Thanksgiving

We had a busy but wonderful Thanksgiving week. We have so much to be grateful for, but certainly the arrival of our sweet little Ben would top the list this year. We're also thankful for the friends in our lives; we got to have a playdate with a few of them just before Thanksgiving:


Who has the curliest hair, Claire or Samuel ??

It's hard for me to believe that Michael got over here on his own; I guess Ben will be there in a few months !

Will and Samuel goofing off.

Quite a few years ago, we began having some of our Thanksgiving celebrations with the Duggins, when we weren't able to go away for the holiday. It's come to have a special place in our lives and we were so glad to be there this year. Our longtime friends, the Boyds, were there and it was extra special because of the two new babies, Benjamin and Nicolai:

Yes, it was SPECIAL ;>) Actually, posting this first is misleading......this was toward the end of the evening when "tired and cranky" replaced "sweet and cuddly" !

We actually got some good pics of them together (and see who else squirmed into the corner ?) There's about a month difference in their ages, but Nic seems to be as healthy an eater as Ben !

We're SO thankful we do NOT have a piano at our house ;>)

Samuel found a playmate in Tracy.

Anybody who plays cars with Samuel is an instant soulmate ;>)

Not sure if Gary expects Ben to chew it or write with it ;>)

I think this is such a sweet pic of Tracy & Ben.

Dan & Nic.

Amanda & Ben.

Samuel with his buddy, Matt.

Ben knows a "Grandma" when he finds one ;>)

We headed out Friday morning early for Alabama and met family at one of the malls around 11am to snag some deals (supposedly). There were only a few things we were looking for and several of those were long gone to those willing to get out at 4 or 5 in the morning (definitely not us !). We still found a few bargains, but we mostly just enjoyed the time out and about with family. Around mid-afternoon we headed back to my Mother's for some turkey and the trimmings. Here are some pics from our visit there:

Ben with Grandma. In recent weeks, Ben has discovered his feet/toes. He thinks they're absolutely fascinating.....I should wrap them up for his Christmas !

With Aunt Stacy.

With cousin Brooke.

His cousin Trennis tried all kinds of things to capture Ben's attention.......

.....unfortunately what worked was offering his hair to Ben, who's recently discovered pulling hair and was happy to give Trennis more attention than he wanted !

Something sure is funny !

Ben with cousins Peyton and Trennis.

With Uncle Wayne before he and Stacy head to the Alabama-Auburn game.

You'd probably have to be from Alabama (or maybe be Daryl W ;>) to understand that the Alabama-Auburn game is a MAJOR BIG DEAL. And it was so nice to actually be in the state of Alabama on the day they won it big (after many years of losing to Auburn) and be surrounded by all that CRIMSON (versus normally being surrounded by all that "Big Orange"). It only made the wonderful Thanksgiving weekend that much better ;>)

The only unfortunate part of our Thanksgiving was that Mark developed a really severe toothache before we left Alabama, so we had to postpone Part 3 of our Thanksgiving, which was with his parents. We hated that, but Mark was really in a lot of pain. However, we got some clove oil from Janet and since using that yesterday afternoon, he has gotten much better. If that's what cured him, a big "Thank You" to Dr. Janet !! Here's hoping it doesn't recur !