Thanksgiving ’08

I’d been waiting for this day since last Thanksgiving and couldn’t wait to eat some of Yadira’s green bean casserole, Mary’s turkey, stuffing and broccoli rice, and pumpkin pie with whipped cream! I prayed and hoped that Alaethia could keep her food down and that I (or Mario or anyone else for that matter) didn’t catch what she’d had. She hadn’t thrown up since the night before, so things were looking positive.

I’d invited Dad over for Thanksgiving and he actually came! He came about 3 hours early (I told him everything started at 12) because he supposedly had to be somewhere else by 11:30. I was glad he showed up, though. I didn’t feel we were close enough to invite him about 4 years ago, and the past three years when I did invite him he never came over. He probably didn’t think about it all those Thanksgivings he was away when we were little, but I did think about him now as an adult and felt almost guilty about him being home alone, eating alone. I remember I asked him once how his Thanksgiving was and he told me he and his friends got together and went to eat at the Salvation Army dinner. But anyway.

Mom was catering to Dad like she was a waitress. She even had me make a pot of coffee and then when the food was done, serve a plate for him. He left around 11:20. I was hoping he’d stay and eat with us and all, but I guess it would be too overwhelming since it was his first time meeting family other than my in-laws. Maybe next year.

Of course Mom wasn’t going to live it down. Everyone was teasing her, especially because they know Dad’s asked her to run away with him to his house at least 10 times. He’d actually half-joked again just that day that she should leave with him.

I started getting strong stomach cramps around 11am, before Dad left. I kept clutching at my belly and cringing and Yadira noticed. She said Ana, one of her co-workers, had gotten cramps and diarrhea after her baby had been sick with vomiting so what if I had the same thing? I waited around and even debated not eating anything at all in case I did get sick. That didn’t last long; I served myself a nice plate of food and ate to my heart’s content. And then I had dessert. The boys and Alaethia actually ate really well—who doesn’t during the Thanksgiving feast? I got to see Mario here and there; he was outside under the back porch with the men and we women were inside browsing through the Black Friday ads. Mary and I weren’t really planning to go to the sales at all, but Annie and Cat asked her to go so I volunteered myself to go along with her. I was a little sad Mario wouldn’t get to join in the madness since he’d only gotten Thursday off and not Friday. We worked out a game plan and gave everyone their assignments.

I had pains on and off throughout the day. Sometimes they felt like they were contractions, which freaked me out so I tried staying hydrated and immobile. I even drank a Sprite to settle my stomach; everyone who knows me knows that I only drink Sprite when I feel sick LOL. I felt a little better by dinner time, thankfully.

I had a quick dinner of leftover stuffing and broccoli rice and went to sleep early, around 9ish. Mario took care of Alaethia while I slept. He gave her Tylenol when she was feverish again. At one point he got bored and dressed her up warmly to go over to Adan’s. He didn’t get desperate and take her to me at all, like he usually does. I was really proud of him, and incredibly impressed that he didn’t wake me up ONCE for help!