I'm trying to not feel stressed about not feeling "fully prepared" to cook The Meal of The Year™ in a few days. Will watching Alison Roman's Thanksgiving Special help? Yes, yes it will. Have I watched it yet? No. Will I? I really hope so. Apart from the humor, the videos do really help me mentally prepare for how I need to plan out the day (and the day before).

I fantasize about one day being able to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade without feeling the clock ticking, but I'm not quite Martha, yet — who, by the way, is apparently over hosting Thanksgiving? I'm not sure how I feel about that, to be honest. It's kind of like when my grandmother declared she was "done cooking" for the big holiday meals — if the icons of these big holiday gatherings don't have it in them anymore, what hope is there for the rest of us??

Of course, when my grandmother made that announcement, I was much younger, and I  (naively) saw it as an opportunity to step up to the plate. Now I know she was just...tired of not being able to fully enjoy the day. Also, I didn't realize that by offering to step in, it meant I would be on the hook...indefinitely. My daughter is only 15 months old, so it'll be a while until she's any help in the kitchen, lol. Even though (15 months in) I'm finally starting to feel like a normal human being again, I still haven't figured out what time management looks like with a toddler. I can plan all I want, but that usually means she'll be due to bring home a new mystery virus from daycare, and all of the plans go out the window. Again.

It's obviously a busy time of year if you're in retail, though. And...speaking of retail (that's why you're all here, right?), we've compiled gift giving guides for every person on your list this year. Even that weird co-worker who you got stuck with for Secret Santa.

And now...I have to go actually compile my shopping list for Thursday. Happy Thanksgiving, and see you on the other side, kids!

— Kathrine + the pretti.cool team