Thanksgiving is here, and I’m ready for the day. Well, let me rephrase that. I’m ready for the delicious food this week.
This year is the first time I’m hosting Thanksgiving, and I’m already stressing over everything that needs to be done in preparation for the day. I’ve already bought a 20 lbs turkey, as well as the ingredients necessary for the sides that I’m making. Thankfully, I’m not cooking the entire meal. My brothers are pitching in on the food, and our parents are helping with an extra table and chairs.
As I’m writing this, I’m sitting on my couch at home (gotta love the ability to work from home, right?), and I’m looking around my house. What do I see? Every small item that needs to be picked up and put away, the dusting, the vacuuming, and all the other cleaning that will need to be done before my family comes over. Normally I wouldn’t care about the cleaning. But one of my brothers is bringing a date to dinner, so there’s the added pressure of making sure my house is super clean before a stranger comes in.
I’m looking forward to the full spread of food that we will have for dinner, and I’m also looking forward to having my entire family spend the day together in my new house. It’s not a huge house, but at least we’ll get to see other. Plus, my brothers and I called ourselves “The Trifecta.” We jokingly call ourselves that because we can be a lot take in when we’re all together. We get loud, but we always have a good time and laugh until we’re crying.
Thanksgiving also typically marks the beginning of the holiday shopping season. In the past, my mom and I would start our major Christmas shopping on either Thanksgiving or in the morning on Black Friday. It was always exhausting, but I had a great time while out shopping with my mom. We’d brave the crowds while trying to get great toys for the kids and other gifts for the family. At one point in our Christmas shopping adventures, we decided to send one person into the toy section of Walmart or Target, and the other would stay away from the crowd with the cart. Not always easy, but it worked for the most part.
I mentioned in last week’s blog that I’ve started my Christmas shopping. Online ordering is pretty great, and sometimes I can find what I feel are pretty good deals or at least prices I find to be reasonable. But I still plan on getting out and braving the crowds to get gifts for my family. In fact, now that I think about it, I have a pretty large toy or two to buy for my son, and I know I can still find them in the stores at the moment.
But for now, I will look towards cooking Thanksgiving dinner, and I’ll try not to focus on budgeting and planning on what I’m buying for family. I will worry about cooking the turkey to perfection and ensuring the sides finish on time with the rest of the meal. If I allow myself to also think or stress over Christmas shopping, it will drive me crazy.
It’s always great talking to my team members with Albuquerque Plumbing Heating & Cooling to hear how they plan on spending the day. Some are also hosting Thanksgiving, others might have relatives flying in or driving in to visit, and others may just be happy to spend the day at their relatives’ house, so they don’t have to cook. The food will mostly be the same across the board, with the exception of a few families serving red chile on mashed potatoes and other small family traditions for around the table.
We hope the beginning of the holiday season is full of joy and much less stress compared to last year. We’re looking forward to joining our loved ones in person again while we gorge ourselves on dinner and pie, then retire to the couch or nearest comfy spot to nap away the bulging bellies from eating too much.
From our team to your family, we wish you a Thanksgiving stuffed with happiness!