Well, we were in Houston last week, so we couldn't have the traditional meal then.
Besides, I just LOVE leftover turkey. So we had the meal here.

Tomorrow we have leftovers with the stuffing and everything.
The past few days I've been having sandwiches..


Mmmm......[drool]

I only got leftovers one day.

Well, that's the problem with having lots of people.

There are only the two of us, so you mix that with a 13 lb bird, and you get lots and LOTS of leftovers!

lol...

there were left overs, I just didn't get to eat them.

So today is the 2nd Thanksgiving meal.
Leftover stuffing, turkey, and all the fixins.

It's been so cold around here lately, I haven't felt like going out shopping.
But tomorrow I HAVE to go out and get a few last items for the Minnesota grandkids.

I get them ornaments every year, and I haven't gotten them yet this year.

that's the problem with having a lot of family. Too many presents to buy.

Well, we've limited it to just the grandkids.
We don't even buy presents for each other anymore.

So Christmas isn't that much of a holiday for us.
We just have family here and we visit. We don't exchange presents.

My family has dropped back to secret Santa style and then we each get each other a present or two within the immediate family. No one has outgrown presents yet.

Since when did having the exchange of presents determine whether it's a holiday? It's a huge holiday for my family, simply for the fact that we can get together for that one day. It's not about the gifts we give or get, it's the quality time we can spend together. From preparation for dinner, to dessert, to gifting, the conversations we have through-out, and the games we play after everything else has been put away, and/or the movies we watch, winding down the night. My family is typically together from around noon, until something around 10/11pm. And it never gets boring. There's always something new every year for us to bond over.

Who cares whether there's presents?! We get to hang out!

I really understand what you're saying, Connie.

It's just that the presents were such a big thing in my family.
I'm not talking expensive presents. Most of the time they were just gag-type gifts, or little trinkets. We used to take the entire day almost unwrapping presents on Christmas. We'd all sit around, and have our cups of tea, in our jammies...
(This was even when I was well into my latter years).

We would take turns opening gifts, so everybody was watching while you opened yours, etc. Lots of laughter and fun.

I really love the gift unwrapping part not just because of gifts (although I do really really love getting things). It's just something we've always done and I like to see the look on people's faces when they open what I got them. We have something like that all day opening thing, Jean. With both christmas' we do actually. But it's really sad that we have to wait until afternoon to open presents x-mas day now because my older brother cantors at his church in another city the christmas day mass. It's not like we opened in the morning anyway because we're not morning people, but the fact that my bro can't even come in for the holidays until then is a bit sad....

That does sound like our family, Kat!
My hubby's family was much the same way, only they always opened theirs on Christmas eve.

They'd put the Messiah on the stereo in the background, and then slowly open gifts.

Actually, WHEN you open isn't as important as having all the family there...

we used to play old x-mas music while decorating an then opening presents, but me and my dad both hate holiday music for the most part so that doesn't happen anymore.

when isn't really important, but there is also that tradition of when one normally opens presents.

Eh. The dinner, dessert, and other activities were always more important to us.
We would have dinner, then we'd take maybe a half hour opening gifts, while dinner digests. Then the gifts get stowed away in our respective baskets/bags for carrying home later, and we'd have dessert next, followed by movies/games. At least two of us usually sit there knitting/crocheting something or other, and the others play on their phones, but we'd all be talking and sharing things.. For us, gifts are more of an aside, or afterthought.

my family plays games every time all of us get together so that's hardly something to make a holiday special. Nor the food. I can't help but care very little about holiday meals because I don't like the food at all.

Oh, I love the food, and the games are so fun! Besides, it seems your family gets together a lot more often than mine. All of us have such busy schedules, the only time we ever get anymore is on the family holidays. Thanksgiving, Christmas.. MAYbe July 4.

ahah...we don't really get together often. Not my extended family anyway and now that me and my bros are mostly all out of school, we never see each other either, but we spend days together every second in each others air when we do meet. Christmas, thanksgiving, sometimes for graduations and such, and a family reunion a year.

Well, my family doesn't get together at all anymore.
Hubby's family does more often.

*pokes Jean's thread* This place went quiet.

Yeah, I wondered where it had gone to!

So, when do you go home for Christmas, Kat?

tomorrow morning. But it's not for christmas since I'm staying home.

Oh, are you done with school then?

yeah. I'm done with everything now.

I remember now.
You had started doing some interviews.

How has that been going?

I never did any interviews...