Blogging about Thanksgiving before Christmas... go me!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.  Growing up Thanksgiving was a long weekend filled with nothing but fun and games.  We would start on Thursday morning with a game of football or soccer, eat dinner in the afternoon, play soccer, football or ultimate frisbee after dinner, and when it got dark go to the church to play volleyball.  Then we would get together for card and board games.  Friday we go Christmas Tree hunting, and along with picking out our bushy pinion pines, we used to play capture the flag, then go home to play more games.  On Saturday we continued to play sports, and sometimes made it to the local gym to play wally-ball.

As we've grown up, things have changed.  A lot.  We finally realized that we should help with dinner, and most of us have children that need taken care of.  When my cousins wife asked us if it would ever be the same, we replied "No, not for us."  Although Thanksgivings in the future will never compare to those of the past, it will remain my favorite holiday.  In a few years, there will be enough older children to fill the old orchard with soccer, football, and frisbee games.  We will have kids mature enough to fill tables with games of Nurtz.  And I will participate again, or watch with joy as my children create their own Thanksgiving memories.

Despite all the changes,  my family still claims Thanksgiving.  We consider it OUR holiday.  Adam and I have spent most of our Thanksgivings with my side of the family.  This year Lisa's family moved.  And my parents and Laura Lee's family decided to go visit her.  For Thanksgiving.  So we decided it was Adam's turn.  I was honestly looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with his family.  Then we learned that the best time for Adam to go to Mexico for work, was durning Thanksgiving.  The entire week of Thanksgiving!  So, I planned on spending Thanksgiving with Adam's family while he worked.  Then I found out my niece was getting baptized the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and that I could hitch a ride "home" with my aunt and uncle.  So, Adam went to Mexico, and I spent Thanksgiving with my family.  Because our numbers were so small, we joined my great-aunts family for dinner.  We had a wonderful dinner, with the traditional pinata afterwards.  Friday we went Christmas Tree Hunting, and the weather was gorgeous!  On Saturday we did cow train rides for the kids, Lynda cut our hair, and we went to Kalea's baptism.  It was a bit untraditional, but we had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.

Vicki, Lynda, and I were in charge of desserts.  Rich did a great job watching the kids while we baked.  Here they are watching football.

Brooklyn, Mackenzie, and Dakota played great together while we were Christmas Tree Hunting.

I don't think I would have survived the weekend without Lynda's help.

Of course Dakota went on the Polaris every chance he got.