Turkey Day

Thanksgiving Day is quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays. I'm not sure if it's because I have been hosting Thanksgiving ever since we moved to MN or the excitement/exhaustion of making so much food for so many people, but I really do love it! Honestly, it's probably because I love having various members of our family/friends/neighbors coming together around the table to enjoy a meal which always ends with great conversation. Last year we had several college hockey players along with our neighbors from South Korea and this year we had my entire family along with Matt's brother Tyler. 

Do you think my kids like having Uncle Ty around?

Matt has become quite the master carver

And who doesn't love a beautiful table setting? Sadie wanted to make the place cards and she definitely put her own artistic touch on each one. Sadie is definitely the most creative and artistic one in our family and, as she says, love to 'make things pretty'. Many nights when it's her turn to set the table, she will take extra time to fold napkins in a special way, make artistic place cards or give each of us a 'special treat'. I love the beauty she adds to everything she touches!

And clearly there were others who felt the same way….

…a bit of a closer look.

But these three were clearly more consumed with hunger….(they couldn't eat until we all sat down and prayed but I'm quite sure they consumed just as many calories in egg nog and sparkling juice in the meantime)

We had a great feast and sat around the table for over an hour discussing life, marriage, highs and lows and God's goodness and faithfulness to all of us. Sometimes there are things you take for granted--like a holiday meal around the table with your entire family--but that is no longer the norm for our family and not something we take for granted. To have my parents, both of my sisters and their husbands and my family around the same table for a holiday meal is something we have never experienced. It had been over 6 years since we had all been together and it was such a blessing to all be around the same table again. It was as if none of us wanted the meal to end. At one point, as we were eating, Sadie turned to me and whispered, "I can't believe this is really happening"--my sentiments exactly!

Sadie and Blake didn't care much for the pie, but were glad we had whip cream on hand!

And thanks to Tyler, we were able to get a picture of all of us

Then on to the silliness that is our family! Blake often does things (like putting on his ski gear) that others find hilarious, but he always seems surprised by how entertaining it is to everyone else. So here was a picture from Aunt Lindsay's phone….

..and this was a common sight during Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Rob's time in the states (Matt's shoes were a nice touch, Blake).

And of course, whenever someone pulls out a camera, Blake hams it up!

We took this family picture to keep it real….sure, the family picture from upstairs right after our meal looks nice but this is a bit more real! What a goofy crew we are!

Since Lindsay and Rob would be back in NZ for Christmas, Mary Jo wanted to give Lindsay her gift before they left.

LOVE LOVE LOVE time with these two!

And of course this beauty

Sadie's pic of the Bohlman girls

One of our traditions on Thanksgiving is giving the kids their Christmas pajamas. I figured it's pointless to give them on Christmas, when the season is just about over, so it's always a fun little surprise to break them out when we are ready to decorate the tree.

Don't you love the expressions on their faces?! 

Aunt Lindsay helped the boys put together one of the crafts Grammy sent.

Blake was working hard to figure this one out!

Cherished time with fam

The next day, Friday, was Lindsay and Rob's departure day. Departure day=mourning and sadness for everyone. And each time they leave it gets harder and harder because we are all reminded of how much we miss by having them around. But before we took them to the airport, we had to take this picture of all of us in our wedding dresses since we knew we might never have the opportunity to do it again. 

We had the idea while we were all in Madison for Mary Jo's wedding, so my mom brought all three of their dresses up to our house and I broke open my 'sealed' dress for the first time since my wedding (if my mom opened hers up after 37 years, certainly I could open mine! Plus, I've heard that getting your dress 'sealed' is no longer necessary)

Sadie getting in on the action!

And then after this, we had to say goodbye to Lindsay and Rob. And as I said earlier, it never gets easier, only harder! Not much to say about it, other than that we keep praying the Lord might open doors for them to move here someday!

But without reflecting too much on the difficulty of saying goodbye, it was a great Thanksgiving and possibly our best one yet!! So thankful for my family--my favorite people!