do not get turkey
Puppy: Whaaaat?
Me: Puppies do not get turkey
Puppy: But I was planning to be thankful for turkey!
Me: Sorry, baby
Puppy: You’ll never finish all that without my help
Me: I’ll take my chances

Puppy: When are you going to drop some turkey on the floor?
Me: Wasn’t planning to drop any on the floor
Puppy: When are you going to drop green beans on the floor?
Me: Wasn’t planning to drop those either
Puppy: When are you going to drop sweet potatoes on the floor?
Me: Honey, I’m not planning to drop any food on the floor
Puppy: But you might
Me: I’m not planning to
Puppy: But you might accidentally
Me: It’s possible
Puppy: I’ll wait

 Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Love, Mom

For more puppy conversations see

• Puppy Conversations and Food Observations
• Spring Puppy Conversations
• New Puppy Conversations
• Winter WonderPuppy | Baby It’s Cold Outside
• Puppy Conversations Translated for the College Kid
• Puppy Conversations and FIFA World Cup Soccer
• Puppy Conversations and the Joy of Quirkiness
• Puppy Conversations| In the Beginning
• Puppy Conversations | What’s In a Name?
• Puppy Conversations | Puppy Plans a Party
• Puppy Speaks Foreign Languages…Sort Of
• Summer Puppy Conversations | Speaking of Hope
• National Dog Day | Puppy Has His Say
• Puppy Conversations | Completely In Love with Tal
• The Puppy and The Cricket | Wildlife in the House
• October is National Adopt a Shelter Dog Month |Puppy Has an Announcement
• Puppy Tries to Talk His Way Out of a Bath
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge (vegan) for Breakfast
• Puppy Conversations | Mom Has a Headache and Puppy Tries to Help
• Puppy Conversations | Discussing Halloween
• Puppy Conversations | There Are Strangers in the House
• Puppy Conversations | Ricky The Yorkie Comes to Visit