Staying Home For The Holidays {and HAPPY ABOUT IT!}

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Home for the Holidays

Thanksgiving is coming!  It’s the busiest time the year for people to drive or fly to see their loved ones for the weekend.  Then we all franticly get home to get back to work and school. While Thanksgiving is supposed to be about thankfulness, and spending time with family you haven’t see all year, for the last few years  Thanksgiving been hectic and busy for us.  Very busy.  Sometimes I feel like the holidays have changed, or I’ve changed, because somehow it always seems to fly by and I never manage to soak up as much thankfulness as I had hoped. 

So this year, my husband and I decided to be thankful to stay home with our three little ones.  

It’s not that we don’t want to see our families, carve the turkey, watch football and talk all things family with that one crazy aunt. It’s more about doing what’s best for our children, being intentional, and thankful for what we have right here.  

Plus, traveling is HARD. Out of all our family members, my husband and I travel the farthest and have the youngest children.  Traveling for us really resembles a chaos-filled, traveling, circus zoo (is that a thing?).  When we fly to Boston to see my parents (I always say my parents even though it’s just my mom now) we have to check: 3 suitcases, 2 car seats, 2 backpacks, 1 double stroller, 1 diaper bag, 1 Pack-N-Play.  Plus of course we have carry-ons. And I know you can all relate to being curbside with all of this at the airport, amiright?!  We definitely get a lot of looks.  I don’t know how families with more than three children really do it.  Getting to Boston takes two flights,  as does the flight to Washington D.C. where my brother lives.  My mother-in-law lives in Arkansas which is a 9 hour drive, and it’s about the same for my brother in law who lives in TN.  So any way we slice it (HA! now you’re thinking about pumpkin pie. See what I did there), it’s definitely a long trip.  

And then of course once we arrive, our two little ones have to be in separate bedrooms because one wakes up the other.  Not to mention, we are now without a highchair,  we have none of their toys (except for the ones I was able to cram in my carry on) , and they’re now officially and completely out of their routine.  

So this year,  for the first time, we decided to stay home and not visit anyone.  And I am completely fine with it.

I’ve come to realize that yes, I love to experience new things with my kids and travel might as well be my middle name BUT… I also know when to stop once in a while, breathe, and know it’ll all be okay.  Family will hopefully understand that it can be challenging with little ones and sometimes the stress of holiday travel can overshadow the joy of spending time with relatives this time of year. I know it won’t always be this way, but this year, it just feels good to know we have given ourselves permission to take it easy.

Even though my older two are out of school for the week of Thanksgiving, I plan to play tourist, do crafts, make new traditions, relax and just enjoy them.  I mean isn’t that was it’s really about…being grateful for everyone close to your heart?  And maybe early bedtimes and a nice clean house?  Hey…a mom can dream, right?!  Happy Holidays!  #keepyoursanity #holidayON 

Are you traveling for the Holidays, or are you making new traditions this year like me? I’d love to hear! Leave me a comment here or over on FB!