Now that I’m a parent I appreciate when things are easy. Thanksgiving is easy. This is why I love it. In fact, I think it is the easiest holiday for parents — excluding the holidays that you don’t celebrate at all. Those come and go and you don’t even notice! Like “Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day” which was Nov. 15. I didn’t celebrate it, did you? It was so easy not cleaning out my fridge! But that’s not really fair.
Here is why I love Thanksgiving…
Real history
Don’t get me wrong, I do love the magic and fantasy that embellishes other holidays. Like the portly guy in red who sneaks into houses while people sleep and uses a small herd of flying ruminant mammals for transportation. That’s not weird at all. Nor is the rabbit that manages to carry heavy baskets of candy and deposit colored chicken eggs in yards.
But these fantasy character add-ons make it so confusing. Fun! But confusing.
So isn’t it refreshing to tell the story of how Thanksgiving originated? You can use real dates and names! You don’t have to lie or use the, “Well, some people believe…” catchall parenting line. Plus, the reason for celebrating is clear. Thanksgiving is about being thankful and eating pumpkin pie.
No gifts
I’m so glad that the Wampanoags and the Pilgrims didn’t exchange gifts. They totally could have and it would have mucked it all up for the rest of us. Can you imagine if instead of tables piled with food we had to have tables piled with autumn-hued wrapped presents every year? It’s not as appetizing.
Plus, since there are no gifts, kids expect no gifts. The simplicity is beautiful.
Thursday
Guess what? Thanksgiving is on a Thursday this year. Just like last year.
I love that it doesn’t skip around and sneak up on us (I’m looking at you, Hanukkah) or wind up on a lame day of the week, like how New Year’s Eve is on a Wednesday this year.
Plus, the rest of the weekend trails shortly behind it and there isn’t anything to do! No putting away decorations, no finding homes for the onslaught of new toys. The primary job we have is to eat leftovers and to digest the food. I can handle that.
Leftovers
I look forward to the leftovers more than the original meal itself. Leftovers are easy, no cooking! No cooking means… well, no cooking. And I also enjoy trying out new turkey recipes in the week post-Thanksgiving too. Which does involve cooking. But it is inspired cooking with a purpose. So there’s that.
Pumpkin pie
No article about Thanksgiving is complete without mentioning pumpkin pie. I already mentioned it but we all know that once is not enough.
Pumpkin pie is brilliant. It is a dessert made from a vegetable! It’s healthy! Actually, that’s a lie. It’s technically a fruit. But whatever. It still feels like a healthier dessert choice for the kids. Plus, yum.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Image credit: Amber Dusick
About the author:
Amber Dusick is one of our SheKnows Experts Among Us. She is the author of the bestselling humor book Parenting: Illustrated with Crappy Pictures. She writes and illustrates the blog Crappy Pictures where she captures the hilarious and frustrating things that happen in marriage and parenting. Find her on Twitter and Facebook.
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