Nia and her Nana at her 1st Thanksgiving |
Thankfully we'll be home for the holiday and may be hosting my father-in-law so it should be a pretty quiet day. I still need to pull together my shopping list and get organized. It really does seem true that each year goes much faster than the next!
More than just cooking I want to consider which family traditions we should start with Nia for the holidays. We've done a few crafts with our local moms' group (a post with pics is coming!), and I've considered Elf on the Shelf, but I really want to work on helping Nia understand why we celebrate the holidays we do. Long term I would like to volunteer on Thanksgiving mornings but she's a bit young for that now so maybe next year.
A recent episode of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood discussed a "Thank You Day" without calling it Thanksgiving (I know, we're a bit obsessed with that show!) and Nia keeps singing and talking about it on her own so I think she's starting to get it. Also, with Christmas she shows an interest in the nativity especially since we've been reading her toddler Bible for over a year now. She doesn't know who Santa is and honestly, I'm fine with that. We were at the mall yesterday and passed by the Santa picture station and she looked past Santa and squealed in delight when she saw the Christmas tree. She exclaimed, "It's my party!"
Part of me really wants to take Nia to see the Macy's Day Parade but unlike last year I don't have an indoor viewing hook-up, and I can't imagine having her outside for so long with limited bathroom access. Mr. Love Bird has already sworn off ever going again to the parade or balloon blow-up the night before so I think we'll scratch that idea . . .
You can see Nia's first Thanksgiving here and last year's here.
Are you feeling confident in your Thanksgiving plans? What holiday traditions are you making with your family?