Shownotes
Vanessa is joined by her hilarious and festive sister-in-law, Christine Hankins, for a nostalgic trip into all things Thanksgiving and fall in the Tri-State area. Get ready for a heartwarming and laughter-filled trip down memory lane as they swap childhood traditions, debate the merits of turkey versus ham, and confess their all-time favorite holiday foods (spoiler: mashed potatoes and “crack corn” make the list).
Whether you live for the Macy’s Parade, love a good game night, or need inspiration for celebrating the season, come hang out for fun stories, family tips, and a celebration of everything that makes fall and Thanksgiving unique in our neck of the woods. Grab your mom water or apple cider, throw on your leggings, and let’s jump in!
If you have a memory you would want me to talk more about, just send me an email at TSTM@mail.com. Or post a comment on the Tri-State Machine FB Group page.
Welcome to the Tri-State Time Machine.
I'm your host Vanessa Hankins. This is a podcast where my guests and I share our memories and present day stories of the Tri-State Area. That's West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio.
Nothing too serious, no political views, and no ulterior motives.
We're just here to share our fun stories about this great area.
Whether you're a past resident or a current Tri-State resident, I think you're going to have fun with us.
So join in, press play on your podcast player, and welcome to the Tri-State Time Machine!
https://ts-time-machine.captivate.fm/episode/thanksgiving
Copyright 2025 Vanessa Hankins
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/
Transcripts
Hey guys, welcome back to the Tri State time machine. It's your host, Vanessa, and today I have a very special guest. She's hilarious, she's festive, and she literally is in every story of my insane. Just everything, my shenanigans. She really is. She's in all of it. So welcome my sister in law, Ms. Christine Hankins.
Christine Hankins [:Hey guys, what's up?
Vanessa Hankins [:And for those of you that have been around a while, you may remember us from Tri State Moms. And we were quite the shit show. It was very fun. It was so fun to do. So we're excited to be back on the mics together.
Christine Hankins [:Woo hoo. Woo hoo.
Vanessa Hankins [:We got our mom waters. So cheers, Christine.
Christine Hankins [:Cheers, cheers.
Vanessa Hankins [:And let's jump into it. All right, so we are diving today into all things fall. The good, the bad. The crunchy leaf under your boot. The beautiful. So grab your apple cider, your flannel, and maybe your stretchy pants because Thanksgiving, it's coming.
Christine Hankins [:Don't forget your pumpkin spice.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, yes, your pumpkin spice.
Christine Hankins [:We're all basic here.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, we are. Basic white girls. And I'm in my black leggings, my black hoodie. I've got all the things.
Christine Hankins [:So I've got my ripped jeans on, you know, my baggy ones that I like, am very, very obsessed with and my tan Nike sweatshirt.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's like the basic white girl uniform.
Christine Hankins [:Oh, and my Uggs.
Vanessa Hankins [:And your Uggs. So there. Now it's complete.
Christine Hankins [:Now it's with my mom water.
Vanessa Hankins [:Now it's complete. All right. So Christine, when you were a kid, what was your favorite fall tradition?
Christine Hankins [:Oh, Lord. There's a lot of good fall ones that I did. Really?
Vanessa Hankins [:See, we didn't do a whole lot. So I've got like, mine are pretty.
Christine Hankins [:Zoned in one thing that I really love because, you know, I grew up in front of Ritter Park. Oh, yeah?
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, yeah.
Christine Hankins [:So one of my favorite things was the park would go around and rake up.
Vanessa Hankins [:Well, you're gonna take mine? Yes.
Christine Hankins [:This is my favorite.
Vanessa Hankins [:No, and it's my favorite as an adult too, so. That's so funny. Okay, go ahead.
Christine Hankins [:Like those mounds of leaves would.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Astronomically large. And it would be so much fun to go.
Vanessa Hankins [:I bet. I can, I can only imagine, like, because those big old trees with the.
Christine Hankins [:Huge leaves and yeah, you would come out hella itchy. But it was worth it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Worth it.
Christine Hankins [:Every minute of it was so much fun.
Vanessa Hankins [:See, so that was my funnest as a child, but. But it was also as an adult. It is my most fun thing to do with Carly and to have done with James when he was little and, like, enjoyed stuff like that. Now he could care less.
Christine Hankins [:But now mine, she just likes to pile the leaves on her trampoline and jump in them.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, Carly has done that before. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:That's like the greatest.
Vanessa Hankins [:The greatest thing in the world. They do make really cool sounds and stuff, so I get that. It's. It's so funny because, like, I write up my. My episodes and it's so funny because Christine has not seen this or, like, knows anything about my notes or anything. And it's really on par for everything we've said so far. Literally, it was like, same. And I'm like, oh, my God, we really picked the same thing.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, we are one in the same. Oh, my God, it's so funny. Oh, that's so funny. So what is your favorite thing now as an adult as far as traditions go?
Christine Hankins [:Well, for me, like, here, lately, something that, you know, we've done each year is going up to Fayetteville, like, in the fall now.
Vanessa Hankins [:I mean, your pictures were beautiful.
Christine Hankins [:Our local. I mean, it's local technically, and it's.
Vanessa Hankins [:Local because it's a day trip.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. But I'm. I don't know, it's just something about being up there and all the fall leaves and I went up there, like, the 1st of October, and the leaves were just starting to change, and we were just talking about being basic, and I've never felt more basic in my entire life. Sitting on the edge of the new river, drinking my pumpkin spice coffee.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love it.
Christine Hankins [:With all the colorful.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love it. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like, wow, this is so great.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, it's wonderful. It's all the things.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, that. That's really fun. And, you know, just living where I live at now, up by the museum, the hill right now, the leaves up there.
Vanessa Hankins [:I bet it's gorgeous.
Christine Hankins [:Amazing.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, literally, I haven't drove up there in a while. I need to, like, just opening our.
Christine Hankins [:Curtains because our backyard opens up to woods. And, like, it's so freaking pretty right now, like. And I just want to, like, pause it because I'm like, oh, I know. It's not going to last much longer.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:But I want it to stay there. And, like, Falls. Falls. My time. My birthday's in two weeks. And I know your birthday was my birthday just happened.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:So, like, we're fall girlies.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, we absolutely are.
Christine Hankins [:So I live for pretty much everything that has to deal with the fall. And I found as I keep getting older as much as I love summer, being outside, being able to be in the pool, I just really freaking hate being hot and sweaty because, you know, I'm a little chunky.
Vanessa Hankins [:Same girl. Same, same.
Christine Hankins [:Unless I can't be by the pool or in the body of the water, like at the beach or something. I'm kind of over it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes.
Christine Hankins [:And I literally live for this weather right now.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes. We were at. This literally has nothing to do with anything other than the fact of being hot. So, like, I'm just getting to the point of I. I feel you. I feel what you're throw. Because we came home from the volleyball tournament yesterday, and it was 67, I think, in the house. And I'm like, what the hell is going on? It's so hot in here.
Vanessa Hankins [:Brandon's got the fireplace going. I'm opening doors. I'm turning off the furnace. I'm like, oh, my God, it's so hot. And Brandon's like, it's fall. It is not hot. It's like 60 outside.
Christine Hankins [:I'll one up you on this. So my bedroom right now. Nick can't. Does not like to be cold.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, no.
Christine Hankins [:Brought out the space heater and, like, literally I've been like, internally dying. But I would be.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'd be, like, removing all the clothes. Yeah, yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like, I turn on our fan.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes.
Christine Hankins [:Our box fan. So, like, we've got the heater on one end of the room and literally have the box fan going on the other while I'm sleeping. Because I can't deal. I can't do it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Need that air moving.
Christine Hankins [:I can't do it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, it's too much. I. I cannot be hot when I'm sleeping. I really cannot. Brandon gets so mad during the summer because I'll have the house at like 60 if I can. I would have it colder if he would let me. If I could afford it and he would let me. It would be lower.
Christine Hankins [:Like, might as well just sleep in the refrigerator.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, like that. That would make me happy.
Christine Hankins [:I can't do it.
Vanessa Hankins [:That would make me happy. Yeah. So I want to tell you a little bit about my favorite memories as traditions in growing up. For Thanksgiving, my favorite one was, you know, jumping in the leaves. But what we did, we always all got together at, like, an aunt's or an uncle's house to have our Thanksgiving dinner. Usually my grandma's. Most likely it was grandma's house. But sometimes we did at other aunt and uncle's house.
Vanessa Hankins [:But we would all. All those kids, that would literally be our daily task. Like, all day long we worked on getting the fucking leaves in the pile so that we could all at one time run and do a big. And of course we had to get all the adults to watch us, like, you know, because it's. It's not a. It's not legit until you have like an audience.
Christine Hankins [:Right. It's kind of like the equivalent of us. Like, it's not official if it's not on Facebook.
Vanessa Hankins [:Exactly. Yes.
Christine Hankins [:It was not official unless grown ups.
Vanessa Hankins [:All the grown ups were there to watch. Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
Christine Hankins [:So.
Vanessa Hankins [:So we would all get together and we would work all day on that. And then like you said with the itchiness. Then of course, we all need showers. So then it becomes a situation where now we're all staying over at whoever's house we're at because we're all getting showers and putting on the long T shirts that belong to our uncle or somebody, whoever's house we're at. And we're making. And I know everybody loves when I say this because everybody's like, what the fuck's a pallet? But we're then making a pallet in the living room floor for us, all the cousins to sleep on, and.
Christine Hankins [:It sounds so rusty.
Vanessa Hankins [:I know, it really does. But it's just a pile of blankets, I promise. It's just a redneck thing. It's just a redneck thing. It's a white trash thing. Nobody worry about it.
Christine Hankins [:So I'm just imagining, like, you literally pulling out wooden pallets?
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, that's what Brayden always says. That's literally what Brandon says, I swear. So let's talk about Thanksgiving, the day that we all pretend to be chefs and then nap immediately after.
Christine Hankins [:Okay, Thanksgiving nap is so great.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, it's the best. It's literally the best. And then, of course, everybody's got to argue over, like, who. Who hosted that has been the best, like where. Because we. We love going to your sister's house and she's not hosting this year. We're hosting.
Christine Hankins [:I know, and I'm.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm kind of depressed about it. Not because of the work, but, like, we have a good ass time at Erigo's.
Christine Hankins [:I know. It's always, like, it, like, we keep going back to, like, the past Thanksgiving memories of the past couple of times at my sister's house. But, like, no offense, mom, but I mean, it's a good time.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's livened up a lot at Erica's house.
Christine Hankins [:It's a good time. And, you know, like, and we always end up Staying way later than we intend to. We always end up drinking way entirely more wine than we planned to. My poor sister.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, yeah, we really do. Like, and she goes through the wine, man. Not like her personally, but, like, on that day, like, as everyone in the family is drinking. Yeah. Like, we. We layer to it. Like, it's.
Christine Hankins [:I know. It's crazy not to add that her husband is, like, also a phenomenal cook.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, my gosh. He really is.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:So they're always slapping. They are doing the turkey and bringing it to our house. So we still get some of Ben's cooking. So that's good.
Christine Hankins [:I'm not going to lie, though. Like, don't get me wrong, I really love turkey. But, like, ham girl.
Vanessa Hankins [:We're doing a ham, too. Yeah, we're doing a ham. So we'll have both.
Christine Hankins [:I just like. And I do. I like to have both.
Vanessa Hankins [:I like a ham, too. I'm a ham girly. Yeah, me too. Oh, my God. Do you remember when James was like ham when he was little?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. Well, I mean, my child thinks ham is the cure all to all of her ailments.
Vanessa Hankins [:Is it?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. She's like, mom, my legs hurt so bad. I think I really need a piece of ham. I'm like, all right. Is this the new Tylenol?
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes.
Christine Hankins [:Are you on to something that we don't.
Vanessa Hankins [:That we don't know about? Apparently we all need to have a little ham. Sammy. Yeah. When we're filling. When we're filling down and out, According.
Christine Hankins [:To my child, it's. It fixes it.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's so funny.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:My big thing about Thanksgiving is I'm probably gonna eat, like, five pounds of mashed potatoes like, nine times. And it doesn't even matter if they're good or not. Like, it really doesn't. It's just. I feel like it's tradition.
Christine Hankins [:I think this is a really good time to note that, you know, when we had our game night the weekend before last.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, that was a good time.
Christine Hankins [:Literally 10 o' clock at night. I forgot about this. The whole time we were trying to play Uno, all Vanessa keeps talking about is how bad she wants mashed potatoes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Mashed potatoes. Because they were in there and they. I just was craving them.
Christine Hankins [:I mean. And like, finally it got to the point I was like, you know what? I'm just gonna go make my girl her mashed potatoes. They're just.
Vanessa Hankins [:And oh, my God, they were great.
Christine Hankins [:I almost ate them, though. That was.
Vanessa Hankins [:They were. I love that Nick and Brandon were, like, talking shit to Us.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. They were like, why does she want mashed potatoes? And then, like, lo and behold, they hit the spot. I made the family thing of the Bob Evans mashed potatoes. And I can guarantee you, every single one of us was in those mashed potatoes.
Vanessa Hankins [:They were delicious.
Christine Hankins [:I love mashed potatoes.
Vanessa Hankins [:And that was such a fun game of.
Christine Hankins [:And that was one. You know, speaking of, like, memories, and this isn't really so much relevant to Thanksgiving, but I remember when I was little, one of my favorite memories that I always talk about is when Grandma Hankins would take me to KFC to get my mashed potatoes and gravy, because I just loved them so much.
Vanessa Hankins [:Their gravy is so good paired with their mashed potatoes. Like, you can't get their gravy and use it on any other mashed potatoes.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, like.
Vanessa Hankins [:But, like, the pairing is little perfect.
Christine Hankins [:I wanted KFC mashed potatoes and gravy, and I wanted a tomato sliced with salt and pepper.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, nice.
Christine Hankins [:That was, like, my snack.
Vanessa Hankins [:That was your snack of choice. Oh, that wouldn't fit in Meemaw's purse. You couldn't do that. That'd be too messy.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, not to add, you know, she would whip out the first pizza every now and then. Yeah, that was always a little question. I love it. You know what? When you're really hungry, beggars can't be choosers.
Vanessa Hankins [:So what is the most chaotic Thanksgiving memory that you have?
Christine Hankins [:You know, for me, I mean, honestly, like, I can't really, like, pinpoint a certain chaotic memory. I think more so now just the chaos that kind of comes with Thanksgiving and having to go to multiples.
Vanessa Hankins [:Now that's what I was gonna say. When the kids were little, like, we still had the expectation. And I love you, Michelle. This is not, like, a stab at you or to my parents either, but, like, we would have to hit my parents. We would have to hit your moms, and your mom did every year at the exact same time. So, like, we knew when we had to be at her house. There's no negotiating that. Like, when she.
Vanessa Hankins [:When she lets you know what time, like, that's the time. And you better be on time, not.
Christine Hankins [:Waiting after she's going to call you.
Vanessa Hankins [:And be like, yeah, where are you at? You're late.
Christine Hankins [:Where are you? I told you, it's.
Vanessa Hankins [:We're all waiting on you. Yes. So, yes, we love you, Michelle, but, I mean, my parents were the same way. Like, so if we weren't there on time, like, they're wondering where you are, but, like, for me, we had to leave Westmoreland, go all the way into Lavalette, which is. It's not that far. But like when you've got like your own family and you've got to load everybody up and everybody's been at school all week and you know, hunting season has started, so husband doesn't want to be anywhere but in the woods, so he's pissed off that he's getting dragged to everybody's houses. So we would hit my parents house, your mom's house, and then we would have to go be seen at the grandparents house because that's when people come in town. So if we want to catch them and see them while they're here in Huntington, you gotta go.
Vanessa Hankins [:So then we're not making it home till like 8:30, 9 o' clock at night, sometimes even later. So I mean, it's just an exhausting day.
Christine Hankins [:It is.
Vanessa Hankins [:And plus you're eating all that stuff, so like you're, you're done.
Christine Hankins [:And like. And I will say one of my newer traditions I do too is I always do the turkey trot in the morning.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes. I've started doing it.
Christine Hankins [:And don't be fooled, I ain't running it.
Vanessa Hankins [:No, I walk. I walk it.
Christine Hankins [:Yes, I walk it. And I usually take one of the dogs or take the dogs with me.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because last year was my first year. I've really enjoyed it and I'm gonna do it. Well, no, sorry, that was my second year.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:This will be my third or fourth. Yeah. Because you're a few ahead of me because you're the reason I started doing it.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. So I plan to do that again this year. But mine really is just kind of chaotic because, you know, I have a.
Vanessa Hankins [:Child with somebody else because we're doing shared parenting, so.
Christine Hankins [:Yes. But like, I mean, I. He's.
Vanessa Hankins [:You guys are still very. You guys are doing. Yeah, you guys are doing awesome at the shared parenting family.
Christine Hankins [:So thankfully his parents always has theirs fairly early. So like, I'm already kind of trying to map out in my head how Thanksgiving is going to go this year. And then not to add that, like, I really would like to kind of make an appearance at Nick's family's Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:Right, for sure. Well, because you're still getting to know like all of his family, like you know, the siblings and all that, but like you're still getting to know the.
Christine Hankins [:Extended family, like all the cousins and.
Vanessa Hankins [:Aunts, and you really need to spend the day for that.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. So. And I went to theirs last year, so I'm Thinking like, the way it's gonna go this year is like, I'll probably go to the Turkey Trot and then go to Nick's family's Thanksgiving because like I said, they do theirs pretty early. And then I'll probably try to kind of skip out of that, like after I eat and then go over to Charlotte's grandparents. Thanksgiving over in Proctorville. Right over in Proctorville. And then go to your house.
Vanessa Hankins [:So you're gonna be making like a triangle.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And you're gonna like run it twice, basically. Pretty much, yeah.
Christine Hankins [:It's fine.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'll be fine. It's fine. You'll be fine.
Christine Hankins [:And I'm gonna probably be 20 pounds heavier. You best believe I'm gonna be wearing my leggings that day. Yes, girl.
Vanessa Hankins [:Man, I was so happy yesterday. We, we did that volleyball tournament and like there was women in jeans all day long complaining because, I mean, we were there from 10am till about 6. Maybe after that. Like, I don't know. I've lost track of time at this point. But we were in the gym all day long, sitting in those stadium seats, the bleachers. Oh my God, they're so terrible. Which I do have this like really handy little like travel chair that I have now for the bleachers.
Vanessa Hankins [:So it was a game changer for me. Yeah. But like so many women were like, oh my God, I wish I would have dressed for this. I wish I would have dressed for this. And I was like, thank God that I had the brains about me to be like, wear leggings.
Christine Hankins [:Right.
Vanessa Hankins [:And a hoodie.
Christine Hankins [:Like analyzing. You have to put into events these days when it. We're such creatures of comfort.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, yes.
Christine Hankins [:What am I going to be most comfortable in?
Vanessa Hankins [:What? What can I not look homeless in but also be very comfortable now?
Christine Hankins [:I mean, like, I feel like if you're going to go the leggings route, you know, you do your leggings and sweatshirt and then like make sure you do your hair.
Vanessa Hankins [:Your hair. Yeah. Make sure you throw on the mascara. Do your hair. Throw some curl in it. It's about balance. Yeah. Look good while you're napping on the loveseat with like the six year old that cuddled up to you and was the perfect amount of warmth to fall asleep, you know? Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:So I'm gonna go off your script just a little.
Vanessa Hankins [:You're fine.
Christine Hankins [:I know we talked about turkey and whatnot, but in the mashed potatoes. But like, what is your favorite Thanksgiving food? Is it the mashed potatoes?
Vanessa Hankins [:So. Yeah, but we have Them year round. So I wouldn't say, like, I wait for Thanksgiving for that to be my favorite. I just love trying other people's mashed potatoes just because everybody makes them so different. So, like, I just. I always love them, like, no matter where I'm at. Like, I just. Do you have, like, an actual mashed potato? My grandmother's.
Vanessa Hankins [:And I've never been able to get the recipe right ever.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And I. I still try. I try, try, but I just haven't got it yet. Maybe I will, maybe I won't. I don't know. Who knows? But that was my favorite. And she never wrote recipes down. She wasn't one to have, like, a recipe.
Vanessa Hankins [:It was just in her brain. She literally was a cook her whole life. She worked in diners and things like that. So, like, everything was bought in her brain.
Christine Hankins [:Like, one of those recipes that, like, you had to use her mixer that skip, like, on the fifth rotation to get that perfect consistency.
Vanessa Hankins [:To get the perfect consistency. Yes. Like, but hers were the best. But, like, my favorite food for Thanksgiving that I look forward to because I don't have any other time of the year is. Is chocolate pie. Like, pudding pie. Yeah. Like, it's my favorite.
Christine Hankins [:Forget about Thanksgiving desserts, because I'm always, like, so sad on, like, oh, you know, the turkey, the gravy.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:The green beans, and all the good things. And then, like, by the time I'm done, I'm like, oh, shit, we still have dessert to eat. Yeah, girl. Yeah. I love chocolate pie so much.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love chocolate pie so much. Like, it's literally my favorite. And I go out of my way to make sure I do not have it. Like, even when, like, Jim Spaghetti is doing their, like, pie week. And, like, they did the strawberry pie and all that, and everybody's like, oh, my God, have you had their chocolate pie? No, it's not the same. I'm not having it. I'm having it on Thanksgiving. That's the one thing, like, I wait for every year.
Christine Hankins [:I think my favorite, which has become my favorite over the past couple of years, and kind of a funny story with it, too, is that freaking corn casserole thing mom makes now that's, like, literally like, just corn and cream cheese in a crock pot with, like, salt and pepper. It's like, seriously the most simplest thing good, though. And I remember a couple of years ago, it was post Thanksgiving, it was, like, the day or two afterwards, and it was nasty. It was a nasty fall rainy day, and I wanted to take a hot bath. I Literally sat in the bath with a plastic bag of that corn.
Vanessa Hankins [:I remember your mom making you the bag of the. Of the leftovers. That's so funny.
Christine Hankins [:Literally, I get like this giant ass bag of corn to take home.
Vanessa Hankins [:Let me just relax with my bag of corn.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. I'm like, you know, leave me alone.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm gonna get warm in my hot bath and eat my comfort food. Yes. I don't know.
Christine Hankins [:I love corn. It's for my face.
Vanessa Hankins [:But that is really good. And it's such a. Like, there's not a lot to it.
Christine Hankins [:It's so simple.
Vanessa Hankins [:But it's so good. I mean, but it's kind of like your mom has like a few dishes that are. Since I've had them, no one else's compares. Like, her spaghetti is so good.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, she does make it good spaghetti.
Vanessa Hankins [:Her spaghetti, her chocolate chip cookies, her lasagna. And that corn is like, it's fantastic.
Christine Hankins [:Like, my mom's cookies are talked about so regularly in the Conley household.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, my God. So your brother. So I text your mom last week, like late in the week. So, like, it was literally, I gave her like a two day notice. Hey, we have to have desserts for these girls. We're doing this luncheon for them on Thursday or dinner. Can you make some chocolate chip cookies? I'm gonna make brownies. She's like, yeah, absolutely.
Vanessa Hankins [:Blah, blah, blah. So she makes them and she puts them in this like, really cute little wooden crate and like has like tissue paper over them and they're so cute. And the girls went freaking nuts over them. So I get home and your brother was like, I want a cookie. I was like, no, these are for the girls. These are for the fellow girls. Well, where mom didn't make us cookies.
Christine Hankins [:No.
Vanessa Hankins [:He was very offended. Like, very, very offended. But we had. It was trick or treat night Thursday night. So we were going to your mom's house the following night because I picked him up on Wednesday. So I was like, you can get some when you go to her house. So then your mom had made, I think Carly a bag and your brother ate them all. So, like, she starts crying because your mom was holding back a couple cookies for her and Terry to keep.
Christine Hankins [:So then she had.
Vanessa Hankins [:So then she had to come off that she wanted for her because of Brandon and Carly fighting over the cookies.
Christine Hankins [:Right. Like, I feel like if there was anything I could share with the Tri State, it would be my mother's cookies.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes.
Christine Hankins [:Because they're that good.
Vanessa Hankins [:They are that good. They are that good.
Christine Hankins [:When I tell you, like, it's like, you know, I live with my boyfriend and like, it's one of the things that like his family. Like, does your mom make any cookies? I'm like, yeah, no, not yet. I'll let you know what I do.
Vanessa Hankins [:But even when you're going to be like me, just send her a random text. Hey, we need a batch of cookies. Cookies?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, like the thing is like, you have to hide them.
Vanessa Hankins [:You do. Everybody eats them so fast. Yeah. Like, so the time before last that your mom made them, she made us a bag. Like as a, like she will make everybody a bag. Like a little like gallon size bag.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And puts them aside. Carly and Brandon ate them all before I even had one. I'm like, what the. I didn't even get any. Like, what the heck?
Christine Hankins [:They're good cookies.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's crazy. So for folks around the tri State, what is your favorite fall activity? Like as an adult? Like right now, do you think it would be going up there?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. I mean that's fun. But like it to keep it more like tri state level.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:And it's so cliche. Nothing against the Canova Pumpkin House, but it's something I do every year. Yeah, it's. And you know, like, I'm not saying that's not the same every year. Obviously they have different pumpkins, but like that's. I don't know, it's just something.
Vanessa Hankins [:But the gist of it is the same.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. It's like it's not.
Vanessa Hankins [:They do have new pumpkins and new themes and all this stuff.
Christine Hankins [:But yeah, it's not fall unless like, even if I'm only there for like 30 minutes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Well.
Vanessa Hankins [:And what's crazy, guys at home, Christine's boyfriend. We found out we. Before we did game night last was that weekend before last.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Time is like flying so fast at this time of year. I feel like it goes so fast. But we had found out that Christine's boyfriend had never been to the punk house. And I was like, well, 37. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Been.
Vanessa Hankins [:And he's from, like, he, he's from, he's from here. Born and raised.
Christine Hankins [:I'm like, how have you never been born and raised?
Vanessa Hankins [:So I was like, well, that settles it. That's what we're doing.
Christine Hankins [:We gotta do that.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. So like that's what we did.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. Like, but I mean that's something I go and do every year it seems like. And like I said, sometimes, you know, I'm. I'll be there for an hour or something so. Or like we did last. You know, the last time we went, it was brief, you know, we just stopped by 30 minutes, took some pictures, saw the pumpkins.
Vanessa Hankins [:I was gonna say, honestly, that's all it takes. And it's so funny to me because you come around the corner on either side of the house. Like, you come down the side streets to come down the house, and people come from all over to look at the pumpkin house. So there's this line that's, like, wrapped around the block, and Brandon's making a big deal. You need to get in the line. You need to get in line. If you're wanting to see the pumpkins, you need to get in line. Heck, no.
Christine Hankins [:We're not getting.
Vanessa Hankins [:We're not getting in no damn line. Like, we're going up to the steps, and we're walking right up to the house. Like, we're not doing. That's all the people that don't. They're not from here. They don't. They don't know.
Christine Hankins [:Right.
Vanessa Hankins [:They don't know that you don't have to be in line. Just stand on the street and get it in its full glory. And something that's really cool that I think a lot of people don't realize that you can do is that week leading up to the week of Halloween. You can go and carve, and you can go help, and it's so fun. And you can go around and take your time because nobody's there. You can take your time and see all the pumpkins, and you can help make the really cool pumpkins. Like, you can carve them, you can gut them, you can place them. Literally.
Vanessa Hankins [:They will find something for you to do.
Christine Hankins [:Me and Nick actually really wanted to go do that this year. And, like, by time we thought of it, like, I saw on Facebook that they actually ended up getting done early.
Vanessa Hankins [:A day early.
Christine Hankins [:Yep. Yeah. And, like, we were just like, oh, let's go carve pumpkins at the pumpkin.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because it's kind of getting out. Like, the information is getting out that, like, they can take, so they get more and more people help with it. Yeah, I do it every year with Junior League. That's why I know that you can do it, because I didn't know before joining, joining Junior League that you could partake in it. I had no idea. And I'm born and raised around here, so, like, I don't know how I missed it, but whatever. All right, let's do a Thanksgiving draft. We're gonna build our dream plate with five items for Thanksgiving, one at a time.
Vanessa Hankins [:No repeats.
Christine Hankins [:Damn.
Vanessa Hankins [:Are you ready?
Christine Hankins [:This is gonna be hard.
Vanessa Hankins [:I know. We're gonna have to do our best.
Christine Hankins [:Question is, are condiments counted as an item?
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, I don't know. I don't. I don't think so.
Christine Hankins [:Okay.
Vanessa Hankins [:You guys and your condiments. Like, your family is crazy about condiments. I was gonna say Carly and Brandon are obsessed with the sauce.
Christine Hankins [:And when I tell you I dip something in a sauce, it's a dip.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, it's like. It's not like, oh, I'm just gonna dab my chip in this salsa. No, I wouldn't take, like, half the jar with my chip.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's like a spoonful. Going with the chip.
Christine Hankins [:Yep.
Vanessa Hankins [:Absolutely. All right, so you want to go first? You want me to.
Christine Hankins [:You can go first.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. I am taking Mac and cheese because Mac and cheese, no matter where I'm at, whatever kind of outing, whatever kind of potluck, you can't go wrong with it, I'm going with the Mac and cheese everywhere. So Mac and cheese is my first pick.
Christine Hankins [:Man, this is tough. I think I'm going to be non traditional. My first thing I want to do is ham, just because I love it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Ham. Ham. Okay, so if you're taking ham on your plate, I'm gonna go opposite, and I'm gonna go ahead and take turkey since I can't pick ham. So my plate so far is Mac and cheese and turkey.
Christine Hankins [:I need paper for this.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, let me. Let me give you some paper. Here. Let me give you some sheets.
Christine Hankins [:Okay, thanks.
Vanessa Hankins [:So we don't repeat our.
Christine Hankins [:So I've got ham. Is that the only thing I have yet? Yeah, it's the only thing I've got right now.
Vanessa Hankins [:I got turkey and Mac and cheese. So it's your turn.
Christine Hankins [:Okay. These. I really want to say mashed potatoes and gravy, but you love them so much.
Vanessa Hankins [:I can come up with something else if you want to pick it.
Christine Hankins [:Okay.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm not gonna be bitter.
Christine Hankins [:I really love some mashed potatoes and gravy.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's just. I get it.
Christine Hankins [:You got the Mac and cheese. Okay.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. Okay, so I'm gonna take. What is your mom's corn dish called?
Christine Hankins [:I don't know.
Vanessa Hankins [:We need to know.
Christine Hankins [:The crack corn.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's the crack corn. I'm taking the crack corn.
Christine Hankins [:Damn you.
Vanessa Hankins [:Hey, you took mashed potatoes.
Christine Hankins [:You know what I want to do is I want to get one. Have you seen those super long forks that are, like, on, like, TikTok and Facebook?
Vanessa Hankins [:The extendable ones? Yeah. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:I won't be stealing that corn from your plate with my extendo fork.
Vanessa Hankins [:Extendo fork.
Christine Hankins [:Okay, so I got ham, mashed potatoes, and gravy. I think I'm going to take. I'm gonna take green beans.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, green beans are good.
Christine Hankins [:It really depends on the kind of green bean.
Vanessa Hankins [:I like the ones and I don't know, I think they're like Old. Old Glory.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Maybe that have, like, the potatoes already in them.
Christine Hankins [:Those are so.
Vanessa Hankins [:They're so good.
Christine Hankins [:Those are my.
Vanessa Hankins [:Your brother is not making those this year because he said we're already having mashed potatoes. So he's just doing, like, the Old Glory green beans without the potatoes, which, I mean, they'll still be delicious.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, they're still good. It's those seasoned ones.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's the seasoned ones. They're so delicious.
Christine Hankins [:They are.
Vanessa Hankins [:Which. And he can make really, really good green beans without buying the Old Glory. But, like, we're gonna be so inundated with, like, making everything that we're gonna take the easy route on this. So. Yeah. All right, so I need my fourth. I am going to take, literally, some kind of bread. It doesn't even matter.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm just taking. I'm taking carbs. I'm taking a bread. I'm taking it like a roll or cornbread. It's a roll usually, but I really love a cornbread. I love a bread with all of my other things, even if it's a slice of bread.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, I love a good slice of bread.
Vanessa Hankins [:A little fresh, like, baked recently. Oh, my God. It's really delicious.
Christine Hankins [:I'm gonna take stuffing.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, man. I wasn't even thinking about stuffing since.
Christine Hankins [:You done took the bread.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. So now it's getting hard because I can't think of a fifth thing I am going to take.
Christine Hankins [:You should probably just go ahead and take cranberry sauce, because I don't want that.
Vanessa Hankins [:I absolutely do not want cranberry sauce. It's so nasty.
Christine Hankins [:I hate it.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's so gross. I always. When I go to Bob Evans, I get the, like, it's. I call it the Thanksgiving platter, but it's like the home. Home cook down home platter or something. But it's the turkey one. It's the turkey dinner.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And it comes with cream, and I'm like, no. Like, do not put it on my plate. I don't want it on the side. I don't want it.
Christine Hankins [:I feel like everyone's really divided on it. You either love it or you freaking hate it. Yeah, I've never liked it.
Vanessa Hankins [:I've never liked it. I've never liked it. I do love the color of it because it's a very pretty color. It's very festive.
Christine Hankins [:It brings good color to the table.
Vanessa Hankins [:It really does. But I'm not. I'm not eating it.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. I feel like mom would always would make it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:And then, like, Terry would be the only one that would eat it. Her and Terry.
Vanessa Hankins [:That makes no one else. Because I don't remember anybody else eating it either.
Christine Hankins [:It's just not.
Vanessa Hankins [:See, we never had it in my family that I remember. And maybe they did. And maybe just where I didn't eat it. I didn't realize it was there, but I don't think we ever had it growing up.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. It's not my thing.
Vanessa Hankins [:God, what is gonna be my fifth? I am going to go. We've already talked about it. I'm gonna go with my chocolate pie. Can't forget the dessert.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, you can't forget dessert.
Vanessa Hankins [:Can't forget the dessert.
Christine Hankins [:I know, but what's your six gonna be?
Vanessa Hankins [:We don't do six.
Christine Hankins [:Oh, are we just going to.
Vanessa Hankins [:We're just doing five.
Christine Hankins [:Oh, okay.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Well, since you took chocolate pie, I will take my next favorite thing, which is the pumpkin cheesecake. Mom makes a pretty bangin pumpkin cheesecake.
Vanessa Hankins [:See, I don't like a cheesecake. Like, I don't like any of them. Like, it doesn't matter what kind it is. The consistency is real weird for me.
Christine Hankins [:You're a texture girly.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, I'm a texture girly, so. But that's a pretty solid plate that you've got there, though.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, I mean, solid draft.
Christine Hankins [:Okay, you got turkey. I was about to say, did you get turkey?
Vanessa Hankins [:I did I get turkey or did.
Christine Hankins [:You just do all sides?
Vanessa Hankins [:No, no, I did a turkey. I did a main dish.
Christine Hankins [:Going to lie, though. So, like, as much as I like, you know, the protein part of it, I'm a side person. Like, I'm there for all of the sides. Like, that's my favorite part of Thanksgiving is loading up on all the freaking sides. And I. I mean, I'm fairly certain you don't like these either. We could just because I feel like since we're talking about Thanksgiving, we need to talk about it. Or deviled eggs.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, my God, your brother loves them.
Christine Hankins [:I hate them.
Vanessa Hankins [:They're disgusting. They smell disgusting. They look disgusting.
Christine Hankins [:I'm just not a big egg person in general.
Vanessa Hankins [:I like like a hard boiled egg, but I like like one and Done. But I don't. I don't want it with like the mayonnaise and the mustard. I don't. I don't want all the stuff that goes into deviled eggs. I don't.
Christine Hankins [:I know. I feel like we're gonna get a.
Vanessa Hankins [:Lot of criticism because it's not for me.
Christine Hankins [:Everyone always talks about, like, how much they love the deviled eggs.
Vanessa Hankins [:They even make those, like, platters that are especially made to like hold them. And people are like, this is my plate for Thanksgiving. I'm like, you're disgusting.
Christine Hankins [:I hate them. They smell like farts.
Vanessa Hankins [:They really do. And people that eat them end up farting. And it's like, it's so bad for your gut. It's so bad. Yeah. It's so bad. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:I don't need help in that department.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm with you. I am with you. Alright, so folks around the Tri State, what is your favorite activity? We want to know. Tell us on our Facebook. You know what I mean? But let's talk about things to do around here in the fall. I think the biggest thing is like pumpkin patches. And we don't have pumpkin patches per se, as much as we have like little shops that pop up and bring the pumpkins to their store location for you to pick their pumpkins, as far as that goes. But I think a really big one around here a big fall activity.
Vanessa Hankins [:And this kind of includes Halloween as well. But everyone loves kind of doing the Fearplex. They love the good haunted house. They love that we always have some entity that's making apple butter. I think right now the firefighters are doing a big apple butter fundraiser. So that's a big thing. And another, and I could be wrong about this. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't like the Bob Evans Farm Farm Festival.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's a big fall.
Christine Hankins [:It was just a couple weeks ago.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's what I thought. That's a big fall thing around here. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:And something that my daughter loves to do. Every fall is good. She freaking loves grits. Loves it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Grits Farm is like the place to.
Christine Hankins [:Go if you've got a little pumpkin patch there.
Vanessa Hankins [:Do they?
Christine Hankins [:Yes, you can go out.
Vanessa Hankins [:I haven't been in years.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, you can go out in the field and pick your pumpkin.
Vanessa Hankins [:I haven't been in a year since my kids were small.
Christine Hankins [:It's big. I mean, like, there's a lot to do there. And I know I hear a lot about Noble family farms. I actually haven't done gone and done that one. I've heard it's Like, a little bit smaller than grits, but it's pretty.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, it's smaller. We went there with James's preschool, which, again, that's been. He's grown, so that's been years. So I'm sure it's bigger now than it was then, but it is smaller. How does. How does one. I buy mine at Sam's. Yeah, I buy my pumpkins at Sam's because they're huge and they're five bucks.
Vanessa Hankins [:They are. They're massive.
Christine Hankins [:They are. They're good.
Vanessa Hankins [:They're massive, and they're like, five bucks. So I think they're like 5.98 or 4.98, something like that. Yeah, they're awesome. Excuse me. I'm. I got the burps a little bit from the mom water. It's so funny because, like, I really. When I do.
Vanessa Hankins [:When I set up my. My situation for each episode, I go in and, like, kind of, like, make some bullshit B.S. i need to do better. Some. I do some B.S. about, like, what. What my guest may say or may not say. Whatever.
Vanessa Hankins [:So it's funny here that, like, literally, I was like, what's your favorite fall activity? And I've got you saying pumpkin patches. Like, and that was just the BS thing that I picked. So it's just funny that we led into that without even really. It's so funny. But, like, really, like, how do you choose your pumpkin?
Christine Hankins [:Well, so this year, Charlotte really wanted to carve some pumpkins, and I went.
Vanessa Hankins [:I was a little late. See, we carve every year.
Christine Hankins [:I was a little late. Yeah, we carve every year.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:And, like, I always took the approach of, like, ooh, I want, like, you know, one of the bigger pumpkins that I can find. I want it to be symmetrical. And I actually got two smaller ones this year. Like, I mean, I'm not saying, like, pumpkin pie pumpkin size, but, like, I mean, they weren't massive. Like, the Sam's. Sam's ones are huge.
Vanessa Hankins [:They really are huge. It takes everything in me to put one in the buggy and then to get them from the car to the house.
Christine Hankins [:And then I found that, like, I actually kind of. I would call them a good medium pumpkin.
Vanessa Hankins [:A medium pumpkin.
Christine Hankins [:Medium for carving wise.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like, because it wasn't as, like, thick and hard to cut well.
Vanessa Hankins [:And they're kind of more round.
Christine Hankins [:Yes.
Vanessa Hankins [:And, like, so you have more space to work with.
Christine Hankins [:And the carving itself fit really well in the area. It looked very proportional.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:It made my aesthetic heart happy. They turned out the way.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. No, that makes sense, because they looked.
Christine Hankins [:Good when they were done.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:And, like. And it wasn't as much to clean out of the actual pumpkin because I don't know about everyone else's children but mine. Her favorite part is just to get the guts out.
Vanessa Hankins [:Get the guts out. Yep.
Christine Hankins [:And I'm over here, like, hacksawing this design into this pumpkin. Meanwhile, she is over making soup with.
Vanessa Hankins [:The seeds, with the insides, the guts.
Christine Hankins [:I don't know. She plans to feed it too.
Vanessa Hankins [:But see, Carly this year had the big, giant idea that she wanted us to bake the seeds and put cinnamon on them. Oh, yeah.
Christine Hankins [:I came over that night.
Vanessa Hankins [:Apparently, you're supposed to soak them first in, like, a mixture of, like.
Christine Hankins [:I'm not so much.
Vanessa Hankins [:Something in water. I think maybe salt and water.
Christine Hankins [:Yes. I'm not a sweet pumpkin seed person. I like mine salty. And a couple of years ago, someone told me to soak. I think it was either soak or boil my seeds in, like, a salt water.
Vanessa Hankins [:That was what I was gonna say. I feel like I was wrong. But if you've read that before, then, okay, I'm on the right track.
Christine Hankins [:And then, like, season them and then bake them in the oven and. Oh, my God, they were so freaking good. But I love salty stuff. I'm more like, if I'm eating, like, a seed or something like that, I want it to be salty and not so much sweet. And, like, they were addictive. And, I mean, I hadn't. I knew my child would not have anything to do with.
Vanessa Hankins [:We did not saturate ours with the water, the salt water. So ours did not turn out. They did not hold the cinnamon like they were supposed to. It was a whole, which is a whole.
Christine Hankins [:I guess if you're making.
Vanessa Hankins [:They smelled delicious, though.
Christine Hankins [:Like, maybe you would soak them in sugar.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, maybe that makes more sense.
Christine Hankins [:I don't know.
Vanessa Hankins [:I've never looked too far into it because I've never really been, like, appealed by the idea of.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, let's have some pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds. I'd probably just rather go in the store and just buy them.
Vanessa Hankins [:Right? See, that's me. Like, I'm. I'm a Buy it girly. Carly is a DIY girly. And I used to. To be. But, like, now I'm like, who has time for that?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And I should probably do better as a mother. But, you know, it's like, whatever it.
Christine Hankins [:Is, you gotta pick and choose. Some things are very much worth diying, especially if it's going to Be something that's, like, sentimental. You're making the memory with diying it. But let's be honest. Is there a whole lot of memory time to baking the pumpkin?
Vanessa Hankins [:Well, and that's the thing. Like, she literally separated the seeds and then gave them to me and was like, peace out. Yeah. So, like, it was me baking the pumpkin seeds. And, like, when they're done, oh, those didn't turn out. And she's done with it. And I'm like, well, we just wasted 45 minutes of baking time at, like, 200 or something.
Christine Hankins [:Low.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. It's not super high, so it takes forever.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, it's a. And I'm like, why did we do this?
Christine Hankins [:That was me with carving the whole pumpkin.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, absolutely.
Christine Hankins [:Every year, like, my child dipped and went and watched tv. I was just parked up there in the kitchen floor.
Vanessa Hankins [:I was like, well, guess I'll finish this. Yep, absolutely. That's exactly what happens. So, like, I feel like we do this big carving contest here in Huntington for. I think it's for the children's museum.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. And we get, like, local, like, yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:We get, like, local stars, local celebrities, whatever. And it's a really big deal. And they do, like, really cool on their pumpkins. Like, I'm like, I do not have that skill set. Like, I think year before last or last year, they had a surgeon who did the. And the pumpkin was, like, phenomenal. Oh, my God, it was crazy. I was like, goodness gracious.
Christine Hankins [:Like, I'm lucky to just, like, all of my parts stay together.
Vanessa Hankins [:I'm lucky if a bat comes out looking like a bat.
Christine Hankins [:Right.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, it's like, I'm not good.
Christine Hankins [:Like, we. Charlotte, bless her heart, every year, we have to always carve a cat and a pumpkin. And like, every year, the whiskers are always really questionable because this is a really tiny, thin cut for the whiskers. And, like, I. One of them was not attached this year, thankfully. It was attached in another part, so you couldn't tell.
Vanessa Hankins [:And then, like, the point of, like, getting toothpicks out that way, like, if you have the parts you cut off, rig it back together. Yes.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. One year, I cut the whole tail off of a cat.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's so funny.
Christine Hankins [:I'm like, yeah, whatever.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's hilarious.
Christine Hankins [:You got it closed in a door. It's fine.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so I want to talk about, like, rare or oddity type traditions, and I. I. I'm gonna be honest. I chat gpd this. So we're gonna. I'm gonna read the list to you that Chat GPT came up with because.
Christine Hankins [:Incorporate some of these into our Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:I think we should try because they're weird as hell. So, like, I think it would be on point for our family. I feel like it makes sense.
Christine Hankins [:Or I could show up and sing a song.
Vanessa Hankins [:You. You should. Absolutely. Carly should bring her clarinet home. Yeah. And you can bring. Look, what did you have that one year guitar or ukulele or something of that count.
Christine Hankins [:But my boyfriend is very musically inclined. Oh.
Vanessa Hankins [:So he's got.
Christine Hankins [:We have an array of instruments at home.
Vanessa Hankins [:See, I think that needs to happen.
Christine Hankins [:I know.
Vanessa Hankins [:We need to, like, keep that on the DL. Brandon doesn't listen to this, so, like, I don't worry about him. Your mom listens, so it won't be a surprise to her.
Christine Hankins [:But they're usually.
Vanessa Hankins [:But they're used to that. Yeah. So it's fine. All right. So weird and wonderful Thanksgiving traditions. Podcast service. Podcast. Oh, my God, I cannot talk today.
Vanessa Hankins [:Segment version. Okay. Are you ready?
Christine Hankins [:I'm ready.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. Something that's super weird. The number one weird thing that happens in America is the presidential turkey pardon. Have you ever seen it? No. Okay, so somewhere in Washington, D.C. a turkey gets treated better than most of us do on Thanksgiving, and it gets an official pardon. Every year, the president officially pardons one lucky bird so it won't be eating. So it gets a fancy ceremony, cameras, the whole thing, and then it retries.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, it goes. It retires to a farm, and it's never eaten. So it's like the Elvis of poultry. Like, it's. It's like the big wig. Like it got pardoned by the President of the United States.
Christine Hankins [:So, I mean, it's just. It's just going to get to live a lavish life the rest of its life.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, that's literally what happens. It goes to this farm to retire, and it just lives out its days as an uneaten turkey.
Christine Hankins [:Turkey of all turkeys.
Vanessa Hankins [:The turkey of all turkeys. I bet there's, like, a club. I bet there's, like, a club of them that's like, oh, you were the one that got picked this year.
Christine Hankins [:Welcome to the club. Like, very high socialites, you know, like.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes, they're the cool turkeys in our.
Christine Hankins [:Den while we sip our whiskey and smoke our fine cigars as the pardoned turkeys of Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so number two, turkey bowling. Ever heard of it?
Christine Hankins [:Do you use an actual turkey to bowl?
Vanessa Hankins [:I don't know. Let's read. You know, because nothing says gratitude like throwing a frozen poultry at soda bottles. Okay, so yeah. So, yeah. Okay, so this is a thing. It started in the 80s and people literally bow bowl with frozen turkeys down the grocery store aisle or a parking lot and sometimes they even dress them up. So, like, what's the weirdest thing that you've ever seen turned into a sport? Because that's weird as hell.
Christine Hankins [:Can we do that in your street? You think the neighbors will say something?
Vanessa Hankins [:I think some of them will join in and it's hilarious probably. But like, we could probably try this.
Christine Hankins [:So, like, if you're doing it on the street though, I feel like your turkey would get torn up and then you would just end up with raw turkey all over the street.
Vanessa Hankins [:But that could be entertaining though.
Christine Hankins [:It could be. I feel like it would be an event. I feel like, Brandon, what if we.
Vanessa Hankins [:Put down like a roll of like plastic. Yeah. As the alley, like the lane.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because it would be frozen, so it would just slide right along the plastic. Oh, my God. We might have just made our own tradition.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, we're having it in a new place.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes. So I feel like when you start a new tradition.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so next one. The night before Thanksgiving, a turkey drop. It's not about turkeys falling from the sky. It's about your ex boyfriend showing up at the bar. So the story is in a ton of small towns the night before Thanksgiving, it's the biggest bar night of the year. Which. Have you heard that before? That's true.
Christine Hankins [:It is a hundred percent.
Vanessa Hankins [:It is the biggest thing. So everyone comes home from college and sees their old crush and regrets it by Friday morning. Absolutely happens. Yeah, absolutely happens. So. So it's not an actual turkey drop. It's just saying like that your ex is a turkey and you're dropping them come Monday morning like you. You reacquainted with them.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, it's an analogy.
Christine Hankins [:That is a pretty fun time to go out though.
Vanessa Hankins [:So have you ever had a turkey drop run in?
Christine Hankins [:No.
Vanessa Hankins [:No. You've usually been taken around the holidays.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. And let's.
Vanessa Hankins [:And I have been for 20 years. So.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. I was going to say my ex now I was with for 12 years and share a child together. So I see him. Right, right, right, right.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. So the number four is a deep fried turkey and the annual fire department visit that comes usually with that.
Christine Hankins [:Well, we haven't had a fire visit show up yet, but.
Vanessa Hankins [:So is that something Jeremy's family does?
Christine Hankins [:Yes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, do they say we've never done one?
Christine Hankins [:No. No, wait, I lied. It's not deep fry.
Vanessa Hankins [:They smoke it they smoke it. Okay.
Christine Hankins [:It's good.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, I bet.
Christine Hankins [:But, yeah, I hear a lot about the deep frying of the turkey.
Vanessa Hankins [:I've seen lots of videos.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Fails and stuff like that. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like, it seems really risky.
Vanessa Hankins [:So for anyone at home that doesn't know what a deep fried turkey is, people all over the world fry turkeys in a giant vat of oil. And there's kind of like this timing situation because if it is the least bit still frozen. Yeah. It explodes, basically when it hits the oil. So would I trust Brandon with a turkey fryer? Absolutely not. Absolutely not. We're not doing that in my family.
Christine Hankins [:He could smoke it.
Vanessa Hankins [:He could. That I'm okay with. He could absolutely do that. Okay, Number five, a jello salad. Okay. So this one's for the Midwest, where dessert salad and science experiments collide. It's a lime jello with canned fruit, shredded carrots, and sometimes even tuna. Somehow it's been passed down for generations.
Christine Hankins [:What the hell?
Vanessa Hankins [:I know that sounds terrible.
Christine Hankins [:I follow. So I follow this guy on Instagram and I feel like I need to look it up to tell everyone because this. This reminds me of this guy I follow that makes vintage recipes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, I think your brother follows him too. It's like a gentleman and his wife every now and then. No, no, different person.
Christine Hankins [:This guy. He's a gay guy.
Vanessa Hankins [:It's not the same guy. Then.
Christine Hankins [:No. This guy is like, it's Marco's fun house.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. He's writing it down so I can look him up.
Christine Hankins [:It is seriously so freaking hilarious. So he has his listeners submit him, like, old recipe, old family vintage recipe.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh, that's hilarious.
Christine Hankins [:And he makes them and he eats them, and they are so bad, literally, that jello is like, what that sounds.
Vanessa Hankins [:You should send it into him. You should send this out. I'll screenshot it. You should send it in to him. Be like, long time listener. New New edition. Here it is. Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Tuna. Sometimes tuna. So what's the weirdest dish that always shows up at your family Thanksgiving table? I think it would be the cranberry sauce.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. Because no one eats.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because no one eats it. Yeah. And it's not even weird, per se.
Christine Hankins [:But, like, no one in my family eats it. And, like. And I will say, like, I've seen mom do both canned and make, like, make it homemade. And I will say the homemade one is much more presentable than that literal.
Vanessa Hankins [:The can of, like, gum.
Christine Hankins [:That roll of jelly on a plat.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes. Yeah, that's funny. Okay, so this one is not unfamiliar to Me, we, I don't want to say we never did it. We probably did as like little cousins and stuff running around because I have a really big family. But family football rivalries, it was never like a big deal, like we're the reigning champs or anything like that. But we would get out and play football. So you know, nothing says a little friendly competition to ruin the family dynamic for the rest of the year. And I have literally seen this in families.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like I know families that take it so seriously that like family members aren't talking the whole year because so and so beat so and so or, or you know, Uncle Bill pulled his ACL this Thanksgiving out on the, you know, out in the backyard, yada yada yada yada. So which one of our relatives do you think that would take a backyard football game? Just way too serious. I think it'd be Ben.
Christine Hankins [:A hundred percent. He's so competitive.
Vanessa Hankins [:He's so competitive.
Christine Hankins [:He's so competitive.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like literally, like you can't even play Monopoly with him. You cannot play board games with him. Like, and take it from me, like we, we literally were roommates when we were all in college and like Erica, Ben, Brandon and myself and we, we shared an apartment and we love nothing more than a game night. Like we, like we just said we, we just played them a couple weekends ago. So we love a game night. But you cannot play one with Ben Angel. You really can't.
Christine Hankins [:I think Nick would give him a run for his money.
Vanessa Hankins [:Oh. Because he stays so chill. He like, he would be like internally laughing his ass off and you wouldn't even be able to tell.
Christine Hankins [:Is he? Yes. Like when we play golf.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:There is no mercy for me whatsoever.
Vanessa Hankins [:I would never have imagined that.
Christine Hankins [:Like, you know, I, and I can say me and him have been together all. We're going on a year and a half at this point now.
Vanessa Hankins [:You guys have been friends like forever though. So like the relationship has.
Christine Hankins [:And when I built over years, we literally have never had an argument with each other. Our closest argument that we have with each other was out on the frickin golf course.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like seriously, like that's hilarious. I'm telling you, I really would not have imagined this at all.
Christine Hankins [:I will also say we. Charlotte really, really wanted to play Mario Kart with Nick the other night. So we hooked it up online on Switch. So cuz Nick was home and I was over with Charlotte. Right. I literally had to text Nick and be like, you need to let her win.
Vanessa Hankins [:You have to cry. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like she is in tears. Right. I Was like, stop. She is eight.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's hilarious. That's so funny that, like, I did not know that about.
Christine Hankins [:Yes. Don't let him fool you.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's so funny. I would have. I would have never thought that.
Christine Hankins [:Do not let him fool you. You. When it comes to the competitiveness.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so next one. And this one's weird, so I've never heard of it. Oyster stuffing. What? Apparently in New England, they decided that bread and celery were not weird enough because, you know, like, when you say it out loud, it's weird.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:They mix oysters into the stuffing. It's a colonial era thing that somehow has stuck around.
Christine Hankins [:No, the colonial.
Vanessa Hankins [:I don't even like oysters. Yeah, they can keep it.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, like, I'm not a big fan of oysters. It's not like my first seafood choice.
Vanessa Hankins [:No.
Christine Hankins [:Now, like, if I want to eat one, I have to put it on a cracker with like some horseradish and some hot sauce.
Vanessa Hankins [:You gotta like a booger. It feels like. Yeah. And I'm a texture girly, like we already said. So, like, it's not for me. Like, it's not happening. So if you could replace one Thanksgiving side with the seafood, what would it be? Do you think you would pick lobster? I feel like you really like lobster.
Christine Hankins [:I really like lobster, but I love crab legs.
Vanessa Hankins [:Crab legs?
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay.
Christine Hankins [:And if you would ask Nick, his ideal Thanksgiving is steak and lobster.
Vanessa Hankins [:I. I'm down for the steak.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because if we could have steaks. I mean, I like ham and turkey, but if we could have steaks.
Christine Hankins [:He hates ham. Hates it.
Vanessa Hankins [:And Carly does too.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. And he. And I think turkey is one of.
Vanessa Hankins [:Those they can hang together on Thanksgiving.
Christine Hankins [:Take it or leave it. Like to him this year he's like, I'm making myself a steak and lobster for Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:Good for him. Okay, so this one is not a surprise either, but it's like it is embedded into like American culture. The Macy's Day parade. The loyalist.
Christine Hankins [:I always like watching that.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. So every year millions of people watch a billion balloons float through New York and pretend that it's not weird when you say it out loud like that. Like, it is kind of weird, like that many people tuning in to watch balloons.
Christine Hankins [:Parade of balloons. Yeah. I mean, now granted, it is a cool parade. And like, they've really, you know, over the years, it's really. I mean, it is tradition thing, but like, it's Thanksgiving. How did they come up with a parade for Thanksgiving?
Vanessa Hankins [:And like, none of the stuff is really Thanksgiving. Based other than like the one Christmas in there. There's a lot of Christmas.
Christine Hankins [:There's usually like a flavor float that.
Vanessa Hankins [:Is like, there's like one turkey. Yeah, there's like one turkey.
Christine Hankins [:But yeah, other than that Christmas stuff in it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, I'm with you. And I think it's so weird. Like some people, like even I did a post a few weeks back on Tri State time machine of when does it become like the holidays for you? Is it like literally November 1st? Is it when you see the Macy's Day Parade? When do you put up your tree? Basically was the question in a roundabout way. And I got lots of responses that was, I have to see the parade before my tree comes up.
Christine Hankins [:There's a lot of people out there that are like, I think you're, you're either one extreme or the other.
Vanessa Hankins [:Right.
Christine Hankins [:You've got the people, the Die Hards that are like, no, it's Thanksgiving. We put the tree up either like the day of Thanksgiving or right after.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Or you've got. Jeremy's house is decorated for Christmas. He put all of his episodes.
Vanessa Hankins [:If, if I wouldn't have had things to do today, mine would have been started today. And I won't lie, Carly came in and was like very distraught with me that I would not put up a tree today.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:But I just, I didn't have the time.
Christine Hankins [:I am.
Vanessa Hankins [:But it's a lot of work. So like I kind of want to get the time out of it.
Christine Hankins [:Honestly. That's like, that's my thought with it. Is that like it's a lot of work for me to wait until Thanksgiving to decorate, for me to only have it up for literally like three weeks.
Vanessa Hankins [:Three weeks.
Christine Hankins [:Uh huh. And I'm like, no. So I usually get through Halloween and then like within. I will say it's usually decorated at least by my birthday. My birthday's the 16th.
Vanessa Hankins [:The 16th.
Christine Hankins [:So usually like those first like week of November, second week of November, I get it done. But I mean, but I like to decorate for fall early. So like for me fall is like, you know, September, October and then Christmas is November, December.
Vanessa Hankins [:Right, right, right, right. And that's the thing, like as, as I'm getting older and I told Carly that this morning when she came in and asked me to put the tree up, I was like, I promise we're doing it because we are definitely doing it. Like we're, we're doing it early this year, as early as possible. My goal is to. Because it was raining this morning. So a little bit of My Halloween inflatables were still wet, so I'll probably take them down when I get home.
Christine Hankins [:If they're dry, it's going to be nice this week.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah. So I'm hoping if they're not dry today, they'll be dry this week. Yeah. Get them down and get started. I don't know that how much I'll put on the outside, but I'll definitely have the inside looking like wonderland.
Christine Hankins [:I will say the outside. We always wait till Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Like, even it, like, even if we'll go out and like, put the lights up on the house or something until Thanksgiving.
Vanessa Hankins [:So we have. I bought two sets of like the house size packs of grove lights. Have you seen those before?
Christine Hankins [:No.
Vanessa Hankins [:So they're how. They're lights that you add to your house. They're like landscaping lights.
Christine Hankins [:Oh, yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And they're like controlled by an app on your phone. So that was something Brandon actually wanted me to do today was to put those up. But my goal is this week is to get those up because they. You can change them like red, green, you know, like, so for Christmas or you can do them orange for Halloween or like, whatever. So I've had them. This is typical me. I've literally had them like eight months and they're just sitting on top of a cabinet.
Christine Hankins [:Are they sitting in that corner with the Halloween decorations that Brandon said you never put up?
Vanessa Hankins [:No. And FYI. Hi. Those are empty boxes for my inflatables. They are put up. I just didn't want to throw the boxes away. And I know if I threw them in the attic, I wouldn't remember that I had them.
Christine Hankins [:Right.
Vanessa Hankins [:And then I wouldn't put them back into their boxes.
Christine Hankins [:I get it.
Vanessa Hankins [:I get. So yeah. Now I will say he literally asked me about that literally this morning.
Christine Hankins [:For me, this year, I will be a probably Thanksgiving decorator because we are purchasing a house. Yay. Finally. And we're supposed to close on it November 24th.
Vanessa Hankins [:So, you know, I'm a Halloween girly, but I have become more of a decorating the house on the inside. A fall decorating girly.
Christine Hankins [:Yes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Because Halloween is. I mean, it's kind of like we were just talking about with Christmas and Thanksgiving, it comes and goes so fast that you don't want to have to take a full day to take down and put up the decorations. So I buy more things that, like, are hard fall than Halloween.
Christine Hankins [:And I would rather throw in, like, throw out a. Like, you know, change out my blanket on the couch.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:You know, for something Halloween, just add like, sprinkle in a few Halloween touches that like, literally once it's over, I can just pull down real quick and throw back into the box and be done.
Vanessa Hankins [:Right, Right, Absolutely. So that's what my corner is, is empty boxes that my inflatables go in. So, Brandon. All right, so we've got nine and 10 to go. Number nine. And this is weird, but I get it. I know there's people out there. Actually, one of our close relative's sister is kind of weird about her food and it has made it weird the last few years at my sister in law's because she only eats certain things.
Vanessa Hankins [:Tofu, Tofurkey, I hope I'm saying that correctly. And vegan substitutes. Do you remember Ben's sister? Like, she only ate certain things. Like, she was. She's a. She wasn't a vegetarian. What was she? Do you remember? She's. Maybe.
Vanessa Hankins [:I don't remember, but it was something like she didn't eat like a ton of the stuff that we had.
Christine Hankins [:Right.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like, her plate was like very minimal. And I was just like, well, that's not Thanksgiving. Like, that doesn't sound enjoyable.
Christine Hankins [:I mean, I've tried tofu before and I mean, I. I get it. Like, if you're someone that doesn't eat meat, you probably, like, get used to eating tofu.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, I could see that. But like, it just feels like a fake Thanksgiving.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. I mean, now, don't get me wrong, I could live off of the sides.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:I could totally bypass the meat and eat the sides.
Vanessa Hankins [:Same.
Christine Hankins [:But.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so number 10, the annual Thankful for circle gone wrong. Because, you know, it always starts with the unthankful for family, but it ends with like Aunt Linda storming out like she's pissed off because somebody has brought up politics. Like, it always happens. Like, usually it's your brother in our family. Like, he will say something totally stupid and he's not a politic guy, but he will say something totally left field that he knows is gonna piss off your mom.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Just to like, just to get a rise out of it. Right.
Christine Hankins [:And like, to us, it's all really comical.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes. We are like, oh, woe is me. I'm thinking thankful for the clothes on my back and my children's health and, you know, like, things that we're just being super extra cheesy about. Like things that we are thankful for, but we're just being extra about it.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, absolutely. Brandon, who will.
Vanessa Hankins [:He'll say something like his 9 millimeters, like his colts or like his Cold beer, his, his banquets, his stogies, you know, whatever. He always comes up with something stupid, something dumb.
Christine Hankins [:You never know.
Vanessa Hankins [:You really don't. You really don't. Predictable. It really is. It really is. Alright, so we have gone over an hour. Okay. So let's make a checklist for people.
Vanessa Hankins [:The tri state fall bucket list. Okay. Let's pick and I'm gonna get my pin back out. Let's give people, let's give them six things. Three each. Six things that they have to do on their fall bucket list in the tri state. And I'm gonna go first and I'm gonna be your basic white girl. You've got to drink something pumpkin.
Christine Hankins [:Oh yeah. And there's so many choices and like I will one up that and say like you know, you know we've got Starbies, we've got Duncan. Go to, go to a local.
Vanessa Hankins [:Ooh.
Christine Hankins [:Go to like Grindstone or something like that.
Vanessa Hankins [:So I'm gonna put that on number one. That's not gonna count as your answer.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, like go to a local coffee drink.
Vanessa Hankins [:A local place.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:When you get your pumpkin. Anything.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay. Number two. Christine.
Christine Hankins [:I'm gonna, I'm gonna say either like grits or noble, you know Noble Farm.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Go to one of those fun local farms because it is all thanks fall in it.
Vanessa Hankins [:And the kids love it.
Christine Hankins [:Oh yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:And the corn, especially the corn pit. I was literally gonna say that. That's so funny. The corn pit is like the kids, the kids flippin love it. They love it so much. Okay, so I'm gonna go with. And I know it's already passed, but this is a fall thing. You've got to do something Halloween related.
Vanessa Hankins [:You've got to go to the pumpkin house. You've got to go pick a pumpkin. You've got to go go to a haunted house. You've got to do something that gets a little rise out of you.
Christine Hankins [:Yes. And I will say something I did this year that I didn't bring up it because it is Halloween related for all of the pet owners out there. Well, dog owners. I will say Pets Ritter park does a dog trick or treat.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yes.
Christine Hankins [:And it was the funnest thing ever.
Vanessa Hankins [:Did you do it this year?
Christine Hankins [:Yes, this is my first year doing it and I promise you it will be on my list every single year. Me and Nick.
Vanessa Hankins [:So is it like the drop, the one that the Parks and Rec does?
Christine Hankins [:It's not the candy drop because that's like you know the. They had do the big candy drop. But this is Literally trick or treat for, like, your dogs. You dress them up. They have all of these different vendors set up along the pathway.
Vanessa Hankins [:How cute.
Christine Hankins [:And you take your dog and.
Vanessa Hankins [:How did I not know about this?
Christine Hankins [:Because I will tell you. You. We literally got so many freaking treats and toys for the dog. It was insane.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love it.
Christine Hankins [:She got more stuff than like, a kid would get trick or treating. It was wild.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love that.
Christine Hankins [:But, like, and it was so funny because she, like, caught on to, like, what was going on. Like, she would go to each table and wait for her treat. Yes. And they would put either like a treat in her bucket or like, some of them had bags that had like.
Vanessa Hankins [:Like little toys, treats.
Christine Hankins [:And like, she got like a stuffed donut. She got a Halloween bandana. She got a rope toy. She got a tennis ball. I literally filled a whole entire empty box of treats at home with the treats she got from trick or treat.
Vanessa Hankins [:I love that.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Save some money on the grocery bill. Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:I was like, man, I was like, we don't gotta buy dog treats for a hot minute.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's awesome.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:I did not know about that. Like, I knew that they did like a, like the crane drop. They do something with pets. Yeah. And it might be like a parade. It might be like a pet parade. So I don't know.
Christine Hankins [:But it.
Vanessa Hankins [:But that's cool.
Christine Hankins [:I highly, highly recommend it if you love doing something with your dog and obviously only take your dog if your dog is well behaved. And I will say at the event this year, all of the dogs were really well behaved. You can tell they're out and socialized. You know, that's something that they ask.
Vanessa Hankins [:See, I don't know if my dogs would be able to participate in that, but I would definitely like to go and, like, watch it. And I was gonna say, even if.
Christine Hankins [:You don't have a pet and you just like enjoy seeing cute animals dressed up in adorable costumes, I totally recommend going to go check it out because they've got. And they've got like food vendors and stuff there.
Vanessa Hankins [:So, I mean, it's an event. It's not just like a one and done kind of thing. You can hang out.
Christine Hankins [:You can hang out for a little while. It's fine.
Vanessa Hankins [:That's awesome.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah.
Vanessa Hankins [:Okay, so I am going to go with. And this is another basic white girl thing. Take family photos with the color changing leaves.
Christine Hankins [:Yes.
Vanessa Hankins [:Even if it's in your own yard and you throw the leaves up and hurry up and snap the picture.
Christine Hankins [:I was literally just thinking about that. Like, I think it was like last night or this morning.
Vanessa Hankins [:We haven't done family photos in so long. Like, we need to do them. So I need to, like, get on my own list here and make it happen.
Christine Hankins [:Right? I was like, man. Cause, you know, with us buying the house and whatnot, I was like, I would really like to have, like, some good pictures done to hang on the wall.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, absolutely.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah, for sure.
Vanessa Hankins [:You can make that happen. Okay. All right, so what is your number five?
Christine Hankins [:My number five is going to kind of follow up with, you know, going and drinking something. Pumpkin. I'm gonna say go local again and eat all the good fall food that's put out during the fall.
Vanessa Hankins [:Fall? Yes.
Christine Hankins [:Like, you know, a lot of our locally owned restaurants will have fall specific meals that you can only get during the fall. And that, you know, either being dinner or.
Vanessa Hankins [:I was gonna say I think sip, and I could be wrong. Sorry if I am, but I think SIP does like a farm to table fall version meal. And I think they do it like one weekend. Like you have to sign up in advance for it. But like, it's a farm to table meal that she curates. Especially for the fall.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. Because, I mean, there's so many good things that you can only get during the fall. Now, I mean, if you're like me, and I also happen to really love the freaking pumpkin cream pie from McDonald's you can get during the fall.
Vanessa Hankins [:I've never had it.
Christine Hankins [:It's really, really good. But, you know, there are a lot of local places that only have, you know, will have a fall specific, you know, menu. Either a drink menu or food menu. Yeah, go, go test them out because they're good support. Like, I know Oscars up there on Route 60. They have like a fall drink menu and the drinks on it are tasty.
Vanessa Hankins [:Love it.
Christine Hankins [:So go try it out.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, love it. Okay, number six. I am going to go with. This is so hard. I didn't think this was gonna be this hard whenever I suggested it. Go for a walk, take it in. Like, breathe it in, go for a walk, pour you some hot chocolate. It can be Swiss Miss, you can buy it from Kroger, Walmart, wherever.
Vanessa Hankins [:It can be a Nanqua brand. It doesn't matter. But like, get your psl, get your hot chocolate, do whatever and take a family walk, Take the dogs out. Just breathe in the autumn air.
Christine Hankins [:Yes, it's the best.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah.
Christine Hankins [:Or like breathe in, breathe it in.
Vanessa Hankins [:Live, live life, man.
Christine Hankins [:Even if it's local, in a park or like even going out in the woods. And just enjoying all the leaves and the collar changing.
Vanessa Hankins [:Take in the autumn air. Yeah, that's. That's gonna be my number six. Breathe in the autumn air. Take. Take a moment to actually stop and appreciate. Appreciate it.
Christine Hankins [:Because we're all so busy and life passes so fast.
Vanessa Hankins [:Absolutely.
Christine Hankins [:And there's something really to be said about the area that we live in and being able to experience literally every season.
Vanessa Hankins [:Yeah, absolutely.
Christine Hankins [:Yeah. So stop and appreciate it.
Vanessa Hankins [:Absolutely. Okay, Christine, we have been recording now for an hour and 10 minutes, so thank you for hanging out with me for an hour and 10 minutes and bringing your pumpkin spice, chaos and energy. I enjoy it.
Christine Hankins [:You know, I love me some fall time.
Vanessa Hankins [:I like it. All right, so that's our show for today, you guys. So go enjoy fall. Jump in a leaf pile, hug your weird uncle at Thanksgiving dinner and eat way too much pie.
Christine Hankins [:Or corn.
Vanessa Hankins [:Or corn.
Christine Hankins [:If you like the corn.
Vanessa Hankins [:Or corn. And we'll catch you next time on Tri State Time Machine. Christine, you want to take us out of here?
Christine Hankins [:I hope everyone has a great, fantastic, happy, healthy, full belly Thanksgiving. And thanks for having me, Vanessa.
Vanessa Hankins [:You're welcome. We are out of here.
Christine Hankins [:Bye, guys.
