It can be challenging to decide where to spend the Thanksgiving, and Christmas, holiday. If you have a large family with several siblings, you may be pulled apart by more than one sibling hosting the holiday at their home. If you are married or dating, you may be arguing over whose family you'll visit ON the actual holiday. For any number of reasons, people often find themselves torn over where to be for these holidays, and it is stressful. All too often people don't get to completely enjoy the holiday day itself because they leave one place and drive to another, trying to meet their obligations with each family or family member. I have a friend whose parents are divorced and every year the father gives her a hard time about leaving and going to her mom's, and vice versa. This does not make for a happy holiday.
Now, add in another holiday challenge --- TRAVEL. If you fly or drive ON Thanksgiving wkend or Christmas week -- it can be really NOT FUN. Flights get changed or delayed. And they cost more. So do rental cars. Airports are packed with people. Ho Ho Ho - is this merry and bright? I think not. About 10 years ago, I was flying with my man Dan up to Washington DC where my nephew would pick us up and drive us to my parents house in PA. This was the evening before Thanksgiving. But that flight got cancelled and the best choice was a flight to Pittsburgh but now we'd have to rent a car, and we'd be getting in pretty late. No way to reach my nephew -- back then it wasn't a given that you all had cell phones. He had already left to get us. I was a wreck over it.
We land in PGH and the only rental car left is a Cadillac and so you have to pay for that level of rental, even though you would gladly have taken a compact. So at $79 a day we are finally on our way. It starts snowing, traffic is slow, it is getting late and I know I have missed the evening meal and by now my parents are getting ready for bed. We are still an hour away. We pull into a diner and I just sat and bawled in the car. I was frustrated and upset over our travel woes. I said to myself, "Never Again."
For 10 years now, I choose a weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I rent a big house with 6 or 7 bedrooms -- you'd be amazed at how many of these vacation homes there are! I choose one in Maryland or PA and it's always affordable. (One year I did Cape May New Jersey and that was cool!). Then I invite all my siblings, their spouses/significant others, and my parents. Nieces and nephews too of course.
We all come together for THANKSMAS WEEKEND and we celebrate Thanksgiving on Saturday and Christmas on Sunday. It is merry, fun, festive, and not stressful. This way, everyone gets to be in their own home on the actual holidays, and only travel to someone else's house if they really want to and are willing to brave the traffic and the headaches. Different people bring different foods -- someone takes breakfast, someone takes lunch, someone does the turkey and someone else does the side dishes - it is great.
I highly recommend this wonderful family solution for the holiday season. After all, it's not the actual DATE that makes it Thanksgiving or Christmas. It's the feelings, the smells, the food, the family, the togetherness. The traditions, the ambience created by family items brought out every year, and candles lit. Happy, Happy Thanksgiving everyone -- and a wonderful, warm December!
Love P-
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