Gobble, Gobble

Thanksgiving was both special - and a bit different - for us this year. Not only were we in our new house but we decided to host both sides of the family at the same time instead of doing two meals. And, y'all, it was so fun. We had a blast.

I took off last Tuesday (when the man was working and the girl was in school) to grocery shop (that was frightening) and cook. Rambo helped me. A lot. In fact, he volunteered to exclusively handle all taste testing. :-)

The girl and I finished up a few extra things on Wednesday and I loved having her all to myself. Middle school is fun and exciting and busy. All these things are great but it also means I literally don't see her as much as I used to. Makes me cherish holidays even more.

Thursday was really stress free and we just enjoyed having our families over. My mom was a huge help as she and my dad brought a ton of food.

I had to catch her as she wasn't interested in posing for pics. Hence, the facial expression.

I won't tell you how many takes it took to get this pic. He wanted to make inappropriate camera gestures it would seem.

Uncle Roy was with us from Oklahoma. Such a sweet, precious man.

There was a whole lot of talking and catching up that happened in this room. Throughout the entire day.

And Rambo used Boppy as a pillow for HOURS.

This is how you'll find the girl most days at this point in her life - with a volleyball in hand. Select season has begun and they're doing lots of practicing. She is loving it and is thriving something serious. I'm so proud of and for her. It's truly been a blessing for my baby.

Aunt Diane and her man (Kevin) and his precious mom (Carolyn) joined us as well. They - all three of them - crack me up.

And, while the girls were in the backyard, this one soaked up as much attention as possible.

There are a couple of really big things I wish were different about our life right now but, at the same time, I know we're incredibly blessed. We've come a long way and I count my blessings every day that I get to do life with these peeps. :-)