This year’s Thanksgiving looked a little different for Chad and I.
Normally, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving we’d be packing up our car (including a few choice beverages, a couple of backpacks, a dog cage, and Wally himself in the back seat) and heading toward Grand Junction to see my parents. That’s been the tradition the past couple of years, followed by a few wonderful days of relaxation, laughs, drinks, and a yummy vegan-based meal shared together. We’d spend the rest of the weekend in a similar fashion, until Sunday came and we’d reluctantly go home a little too early for my liking.
This year, Chad and I decided that we’d be staying home for the holidays. We traveled back to Colorado four times over the summer and fall, so it seemed wise to wait a while—likely until mid-summer—to return again.
So, when Thanksgiving came, we decided to forego a traditional turkey spread (at my parent’s house, the meal itself hasn’t been “traditional” for us in a long time—spending holidays with them often means thinking outside the box with vegan sensibilities or a sense of adventure—we’ve done everything from travel to go out to eat and it’s been fun regardless) and settled on ordering Chinese food instead.
The day was lovely. Besides missing family, we were cozy and relaxed. We watched a few movies, drank mimosas, ate store-bought pie (pumpkin for me, pecan for Chad), wore sweatpants, and even did some painting in our basement. We got our food delivered, and ate it in front of the TV before making a few calls to check in.
On the day after, we did some online Black Friday shopping (I guess I couldn’t wait for Cyber Monday), focusing mostly on Christmas gift shopping. We were able to get out and about to a brewery and dinner at a new-to-us restaurant, and caught up with a friend to see the new Black Panther movie (which we absolutely loved!). Then, we decided to decorate our home a little for the holidays, which got us into a new seasonal cheer that we haven’t felt in quite some time.
We missed everyone. But even with a quiet passage of a bustling holiday, we were thankful for a new experience together.
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