Thanksgiving 2012

I’ve moved back home, gotten a great job as the business development director of a non-profit org., and currently have a short/long-distance marriage. Right now it’s short-distance, since he is visiting until the second week of January. Since I’ve been home, so many people that I haven’t seen in a very long time have ask me, “So, how’s the blog comin’?” The short answer is (has been), “It’s not.” The long answer begins with the question, “Which blog?” Are we talking about my old one or more recent (this) one. Fit Food Lover was great while it lasted, but is long gone. Delicious Ambiguity started off great, and then became… well, ambiguous.

But I love blogging. I really do. I just don’t want to dictate to readers the repetitious details of my daily life. I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and the idea of personal blogging is transforming from a casual instruction manual into a life diary. A memoir, or a set of personal vignettes. I think it’s important for me to keep track of fun times and the not so fun times as something to look back on in the future.

So, here’s my first post in a very long time. Thanksgiving…

For the past few years, I’ve spent one Thanksgiving and three Christmases in South Africa. I do love SA, but in the words of the Carpenters, “There’s no place like home for the holidays.”

This year, Miguel spent his first entire Thanksgiving at my house. His first Thanksgiving was a little disjointed, spending it at three different locations here in the U.S. The night before, Monica, Miguel, and I baked cookies together, with the Christmas music playing and the Christmas tree lighting up the room (yes our tree was already decorated).

On Thanksgiving, luckily for us, everyone in the family brings something so that no one person has to do all of the work. It gives us more time to enjoy one another and keeps everyone from getting stressed out. This year’s holiday was our biggest so far (I think), with 25 people in attendance. The food was fantastic and almost completely gluten-free save for the Hawaiian rolls and green bean casserole.

As I looked around the room after dinner, it struck me how our family has grown. My cousins are mostly pre-teens or teenagers.
One is an adult and living on his own. In my head, 10 years from now seems so far away, yet so close at the same time. Everyone with husbands, wives, boyfriends, and girlfriends. I can’t wait to see what it will be like. Until then, I’ll just keep making and collecting memories.