Shabbat Dinner

We have made an effort to have a Shabbat dinner, complete with challah, each Friday night that we are in town and able to do so. We do not go overboard in our adherence to this tradition, but we consciously make an effort. I used to make challah on Thursday night and have it overnight rise in the refrigerator to bake on Friday night, and my children, now largely adults, make an effort to attend. They might go out afterwards, but they are there for a 'family and friends' meal.
Last Friday we had set as the day to move into our partially renovated home and to sleep there. We had a few items left to move that day--most importantly the washer and dryer, and my husband and sons spent the day doing a fair amount of heavy lifting, while I made some preparations to actually live there--groceries, the final move of kitchen appliances, and trying to manage the boxes so they did not become too overwhelming. It was a long tiring day, and at the end of it we all piled into five different cars and went to Shabbat dinner at the house we have celebrated Shabbat at the most after the house that we had just moved out of. While I always love being invited out for Shabbat, that night was particularly special--all my sons were in town, and our extended family was eight that night. We had just made a big step towards the next phase of our lives--3 of our 4 children no longer live with us, and we are moving into a house that acknowledges that change. It is a big step, and it was wonderful to have a celebratory dinner that I did not have to cook (which would have been impossible! I did not even change before coming to dinner, much less prepare it!). Once again i am appreciative to a tradition that brings us all together, however briefly, on a weekly basis to renew our ties to friendhip and kinship.