Two things have become suddenly and abundantly clear regarding travel over the holidays. First, I’m more fortunate than ever to be able to go home. Second, I’m even more appreciative of quality time with my family over the food, decorations, and gifts that come with the holidays. Both things are fitting ones to be thankful for during Thanksgiving.

We’ve made the trip from New Hampshire back to New Mexico a couple of times now, and I’ve learned quickly that it isn’t easy. There’s no such thing as a non-stop flight from either Manchester or Boston to Albuquerque. On the way home this Thanksgiving, we had stops in Philadelphia and Chicago going there and back. Consequently, this trip is long; so far, our travel time has been 7 to 8 hours one way. That’s the nature of flying from the East Coast to the Southwest, I suppose, something that I’ve had to learn fast. It’s exhausting.

It’s also rather expensive. Yes, connecting flights means that you can be flexible, shop around, and choose the cheapest airline for each flight. But at that point, you might be paying for multiple flights rather than just one non-stop, so you have to be careful of how that adds up. Then, depending on the airline you go with, baggage fees and other costs can come into play. God forbid if you need a rental car at your destination. Luckily, we have plenty of family and friends in Albuquerque willing to drive us around.

Despite the lengthy and tiring amount of travel and the expense that goes with it, I’m glad that we can go home at all. Most likely, we won’t be able to every year. Regardless, I count myself blessed. We’re working hard and doing well enough for ourselves to have the opportunity and take it when we can.

Whether we get to go home, or our loved ones visit us, I think that our time with them is more important than ever before. We moved away from home when we went to Colorado, yet now that we live in New Hampshire, we’ve really moved away from home. Most of our family lives in New Mexico, Colorado, and California; most of our friends are still in New Mexico. We’re pretty far removed at the moment.

For this Thanksgiving, my in-laws reduced their usual “Turkey Day” meal. We ate turkey breasts with them, not a full-sized turkey, and that was totally okay. They made smaller portions of all their recipes, from the mashed potatoes to green bean casserole. That didn’t matter. The conversations we had and the activities we did with them mattered so much more.

When we ate with my mom, brother, and grandparents, my mom hugged me tightly and told me how thankful she was that we were all there. It seems like a simple statement, but I feel like it spoke volumes. She and my in-laws will probably live in Albuquerque for a long while. However, my brother’s moving to Denver. My grandparents live in Colorado Springs, and they aren’t getting any younger. We only got to see my dad for lunch before we left because he and my step-mom were traveling elsewhere for Thanksgiving. That lasted maybe an hour or a little more, since my dad had to go back to work. Yet he stressed the same thing: it’s more valuable to spend time with our loved ones than worrying about cooking food or buying gifts.

We hung out and caught up with my best friend at her apartment while playing with her new dog. All three of us were just sprawled across the floor and relaxing. We met up with a pair of our married friends as they set up a rope swing below a highway overpass and sent people flying over the Rio Grande. Yup, a huge rope swing. It was the scariest thing I’ve done in my life. No matter what we do or what we don’t do, it’s the people that matter most.

Albuquerque was beautiful, wonderful, and ever-changing, as usual. The weather was gorgeous, as usual. Our family and friends, though, continue to be the best part, as always. When we go home, the people we care about are still there. I’m thankful every day for their company.