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I have never been a fan of the end of year holidays.
I just rushed from place to place. I told my mother - "don't do the big Thanksgiving spread for just you, me, and dad." I don't even like turkey that much. I don't care for dressing or cranberry sauce.
What did we get? Turkey, dressing, and cranberry sauce. I nibbled at the turkey, canned green beans, and ate mostly fresh mashed potatoes.
I go from there to my grandmother's - figuring my aunt, who lives a few doors down, was doing Thanksgiving for her deceased husband's family. Turns out they both felt bad, and mom didn't even do a standing invitation to my grandmother or aunt.
Girlfriend's son, daughter/her boyfriend, all fought at the dinner table. None of the kids helped with dinner, none seemed appreciative, none helped clean up the dishes. There was way too much food for five people - maybe a third of the sides were eaten. $90 ham that is less than half eaten. It's "expected" that we eat on the leftovers all weekend.
I get to buy Christmas gifts for the family that has everything they need, and I have no idea what to buy. I'm between jobs right now, starting at the first of the year, and while money isn't "tight," I don't want to be throwing money away in needless gifts that probably won't be used or wanted. It's all about keeping up appearances and saving face.
Girlfriend's aunt/uncle cooked prime steaks for July 4, we had margaritas, and watched the fireworks at the marina. That's much more enjoyable to me than end of year holiday hell.
One of my kids isn't that into turkey and cranberry sauce. I put a Charcuterie plate on the table for mostly him. If that sounds appealing to you, maybe you could bring something like to share with the others. I can about guarantee you that your mom is well aware that you don't care very much for turkey. I doubt she would be offended.
As far as gifts go, your parents and your grandmother would probably really appreciate some odd jobs around the house and yard work as a Christmas present to them. Do they need help cleaning out their garage, an attic, crawl spaces or a basement? Do they need help pulling weeds, raking leaves, cleaning out gutters, chopping wood? Maybe they need blinds hung or even a new shower curtain put up in the bathroom. It would save you the expense of buying them gifts and it would save them expense of hiring things done. Win-win.
We went to one of the granddaughter's and her husband for Thanksgiving dinner. We bought one of the turkeys and greenbean casserole. It was a very nice time, with most all the grandkids, with no drama, as stepson's GF was told not to come, and then because of some drama, stepson and his wife were uninvited. Kind of sad I suppose...but honestly, I don't think anyone missed them.
It was bittersweet. The day before we had my mother's funeral. It was a quiet Thanksgiving with just 3 of us. Saw other family members later that evening. The whole week before was exhausting. The day after Thanksgiving was a rainy day and it felt good to do absolutely nothing. I was very grateful and thankful for all of my siblings and other family members who I have spent a lot of time with over the last couple of weeks.
It was bittersweet. The day before we had my mother's funeral. It was a quiet Thanksgiving with just 3 of us. Saw other family members later that evening. The whole week before was exhausting. The day after Thanksgiving was a rainy day and it felt good to do absolutely nothing. I was very grateful and thankful for all of my siblings and other family members who I have spent a lot of time with over the last couple of weeks.
Wow...sorry for your loss, especially at a holiday. Family takes priority at such times and I'm glad you had quiet family time.
And that was OK. We would like to go out for a traditional feast at a restaurant, but there wasn’t anything that measures up around here. The two we tried in past were MEH, and one of them became a fricking pot shop.
And that was OK. We would like to go out for a traditional feast at a restaurant, but there wasn’t anything that measures up around here. The two we tried in past were MEH, and one of them became a fricking pot shop.
Well, that's an improvement, if the restaurant was MEH, but now with a pot shop in the mix, the need for good eats might be even more pressing.
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