Family Portraits for Thanksgiving

Having all three boys, I called in every favor and bribe I know of, and got them all together for a family pic. The little ones insisted on having one taken with their "babies" and then we did some of the 3 boys and the entire family. They got us in and out of there in 20 minutes which REALLY helped and even Jason smiled and warmed up. He is so shy and Ethan is normally a big ham with funny poses. They even did a little collage with some of the holiday shots for us.

Getting our Christmas tree

We usually go get our tree the first Sunday after Thanksgiving and we hit the same tree farm every year. This year we got to do it in t-shirts instead of cold rain although we sure missed Jean and Russ. The boys were so funny as they ran from tree to tree and we got some cider and fresh spice cake as we shopped. Once we got home, the boys donned their gloves and helped Jeff put up the tree. Ethan wants so badly to be helpful and involved in everything and Jeff was so great at having him help. Jason brought his own stool to the party so he could help reach. We so love this season and are pulling out the Christmas books and advent calendar while also reading our bible stories and preparing bags of food for various drives. I am so cautious of them becoming too commercial. There is such a fine line between enjoying the holidays as a child and forgetting the true meaning of giving and honoring the birth.

So what is on the Christmas list this year? Ethan wants a skateboard and I am getitng him a termite complete with hat and pads. Love the board! Jason wants a dump truck and back hoe. No shock there. Santa is going to look for a cool race track and cars for them.

Thanksgiving in Indiana

For this year, we went to Fort Wayne, Indiana to visit with Jeff's Mom and step father. We stayed in this great B&B (La Salle) that really catered to the kids. They had a cute little suite with it's own entrance and we went up each morning for breakfast with the proprietors. They made crepes, and French casseroles, fruit and nut parfaits, cooked apple and spices, ham croissants, pastries and more. They constantly bought the kids special little snacks and left candy canes under their pillows. They put a little tree up for us in the suite and I highly recommend them. Our suite was decorated with an African theme since the owner, Rose-Aimee spent a lot of her childhood in Africa and Madagascar. The personal touches were amazing.

We visited with family all day and did some fun trips to the playground, local museums (Science Central), walked the down town area, and the Crazy Pins arcade. The kids had a great time and we stayed in Charleston each way to break up the drive. I made Mom's stuffing and gravy for the first time by myself and it actually came out pretty well. The kids didn't each much but I managed to get a disk thanks to Ed's babysitting prowess.

The night before Thanksgiving we were all tired from prepping all day so we went to Red Lobster and the waiter took out a lobster to show the kids. We had come crab legs and then walked down town to see the Christmas lights and find Santa. Of course, my sweet and shy Jason was having no part of Santa and it was cold so we didn't stay long.