Happy Thanksgivukkah 2013!

Well, apparently, this year marks 'Thanksgivukkah," the one time in a very long while that Thanksgiving and Chanuka coincide. Apparently this won't come around again for another 70,000 years, so that's a good excuse to live it up!

Our Thanksgiving AND Chanuka are pretty busy this year--we'll be seeing my husband's family in Philadelphia, my family in Brooklyn, going out to a nice dinner with more family, and enjoying an "at home" Chanuka dinner with delicious sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts) and a gift exchange with just us and E. It should be a whirlwind!

5 fun things about Chanuka to share with you:

1. Contrary to public opinion, Chanuka is actually a pretty minor holiday in the Jewish calendar--it mostly gets its airtime from being close to Christmas. But minor or not, it's fun!

2. It's a Chanuka tradition to watch the Maccabeats video of the year!  Here's the new one:



3. Chanuka has about as as many spellings as Jews have opinions. Which is a lot. I spell it "Chanuka" since I pronounce it with a Hebrew "ch" (a guttural sound that doesn't really exist in English).

4, Chanuka has awesome food.

There are latkes (delicious potato pancakes, often eaten with apple sauce):

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And the above-mentioned sufganiyot (which are heavenly)

And of course, chocolate gelt, or coins!

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5. The meaning of Chanuka has many layers to it. We're celebrating the victory of a small group of Jewish fighters against this massive Greek army. We're also celebrating the rededication of the Holy Temple and the vial of oil to light the menorah lasting for eight full days. In my own life, it's always been a time to reflect on my personal miracles--see my previous posts on Chanuka here, here, here and here.

To learn more about the meaning of Chanuka, go here.

So tell me, is there anything YOU really want to know about Chanuka?