Delayed Thanks

Looking back on my photo reel for the past few weeks brings a smile to my face.  We have been rocking it hard here in the Tri-Cities.  We got our first snow a few weeks ago and the girls were ecstatic.  We built a little snowman and perched him atop our mailbox before the rest of it started to melt.  After that, we were off to see all things Santa; at the mall and a Christmas event Aunt Liz's business was putting on.  We don't really get into the magic behind Santa with our girls, instead we are trying to instill in them a sense of who the real Saint Nicholas was and the spirit of giving that is inherent in all things 'Santa'.  We have kind of slacked off in past years because the concept was kind of heavy for a two-year old, but Audrey can totally understand the reasons we need to give to those who are less fortunate and that is why we will be celebrating Saint Nicholas Day this year.

So, when we were on our way to the mall to see the big guy in red, Audrey asked: "Are we going to go see a guy dressed like Santa?".  It kind of makes me happy that she can understand that he's not a magical gift-giving genie, but symbolizes someone who once was 'Santa'.

Any time spent at the mall is good in Audrey's book, so we went and gawked at the jolly guy with fantastic facial hair, ate some pretzels, grabbed a goodie bag from the Kidget's booth and then headed over to Liz's event to see yet another guy dressed like Santa.  This one was handing out candy canes and the girls actually warmed up to taking a picture (in his vicinity) after being around him for half an hour.  It was a really fun, laid-back Christmasy weekend.

...which we needed.

Because we ended up hosting a group of thirty people for Thanksgiving.

And it was awesome. But I'll get to that later.

In the interim, we mourned the loss of our favorite local tea-shop bakery.  The girls and I have made a habit on Tuesdays of hitting up the library for story time and adjourning to the Tea Shop for tea and scones afterward.  It has been a really sweet tradition that will always stick with me.  But, being the daughter of small business owners, I can totally understand the strain that a poor economy puts on local businesses.  People don't stop to drink tea when they're worrying about paying their bills.  It's a shame, but I have nothing but good memories attached to the Chamomile Garden Tea Bar and I'm thankful that the mother and daughter who run the business are choosing to cut their losses and focus on the tea shop.

Usually there is nothing like a well-timed pie day to pick up one's spirits, instead, this year made me understand the Christmas Vacation-inspired take on the holidays.  Everyone has individual feelings on what aspects of the holidays just absolutely define the celebration.  For Karen, it's sneaking samples of the turkey before anyone else gets a bite.  Our cousin Ashley claims that there can be no celebration unless there is Martinelli's sparkling cider present.  I am of the opinion that a celebration without pie is no celebration at all.  So, understandably, Pie Day is a huge deal for me.  And now that I'm a mother with traditions to carry on, I want my children to understand how beautiful it is to take an entire day to have no other goal than to make pie.

Pie Day started out great this year.  I got out of bed in a near-euphoric state in anticipation of the joy to come.  Only I forgot that you cannot focus on just making pie when you are also responsible for the health and well being of two children under the age of four.  In the end, we made four pies and my goal had been to make at least seven.  By bath time, I was just starting to come around to the idea that four pies would be enough.  And then I tasted the extra pumpkin filling from the pies Audrey made with my assistance...and tasted no sugar.  None.

I was so caught up in the magic that I forgot to include a key ingredient for making pie edible and was, at that point, down to twelve hours spent making a grand total of two edible pies.

To say: 'I lost it' would be putting it mildly.

But then I remembered that this was not the first pie day I had gone on a Clark W. Griswold inspired rampage over pie day or even just the holidays themselves.  It's all a part of growing up and trying to be a part of creating that magic for your loved ones.  Luckily, it was also an opportunity for me to humble myself in my personal delusions of what makes a holiday special. 

In the end, I bought several unappetizing pies from Fred Meyer and called it a day.  And you know what?  It was still a fantastic celebration.  We woke up early and hit up the Tri-Cities Turkey Trot.  We walked a mile with the girls, chased dogs and played in the leaves then headed home to start our feast preparations.  We had family and friends gather in great numbers to celebrate and give thanks and all that is what mattered more than turkey or sparkling cider or pie.  We are blessed and so very thankful.