Tina: The sweet potatoes should be almost done. Let’s go get to work. I might want to swim before dinner.

They proceeded to get the sweet potato souffle finished, the salad chopped, the cooked food put away, and the table set. All the dishes used to prepare food had been washed and put away. Tina set up the pot for pasta and got out the noodles. The sauce was resting on the stove. Bette checked the wine and got out two bottles for dinner.  They then decided to swim after dinner. Daniel might join them depending on his homework load.

The housekeepers had come in and cleaned the house and moved the balance of Margaret’s things out of her room and into Mary’s room. Bette again offered Suzanne her own room if she wanted it. She declined as they were organized and settled. Tina then went and inspected each empty room to be sure that they were ready for guest should the need arise. Everything was ready.

Margaret and Daniel came in at exactly 5:30. They both went to their rooms to change clothes and freshen up from their day. Tina put on the noodles and began to heat up the sauce and put on some garlic bread. Bette dipped up the salad and put the dressings out while Mary poured the wine.  Angie and Suzanne put out the water glasses and the coffee cups.

Bette:  Okay, let’s serve this dinner. Come to the table people.

Daniel was thrilled that he was having spaghetti. Margaret said that Daniel and John David had decided to not play golf on Tuesday afternoon, but to come home immediately after school for the holidays. Bette then suggested that they schedule their hair appointments on Tuesday afternoon.

Bette then told the family that the chef and his wife would be arriving early Wednesday morning and be staying in the bedroom off the kitchen. The two of them planned to cook the entire Thanksgiving meal for some 25 people, plus hors-d’oeuvres for the crowd to last for at least an hour. There would be two or three service staff come in to assist the chief with serving the food and the hors-d’oeuvres and beverages. Bette announced that she and Tina would assist the chef with the turducken prep but that all the other dishes would be prepared by the chef and his team. They had completed the food production with respect to Thanksgiving. However, most of the fresh foods would be delivered the next day.