Holiday Cooking

I have another blog that I wrote down the other day, but I felt with it being the day before Thanksgiving something lighter was in store. I will post the other one another day.

So this is the first year in a really long time that I am not making a huge Thanksgiving meal and I am both sad and happy. Sad due to the fact I love cooking and I love seeing all the happy faces from enjoying something I made. Happy though due to the fact that I don't have to clean up after making the said Holiday feast.

I love the holidays. There is just so much wonderful things about the holidays that I love. I know a lot of people get caught up in the whole buying presents and the work it takes to pull off a perfect holiday season. Yet I love the baking, cooking, eating, singing, decorating, sharing, and opening presents. I love seeing people be happy and seeing families get together. Granted my family isn't really great at the whole getting together thing, but I still enjoy the idea.

You see holidays seem to be when people bring up old traditions that have been passed on down the family or when they think the most about making memories. When I hear people talk about the holidays it usually involves making pies or cookies with Grandma. Involves watching football with Grandpa. There is the trimming the tree with the whole family and the silly things that happen when everyone gets together. There is sharing of food and recipes. The old favorites that everyone loves and looks forward to each year. If only we could find a way to slow down our lives a little more often to share and make these type of memories through out the year. I know people say it each holiday and we all agree to it. Yet how many of us actually do it? How many of us go out of our way to plan a special trip with our loved ones, take pictures, and make memories of it? How many of us decide during the year to just take a moment and do something with the kids around us that we thought was great from when we were little? How many of us stop for a moment in our days to sit with the younger generations and tell them about their ancestors? How many of us even know stories about our Grandparents or Great Grandparents not alone going farther back? How many of us sing old songs that have been passed down to our kids or read the old stories we loved to them? How many of us go in the kitchen and teach our kids to make the recipes their Grandparents loved to make? When we do how many of us tell them stories of the times their Grandparents making it or maybe stories that were told when we were being taught to make it?

You see if we don't make time to make those moments they won't happen and if we don't pass on the ones from the past they will be forgotten. I have had an idea for a long time and I know others in my family have as well to make a memory book of family stories, recipes, pictures, and other things to pass on. Granted I don't have any kids of my own yet, but I have nieces, nephews, great nephews, and cousins that I think would enjoy it. I know time is hard to come by and finding time for everything we need to do not alone what we want to do is so hard. I suffer from this as well. It has been a problem since the end of time, but I do make time to make memories here and there. I go on at least one trip a year with my brother and we have invited other family members to go. I try to visit my best friend and her family every year. While I am visiting I try to find new recipes for them to try and I try to do or find things that are fun and memorable to do. Granted it is hard to do that in a week sometimes when you haven't seen someone in a year, but I try. When I get a chance I try to do fun and memorable things with my Goddaughter and her sister. Such as taking them camping and getting their Jr. Ranger badges at different National Parks. I know there are more things I can do and each year I try a little harder to find new memories or make traditions. Some of the traditions I have picked up from friends or things I heard or read about. Such as last year I added Suger Plums to my list of things to make for Christmas. If you haven't tried them you should. They are delicious. Maybe I will post the recipe another time. Actually I might start doing that around Christmas time. Just post some of my favorite recipes for the holidays and write a little something around them. Another tradition started last year was Hot Wheel Mystery Cars. I know I am an adult, but there is just something about having a toy you can't see what is and opening it around the holidays.

Well I would love to hear some of your family traditions or memories. I hope you make some new ones this year and that you find a way to keep the holiday magic going throughout the year. Happy Holidays and if I don't get a chance to post anything tomorrow then Happy Thanksgiving.