Happy Sunday! Our American friends will be busy this week preparing for their Thanksgiving celebrations. American (and Canadian) Thanksgiving are one holiday that I’ve always wished we imported and celebrated in Australia. Instead, we have adopted Black Friday sales. Australian retailers now focus their pre-Christmas sales around Black Friday deals. Do you do anything special to celebrate Thanksgiving? Is turkey on the menu, or something else?
Specials This Week
Valerie Comer’s My Cavanagh Cowboys Box 1-3 is on sale for $2.99 through Monday.
Reader Gathering
Did you know Inspy Romance hosts a Christian Romance Reader Gathering group on Facebook? Toni Shiloh is our host this week, so come on over… but don’t forget to answer the questions for admittance!
StoryChats @ InspyRomance
Story Chats releases an all-new episode every Friday. This week on Episode 98, Elizabeth, Valerie, and Narelle talked about police officer heroes and heroines. You won’t want to miss it!
Listen to our fun show on your favorite podcasting app, through the player on our podcast tab, or watch us on YouTube! Wherever you listen or watch, please be sure to hit subscribe so you don’t miss an episode!
Last Week on Inspy Romance
On Monday, Lindi Peterson talked about Romancing the Holidays
On Tuesday, Amy Anguish discussed Using Bad for Books
On Wednesday, Milla Holt talked about When Books Don’t Quite Hit
On Thursday, K. Leah discussed Real-Life Romance
On Friday, Angela Ruth Strong asked What’s in a character’s name?
On Saturday, Emily Conrad shared her Cover Story: How the Rhythms of Redemption Romances got those pretty covers
Next Week on Inspy Romance
Monday: Julie Carobini
Tuesday: Deb Kastner
Wednesday: Merrillee Whren
Thursday: Closed for Thanksgiving
Friday: Valerie Comer
Saturday: Jan Thompson
New Releases
November 2022
Trust Me With Your Heart, Cowboy (Cavanagh Cowboys 6) by Valerie Comer
Muskoka Christmas by Carolyn Miller
Within the Storm (Seasons of Faith 3) by Milla Holt
Puppy Love and Christmas Cookies (Happiness in Hallburg 3) by Merrillee Whren
December 2022
Blind Date with the Hero by Tara Grace Ericson
Roadtrip for Two (Roadtrip Romance 2) by Amy R Anguish
Refining Josie (Independence Islands 30) by Carolyn Miller
A complete list of Inspy Romance books by our authors is always available on our BOOKS tab. Find our audiobooks and our thank-you gifts for newsletter subscribers there as well!
A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, Narelle Atkins was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia and international locations.
Ha ha, I get what you mean. No Thanksgiving here in the UK, either, but the retailers are all over Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Have a lovely week!
Hi Milla, The retailers are fast to add holidays into their promo schedule, lol. We now go from Father’s Day (September) to Halloween then Black Friday, Christmas, and the traditional Boxing Day Sales after Christmas. Years ago, we’d go from Father’s Day straight to Christmas launching in early November. Enjoy your week! 😊
To celebrate Thanksgiving we get together with family for a traditional turkey meal.
Hi Ellie, A traditional turkey meal sounds lovely. Enjoy your Thanksgiving with family and thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Narelle! As a first generation in America, this retiree embraces Thanksgiving with its traditions and cuisine as her favorite American celebration. Christmas, from the first Sunday of Advent I embrace the country of my birth, Germany with all its inspiring uplifting Advent and Christmas traditions. As a retiree, who is trying to downsize, I am not a huge fan of Black Friday. I prefer to help family and friends throughout the year with gifts or experiences.
When my sons were young and my German parents were still alive, yearly I made Thanksgiving dinner (1980 – 2013). The 1980s were special, since we lived in Chicago and after Thanksgiving dinner, we drove to the Magnificent Mile and Daley Plaza to see the holiday lights, giant Christmas tree, and the decorated window displays at the world famous Marshal Fields Department Store. After my father passed in 2014, I took a break from hosting Thanksgiving dinner. Our sons no longer lived at home and had their own families. This year I am hosting Thanksgiving dinner. Turkey stuffed with our family’s famous giblet dressing, mashed potatoes & gravy, veggies, salad, rolls, and ambrosia salad. Will purchase pumpkin, apple and pecan pies from the bakery. Planned some fun activities – find the turkeys (5), make Thanksgiving and Gratitude Cootie Catchers, play Thanksgiving Bingo and model our matching Christmas shirts for our Christmas card photos. Hopefully the weather will cooperate, so our middle son (single dad) and youngest granddaughter can make the 1.5 hour drive to join the festivities. Mid Michigan received 12 inches of snow Thursday night. Enjoy your week.
Hi Renate, It’s lovely to hear your family Thanksgiving traditions. Christmas window displays in the department stores are also a tradition in Australia, especially in Melbourne and Sydney. I love Christmas tree lightings, too. It’s almost lunchtime here (Monday) and only 11C with icy winds from the mountains. Not sure what’s happened to summer? I hope your weather improves. Enjoy your Thanksgiving with you family and thanks for commenting. 😊
I agree, I’m in the UK and I think Thanksgiving would be a great holiday to adopt! The whole of November seems to be black Friday sales now, which doesn’t feel very special. There are lots of ideas for kids activities online and I’m thinking of trying to make a Thankful Turkey with my children – it’s basically a turkey picture and you stick on feathers with things that you’re thankful for and then you can add them to a thanksgiving prayer. I really like the idea, as giving thanks to God is so important and it’s a nice way to get them to focus on it, but I’m not sure my art skills are up to drawing a turkey 😂🦃
A very happy holiday to all of you celebrating this week.
Hi Ruthie, I was Christmas shopping on the weekend and it was good to not see Black Friday promotions in the stores. I’m sure they will appear mid-week. A Thankful Turkey sounds like a great idea for your family. Printing a turkey outline image for your children to colour in could work, lol. Enjoy your week and thanks for commenting. 😊
We usually have turkey and everything that goes with it, but this year I’ll be traveling to New Orleans with my daughter for a short vacation trip.
Hi Kathleen, A vacation in New Orleans sounds like a lovely way to celebrate Thanksgiving. Enjoy your Thanksgiving vacation and thanks for commenting. 😊
I feel that Canadians have the best of all the worlds (in many areas, LOL). We celebrate Thanksgiving in mid-October, which is prime harvest time. Gardens have just finished up across much of the country, and the bigger harvests of grain etc are also wrapping up. So we can celebrate the BOUNTY of the growing season and be so thankful for enough to eat and for family and friends to share it with.
But it’s separate from Black Friday and the kickoff to the Christmas (shopping) season. I really like that separation!
Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends!!!
Hi Valerie, The separation of the holidays makes a lot of sense. Christmas launch here is usually early November. The earliest I’ve seen Christmas stock in the stores is September after our Father’s Day. Enjoy your week. 😊
We will have turkey this year and celebrate with my parents. My husband will be cooking the turkey since pretty much every turkey I’ve attempted to roast over the past decade has been a disaster.
You definitely need to adopt the Thanksgiving tradition even if it’s just you and your family. :) Thanksgiving is my favorite.
Hi Kimberly, yes, we will have to do something as a family. Your family Thanksgiving sounds lovely. Thanks for commenting. 😊
I’ll be celebrating with friends, and we’ll have turkey, dressing, and all of the “best” of the traditions! Honestly, I feel thankful every day, just this gives an extra special vibe! The commercialization of it with Black Friday and now Cyber Monday kind of detract. At least stores closed the last few years on Thanksgiving due to Covid!!! When I was younger, no stores would be open on Thanksgiving. We rarely went shopping on Black Friday, and never did I get up to be somewhere just to stand in line for a store! I still won’t do that!!! I plan on being home all day that Friday. Fighting crowds is NOT my idea of fun!
Hi Trudy, Interestingly, our Boxing Day Sales (start December 26 or 27, depending on whether you or not you live in a restricted public holidays retail trading area) are the equivalent to your Black Friday. Pre-pandemic, the shops would open at 6am or 7am, and the crowds flock in to grab all the after Christmas sale bargains. Your Thanksgiving celebrations with friends sounds lovely. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Thank you so much for sharing. We are hosting. I believe my Dad will come to eat. We will take food to my Mom in the nursing home on Friday. She is in Hospice care. God bless you.
Hi Debra, I’ll be praying you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family, and have a lovely visit with your Mom. Thanks for commenting. 😊
My children and their Family will come for dinner that day! Blessings
Hi Sarah, Enjoy your Thanksgiving celebrations with your family. Thanks for commenting. 😊
fun week
Hi bn100, thanks for commenting. 😊