7gen Bloc

It's interesting to see the way that Thanksgiving has evolved over the years. It's gone from a 17th century exercise in piety and repentance to a national food fest and annual football rite.

I never was much for housework. Don't get me wrong: I have to be bone-tired to leave dirty dishes in the sink, I vacuum before the dust bunnies roll into tumbleweeds and yes, I even do toilets. But amid the chaos of family life, a post-layoff career switch and the loss of that ultimate luxury, the occasional professional scrubbing, I've learned to live with what I view as a few neatly piled mounds on the floor of mommy and daddy's bedroom.

It's no secret that kids grow fast. I knew that long before I got pregnant. But I don't think I was prepared for just how fast. As soon as I buy a new pair of shoes or jeans for my 4-year-old, it seems like she's outgrown them. She doesn't have an older sister with a closet of hand-me-downs, and all her cousins are so much older that she wouldn't be able to get into their castoffs for years.

I have a problem. I'm a little ashamed to admit it, but here we go: I'm addicted to convenience foods. I am a lazy cook -- plain and simple. I like meals that are quick and easy and don't require a whole lot of work on my part. In other words, meals that don't need to be made from scratch. If I were cooking just for myself, I might be able to continue this cycle of frozen pizzas and pasta dinners without much guilt.

We think so. But then again we might be a little biased. What really counts is what other people think, and a new contest is giving you a chance to voice your opinion.

We recently told you about the Million Baby Crawl, a virtual march to Washington, D.C. to say "No" to toxic chemicals found in our homes. Now it's time to be part of the conversation and share your opinion during our first Twitter Party.

In 1621, the Pilgrims and Indians got together for a shindig to help celebrate their hard-won bounty. I already figured they didn't pass the Butterball but was still surprised to learn that we can only be sure of two things they did eat: venison and wild fowl. Other possible dishes, according to Kathleen Curtin, food historian at Plimouth Plantation, include pumpkin, peas and -- take it back, Kathleen!

Halloween is almost here, and as usual we're revving up to celebrate one of our family's favorite holidays. Over the years we've honed things to a sustainably spooky art. Our daughter's costume this year, for example, was assembled from things we already had on hand and a couple of free yard sale cast-offs. She looks great and she had a ball putting it together.

My wife and I entered parenthood as rank amateurs. But one thing we did right early on was decide we weren't going to dumb things down for our daughter. Whenever possible, we would encourage her to move beyond common expectation by engaging her in honest conversations about real things, reading her challenging books, and feeding her the same real food we ate. The last thing was one of the smartest moves we ever made.

The season's first frost is upon us. But even if it means the end of the year's garden, we'll enjoy the harvest all winter long thanks to the dozens of jars and bags that pack our pantry and line our freezer. In my house, we learned a long time ago that home food preservation is a lot easier than most people think. It's so simple that I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that so few do it anymore.