Navigating Thanksgiving Day, While #TTC

Thanksgiving was always one of my favorite #holidays. It was always so good to see family, eat good food, and have a ton of laughs. On top of that, I got married on Thanksgiving Day. Yup! In 2002, my husband and I got married on Thanksgiving Day. ⠀
As the oldest of 5, I always got vegetable chopping duty. My mom would say “ok Shervonne, now cut up those onions, pepper, and pickles very fine”. She would say, “I don’t want no big onions in my potato salad” LOL! I and my sibling would get a kick out of listening to my mom complain that we weren’t prepping the food right. She would in the same breath say, “No one cooks like me, y’all should be happy you have me”. We would say,” Yes mom, we are grateful”. You know what, my mom didn’t lie. Her turkey and stuffing are everything. The macaroni and cheese always taste like she had the finest quality cheeses. Her collard greens and candied yams were a whole meal by itself. Don’t get me started on the potato salad (with my help), cornbread, and desserts. Yeah, it was all good until I really started to struggle with my fertility. ⠀
Below, are some ways that I handled Thanksgiving Day during my #fertility struggle that made it less stressful:⠀

1. Game Plan – For us, Thanksgiving Day started with a church service. Some years, I have opted to go to a service at a church where no one knows me. That way, I can enjoy a good Thanksgiving service without the baby questions.⠀
2. Be Upfront – I would tell my family ahead of time, I just want to enjoy y’all on Thanksgiving. Please don’t ask me a whole bunch of questions about when I’m having a baby.⠀
3. Opt-Out – I have sat some Thanksgiving dinners out. I would tell my family that my husband and I, want to have a quiet Thanksgiving at home. They Get It!⠀
4. Put Fun On Top – We have had Thanksgiving where we would schedule the movies and have take out or take out and Netflix. I’ve had Thanksgivings where I just pamper myself all day (which was always different, depending on how I felt).⠀
5. Schedule Therapy – This one is new! Now that I have an amazing therapist, I plan to get in a session before Thanksgiving just to make sure my mind is right.⠀
   Love,⠀
   Shervonne