Have you already been preparing for November? It’s fair to say that a head start is important in a month this jam packed with excitement. To appropriate a phrase from a movie about epic surprises, you’re going to need a bigger month…

Holidays galore!

November starts off with Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights! Celebrated around the world, it’s one of the biggest festivals of the year in India. If you’re like me and want to get a breakdown of what Diwali is all about, you can learn more here.

One of the biggest holidays of the year in the United States takes place in November, too. For many, Thanksgiving marks the end of fall and the beginning of the winter holidays. Thanksgiving is meant as a time to appreciate those around you, and usually involves eating a significant amount of delicious food. And then afterward you can sit and watch football all afternoon (which is what I plan to do!).

That isn’t the only important holiday that occurs during this time, though! Hannukah also begins at the end of the month, and celebrating families will light each candle of the menorah over the course of eight days (Hannukah is also known as the festival of lights). Before researching this blog, I didn’t know much about Hanukkah, but since then I’ve learned much more! This page offers more information about this wonderful holiday.

Holiday shopping begins

We’ve all seen the headlines: “Woman Injured by Black Friday Crowd.” First, that is clearly unfortunate. Secondly, if you’ve ever experienced a Black Friday in the United States, you have most definitely seen the madness this event brings. There’s a bit of good excitement that comes along with the rush of, well, rushing! Still, be careful! Stores become a madhouse for Black Friday deals.

Black Fridays dipped during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but now it looks like Black Friday is back in full swing as per usual. So, if you do decide to participate in the shopping deals in person or later online (also known as Cyber Monday), make sure to stay safe and be patient.

Election time

If you live in live in the United States, you know that the first Tuesday in November is Election Day. It’s almost impossible to imagine that you haven’t heard that there’s a big election happening this year, but doesn’t that seem to be true every year? If you don’t know how or where to start, this website can help. You can see who the candidates are and what they stand for, how to vote, check your voting registration, and more!

Some other highlights for November:

• November 1: All Saints Day
• November 1: National Author’s Day
• November 2: Book Lovers Day
• November 3: End of Daylight Savings Day
• November 6: International Stress Awareness Day
• November 8: National STEM/STEAM Day
• November 10: Sesame Street Day
• November 11: Veterans Day
• November 13: World Kindness Day
• November 14: World Diabetes Day
• November 15: National Recycling Day
• November 17: National Take a Hike Day
• November 20: National Entrepreneurs’ Day
• November 20: World Children’s Day
• November 23: National Espresso Day
• November 21: Great American Smokeout
• November 23: National Adoption Day
• November 23: Fibonacci Day
• November 27: National Family Caregivers Day
• November 29: National Day of Listening
• November 29: Black Friday
• November 30: Small Business Saturday

If there weren’t already enough to appreciate in November…

• No Shave November
• National Scholarship Month
• National Diabetes Month
• National Peanut Butter Lovers Month
• Military Family Month
• National Home Care and Hospice Month
• National Novel Writing Month
• Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month
• Vegan Month

What do you plan to celebrate this month? Whatever you do, make time to appreciate friends and family — and all that is bright (and delicious!) in your life.