The Obligatory Thanksgiving Recap
I think this Thanksgiving was one of the best we’ve had in a long time. It was the perfect combination of family and friends, of laziness and activity, and the food was better than any holiday meal I can remember. My dad really outdid himself in the kitchen.
We spent Wednesday night hanging around my parent’s house, watching Gone With the Wind on television and playing Catch Phrase. Thursday morning it was pretty much more laying around while we watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and my Dad cooked in the kitchen.
Bean and I contributed to the Thanksgiving dinner by making deviled eggs, one of my favorites. I make them for our holiday meals now because if I make then, then I can make, like, three dozen of them and eat half before I even put them on the platter. Bean helped this year by peeling egg shells with me.
He actually did pretty good, but he kept breaking the eggs in half the wrong way. We had some odd shaped deviled eggs this year…
My parent’s house looked beautiful and we really enjoyed spending time with them. It’s always a great feeling to be with family at the holidays, especially when there are grandparents involved.
Friday morning, the boys got up early to go play golf and the girls and kids headed out into the Black Friday shopping crowd. It was such a fun day. We shopped ’til we dropped and I even managed to tick a few people off my Christmas shopping list. We took a break in the shopping action for lunch at Panera, which was lots of fun. I think Gracie ate a loaf of bread and Bean managed to “drink” an entire tube of yogurt without getting any on me, the booth we were sitting in, or the table next to us. So, big success there.
Friday afternoon, we headed down to my house in Orlando and spent the evening eating leftovers and watching Bridesmaids with my sister and her hubby. Saturday morning, we got the house ready for a big football party we were having that night. I’ll post pictures and details about that tomorrow because it was pretty fun and involved a billboard sized projection screen in our backyard. Before that could happen though, Chris and my brother-in-law, John Michael, put together Bean and Gracie’s big Christmas present from my parents…
We had to put it together this weekend because it’s the only weekend we’ll all have together at my house until after Christmas and, clearly, this present wouldn’t fit under the Christmas tree.
Bean and Gracie loved their new swing set! They played in it that afternoon and then we played with it again late Sunday afternoon after all our company left. Bean loves the slide and the see-saw swing and Gracie likes to just chill in her Fisher Price swing, which Chris put on the swing set so she could play with it, too.
Bean is still learning that he has to hold on to the swings while he’s on them, but he’s just about figured that part out. And, I’m actually enjoying it myself!
So, Thanksgiving was exactly what it should be. A lot of relaxation, eating, and laughing with people that I love. How much better can a holiday get?
16 Comments
Whitney
Haaaa – I love how Gracie is wearing a seminole shirt and the rest of the family is in gator gear. A little early to be pledging allegiance, don’t you think?
😉
Babytromm
Bean breaks his eggs the way Rachael Ray cuts her’s, so in my book that’s a great way to have them!
Sara M
I died over the pictures of Gracie with your dad on the chair…so flippin’ cute! Also, Gracie is the only one in Seminoles? How did that happen??!!
Ashley @ A Recipe for Sanity
Love Gracie in her Nole shirt! What a game! And I love that picture of Gracie looking at your dad…gorgeous!
victoria
great photos!! especially the ones with your dad and gracie-precious!! what an awesome christmas present for the kiddos (and parents)!! love that group shot!
Ginny
I seriously couldnt look fatter in these pictures… I’m blaming it on the angles. but still a great holiday with the fam!
Jennifer
sounds like a great holiday weekend! You’re brave to go out for Black Friday 🙂
Jen @ Caved In
Awesome swing set! And I salute you for braving the Black Friday crowds with kids. I did all my shopping from home in my pjs while trying to watch Sullivan as he attempted to ride the dog. Maybe I should have just strapped him into his stroller for good measure….
Mindee@ourfrontdoor
I should have come to your place. We didn’t have deviled eggs this year and I missed them!
Ann G-B
I love that you didn’t have to caption any of the photos because we all know who everyone in those pictures are!
Rebecca @ The Reluctant Housewife
Wow! That swing set is awesome! I think my favorite picture in the whole bunch is Ginny sitting in the armchair with the pepsi…that’s EXACTLY how I like to spend days off =)
Courtney
Great pics and wonderful memories, Katie. Thanks for sharing your family’s celebration with us! Have y’all tried the game “Apples to Apples?” That’s a must for us these days….we play almost every holiday and get way out of hand. It’s too much fun.
Katie W.
Thank you for putting that sweet baby girl in a FSU shirt!
Cindy
Ginny I think you looked fabulous in all of those pictures, everyone is always more critical of themselves. Katie your kids are so adorable and I know they will really love that swingset– what awesome grandparents!!
jenny-bird
It looks like it was a great holiday for your family. Although weve moved away from home, my husband and I still had the opportunity to spend time with family. His brother-in-law came to stay the week with us, and we had Thanksgiving with extended family. By the way, Bean and Gracie’s new playground is awesome! My sister and I spent hours playing on and around ours while growing up.
Kat
Looks like an amazing Thanksgiving 🙂 ps – I love that your parents have a stocking that says Beanie on it!