Thanksgiving 2013

Thanksgiving!

turkey

family

friends

fun

food

football motorcycles

we love it all!

Zoe helping me make pie crust.

This year we had my sister Holly and her family with us, as well as one of their friend families, and one of our friend families.  Altogether we had 26 people.  It was a lot of fun, and everyone hit it off really well.

Katie girl writing a scripture to hang up, as Ezra soothes his littlest brother.

Making name cards after school on Tuesday. 

Ezra makes sure that everything is decorated, including writing "Happy Thanksgiving" with magnet letters.  He is so big into that lately.

Our main living area is not huge.  We split up our sectional couch, and put half in the library, along with the black and white area rug, and pushed the other half up against the window.  Luckily we have a few extra tables.  Everyone fit perfectly.  This is how we did it last year with 36 people, and it worked great with that many people, too.  

Geoff doing the traditional cutting of the turkey, which Holly cooked.  

Looking into the library, which made a great play room, where Jiles and his buddy Noah played a lot:

 My buddy JaNae (with her little one William) and my sister's friend's father found out they have a friend in common.  What a small world.  They had just met that day

Time to eat!  Gather 'round. 

There's a girl table, boy table, and grown-up table, with all that yummy grub on the island counter.

After the meal, it's playtime.

Everyone kind of splits.  The little ones stay in the front yard near the mommies.

Max, Jiles and Zoe (or Zow-y as Noah calls her) play awesomely together.

The men and boys hit the motorcycle track.

The middles and older girls climb the haystack, then play an intense game of hide-and-go-seek.

Caroline, Sadie, Ezra (his tooth looks funny in this picture), Whitney, Katelyn, Rebecca  

Just before/as the sun dropped behind the mountain, I took a few shots of my sister and her beautiful and awesome family.

As I was taking their picture, we had a drive by.  Holly's friends brought up this sweet razor and let everyone take a go on it (well, I never did).

Geoff and JaNae with Spencer and Ezra.

Dark and cold brought us all back inside for some baby holding, and talking, and whatnot.

Brendan holding Oliver with his momma Holly beside him.

Everyone went home that night, which was weird for me;  I'm used to having Thanksgiving company for at least a couple days after Thanksgiving.  It was really a great day with such awesome people.  I was thinking that day that Thanksgiving is really soooo much  more fun with lots of people everywhere.  

Me and my awesome biggest sis, Miss Holly, holding Mr. Ollie (we have never called him that yet).  I couldn't get the red-eye thingy to work, so we're just going black and white instead.   :)