Celebrating Holidays

It's Thanksgiving tomorrow.  Obviously, it's the holiday of giving thanks of being grateful for all of the things we have in our lives.  While I feel very grateful, I don't really want to talk about that. 

I want to talk about food.  Shocker. 

All my years growing up and even as an adult, I lived in this sheltered world where holidays happened and beautiful meals made it to the table with very little effort on my part.  I was completely naive to all the effort and energy that goes into making these "special" days.  So, now we are on our own (to some extent) and have to play a large role into making the holidays happen. 

The sad realization of what actually goes in makes me tired thinking about them.  There's planning, grocery shopping, coordinating with people to come, decorating and cleaning your house (which I thankfully will be avoiding because we are heading to the cousins for thanksgiving) and then the colossal task of actually cooking all of the food for that many people, with my sweet one year old crawling laps and hanging on my ankles.  

As you've read before, I am usually completely on board with making the effort to make days special but after Leo's birthday (a big extravaganza), I don't really want to do it.  In fact, let me sit down.  I'm tired. 

So, perhaps most of all this year (in addition to all of the wonderful things in my life, and it really is a good life at the moment), I'm thankful for my mom (especially), and Grandma Barbara and Grandma Lois and all my Aunts who went to all the effort to make the holidays special.  Year after year, they made it look effortless.  Now I realize how not effortless it is and I am so thankful. 

I guess I'll go get baking.  Bummer.