I just read this great post by a mom that blogs (I think I follow her on twitter but am not 100% sure since Twitter still kinda confuses me - but her tweets are in my feed and I often read her blog now...)
(YES! I DO FOLLOW HER!)
(Sigh.)
Annnnyway - she wrote about how she takes off with her family during Thanksgiving - just THEM. They vacation together as a family and don't do the "traditional" things one thinks about when it comes to US Thanksgiving with tons of family around.
And I think it's awesome! I mean they totally put themselves and their family needs first - so great!
Now - we do typically partake in the Usual Thanksgiving Activities. Sometimes we are at home, sometimes we are away from home, with friends... Being Canadian, we have adapted very well to the Epic November Holiday in the US - I actually (secretly) think it's more exciting and fun than the Northern Version. :) There have been years where we spend it alone, just our nuclear family - and we love that too. We don't have family (blood) anywhere near us - we have wonderful friends that are essentially family - but we are on our own for a lot of the bigger kinds of things like Thanksgiving or Christmas. Birthdays are just us for the most part.
Sometimes I feel sad/guilty on Holidays about my kids not knowing their extended family as well as they know our neighbours - but after reading what Literalmom posted - maybe it doesn't matter as much as my head makes it out to be - the "being there face to face for Holidays". I mean - maybe I need to focus on making more out of the small moments - the chats on the phone, insane family Skype Adventures or late night text message sessions with my sister in law. Being more in the moment when we get to see family for a few days in the summer. ..."relationships with others don't have to depend on our physical presence to remain strong" - just such a great statement and reminder.
So right this moment - I am thankful that I found Missy on the twitter, and really glad I clicked that link that reminded me to be a better stakeholder in my family every day - sometimes that will mean making choices for us, around us - that nobody else understands and might even seem nut bar. That's OK - we're worth it!
1 comment:
I liked that post a lot. Growing up, we almost always traveled for Thanksgiving - just the three of us, and I loved it. I think we'll definitely do that sometime. I often feel sort of dragged down by the family obligations. Honestly, that Thanksgiving with you guys last year was one of my favorites!
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