Why Thanksgiving?

Here is what Thanksgiving is for in our family:
1) to be grateful
2) to remember the real history behind Thanksgiving
3) to be with family
4) to eat!

Some thoughts about 1-4:
1) We truly have so much to be grateful for, but to pick just one thing - our living situation. We get to spend so much time together as family. The kids are with us nearly all of the time. Marei and I get to have real conversations on almost a daily basis. We even get to go out on regular dates. Even with work, I never have to be separated from my children for very long. It is amazing! We will never forget this opportunity.
2) Jaya will be well-equipped by the time she reaches elementary school to raise her hand and stop a misinformed if well-meaning elementary school teacher from perpetuating the myths behind Thanksgiving, and if need be, informing people that Natives are not extinct. Lil' miss bossy boots certainly has no qualms about correcting us all day long.
3) See #1. Also, we really miss our family back in the US at holiday time. I even miss smacking our brothers' hands all day - trying to sneak their grubby little fingers into the stuffing and everything else before it makes it to the table.
4) I won't be cooking a Thanksgiving feast this year and I really do miss it. Here is one of our favorite holiday recipes:

Bread Pudding with "Caramel" Sauce*

10 cups of stale bread cubes
1 cup white sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 cups of heavy cream
2 cups of milk

1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup cream

1 cup heavy cream (kept cold in the fridge) for whipping

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and place a roasting pan in oven. Place the bowl you will use to make whipped cream in the freezer. Beat sugar and eggs together until mixture becomes pale yellow and falls from a spoon in a ribbon. (see picture)
Add vanilla and cinnamon and mix. Add melted butter (make sure it is cooled), milk, and cream. Stir until well combined.
Butter a 9x13 pan. Place bread cubes in pan and cover with custard mixture. Place pan inside roasting pan, and then pour hot tap water into roasting pan until the water comes about halfway up the 9x13 pan's sides.
Cook for about one hour, or until when you push on top of bread pudding, no custard rises on sides of pan. While pudding is cooking, prepare sauce. Melt butter in a pan, add brown sugar. Once sugar is dissolved, and cream and cook over medium heat for about 3 minutes until smooth. Then whip cream until soft peaks form.
Serve warm, with a dollop of cream and a drizzle of sauce. (Makes about 10 servings, with leftover sauce for pancakes or ice cream the next day)

*Some notes:
You can use any kind of bread. The best results are from using croissants or challah. It is still delicious with plain old sandwich bread. Leave cubes out overnight to stale, or you can dry them out faster by spreading them on a cookie sheet and placing them in a low temp oven for an hour or so.
This is really easy to make. Don't let the water bath scare you. It really does make a difference.
I use cream and whole milk on holidays. I've made it with less cream, half and half, even all milk, and it is still yummy. If using all milk, I would increase the butter by 1-2 tbsp. Don't substitute for the butter!
For texture, I usually reserve 1-2 cups of the cubes. I add the rest to the custard and submerge. Then I sprinkle the remaining 1-2 cups over the top and press down very slightly so they are only partly submerged. Then I sprinkle a very small (1-2 tsp) amount of white sugar on top. This gives the dish a contrast in texture (soft custardy pudding and crisp, browned topping) that takes the dish to another level. Not necessary of course, but I think it makes the pudding even better.
The caramel sauce isn't real "caramel" but it matches this recipe better and is easier/safer than making caramel.
If you make the custard and whip the cream by hand, you might be able to justify having two pieces.
Happy Thanksgiving!