This year I am a mess. Thank you Jewish calendar. As far as I can remember, Chanukah has always been after Thanksgiving. Always. Of course it has been as early as the day after, but NEVER before, and frankly, I'm a bit discombobulated.
It is usually so cut and dry; orange down, blue up, turkey stuff put away and Chanukah on the rise. And this year with the overlap I am perseverating on things like, which flag to put up, and what decorations to put on the door; pumpkin or dreidel.
So I approached the situation the way I would if I had to help one of the kids navigate out of it. I made a plan in several stages as to not be overwhelming:
I would put up a few decorations for the first night and set up all the menorahs, yes, everyone has their own.
During Thanksgiving afternoon, we would decorate the house as a family.
On the first three nights including Thanksgiving night, we'd open gifts from one of our relatives that mailed us presents, and that way, we could practice being thankful for the people that love us. And send us presents. By the fourth night, I'd have the gifts that we were giving them purchased, and wrapped.
 |
| Chanukah Sacks |
We'd put up the Chanukah sacks on Friday, Yes, I made Chanukah sacks for the family, so the kids wouldn't spend every other second on Thanksgiving feeling them up to see if any presents magically jumped into them the 1/2 second they weren't looking.
I'd put up the house lights when it wasn't so cold.
Lastly, I wasn't going to sweat it. The kids love the memories we create for them. If they happen to over-lap, run back-to-back, or have several weeks in between, they will remember the fun they had, the awesome gifts and the family time. Even if it is spent in time-out for sibling altercations.
Regardless, it was going to be fine. Orange and blue can go together. Just ask Syracuse.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Let me know what you think and what you've experienced.