Happy Thanksgiving 2011

We got up this morning and had breakfast and then Autumn & I went home to get showered and cleaned up for the day.  We went back to Mom & Dad’s and hit the road for Aunt Sandy & Uncle Robert’s.  Nick & Andrew came in our car while Lexie & the baby went w/ Mom & Dad.  In our car, the kids watched The Wizard of Oz b/c Mom bought it at the store yesterday.  Neither of the kids had seen it before, so it held their attention pretty well.  This is the purple chaise lounge (click HERE to see how it used to look) that I used to have at my house that I gave to Aunt Sandy.  She reupholstered it, and it looks GREAT!

The kids rode bikes outside while we did some finishing touches on the food.  Then it was time for the Thanksgiving feast and we got all of the kids their food and got them situated and then got our food.  Heather & Shane made these adorable turkey cups for all the kids w/ their names on them.  Heather even brought mac & cheese and pb&j sandwiches for the kids that didn’t want the usual Thanksgiving food.

After everyone had stuffed themselves on turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy, stuffing, green been casserole, butterhorn rolls, & candied sweet potatoes, we went outside to get a group picture.  The lighting is horrible, but at least we got a picture, which is better than nothing.  Emily’s parents (Bert & Regina) were there visiting and we were glad they were there.  They were so cute w/ the grandkids.

We had to try and get our annual Thanksgiving picture that we send out in our Christmas cards.  This is the best one we could get even though Andrew is pulling a face.  In the other pictures, someone has their eyes closed or is talking or the baby is looking somewhere else.  Oh, well.

This is the best one we could get of Papa & Mimi w/ the grandkids.  Autumn & Andrew were doing weird smiles b/c they were tired of taking pictures and smiling at this point and the baby isn’t looking.

I thought this was a cute one of Lexie & Jon & Andrew & Jackson

I wanted one of Autumn & I, but she was being silly so I decided to go w/ it and someone was yelling at us to put our feet up or lean to the right or lean to the left.  I’m glad we can have fun together.
 Mom wanted a picture of her & Dad together.  I am so thankful that I was sent to their family and that I get to have them as parents.  They are so good to all of us kids & grandkids.

After all the picture taking, we had pie, and had about 10 different options to choose from.  My favorite is Aunt Sandy’s pecan pie.  After loading the dishwasher, I went to lay down on the floor for a minute to watch the Cowboys game.  Next thing I know, I had fallen asleep and woke up about an hour later.  Aunt Sandy & Uncle Robert took all the kids to a park by their house to play so Autumn was in good hands.  We left in the middle of the 3rd quarter of the Cowboys game so we didn’t have to deal w/ all the traffic after the game.

We got home and called Nate on the iPad (that’s what Mom is holding) to wish him a Happy Thanksgiving even though it was already Friday morning in Japan.  We spent the rest of the evening just hanging out and watching the A&M vs Texas game.

I know I say this every year, but I really am so thankful for all I’ve been given.  I play a game at night w/ Autumn when I’m putting her to bed when I ask her, “What’s my greatest blessing?  Is it my car?  House?  Hair?  Camera?  Bed?  Clothes?  Jewelry?, etc.”  I list off a bunch of things and every time she says no.  I slip her name into the middle of the things I’m listing and she’ll be saying no to everything else, but when I say her name she smiles and says, “yes” b/c she is my greatest blessing (after the gospel and atonement).  Anyways, I really do count my blessings and know I lead a very blessed life.  I hope everyone else was able to celebrate Thanksgiving w/ their loved ones and were able to create great memories.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2011