The Turkey Trot
Living Beautifully With Nancy O: Get into a New York state of mind, grab a latte, your designer slippers, and a cashmere blanket and dip your toe into the socialite's lifestyle.
To know Nancy is to know she loves cake. Sometimes I am not in the mood for a party or a wedding, but I will show up because I heard there would be cake. When handed a menu, the first thing I check to see is if they have cake for dessert and then order accordingly. My Mom used to say I would eat a whole cake if it were less than a pound. I would eat the entire thing! Seriously.
The I Heard There Would Be Cake section of Living Beautifully With Nancy O is where I share anecdotes from my 70-plus years around the sun and about growing up Italian in San Francisco! It’s all about fun, love, light and gratitude.
THANKSGIVING—YESTERDAY AND TODAY
Every year my friends and family join me for the Fort Collins Thanksgiving Day Run on Thanksgiving morning. I like to call it the Turkey Trot as it reminds me of a little New England town where we had our beach house and participated in a Turkey Trot, with our then puppy (now 13 years old), every year. Our puppy’s name is Madison, named after that town so that we would never forget it and the memories we made there.
We now live in Fort Collins, Colorado, where we are closer to my brother and his two sons. At one time, Fort Collins was the home to the whole family, but the others have earned their wings and are in heaven now. My mom hung in there until she was 101 years old. She passed over last year. Now, it's just the boys and me (my husband, my brother and my two nephews). Secretly I love it. I am now the matriarch, and I run the show. Heaven on earth for me!
This year, as always, we will run or walk in the Turkey Trot. We usually have the dubious honor of coming in last. We stop and chat with the firefighters at the firehouse. We pause and admire cute houses and gardens we spot along the way. Needless to say, we are easily distracted.
Back at home, my brother and former owner of a local restaurant, always cooks the turkey. I am in charge of decorating the table. And the guests? They are kept plenty busy and are invited to join us in the kitchen. We delegate to each “team” a dish. We cook, sip wine, tell stories and laugh—a lot. Dinner is not always on time nor perfect, but we always have fun. And really, isn’t that what matters.
I wish you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. Love, laugh and have fun!
Gratitude at Altitude
It’s never too late to live with a more grateful heart.
I hope you’re somewhere where the leaves have started turning. This weekend my husband, Bill, and I spent a most glorious weekend in Aspen, Colorado. We luxuriated at Hotel Jerome, an Auberge Resorts Collection. Our room came with a mountain view filled with golden aspens and evergreens. The contrast was breathtaking.
Bill has dreamed of staying at Hotel Jerome since he first had cocktails in their bar 20 years ago. As an anniversary surprise, I made reservations for the weekend. This was the last weekend before mud season, and the town was buzzing with leaf peepers and locals.
This was the last weekend for the local farmers' market; the stands were filled with an abundance of marigolds, sunflowers, dahlias, and pumpkins. It reminded me of the first time we went to Tuscany in the fall. It brought back sweet memories now mixed with new memories and gratitude.
This is a perfect segue to share with you my most cherished practice, and that is gratitude. I've made it a practice since the 90s when I saw Sarah Ban Breathnach, author Simple Abundance, on The Oprah show. That book changed the way I viewed life. I've been a convert ever since, but I must admit I have slacked off as of late. But after spending this wonderful anniversary weekend with the most perfect man for me, I realized I needed to start my journal again.
Last night I wrote about how renewed I’d felt breathing the crisp mountain air and sipping the perfect martini served shaken, not stirred, with olives stuffed with blue cheese. I wrote about simple pleasures like choosing the perfect feather for my hat at Kemo Sabe, one of Aspen’s high-end western apparel stores, perusing my NEW favorite consignment shop, Susie’s Limited. Oh, and I almost forgot, the Aspen Goodwill where Bill found some decanters for $2 dollars each to add to his barware collection.
I like to write down five things I'm grateful for each day. To keep it fresh and meaningful, I don’t just write that I am grateful for my health, but I am grateful that the cough I have is just an allergy and not COVID, or I'm grateful, not just that my dog got a good vet report, but I am grateful that although she is terminally ill that we will still have her this Christmas.
I consider gratitude to be a necessity in living a better life. It calls to attention what we can’t let slide and see as insignificant and go unnoticed. I like to jot down things I am grateful for at night as part of my bedtime ritual. I like to savor each memory of the day with light, goodness, and joy. It gives me peace as I shut off the light and snuggle up to the dog and Bill, take the TV control out of his hand and watch him has he quietly snores. I am grateful for his snoring because I know my 76-year-old husband is still alive and I get to share another day with him tomorrow.
Enjoy your life and live it with a spirit of a gladness and gratitude. It’s never too late to start.
Thanksgiving Tablescaping
Make your Thanksgiving Table a showstopper!
Thanksgiving is just around the corner. My Thanksgiving looks so different than when I was a child growing up in San Francisco. In those days, there was nothing fancy, just a long table my dad fashioned using a plywood top and sawhorses. Mom would throw on a white tablecloth and a horn of plenty that she’d sprayed gold and filled with with nuts, persimmons and other fruits. Otherwise, the table was pretty simple so that the food could fill the landscape. We were a traditional BIG Italian family and the meal was served family style, in many courses, with more than one meat or, as they say, protein. There was roast beef, ham and turkey. No vegetarians in my family!
Today a lot of my energy goes into a part of every special meal that I love—the tablescape. Decorating tables is one of my many passions. You should see my basement. It looks like Homegoods. My husband Bill jokes that when Homegoods runs low on stock, they call me to help replenish the shelves!
If you’re looking for some Thanksgiving tablescape inspiration, watch this video from Our Little Nest. Emelyne offers up four great styles!