Friday, November 25, 2016

The Next Day...

Even when you only have two of your four daughters home for Thanksgiving and there's the sweetest little baby, the end of the day is rather bittersweet. I find myself thinking of the two (4 actually as their sweet boys are part of the family as well) who are MIA from the table.

Luckily, this sweet face and her parents were not missing from the Thanksgiving table.

The holidays that come around this time of year, my favorite time of year, take me on the memory trail and I find so many things lacking but I think that's just because I'm comparing what I do with what my grandmother did and that's not fair to anyone because she was the holiday queen!

Baby M and Auntie Breezy.
None of the lovelies seems to find anything lacking about our holiday celebrations. I hope that Baby M will feel the same way as she grows up. But it's still a tad sad that they don't know the excitement of having my grandparents put on a holiday celebration. Or do they?

These goobers adorned one side of the table. SILExtrordinare, Friend of Breezy, Breezy.
I tried, over the years, to replicate some of the traditions that made the holiday season so meaningful to me that the memories have lasted a lifetime.

By the time I realized I hadn't taken pictures of the food, only one person still had food on their plate Turkey, potatoes, cornbread dressing, collards, broccoli casserole, sweet potato casserole, holiday punch (a first time try and let me just say, it packed a punch!) We hadn't gotten to the pumpkin pie or pumpkin cake yet.

To hear the lovelies talk, they truly enjoyed every holiday season and found nothing lacking. Which tells me, it's just me. Missing the people I loved who made living life so amazing whether it was the holiday season or just Monday.

I love that these two often held the same expressions. BTW, that's my mother with Baby M.
The quality of the next picture is horrible, but it shows Mimi and Baby M watching football.

We know how to raise girls right around here. Football on Thanksgiving! Seriously, this kid loves to watch football! 
I try to hold onto my youthful joy and having the memories of those who made the holidays so special still makes all the difference. I hope that the traditions the lovelies and I have established will always spin their future holidays in a joyful way, too.

There are only a few people left from my childhood. All too soon, I'll be the one leaving the memories of the holidays. The bar has been set high, y'all.

My grandparents, aka The Bar Setters. This was in the late 60s I think. 
Mother and Aunt Betty aka, Bar Setter Helpers. Same year. 
Me and my parents. I think this was the mid-60s???? The downside to digital photos, you can't turn the thing around and check. 
They didn't realize they were setting the bar. They were simply enjoying the holidays. And that's what we're doing now. Simply enjoying the holidays. Except I am reliving the holiday memories, missing those who are now here only in spirit. Ever thankful for every single second I spent with them and for every single memory they left here with me and remembering to appreciate and enjoy my time with the ones still blessing us each and every day.

Have a wonderful weekend, y'all! And, if you're out shopping, be careful.




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12 comments:

  1. That was a bittersweet post my friend, with some lovely photos. We are bound to look back at holidays past, but it's different now, and I'm sure our children enjoy things every little bit as we did. Lovely, nostalgic post 😊

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    1. Thank you! I hope they do. I can't imagine anything I've ever done being as special as what my grandparents did. But I'm not seeing it from the eyes of the lovelies. Hopefully, they see the same wonderful times only with us. :)

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  2. I love your photos and your memories. I always think holidays are bittersweet.
    I find as I get older, I just can't let myself go there. As Ruth Graham said,
    Make the best of what you have and don't think to hard what you don't. I keep telling myself that. Especially, that today is my youngest grand daughter's first birthday. So today, I will put stuff away and press on. I love seeing baby M. with her great grandmother. So sweet.

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    1. I'm glad I'm not the only one. That's a good thing to keep repeating---perhaps it would help me stayed focused. Wow, she's ONE already?! How in the world did that happen? Happy Birthday little one! Thank you, Kim, for your kind comments and your sage advice. You always give me just the right things to ponder. :)

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  3. Seems there are more than a few of us reminiscing over holidays past and comparing them to today's celebrations. Our memories live warmly in our hearts, but each year we are making new memories too. Baby M will someday be doing the same thing we are...comparing old to new. Her memories will live warmly in her heart. You can count on it.

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    1. Beautifully said, Terri! It will be fun making new memories with Baby M, for sure. I know that my grandparents would just eat her up! :)

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  4. I have felt a bit lost the last couple of years with the holidays and this year is no exception. I actually didn't even have Thanksgiving as my daughter was with her in-laws and my oldest son with his girlfriend's family until late yesterday. I ended up making a very non-traditional dinner of waffles and bacon for the boys and myself. It is bittersweet as Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday but I am trying to grateful in all things! I am glad you had some sweet baby kisses to sooth your soul. Sending happy thoughts for the rest of the holiday season!

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    1. I know how you feel. I'm not really doing much at Christmas this year even though two of my girls will be home. The other 2 will join us on the 27th, though and we have a huge family oyster roast planned for New Year's Eve. It's not easy learning to live with our grown kiddos being with someone else on the holidays. Especially Thanksgiving and Christmas. I find that I tend to avoid thinking about it too much if I can. Thank you for your comment and for those happy thoughts. I'll send some your way as well. :)

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  5. Oh what wonderful photos I like most people do like photos containing babies

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    1. Because babies are just the best, aren't they? :)

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  6. Replies
    1. Thanks! Can't wait to see your Christmas trees all decorated!

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