Thursday, November 22, 2018

Thanksgiving Day 2018



I wake up before dawn.

Somehow my body knows that this is what I want, to be awake before anything exciting happens. I always do this on holidays - on Christmas, my birthday. It's something about the thrill of it being a special day. I want to see the sun.

This Thanksgiving is no exception.




I wake before six, and already it is chilly, I can tell even when I'm still bundled in blankets. I get up, pull on a hoodie, run downstairs and out the door and down the block until four miles have gone by. The sky is soft with a smattering of clouds and Tom Odell is playing in my ear buds.

These are the things for which I am most thankful.

When my prayers turn to gratitude, I don't often thank the Lord for the big, grand things (though sometimes I do). Instead, I thank Him for sunrises, and cups of coffee with the morning paper, for my record collection and the smell of gingerbread body wash, and my daily bowl of oatmeal. For books.

Today is a sort of unusual Thanksgiving in that it is just my immediate family and I (mother, father, sister) gathering to share turkey instead of our whole extended family.



I won't see Lily or Edward or Curren or Kate or any of my little cousins, and I won't see my brother and his family out in Texas. It's been a rare day of lazing about as my family prepares food and we watch the parade and furtive bites of pie are nibbled.

I imagine Thanksgivings in the future when my sister and I and our husbands will meet up in cream-colored knit sweaters and cozy socks (COZY SOCKS!) for cups of coffee and pumpkin pie and an old John Hughes movie by the fireplace. This is my fantasy world, the future, but for now, I will be grateful. And eat all the pie!

What about you?

What has your Thanksgiving been like? Do you have any fun family traditions? What kinds of pie have you eaten today (I've had apple, pumpkin and chocolate mousse).

14 comments:

  1. I love waking up early on holidays too! I woke up at seven today and couldn't fall back asleep. My Thanksgiving was also with my immediate family. Sometimes it's the best thing in the world. I enjoyed this post! The pictures are really fun! <3 Enjoy the Holidays!
    Simply Me

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    1. Don't you just love that? There is seriously something so magical about waking up early on a holiday. :) That's so fun that you got to share special time with just your immediate family. Yes, those can be some of the best times for sure! Thank you so much. :) Happy holidays!!

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  2. Aw, that sounds like a nice Thanksgiving. Though it can be odd to go from extended family to immediate family. We did a similar thing this year, and it felt so much quieter and chill. Your morning walk sounds heavenly.

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    1. It was great! Lots of pie and Christmas movies and turkey, of course. It definitely felt more minimal, especially since I have a HUGE extended family, so there weren't tons of people running around like usual. A quieter Thanksgiving is honestly desirable sometimes. I hope you had a great holiday! And yes, my morning walk was the bomb. :)

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  3. Thanksgiving was really nice! I got together with some family and we ate lots and lots of food haha.

    Nabila | Hot Town Cool Girl

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    1. Eating #AllTheFoods is 100% mandatory. :) I'm glad you had a great Thanksgiving! Thank you so much for commenting.

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  4. sounds like your thanksgiving was perfect :) I like the more low-key holidays. i love simply enjoying our time together and not stressing and all that.

    happy thanksgiving!

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    1. It was lovely! Yes, me too. With all the craziness that comes with Black Friday and Christmas shopping, it was nice to have a peaceful Thanksgiving with the fam. I totally agree! Thanks for commenting, Faith. :)

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  5. Looks like you guys had an amazing time! <3
    Khadija | October's Lallu

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    1. It was a wonderful holiday. Hope your Thanksgiving was rad. Thanks for commenting!

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  6. Happy Thanksgiving, sweet friend. I absolutely loved hearing about your cozy, wonderful day. <3

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    1. Happy Thanksgiving! :) <3 So glad you liked it. Hope your day was wonderful and cozy too!!

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  7. It sounded like a nice thanksgiving. Good idea to get some exercising in before gorging on Turkey. ;) I had a quiet thanksgiving as well. Turkey, pie, and Avatar: the Last Airbender.

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    1. It was lovely, very relaxing! :) Your Thanksgiving sounds awesome!! Thank you for commenting, it means a lot.

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Go with grace.