Thanksgiving Do Over

Last year for Thanksgiving we were in North Carolina visiting with Jason's sister and family. Last year I fell down the stairs and had to spend Thanksgiving in the ICU in a hospital in North Carolina. Away from my family.

This year we had every intention of going back to NC and having a do-over of sorts. Unfortunately I got sick (nothing as major as a lacerated spleen). I just did not feel at all up to traveling. So, we had our own Thanksgiving dinner at home.

My parents came over and Jason and I cooked the whole meal together. While this may not be that out of the ordinary for most people, it was out of the ordinary for us as a family.

Since I have known Jason, we have gotten together with his family for Thanksgiving. When we were first dating and engaged we would have Thanksgiving dinner in NJ with his mom, sister, her husband and my parents (a strange combination I agree). When Alison was born we traveled to NC to have Thanksgiving at his sisters house with my parents and his mom in tow.

When we moved to NC and his mom moved as well, it was an easier commute to his sisters just two hours away.

Over the years we had variations on the same theme. Some years my parents couldn't travel to NC from NJ and last year they just decided to stick it out in VA, only to come a week later to drive me home from the hospital.

We used to say (before Alison was born) that it would all be different when we had kids and it was.

Yesterday I was reminiscing about my Thanksgivings when I was a child which were one of my happiest, one of my fondest memories. I felt comfort, I felt loved and I felt safe. I reminisced about this and Jason said, "you want to go back to that." I said that really I wanted my children to have all the same feelings.

What I get from Thanksgiving (besides a belly ache) is this yearning to have special memories for my children. I have always been about traditions, and it means more to me than anything for my children to have traditions too. Something they can cling to when things are not right.

I feel that I don't provide this enough for my children. They have no real religious believes and no sense of belonging. I have failed them in this way. Though I do feel that with Thanksgiving at least, I can provide a little bit of that for them. Just may need to not get sick or be in the hospital.

How Big is Danny...So Big!

I came home from work the other day and my mom was sitting on the floor with Daniel and was holding him up. Daniel was wearing his fancy new sneakers and was holding himself up pretty well (he can stand unassisted if he leans against something). My mom was also trying to get Daniel to "walk" and he did a few steps (assisted) quite well. The thing that struck me most about this particular afternoon was Daniel's height.

Daniel is tall.

Alison is tall (off the charts) and Daniel is following in that same path. However, with Alison, you could always see the difference between her and other children her age. With Daniel not standing up all the time or walking, it is easy to forget that he is so tall.

I was shocked almost and saddened too. I wanted to so much for Daniel to remain standing and even walk to me so that he could finally be a "normal" little boy.

I know one day Daniel will walk, I am sure of it but that knowledge doesn't take away the sadness that sometimes exists now.

Happiness Is

It should be no surprise to our friends and family that we are a liberal family. We are not overly above and beyond in any respect but yes, we certainly were very saddened when our current President won yet again in 2004.

We had our heart set on this election. We craved a change that would resonate beyond our existence and with the grace of god we got it!

It is not at all that I believe that having this new president will specifically change anything in particular in our humble little home, town or even state. I still know that we will continue to struggle to work to make ends meet, to get out of debt, to try to balance work and home life. But what our new President-elect brings to my mind is HOPE.

Hope that some day, maybe not in my lifetime but in my childrens lifetime, that there will be an America that I have never known. An America that I have read about, dreamed about and even envisioned.

This America will treat all citizens equal no matter what, period. This America will really be the land of opportunity for everyone, not just the selected few with the most money. This America will be free from injustice, free from hardships and everyone will have access to the most basic of needs.

This new America, I know, will not come about overnight. Nor will it come in our new presidents first term or even in eight years. But, in my heart of hearts I feel it. I feel that our new president will lead us. He will help us all to see the greater picture. He is our guide to this new America.

He is not alone, he has enlisted all of us to help in our own way. To change what is not right. I am there. I am with him all the way. I will do whatever it takes for my County to make this place the very best that it can be for my wonderful, smart, beautiful daughter and for my sweet, smart, handsome son. They, more than anyone else deserve this victory, they deserve the new America.

Say it with me: President Barack Obama. Oh yes and if all works out for the best, someday we could say: President Alison Sokoloff or President Daniel Sokoloff. Both get my vote!