Saturday, November 26, 2011

Thanksgiving Foto-Fantastico

You know what I loved about Thanksgiving this year? Everything! It was great having my mom, both my sisters, and all their kids! They came by plane they came by car, from NYC to CA, we convened here in central UT for a very very happy Thanksgiving!!


Everyone pitched in to help and make this the best Thanksgiving ever. Because everyone had to travel to get here, I purchased all the food. But, I didn't do all the work. No way! Everyone took an assignment with a partner and then got to work--chopping veggies, mashing potatoes, assembling casseroles, jelling jello. The kitchen was the hub of activity as couples rotated in and out, grabbing their ingredients and recipes and getting their dishes mixed and guess what? They all turned out fabulously. But, that's no surprise. What did surprise us was how much fun it was to be cooking, creating, and working together.


Time to feast. Ladies first.
The kids table.
We had 26 people--just perfect for us to go around each table and beginning with the letter A, say something we were thankful with that started with that letter. It was a great way to learn something about everyone. Ben had X. He was grateful for Xtended family. Little Quintin had K. He was grateful for Kate.
I couldn't believe how lucky we were to get AZ weather in UT in November. The kids could play outside and we could enjoy fresh air. (and snap a few photos of it all) This is my sister Shannon with her kids and their very significant others. I think they all chose wisely.









Youngest to oldest.
After the feast we went to the park for a big ol' football game and some goofing around.

My sister Rayanne with her kids and their kids.

The kids followed Ben around like he was the Pied Piper.
Like mother like daughter.
Three generations.
Topher and Joanna

My favorite--family game night. Ben started it off with a stand-up comedy routine. Here Sami and Kate are taking a turn entertaining us with the group game, "hitchhiker."
Collaborating, Strategizing, Networking
My sisters and I wowed everyone with our karaoke performance of "Addicted to Love." Notice there was no one around. A Wii Dance competition followed. That brought everyone back.
The best laughs of the night came from the guys dancing to Tik-Tok. Look for it soon on YouTube:) I love this photo of it. No way did the night end there!

What the photos don't show are the ones who battled with the whole county for Black Friday deals at Wmart, the kids falling asleep watching movies, the indoor camping scene in the basement. Girls got the beds in the bedrooms and boys camped on air mattresses in the family room. Some of us stayed up late, late, late talking and laughing. Do I dare say 2:30 a.m.?
The adventure continued the next day with ATV rentals and exploring the mighty web of trails in the surrounding mountains.
Any Black Friday sales on these?
Now entering Fishlake National Forest.
It seems like someone gets injured every time we mix 4-wheelers and family so we felt extra grateful this year that nothing major happened. Mud splatters yes, and maybe a minor rim bending collision, but no bodily harm, just pure fun. We took turns riding then warming up with hot chocolate back at the house.

The little guys.

Loved every minute of it of the whole weekend. I was so happy to be surrounded by some of my favorite people. They're all gone and they left the campground better than they found it in more ways than one. We'll do it again in 2 years. Happy Thanksgiving to all! Now it's time to put up the Christmas tree!

5 comments:

cold cocoa said...

Wow- that looked like nonstop good times. Glad everything went superbly. Happy Thanksgiving!

stephanie said...

holy moly! that was a lot of activity! It all looks super fun! the photo of the guys doing tik tok is hilarious!
What a great thanksgiving!!

Sherie Christensen said...

Well done. I always enjoy hearing about the great family activities you do. I'm glad you had a happy Thanksgiving.

Megz said...

The most amazing thing is that you had pictures every step of the way. Looks like a paaartaaay. How fun of you guys to host and entertain so many so well.

Juls Jems said...

What a fun time you made for your family, Laura. You are so talented and organized- got all the food, made cooking assignments and had fun entertainment! I'm going to have to get that WII game! Love the music!
-Julie