My Family Traditions:

Thanksgiving

When my children’s father and I divorced, one year I would have the kids for thanksgiving then the next year he would. It was fair but when it was his turn I was sad, one of the consequences of being divorced.

When I met my second husband seven years ago he had the same arrangement with his e-wife. It worked out because one year we had all the kids then the next year we did not. When we did not have the kids we would have a quite thanksgiving at his mother’s house.

Well about four years ago my husband and I decided we would have our thanksgiving the Saturday before. Now all the kids are together and our friends come too! Boy do we have a house full, everyone even brings their dogs.

We cook the main dishes: Smoked turkey, fried turkey and baked ham. While everyone else brings a dish, this way I am not “tied” to the kitchen.

Florida weather is usually kind in November, we start early so we can play volley ball or kick ball, I will hook up the pony to the cart and take the little ones for a ride. Most of the older kids leave at dark to go downtown to the park for light up Ocala while the rest of us will sit around a outside fire, talking, eating pie and drinking coffee.

Our children are in their twenties now and look forward to our annual thanksgiving, their friends will call me weeks before that Saturday and ask me if we are having “our” thanksgiving, that is a good feeling.