Christmas Tree Hunt

The day after Thanksgiving we headed out with my parents to get our Christmas trees. 

It was a beautiful 55 degree day and we were able to dress the kids in light coats and hats. A far cry from last year, when we had a few inches of snow on he ground and we had to bundle Hannah up!

  We took the horse drawn carriage ride out to the trees.

 Hannah had a blast running through them!

 It was so great that we didn't have to rush to find a tree. Since we weren't freezing, we were able to walk around and actually enjoy the whole tree picking out process. :o)

Here we are in front of our tree.

 Hannah helped daddy cut it down.

 Until she got tired and decided to rest on his back instead! :oP

Hannah also helped papa cut down their tree.

 

 

We had a great time and got the two most perfect trees there! :o) We ended the day with a delicious glass of hot chocolate. 

It really was one of the best days ever!

Thanksgiving 2011

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We sure did!

I hosted Thanksgiving again this year. I didn't host last year but this is the second time I have hosted in the past three years. I love to cook and throw a party so I am happy that I get to do Thanksgiving dinner for everyone. Although our kitchen is getting a bit small for everyone to eat in...next year we might have to move it to the basement.

We had three different kinds of turkey: deep fried (my fav!), oven, and crock-pot. I made homemade mashed potatoes (note to self—15 pounds of potatoes is PLENTY for 12 people!), stuffing, and deviled eggs. Then others brought sweet potatoes, sausage and sauerkraut, and broccoli casserole. I made pumpkin cheesecake bars for dessert and we also had a delicious 'better than sex' cake that my sister-in-law made.

table setting

my 'butt-load' of mashed potatoes

Colson's 1st Thanksgiving—he enjoyed mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. :o)

my parents

Nick's Grandma Bea was also here from Florida. It was great that she was able to come because we do not get to see her very often. I believe this was only the second time Hannah has seen her and it was the first time she has seen Colson.

 

Nick, Hannah, and Colson with Grandma Bea

Nick, Hannah, Colson and myself with Grandma Bea

Nick's mom and stepdad

papa and Hannah

Nick and 2 of his 3 sisters with Grandma Bea

me with the little man

me and the hubs (it was a curly hair kind of day)

The food was delicious and the company was perfect!

Oh Snap and Wordless Wednesday

Linking up with Jenni From The Blog and Growing Up Gardner.

Oh So Thankful!

I am so thankful for my amazing, loving husband. I can't believe that we have been together for half of our lives. We have created so many great memories together.

I am thankful for my two wonderful children. For the hugs and kisses I get everyday from them. For the simple moments and for all the giggles.

I am thankful for my parents—both in blood and through marriage. Not only are they great parents but they are awesome grandparents.

Source: etsy.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

I am thankful for my sister and BIL and for all of my new sisters and brothers through marriage--which in turn makes me thankful that my kids have so many aunts and uncles who love them dearly.

I am thankful for my best friend, who I also proudly call a sister.

Source: google.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

I am thankful that our family is growing and that with each passing year we welcome new members to our family.

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Link up with TAT over at Growing Up Geeky.

Bear With Me!

Wow! It's been a while since my last post. Sorry about that but things have been a little busy around here.

Here is what our schedule looked like the past few weeks:

Oct 31 — Halloween
Nov 3-5 — Sara and Mackenzie came to visit
Nov 5-6 — Mandi and Alayna's Bachelorette Party in Chicago
Nov 11 — Mandi and Travis's rehearsal
Nov 12 — Mandi and Travis's BIG day
Nov 14-16 — Indy with parents for Thanksgiving with sister and BIL
Nov 19 — Alayna and Rodney's BIG day

And here is what is coming up:

Nov 24 — Thanksgiving (I'm hosting)
Nov 25 — cutting down our Christmas Tree
Nov 27 — Thanksgiving (mom's side)
Nov 29 — doctor's appointments for both kiddos
Dec 3 — Indy Zoo with the McFall's
Dec 10 — Christmas (mom's side)
Dec 17 — Christmas (dad's side)
Dec 24 — Christmas Eve
Dec 25 — Christmas Day (Nick's parents house in the afternoon. My parents house in the evening.)

Somewhere in there I want to get Christmas photos taken of the  kiddos. Plus we still have to do our Christmas shopping.

I feel like my house is starting to swallow me up. I am so behind on cleaning and doing laundry. I have to go grocery shopping still for Thanksgiving dinner... in 3 days! Ah!

But the past few weeks have been a lot of fun! I gained 2 new BILs and my kiddos got 2 new uncles--although we considered them both for a long long time! :o) My SIL's days were beautiful and perfect and I was so honored to be a part of them.

I promise that more blog posts are to come! Please, bear with me loyal readers! :o)

Silly Boy

Colson makes some of the cutest faces ever. I especially love his tongue.

He makes me laugh all the time!