I had one when I was about ten. It was at my uncle's house and my mother and grandmother were there. I can't seem to recall if my father went, but my uncle had about 5 stepkids. Some may not describe this gathering as a Hallmark moment, but it's the closest I'll ever get unless I marry again.

As for me, I've had pizza during both holidays. Most of the time, I treat them as if it's just another day.

Tru

We had quite a few Hallmark Holidays. I miss 'em.

I think my Hallmark Holidays were during my childhood. My dad's parents lived in in a big old house in the country about 60 miles from Baton Rouge. A small bayou ran in front of the house. My grandparents had 5 children, who gave them 23 grandchildren. Some Thanksgivings we would all be there - running up and down the stairs, sliding down the bannisters, going out to the chicken yard and gobbling at the turkeys & guineas still lucky enough to be walking around in there. We would zip through the dining room & look in the"pie safe" for the coconut custard and sweet potato pies = grab some and run out back to gobble it. My grandad would hand grate 2 or 3 whole coconuts for these pies. (Makes my knuckles hurt to think of it)

The feast took a while to prepare -- on a wood stove during my early years. Times have surely changed. These days, the "kids" all have to eat first - as we well know. Not then. The MEN all went in and sat around the dining room table - which took all the chairs. We all stood around behind them while my grandad said the blessing. Then the children fixed plates (never paper)and went to one of the porches or wherever we could find a spot. The food was so good, we didn't care. The women usually ate in the kitchen amid the chaos of all the preparation debris. My grandmother was a wonderful cook, and I thought her food was the best on earth. She made a wicked caramel cake (6 layers) with home churned butter etc. Everything low cal!

I enjoyed every moment of those family gatherings. There was love and joy in abundance. I'm THANKFUL to have grown up with all those cousins. Some of us are still very close today. Some are brave enough to make that caramel cake, but everyone buys frozen coconut for the pies!
Doye

Doyew: We may have shared the same family memories of Thanksgiving! We always went to my grandparents...they lived in a big old farm house here in Ky. They had 6 kids and 17 grandchildren. We all gathered there for dinner...my grandmother would have a ham and a turkey and some baked hen and dressing...two ot three pans of dressing! . Huge bowls of mashed potatoes, corn, beans, deviled eggs....homemade bread...more food than I can imange today! She was feeding a small army! Dessert was kept out on the summer porch (it was cool by then) and there was a selection of pecan pie, chocolate pie, chess pie, coconut cake and whatever "new" creation an aunt brought in!

The men all sat first table. One of my uncles always said the blessing and then they women would fix plates for us children. We went and sat wherever we could using card tables and trays. The women ate only after the men....and I think they might have liked it like that because they could sit and talk and gossip after the men moved on to the football games in the living room. Might I add my grandparents home was heated by a coal stove...it just adds to the memory. If it was warm weather a game of horseshoes might be on for the afternoon.

The only exception in my youth was when we lived in Colorado Springs. My Mother worked as an auditor for the Air Force Academy and the first year cadets were not allowed to go home until Christmas then...not sure if that is the rule now. They would ask people in the community to host a cadet for Thanksgiving.The three years we were there my mother asked to bring two home for Kentucky. My father picked them up in the moring......they spent the day with us..happy to have a little contact with home..played with us kids...watched football with my Dad..and called their own families back home in Ky. ! Mopst of them kept in contact while in school since she worked there in a generals office... And one of them became a life long family friend who rose up in ranks. It also was one of the first lessons I remember well about sharing and doing for others. It was a different type of Hallmark holiday and I am grateful to have experienced it.

We were always a fairly small family at the holidays... at least during my marriage. It was usually just both sets of parents, my husband, our son and myself.

Since 2007 that group has gotten smaller and smaller. My parents now spend Thanksgiving in Florida, my FIL died in 2007 and we lost Stephen in April. This year, it wll just be my MIL, my son, his wife and me. We've opted to go to a nice restaurant where we can get all dressed up. My son and his wife will have lunch at noon with my MIL and I and dinner at my DIL's parents.

Christmas this year, is totally up in the air. I think I'm going to go stay at my son's for a couple of days. This holiday would be absoluetely brutal if it weren't for the fact that my DIL will deliver my first grandchild no later than New Year's Eve. That's making the holiday a time of joy instead of sorrow.

Holidays will never be the same....it remains to be seen what they will become in the future.

Ours were not Hallmark moments but they were fun most of the time. us, the kids and kid-in-laws and grandkids. Sherm made a great turkey carver and since I cannot make gravy, he was the gravy maker too. We just made plates and sat where ever and ate and enjoyed. A few times we made it to Nebraska to his family dinner. That involved the community center with all the extended family. Lots of food and conversating as he called it. Christmas we always had at home and who ever came, came. Never got out grandma's china or glassware; didn't want it about anything but being a family. This year I am working the holidays. Time for the kids to begin their own traditions.

I don't think they are usually so "Hallmark" like when we are having them, but quite often the memory I have of holidays past is what makes them "Hallmark." I have some that stand out in my memories more than others and last year's are perfect examples. They were the final ones with my husband. It was difficult to be home both holidays as he was in the middle of treatments at MD Anderson 600 miles from home. But he insisted on traveling home rather than the kids coming to Houston. I am glad he was able to be home for the holidays because those were the last days he got to spend in his home and with his children and grand children before his rapid decline and the few final days on hospice.

Growing up, I would say my Thanksgivings and Christmases were fairly close to Hallmark holidays. We always had Thanksgiving and Christmas at home, and my brother was there,and sister and her family were there if at all possible. My brother and sister were quite a few years older than me, and lived in different states than my parents and I, but, usually, they were home for the holidays. It was always so exciting as a child to know they would be coming home.

So, of course, I wanted our holidays to be like that! Mostly they were.

As the years progressed and Joe and I both lost our parents, we changed a few things. Mainly, the holidays changed places ~~ our home became the meeting place! I loved it, but, the stress factor was definitely there. I taught school and holidays are rather hectic at school. Everyone always brought dishes of food to help with dinner, so, it wasn't all on me. I did the turkey, and some other dishes.

Gradually, we combined my family and Joe's family for Thanksgiving. Christmas was different. My daddy always wanted us to open presents on the 24th. (Santa usually came on 23rd! Daddy wanted us to have our Christmas on both days.) Joe's Dad wanted to celebrate on the 25th ~ ONLY. Some of us daughter-in-laws tried to change it one yr (when he was still alive) and Joe's Dad was so upset about it, that we didn't do that again!!

Of course, my parents were church going, and non drinking; Joe's were not. So, on the 24th, after my parents celebration, Joe went to his parents house for their night before celebration party. That meant poker games and beer. I didn't enjoy that and seldom went. Most of the daughters-in-law didn't go. (5 boys/men in the family). The boys/men friends were there too. So, to me that was not a Hallmark Christmas tradition!! LOL

I've wanted to change this having a BIG deal at my house on both days, 24th and 25th, for a while now. Maybe I can this year. It is exhausting to have 2 days of it. One with my family and one with Joe's. It is just too hard with Joe gone.

Good topic.

Holdiays usually always have involved stress for me, as Im bipolar and stress is a big trigger at least for me, however over the years I could see trying to make the holiday perfect only caused more stress which made the holidays unpleasant.

As our daughters got older, old enough to handle the complete Thanks giving dinner, one year I told them it was their turn. The memories were priceless and by error when my daughter put the turkey in the pain upside down, I learned it so Moist and tender.
It's been a tradition ever since.

The most perfect Thanksgiving was the year my daughter got up early to help me. We always put our turkey in a cooking bag. That was the year we learned how NOT to put the turkey in the bag. We laughed so hard I thought we were going to pee our pants, as the turkey went into the bag and out the bottom with a loud KA-THONK on the floor. Now that's a perfect holiday when you have memories that make you smile, make you feel happy,

I like the bible scripture idea, I'll give some thought as to how,
It's been nice hearing all the feedback on this topic, Great post.
Heartbrokin

Thank you everyone who has responded so far! I have enjoyed reading your stories. It is good to know that there are so many different ways of celbrating/viewing the holidays. laurabp

Being Irish, we do not celebrate Thanksgiving. Christmas was our primary celebration. I have spent many Christmas Days on military bases. It was mostly going to mass and several of us pooling our food together to make dinner. Todd was deployed for the second time last October. We had just moved to a real house and he had to leave out....not to come back. Things were packed away forever and I did not decorate. I took my kids to church and that was it. Being back in Ireland will be different this year. I still do not get involved with the commercial part of the day. That has nothing to do with what this is all about. My kids don't need Santa in their lives, but they do need a relationship with God.
Blessings...Kaaren

The Norman Rockwell picture of Thanksgiving is the Thanksgiving of my childhood...my father looks just like the guy at the bottom of the picture..and that was our tradition. However, my father passed away in 2003, and our tradition changed for that year. We now go to a movie and then do a simple dinner with my mother and my siblings and their families. This year is going to be so hard, and so we are going to go to a movie (Harry Potter) and then just hang out. I am going to try to make it special for everyone.

My best holidays were when I was a child, growing up at home. My mother always put a lot into the holidays. We didn't have much money wise, but we always felt rich. In love, family, and fellowship. Mom always cooked a big turkey and our table always included other family members and/or friends who did not have plans or a dinner invite. I would not call it a Hallmark holiday, for that only occurs in TV land.

The favorite holiday of Richard and I seemed to be Thanksgiving, for it was about family, laughter and eating a great turkey dinner. Christmas is dissapointing, for it is nothing today like it was when we were children, and too much emphasis is placed on material objects and spending. Our pet peeve was the blow up lawn decorations. Please! Decorations when we were small were the big bulb lights on the house, a live wreath on the door, a real tree, tinsel, the paper thin ornaments, gingerbread cookies, and candy canes.

I love Christmas because it is the Lord's birth, but I also hate Christmas for the holiday it has become.

Have always been affected by the Hallmark Holidyas................the only truly perfect Christmas I had was the first Norm and I spent together...............we were so happy and excited to be together, we forgot to open our presents until late that night.............just spent the day together................as for every other holiday in my life..........NOT....guess the Hallmark life is left for heaven.........lol