Monday, December 8, 2014

A TALE OF TWO THANKSGIVINGS


This year, we celebrated Thanksgiving two times.  That means two times the delicious food, so that was a-ok with me. 

Wade and I had a quiet day on actual Thanksgiving.  We slept in, spent the day in our pjs, and ate a leisurely meal. 


We got to use my mom's gold flatware that she had kept in its original packaging, unused for the past 30 years.  Has anyone else noticed the switch from silver colored utensils to gold colored all over blog land?  I was telling my mom how shiny, bright gold was back in as we sat in my parent's living room surround by shiny brass, and she disappeared for a moment and returned with a four place setting of gold flatware.  Who needs to scour the depths of antique stores?  I just head to my parents' basement.  It just goes to show that all things are cyclical and seemingly "new" ideas are just "new" for that generation.


It was nice.  We had never spent a holiday by ourselves in our home.  But then we looked at each other and realized that we really missed celebrating with family.  Luckily, we would be seeing my family the next day and celebrating Thanksgiving with everyone.

We did end our night with a trip to get doughnuts and a viewing of "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles".  Top notch, indeed.


Our second round of Thanksgiving was wonderful and filled with the shrieks of kids and lots of laughing and hugs. 


Since we won't all be together for Christmas, we decided to celebrate multiple holidays at once.  Sure makes for a fun weekend!  We put up the Christmas tree, sang Christmas carols, and my brother made his directorial debut in the first annual kids' Christmas pageant.  He took it pretty seriously.  There were storyboards, costume changes, and a visit from a purple haired David Bowie in a particularly lively rendition of "Dance Magic Dance" from the acclaimed movie "Labyrinth". 


And now the Christmas pageant...


My mom made all the grandkids superhero capes.  Maisy Mae even got one:)


At the end of the night, my mom had all the adults go around and share what they were thankful for.  It couldn't be family or friends, though, since we knew we were all thankful for each other. 

It made us all go a bit deeper. 

I liked my mom's answer the best.  She said she was thankful for the desire we all had to get together. 

My sister and her family had to pack the kids up in the car and drive a full day to see us, and my brother was working on Thanksgiving, so we all agreed to delay the celebration to a few days later. 

It proved how deep our desire is to all be together and share these experiences. 

There's a lot of effort that goes into getting everyone under one roof, and it would be easier not to try, but it's what adds meaning to the day. 

Instead of letting these moments slip through our fingers, we are choosing to fight for these special memories that will last forever.  And I'm thankful for that, too.



I'm linking up with Meg's Mingle Monday link-up.  Stop by to find some great new blogs!

8 comments:

  1. The bunny superhero cape makes me laugh! 2x the food is definitely a good thing! And my mom has a set of gold silverware that were her grandmother's--everything does come around!

    ReplyDelete
  2. That is so fun that she had gold silverware! I seriously love it so much -- we are having it at our wedding instead of silver!
    www.amemoryofus.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. what a fabulous time. i love the idea of not saying family or friends, really does make you think!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yay, this looks like such a wonderful time and the cape idea is awesome, so cute your bunny too :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. This sounds like the best of both worlds: time just the two of you and time with everybody! The play sounds like something out of a holiday movie and your mom's observation seems right on point. How nice that everyone values and prioritizes being together.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think this is one of my favorite blog posts you've written. I love all of the pictures and love and fun they reflect. I wish I could have seen the kids' show!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love when you blog about your family because it kind of feels like they're my family, too! I love the capes, and I loved the pageant! The Gustins are very happy people, and one of the sweetest families I've ever met!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Ohhhh my gosh. Can I please be in your family? The capes, and plays, and fun. I am so jealous. Tell Maisy I may come still hers since we share the same initial ;)

    ReplyDelete

I truly appreciate each comment! I love hearing from you guys and treasure every one. I respond to comments via e-mail if you have yours enabled. This is going to be a great day!