A Southern Thanksgiving

My friend Elizabeth, from Life, Love, Librarianship kindly agreed to guest post for me! Enjoy her rendition of Thanksgiving in her family...in Alabama!




Funnily enough, my Thanksgiving memories and favorite Thanksgiving moments actually have very little to do with Thanksgiving.  Sure we do the big meal and watch the kids attempt a back yard football game, but Thanksgiving is really just a stepping stone.  Just another (albeit food-laden) day to complete before we get to the big show: Christmas. 

Part of the reason Thanksgiving feeling like a tacked-on holiday is because my mom doesn't host Thanksgiving at her house.  My parents and I go to my mother's sister's and we celebrate with her husband, their three kids, spouses, and grandchildren, and my grandparents.  Sometimes there are other random family members or close family friends, but mostly it is our fairly small family.  It actually used to be pretty quiet before everyone started having babies and now there are 6 kids, ages 18 months to 10 years (4 of those kids are boys) so it's certainly not quiet anymore.  But the kids do make it way more fun.  

My aunt makes the turkey and the dressing (this is the South - none of that stuffing business at our table) and few side dishes and then everyone brings a dish.  I bring the rolls (my rolls are the best.  you should try them.) and a dessert for the grownups and one for the kids.  My mom brings her famous sweet potato casserole and the most requested dish, macaroni and cheese.  We eat the cranberry sauce from the can and yellow gravy (basically cream of chicken soup, giblets, and hard boiled eggs - it's delicious, I swear) that only my grandmother can make correctly.  We all eat until we are sick, watch the kiddos run around a bit, and then that's that.  Thanksgiving's over.  Time to get ready for the big show.

My mom and I officially kick off Christmas on Thanksgiving night by watching White Christmas, our favorite Christmas movie.  We'll watch it 5 or 6 times during the Christmas season and even though we know all the lines, it never gets old.  The next day, while the rest of America is waiting in endless lines, we break out the decorations.  

My mom is VERY into Christmas and her house is decorated from top to bottom with two trees, wreaths on every door and front-facing window, her collection of Santas displayed on the mantle, and the focal point - her Christmas village.  It takes all day to get the house fully decorated and while it's exhausting, it's one of my favorite things to do.  We put on our favorite Christmas albums (Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Josh Groban, and Barbara Mandrell just to name a few) and reminisce about each decoration as we lovingly pull it from the box.  We eat Thanksgiving leftovers and sit around as a family, soaking up the joy of the Christmas season.  It's quiet and simple, which is exactly what my family is all about.  

For my small family, Thanksgiving really isn't about the food or the shopping or even getting ready for Christmas.  It's about spending time together, making memories, and enjoying the thrill of the holiday season in our own way.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Right now you are probably sitting down to your Thanksgiving meals, and I will be driving! Yes, we're eating Thanksgiving on Friday because we're traveling and I'm working too late on Wednesday. Whatever you're doing (and I do apologize to my non-American readers!) I hope you are having a wonderful time!


So, in the vein of last year's Thanksgiving post, I am going to list the things I am grateful for this year!


1. My job. Last year I was thankful that I was employed, today I am thankful that I am employed doing a job that I love!

2. My family. Both extended and immediate. They are all wonderful and I'm so lucky to have them.

3. Our health. Currently everyone in our family is healthy. I'm not talking colds, I'm talking big things like cancer. We are all healthy and happy and I'm incredibly thankful for that.

4. My kitties. They seriously make me laugh every day with their antics! And I love when they cuddle up and sleep with us!

5. Our house. We are lucky not only to have a roof over our heads, but to own that roof as well. 

6. My husband. As we approach our two year anniversary I'm so thankful that we met each other and got married!

7. My marriage. We've had our ups and downs this year, but we're plugging along and still going strong! Love that man.

8. Snow! Yes, even snow because it is so beautiful!

9. A garage, where my car is parked safe and sound and free of snow and ice!


10. My husband's job, which is paying for him to go back to school and get his masters.


11. The fact that, even though I can't go home for Christmas, a little bit of home will be coming to me, in the form of my sister!


12. Our upcoming trip to Hawaii, which will be fully funded as of December!


What are you thankful for this year?
Stay tuned for another guest post tomorrow!

Thanksgiving and Africa

My friend Bethany, who does not have a blog to link to, agreed to guest post for me about her Thanksgiving growing up in Africa and how grateful her experiences have made her. She was also kind enough to include pictures!

A few weeks ago, Megg asked me if I would be willing to guest post during Thanksgiving, and I said, “Sure!” but since I’ve never been asked to guest post, this may not sound very guest posterly to you. If that is the case, please heed this caveat and leave the pitchforks and torches at home. Asante sana.

“What is that foreign language?” you probably just wondered it. Heck, you might even be googling it right now, in which case, I’ll wait for you to come back so I can just tell you.

…

“Asante sana” means “thank you very much” in Swahili. Now, let me be honest, I do not speak Swahili or any other African languages. However, I did spend my childhood and adolescence in Africa, so I know bits and pieces of several languages spoken in Africa, and—what’s that? Oh, you want to hear more about growing up in Africa? Funny you should ask…Megg thought that would be fun for me to me to talk about how I grew up and how we celebrated Thanksgiving in Africa—since this is a Thanksgiving-ish post and all—so hey, let’s talk about that. (Btw, we usually had chicken instead of turkey.)

To begin with, my parents are missionaries, which is why, at the age of one and a half, I was whisked halfway around the world and raised as a minority of sorts. A lot of Americans ask me what it was like growing up in Africa, but I usually end up asking them, “What was it like growing up in the US?” because I don’t really know how to describe my childhood. Growing up in Africa was just growing up for me.

Now, before we continue, let me clarify a few misconceptions people may have. First of all, we did not live in round mud huts. We did not ride elephants to school. (We were homeschooled!) I never met Tarzan. I don’t speak “African” because that is a language that does not exist. I did not live in a state in the country of Africa. Africa is a continent, and we lived in the countries of Ghana and Chad. (We went to boarding school in Kenya.) We didn’t own pet monkeys. Also, saying “chai tea” is redundant as chai means tea. And why the heck do you people put spices in chai? Bleck.

So far, this post probably sounds like a rant, but I needed to say all of that to lay the groundwork for what I’m going to say next. See, I didn’t have some of the exotic experiences listed above, but I did grow up overseas and have traveled extensively. For that, I am grateful.

I am thankful that not only did I have the opportunity to swim with dolphins off the coast of Zanzibar, but that I also had the opportunity to share life stories with a Buddhist monk in Thailand. I am thankful that I was able to visit the Vatican in Rome, but I am more thankful that I got to play tag with Gypsy children in Romania. I am thankful that I was able to climb to the top of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, but I am also more than blessed to have prayed alongside my Indian brothers and sisters in the Mumbai ghettos.

I am thankful for a broad worldview. I am thankful for an incredibly supportive family that made home exist no matter where we lived, even if we were living out of suitcases for half a year. I am thankful for a roof over my head, a job that pays the bills, and a loving husband who is as big of a geek as I am. I am thankful for friends like Megg who can make me laugh and can share even the little things like a trip to Target or a love of sushi. I am thankful for the hellspawn that we also refer to as “cats” because occasionally their furry cuddles make up for the insanity they otherwise cause.

Most importantly, I am thankful for a relationship with a Savior who has been with me through all of the ups and downs in life, who is constant when I am wandering far, and who has carried me through some very dark times and brought about the blessings for which I am currently grateful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!! Today my husband, sister, mother-in-law and I are gathering together to eat what I hope will be a delicious Thanksgiving meal! Since it's my first one I can only hope things turned out alright! Since it's Thanksgiving, I thought I would take the time to post a list of the things I'm thankful for. This is by no means all-inclusive, it's simply what I thought of off the top of my head! I am sure there are many many more things to be thankful for!

1. My job. I'm SO thankful that I am finally employed. Having the extra paycheck will make a huge difference in paying off our debts.

2. My family. Both extended and immediate. They are all wonderful and I'm so lucky to have them.

3. Our health. Currently everyone in our family is healthy. I'm not talking colds, I'm talking big things like cancer. We are all healthy and happy and I'm incredibly thankful for that.

4. My kitties. They seriously make me laugh every day with their antics! And I love when they cuddle up and sleep with us!

5. Our house. We are lucky not only to have a roof over our heads, but to own that roof as well. It's been a blessed year for us.

6. My husband. As we approach our one year anniversary I'm so thankful that we met each other and got married!

7. My marriage. Everyone says the first year's the hardest. Well, it's been tough, but we've made it through.

8. Snow! Yes, even snow because it is so beautiful!

9. Friends who pimp out my Mary Kay business. I've had several new orders lately which has been awesome!

10. Our local thrift store. They have provided me with several Christmas gifts!

11. Freecycle, without which we wouldn't have 2 couches and a Christmas gift for my mom!

12. Craigslist, without which we wouldn't have our coffee table and numerous other things I've bought (and sold!) for less than their retail price.

13. Oatmeal. It is delicious and yummy and warming on a cool winter morning!

14. A garage, where my car is parked safe and sound and free of snow and ice!

How about you? What are you thankful for this year?