Thanksgiving!

The Christmas decorations are up, and it's music is on non-stop, so Thanksgiving must have happened!  And, just because I am in a foreign country, does not mean that it did not happen.  We all had a big Thanksgiving feast with our Budapest family.  Which, I have to say, I appreciated more than I thought I would.  Mainly, because rarely doe my family get together for Thanksgiving at home.  It is usually just my immediate family, and it was sort of cool (how corny) to have a huge meal with many different people.  We all made way more food than we needed, because we thought we would run out.  I mean, there was a 20 pound turkey involved.  There was mac&cheese, stuffing, potatoes, pumpkin soup, applesauce, bread, spiced wine, beans, chili, quiche, desserts, the works.   After our dinner almost everyone went to see Harry Potter, myself excluded.  I've never seen the movies, but respect it's fans, and I was not about to offend the lovers of Harry Potter, so I went home and made some pomanders, and was equally as happy.

I ended up staying in for the rest of the night, and did some reading.  I'm still reading Committed, so I have got to finish it before I leave, because this is getting ridiculous.  And as I was reading, I came across this passage that really struck me.  

              ...My mother most of all.  She was mercury, the tide.  Due to this supreme adaptability, she  created the best possible world for us within her home.  She made the decision to quit her job and stay home because she believed this choice would most benefit her job and stay home  because she believed this choice would most benefit her family, and I must say, it did benefit us.  When Mom quit her job, all of our lives (except hers, I mean) became much nicer.  My dad had a full-time wife again, and Catherine and I had a full-time mom.  My sister and I, to be honest, hadn't loved the days when Mom worked at Planned Parenthood...Frankly, we were delighted when our mother gave up her dreams and came home to take care of us...Most of all, though, I believe that my sister and I benefited incalculably from Mom's decision to stay married to our father...But I just want to say here—to lock it forever in print, if only to honor my mother—that an awful lot of my advantages as a child were built on the ashes of her personal sacrifice.  The fact remains that while our family as a whole profited immensely from my mother's quitting her career, her life as an individual did not necessarily benefit so immensely.  In the end, she did just what her female predecessors had always done: She sewed winter coats for her children from the leftover  material of her heart's more quiet desires.

 It just made me think so much of my family, and especially my mother.  I come from a very traditional family in the sense that my father is the main breadwinner.  And, this fall my mother has decided to go back to grad school.  Over the course of our many Skype dates, we have had discussions of our longing for knowing what we want to be when we grow up.  But, I just want to publicly tell my mom, that although you didn't go to grad school right away, and although you didn't try to pursue some immense career when Colette and I were growing up, know that I will never be able to thank you enough for the household that you created to raise us.  And, even if you never quite figure out what to do, know that Colette and I are who we are today because of the way that you and Dad raised us, and your willingness to commit yourself to those formative years in our lives.

Alright, enough of the sap.

Today I had fully intended on going to Buda to explore some of the touristy things that I have yet to visit.  But, it is on the verge of snow here, and I woke up late, so those plans changed and I went down to the Christmas Market.  It was Black Friday shopping at it's finest, and American Christmas will not be able to beat this.  Handcrafts in little wooden cottages, large platters of roasted meats and pastries, mulled wine, clothes, pottery, candles, spices, wool and fur goods, it was amazingly wonderful, and you better bet I will be back more than once before I leave.  My mother would be absolutely in love with it.  Hopefully, I'll be able to get some better pictures to try and give you the experience, or perhaps I will take a video.

Hope you all had wonderful Thanksgivings, and safe Black Friday shopping.  Only 24 days until I'm home to you all!