A Bonus Holiday

I was in St. Louis this last weekend, visiting my parents. Shortly after I arrived, my mom let me know that we'd be having Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, because we're taking a family road trip to visit grandparents on Actual Thanksgiving. Most likely, the dinner on the Actual day will be in a restaurant. And because my entire family is slightly old-fashioned, we like the work and preparation that goes into a holiday feast. So we did one early.

And I kind of like it.

This last three or four months of the year is my favorite. The addition of a fake-real holiday at the beginning of November has helped restore some balance throughout. Since Halloween has lost much of its charm, having an early November fancy dinner helps balance out the late-November dinner, and the late December dinner.

Plus, it gives a fancy family-oriented meal that doesn't immediately need to be followed by Christmas decorations and a complete change of music in the household. Not that I don't love Christmas music! But it has its season.

So this weekend, we had a family dinner with my parents, my two brothers, and my sister-in-law. We laughed and misjudged assembly times, we tried new foods and old favorites, and generally had a blast. That's all I really want from a holiday, even if the day isn't an Actual holiday.