Real Thanksgiving 2010

On Thursday morning, we loaded the kids into the van and headed west to celebrate Thanksgiving at Grandma and Grandpa's house. The kids were great in the car and we were able to make excellent time. We didn't even have to stop! The kids were excited to see Grandm and Grandpa (and Rosie) when we arrived. Soon after, Aunt Ryane, Uncle Dave, and Rachael came over and Mairead was just thrilled to see her cousin. She remembers that she had so much fun playing with Rachael last time!

Grandma made a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner, and thanks to good timing of naps, Dave and I were able to enjoy a good 20 minutes of it without kids on our laps.

During the visit, we managed to get a rare picture of me with all three kids... no easy feat! Jack is on the right in this one.



The kids had a lot of fun playing with their aunt, uncle, and cousin.



The next day, Grandma and Grandpa hosted a Holiday Kick-off party so that we could visit with more family. We were thrilled to see everyone-- our kids had THREE great-grandparents at the party- how cool is that?

Dave's cousin, Kandi, was in charge of the crafts and brought some really cute projects for the kids to do.



Aunt Barbie helped Ben with his Christmas list.

The kids used glue, paint, markers, and stickers to make some really neat decorations and cards. Thanks for all of your hard work on that, Kandi! I was impressed!

During craft time, Jack seated himself at the desk and seemed quite the executive.

The girls made ornaments with their Christmas lists on them. They have both been very good this year!

The kids tried candy canes for the first time. Needless to say, they were a big hit. Right, Ben?

Mairead did a great job of playing with the other kids and of handling all of the excitement. It was really nice to see her jump right in and interact with her cousins of all ages. Rachael was a huge help in showing Mairead how to play some games and of serving as an example. She even showed Mairead how to do some of the craft projects. Thanks, Rachael!

Thanks to all of our NY family for a great visit. We are so grateful that so many of you came to see us on Friday... I just wish I had more time for taking pictures! We loved seeing all of you and especially loved seeing so many of the kids together... thanks to Jake, Gracie, Rachael, Nathan, Noah, and Eli for a fun time!

And, thanks to all of their moms and dads for bundling up the little ones and coming over. We hope that you all enjoy the rest of the holiday season, and that Santa is good to everyone!