Honestly, I think Grandma had the best idea; scrunch up paper towels or aluminum foil in each hand as a buffer between the turkey and your hands and then lift and move... really fast! Over the years I've used oven mitts that had to immediately go into the laundry afterwards, I've always used spatulas, tongs and other devices. Wooden spoons inserted inside the bird, even a mixture of all of the above! Whatever works for you works for me! No one will see you do this part anyway.
But now... you have to carve it! I found this step by step picture of how to carve a turkey that I must have found years and years ago as I had it clipped and taped to the inside of one of my hand written notebooks. I thought it would be perfect to post on the blog to help my readers too!
In the end however, if you are unsure of your carving skills, I suggest this: Do it in the kitchen! Away from prying eyes. Bring the bird to the table for the Thanksgiving prayer and then walk it back to the kitchen, carve away and return to the table with a platter full of sliced and carved turkey for the masses. No one will see how you cut it! They'll just see the beautiful and yummy finished product!
