Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was held at our apartment this year. And that means that I hosted instead of taking pictures... Oh, I am such a horrible photographer. I really wish it was something I remembered to do, but I really don't.
If I had taken pictures, you'd see them like this.

My parents came on Wednesday night and parked their motorhome in the back of our building. So, you'd see us watching TV together Wednesday night. Then you'd see my mom making Chicken Parm (she knows it's my favorite meal!!) and Ryan went to the Celtics game, so he missed out on the deliciousness that was dinner!

Then there would be pictures of my dad blowing these enormous bubbles in the tub for Maddie and she loved every minute of it!!

When dad went to bed, Mom and I began the food prep for the next day. We peeled potatoes and squash (and a turnip) for what seemed like hours. Mom and I don't get a lot of alone time, so I eat it up when we do. This time was great because not only did she pass on her incredible cooking knowledge (and teach me how to cook a turkey) but we chatted about everything. Mom is in her glory in the kitchen... I always thought she should have a cooking show, she'd be so great at it!!

Once we finished getting all of the veggies prepped for the morning and put the turkey in the oven, we sat and chatted for a bit and I made her sit through the next Brothers and Sisters episode (I'm still on season 2, but I can't get enough of this family!!)

Thursday morning was spent watching the parade (or Hurade as Maddie called it) and then Becky and the kids arrived. Mom and I were mashing and getting appetizers ready as the in-laws arrived and shortly after, Scott, Holly and Hayden showed up. That's right, we had 14 people in our tiny apartment and I couldn't have been happier.

There were many "that's what she said" comments and I think Holly realized she was marrying into a nutty family, but she loved it!! She also loved the wine (something we have in common!) The next picture you'd see is of the boys (Mark, Matthew and Hayden) all playing outside. They were sliding down the clock tower ramp on their bellies and somehow their pants got soaked!! So when they came in, I made them all hang out in my bedroom, I took their jeans off and threw them into the dryer. Well, this, I thought would be embarrassing, but no! The boys loved jumping on my bed in their underwear, in fact, they were pretending to be models and singing, "We're hotties, we're hotties!!" So funny!! They're 10 and 6!

We had the kids eat at Maddie's princess table (the boys were oh so thrilled about this) and the adults at the adult table!!

I wanted so badly to start the tradition of going around the table and saying what you're thankful for, but I didn't. Why? Well, I don't know, I know its a corny thing to do and didn't want to force people to say something... plus I know that this time of year is hard on Becky (Friday would be her 10 year anniversary) so I didn't want her to think she was being put on the spot or anything like that... but really, I think I'm going to start it next year.

Thanksgiving afternoon, after all the dishes were done and the house was a little quieter, Becky, Mom and I played Scrabble while the kids played all over the house. (I won, but really, who's keeping score!)

Thanksgiving night Dad went to bed early and Ryan, Mom and I watched Elf. Well, mom left around 10:30 and Ryan and I fell asleep on the couch!

Friday morning we hung around the house, Mom and Dad went to lunch with friends and Ryan and I did some shopping. The stores were not bad at all, especially for Black Friday!!

The best part of the weekend though, was Sunday morning. Saturday night after Maddie went to bed, Ryan and I put up the Christmas Tree and all of the decorations. So, Sunday morning, Maddie came out into the living room and saw the tree!! The look on her face was incredible!!!
We decided that will be our tradition. We wont tell her when we're putting it up, but just one morning each year, she'll wake up and the house will be decorated!! This morning, she went out to the living room and said, "Chu chu Tree, I missed you!!" We're working on "Christmas!" I just love that she's at the age where she's so enamored with these things!! So fun.... Our tree, however, I do have a picture of...