One of my priorities in life is my family. Therefore I always look forward to the holidays, because it is the time when all the family comes together. Last week we gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving, as usual we gather at my parents house for dinner not because it is our decision, but my mother says that as long as she is alive it will always be at her house. Our tradition is that we do not let my mother cook dinner, we give her a day off from cooking, therefore my sisters and I share the cooking responsibilities. Since I usually have to work, my duty is to cook all the sides, the yummy mash potatoes, stuffing, veggie casserole, gravy, corn. Now that I think about it I do most of the cooking, but my sisters do the turkey, ham, and of course we can not forget the desserts. 

In previous blogs I have mentioned how important family is to me, as well how big my family is. My parents have always taught us to be united and put family first. For all of us the holidays are a must get together, there could be 20 human beings in one small living room, but all 20 of us are there to make memories. My parents are the foundation of my family, and as long as they are alive we will  continue to get together for the holidays.                                                   Every year for Thanksgiving after dinner the children tend to get bored, this holiday is not like Christmas where we have the presents to look forward to, therefore it is difficult to maintain the children entertained for a couple more hours. This year I decided to entertain the children and came up with a few ideas to make this Thanksgiving a bit different. I had my children write different things we are thankful for on popsicle sticks. There was family, friends, freedom, God, food, health, pets, among other things. Everyone would serve themselves a plate, and pick a popsicle stick. Usually my sisters says grace, but this year we all went around and gave thanks for each of the different things. My favorite responses came from the children, my favorite one was from my niece Jessica. She was thankful for freedom, which she  related it to this years elections. 

After watching the football game, we played water pong, and the traditional mexican loteria. Playing loteria in my family is a chaotic yet fun game, there are no opportunities to even think about cheating. Every game is 25 cents, and sometimes if you are lucky enough you can make good money out of it. The last game we gamble a higher amount depending on the winners.The best part of playing loteria is having everyone gathered around playing, making jokes, and having a great time. The meaning of Thanksgiving is to be thankful for all of our blessings, my biggest blessing is my family. I am thankful for having the opportunity to continue to make memories with them, and pass on to my children our family traditions and values.