Non traditional student non traditional Thanksgiving

Judging from the articles that I have read about “normal” Thanksgiving dinners, my family's Thankgiving dinners are very unusual. I have been very lucky so far, because my kids get along, so they usually don’t fight, not even on non-holidays, and none of us are big drinkers.  In fact, the only time that my family gets rowdy is when my kids drink too much soda and get hyper, which means that nobody is screaming and fighting with each other and airing long-dormant grievances.  

We have small and relatively quiet family gatherings that consist of my mother, my sister, my husband, my two kids and me.  I don’t have a grandmother in town who comes and pinches anyone’s cheeks, and thank goodness for that too. I wouldn’t know what to do if some crazed elderly lady came at my children trying to rip their cheeks off.  Everybody else who is genetically-connected to me lives in New Jersey, Mississippi and Florida, and they don't come out to Missouri to visit, which is a good thing because, between my mom’s house and mine, we have a limited amount of space  and it’s bad manners to put your family up in a hotel. Because of this lack of extended family, my kids are the only kids so far, so there aren’t tons of young ones running around, screaming, fighting and knocking things over, which my mother definitely considers a blessings, since we usually gather at her house.  And since no one in my family likes watching football, we aren't distracted by a bunch of men yelling at the television.  

Even though my family consists of only six people, we make enough food to feed a small army, and we all contribute something to the feast.  Because of my busy schedule, my husband and children usually prepare and provide the hors d'oerves, a few side dishes, and the sodas, and my mother and sister make the entrees and the desserts.  We usually eat at my mother's house, where we eat, discuss current events, what is relevant in our lives and talk about the Thankgivings of the past, like the time our '67 Chevy Nova wagon died at the bottom of a steep hill and we had to walk all the way up the hill and halfway through town in order to get to our house.  There is usually a movie on in the background, which nobody really pays attention to, and after about four hours, my family and I drive the whole two blocks back to our home. 

When my children get older and begin to have their own families, it is going to be interesting  to see how our family dynamics will change. I wonder if I will become that crazed grandmother who gets thrilled at the idea of pinching her grandchildren’s cheeks. Once my children have their own families, will our quiet little family Thanksgiving dinners become "normal" and therefore full of football, screaming kids, rowdiness, drunkenness and aired long-dormant grievances, or will they be the quiet, cooperative and friendly little family gatherings that I have come to know so well? Only time will tell, but one can only hope.