be thankful, family

for as long as i can remember i've always spent thanksgiving with my schramel side of the family. it is my favorite holiday, and spending it with my schramel side is just the way i want to spend it. with six kids and their spouses, numerous grandchildren and their spouses, and now, a couple of great-grandchildren, it's a full house at grandmas. my dads side of the family is extremely close and has been for quite some time. my grandparents did an amazing job of instilling family values into their children. the four brothers; my dad, uncle brian, uncle dennis and the baby of the family, my favorite uncle mark, are avid hunters and go on many many hunting and fishing trips- actually they are on one right now ;)- and spend so much time together. we've always been close and share an unbreakable bond, thanks in large part to my grandpa and grandma.

when grandpa died a couple years ago it was a huge blow to our family. he was the rock that held the family together. in good times or bad, he was always there for advice and of course an amazing smile. growing up i spent a lot of time with my grandma and grandpa. as a single dad, my dad didn't really know what to do with a little girl who would rather play with dolls than go huting 24/7- don't get me wrong, i went A LOT, but sometimes it's just not so fun. so my dad would sometimes bring me to gran's house to hang out. my grandpa never raised his voice at me, never scolded me and never made me feel like i was a young, immature girl. we definitely had a bond. it was like i was his seventh child and all the memories we shared together were priceless and things i hope my dad will someday share with gavin.

back to thanksgiving, well it's a fabulous time. grandma makes all the delicious goodies expected to be at thanksgiving and we all add in the rest. lots of good mushroom recipes, non-traditional deserts and sometimes a wacky side like grilled salmon or smoked pheasant if my uncles are up to it. we sometimes have to eat in shifts, there's no dinner table that could ever hold us all. so sometimes we eat in shifts and sometimes we eat in the living and dining room. either way we're spending a lot of time together and are sometimes too close for comfort, while eating at least. after dinner our family all gathers into my grandmas beautiful living room and joke or tell stories, there might be a game or two, or as of recently, laugh and watch gavin entertain us. there's booze, and a lot of it- to be honest i bet the family drinks at least two 1.75 bottles of captain morgan and maybe a six pack of beer.... but that's what i've grown up with so its never a shock. letting in a "newbie" in our family is a hard task. it almost seems like there's a "hazing" period, of talking shit and giving shit to see if they can handle it. dan seems to think that just by passing my dads test, he didn't have to follow the hazing with my uncles... i think he's right, my dad's a tough pill to crack. our family could spend the entire night talking, reminiscing, and drinking- sometimes we do just that.

it's a great holiday. no stress with the money or the gifts or pleasing each other. just time to spend together, all about family. i am so thankful to have such a great family, and to raise gavin and this new baby as a part of the schramel family as well. i hope that dan and i can create an amazing bond and instill those family values just like my grandparents did for their children, into ours- just not six kids ;)