Thanksgiving

A post about our Thanksgiving....better late than never right?

We've always gone "home" to Idaho for Thanksgiving but this year we ended up staying home for a variety of reasons.  We missed our families a bunch, but it was nice not making the 8 hour drive home :-)

Of course, staying home meant I was going to be cooking my first Thanksgiving meal.  Normally, my roll when it comes to Thanksgiving dinner prep is more of "the girl who stirs."  So, I saw the cooking as a fun challenge.

Here's what was on the menu:

*  Roasted turkey & gravy

*  Mashed Potatoes

*  Stuffing

*  Rolls

*  Broccoli Cheez-it Casserole

*  Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

*  Corn

*  Cranberry Sauce

*  Cranberry Chutney (for the turkey)

*  Strawberry Sour Cream Jello Salad

*  Sparkling Cider

*  Cherry Pie w/vanilla ice cream

*  Pumpkin Toffee Cheesecake w/real whipped cream

I did a lot of the items in the 2 days prior to Thursday, so Thanksgiving wasn't really stressful the day of.  I think all the food turned out pretty well, and as a bonus....I didn't give anyone food poisoning :-)  We had our good friends Jeremy, Kristen and their kiddos over to celebrate with us.  Their 4th little boy Nehemiah was so precious and tiny!  We love our friends like our own family and it was a perfect day spent enjoying time with one another. 

Of course, I am a complete dork and put the camera "out of reach" of the kids and forgot to take a picture of all of us together.  So just imagine 4 kiddos, 1 baby, and 4 adults stuffing their faces around our table :-)

I took a few pictures of Benjamin in the morning and that evening after they left when he got a bath so grandparents should be satisfied!

 soooo excited for his friends to come over soon!

 aaahhh, can he be any cuter???

 he now goes and gets our laptop, puts it on his lap, opens it up and types away (thank goodness for password protection!)

 reading a story with Daddy after a full day of food and friends

 vegging like we all do after a big lunch!

 Daddy had a little too much fun with the bubbles that night!

we are SO THANKFUL for this little guy!

It has definitely been a year full of blessings for our family.  In particular, I am so thankful for:

*  My patient, hard working and funny husband.

*  My adorable, stubborn, smart, and hilarious little boy

*  My second little boy who I love to feel move around inside me, he is very active!

*  Our extended families....we are so blessed!

*  Our church family & friends

*  All of our physical needs being provided for

*  Growth in our marriage relationship and in our role as parents

*  God's Word

It has been a full year and God has been so good.  We are truly thankful!