In 2017, we took our two kids (then ages 15 and 2) to Disney World for Thanksgiving week. We had a blast! Yes, it was busy, but it was a good busy. People were happy; cast members out did themselves, and the food was even more fabulous than usual. There was no Holiday stress and I didn’t have to worry about family arguments. Well, until I got home.
According to my Mom and Dad, we selfishly ruined Thanksgiving. A day of family togetherness was tossed aside for our Disney obsession. Umm, okay.
Let me go back in time. Growing up we didn’t have a Thanksgiving dinner or family day. My brother and father went deer hunting every year. On the few years we tried to have dinner, they would rush everyone and have one foot out the door before the food was on the table. So Mom stopped doing it. We would typically go to someone else’s house for the meal or leftovers and get ready to shop on Friday. When I started working, the Friday shopping stopped.
Then my brother and I each got married. Her family had a huge Thanksgiving feast that he could not miss. My husband’s family had lunch at his grandparent’s house. Mom was invited to one or the other and got leftovers from both. We each had kids and things basically remained the same. Then my brother got a DIVORCE. And then he got remarried. A third family was added to the mix.
My new sister in law loves to cook and decided she wanted to host Thanksgiving in their new house so she could invite her parents. Now we had to go to two meals. I know, everyone deals with it. The guys were annoyed because they had to wait until that night or the next morning to hit the deer woods. We all go older and things moved on. After my husband’s grandparents died, we moved their Thanksgiving to our house so I invited everyone. Easy, right?
Nope. It became a logistical nightmare. Mom and Dad didn’t really want to come to our meal but they felt left out if they weren’t invited. No one could decide what time was good because we had to work with 3 teenagers’ schedules. My sister in law and I both found out we were pregnant in 2014 so now there would be 2 toddlers and teenagers/college kids to schedule. To be frank, it was becoming a month of stress to plan a 2 hour meal.
In 2016, my brother, sister in law, and youngest nephew went to see the Macy’s parade. Mom talked about them for a few months but it was okay. It was in the spring of 2017 that my husband decided he wanted to do Disney for Thanksgiving. My mother lost her mind. We heard about this every week leading up to vacation and every week since. It becomes a topic of conversation each year when we start to plan the nightmare (I mean meal).
The nightmare has begun again and all I can think is why didn’t I plan another year at Disney. We were afraid Star Wars would make it an even bigger mad house; but I could quietly ignore the madness while I dream of Dole Whips, 50’s Primetime Pot Roast, and Mickey Ears.
When your holiday starts to fall apart, be like me: start planning your next trip Home.
