After my parent’s divorce, holidays became a little more complicated. Which holiday would we spend with who, etc. Especially when they both got remarried. Eventually Thanksgiving was the holiday we spent with my extended “step”family that my mom married into and I am eternally thankful for that.
Thanksgiving is typically enjoyed on the fourth Thursday of November where family gets together to eat as much sleep-inducing food as possible. Followed by football. Because so many of my family members are from out-of-town, Thanksgiving is turned into a four day event. Everyday fueled by another belt-breaking meal. My mother and stepfather even took the opportunity to get married on this holiday because of the amount of family that joins every year. Which brings me to the first thing I am thankful for about Thanksgiving.
For awhile after my mother passed away, I found it hard to focus on the good memories we had together. For almost 2 years, we all suffered the ups and downs of her brain tumor. It was hard to push that experience out of the forefront of my mind. Continuing to enjoy Thanksgiving helped the good stuff resurface.
Like the time she slapped me across the face for talking back to her. I was a teenager, I deserved it.
And how much she enjoyed singing those silly Thanksgiving songs set to once popular tunes. I think I might finally join in one year.
Having Ethan has brought a new appreciation for these get togethers. Watching him experience the holidays through his eyes brings me joy I could not have fathomed. Everything is fresh and new. He’s not aware of the antics he will be subjected to when he gets older.
About 15+ years (yeah, let’s go with that number) Thanksgiving was held in North Miami. I don’t remember all the details (because I’m old), but a younger cousin was convinced to climb up on the roof.
I also have photographic proof of a baby trying beer for the first time. Don’t worry. She was okay to drive home herself.
In recent years, Tim and I have celebrated Thanksgiving day with his older son at our house separately. I am thankful that we get to spend that time with him and hope that one day we have to rescue him from a tree he climbed to earn his street cred with the roof-climbing cousin.
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