A Different Holiday Season

I’ve did a subset of decorating I do every year after Thanksgiving – put up the door scrunchies with cards from past seasons,

Filled the milk glass vase with glittery swirls (the milk glass vase was one that was left in a house we bought over 30 years ago...and I always put something in it for Christmas), and

Put cards under the plastic on the breakfast table.

But that is it for decorating this year. We just got back from more than a week in Hawaii (blog posts to come about that) and are planning day trips to other places (Longwood Gardens, Brookside, etc.) that are decorated for the season through early January.

It is a different plan for the holiday (Thanksgiving – Christmas – New Years). There is less decorating, more time with family and more time traveling! Wrapped gifts are not on the agenda at all. My husband gave me a binocular harness strap before we went to Hawaii and he bought himself more gear for star parties that are in our future!

I’m still thinking about what traditions I want to squeeze back into the plan….maybe pumpkin custard for Christmas day…putting away all the decorations we did get out on New Years Eve.

Happy Thanksgiving!

When Thanksgiving Day first started, it was a celebration of the abundance of food after the annual harvest. Now – the vast majority of people have ready access to plenty of food throughout the year and the day is a holiday that (hopefully) acts as a reminder to be thankful for that aspect of the modern world. I applaud the efforts of organizations the seek ways to make the availably of food true for everyone, going beyond the majority that it true today.

The holiday period from Thanksgiving through the New Year have been a time of overeating and weight gain. I’m starting with a strategy this year to avoid the weight gain: spread out the treats so that no particular day is ‘over the top.’ I started off my making my ‘new’ treat for this season based on the cranberry carrot cake recipe from VegKitchen on Tuesday and enjoying one piece each day as my morning snack. I substituted grated sweet potato for the carrots and processed an apple with its peeling for the applesauce….and didn’t make the icing at all. It is still yummy.

Thanksgiving is also a time of traditions – particularly food related. My husband does not like turkey so we’ve always had roast. We have pumpkin custard (not crust) as one of the desserts. Sometimes I can’t resist a pecan pie but I make a small one (about half the usual size…and skip the crust). One food tradition that faded away with my grandmother was kolaches (apricot) and raisin buns; no one in the family makes that kind of bread any more.

Enough about food….there is a lot we all have to be thankful for every day. Having a day set aside each year with the name ‘Thanksgiving’ is a good reminder to realize that more often…not let the busy-ness of life cause us to savor and appreciate the wonderful aspects of our lives.