A Time To Give Thanks

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

This year's Thanksgiving was definitely a season for giving thanks...

Because we are now neighbors with my mom and dad, we decided to tag team this year's dinner. We hosted the meal at our place and used my mom and dad's oven to cook the turkey down the street.

My mom came over on Wednesday afternoon and we set the table. I searched online and saw this idea for a cute centerpiece. I bought everything on clearance and spray painted it to match my colors. We kept the candy filled cornucopias and set them on leaves from Oma Bosch's yard. It was fun to blend both old and new traditions. I think it turned out great!

Brady made this headdress in school and was excited to be Chief Brady!

Thursday was an absolutely beautiful day. Sunny and about 60 degrees...you would have never known it was the end of November! Mark and Abby and Gwen and Tim and all of their kiddos came over around 1:00 so the little ones could nap while we hung out. But, before we put them down, we held a quick photo shoot. 11 months is such a fun age. Still babies, but happy little squirts who are developing their own personalities.

While the little ones slept, the big kids (and by this I mean kids and grown ups!) played with toys. Tim has gotten in to "flipping" atv's. He pretty much has the corner on the Craig's List market. So, Brady and Rylan took turns driving Grave Digger.

The big boys played with our newest toy in the basement--Ping Pong! It was actually really fun to have a lot of different places to hang out and a lot of different things to do!

Gwen (and all the rest of the girls for that matter) played with their version of toys...the Black Friday Ads!

Just before dinner, we attempted to snap some family photos. This, however, was what Brady was doing on the couch 5 minutes before pics. That will explain his super happy poses in the pics to come :)

Grandma Inge and just a few of her Great Grand Kids.

I like this pic a lot. The ladies are usually the ones taking the pics, so it was fun to get one of all of us together!

My mom, dad, and Grandma Inge took care of the turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes. Thank goodness, as hosting would have been way more stressful if I was in charge!

Sitting down to eat. There were 19 of us total. 11 adults at the "grown up" table with the "little kids"--Heath, Cohen, Landon, and Reagan--in the four corners.

The four "big kids"--Nolan, Rylan, Payton, and Brady--had their very own table. Not much eating happened at this table, but they enjoyed themselves for sure!

Landon ate absolutely everything we put on his tray. Not surprising. He definitely enjoyed his first Thanksgiving!

After an awesome meal, it was time to clean up. The men decided to give the women something to be thankful for and took dish duty. With music blaring on the iPod, they certainly made it fun.
And finally, it was time for dessert. We are always in charge of pies so it's fun to made the old favorites and a few new things. This year's selections? Pumpkin, Cherry, and a Lemon Tart.
We had a wonderful day. It was great to relax, enjoy each other's company, and give thanks for the many blessings in our lives.