Thankful Thanksgiving

We have looked forward to Thanksgiving for a long time, and it came and went all too quickly! We were lucky enough to have Eric and Katie and Mom and Dad C. for five days of cooking, eating, and playing.

Eric and Katie arrived late on Tuesday and Katie and I spent most of Wednesday in the kitchen getting ready for Thanksgiving. Mike and Eric took the kids to the park and then headed to Grand Rapids to pick up the grandparents. So thankful they made it safely and without delay on one of the busiest travel days.

Thanksgiving Day was delightful! Katie and I started with a morning run, home in time to relieve Mike and Eric of daddy duty so they could play football. We went to the park and watched for a bit, but I didn't take a camera. Mike looked so happy on the field, it was everything he dreamed of!

Dad C. has a creative streak to him and he did not disappoint this holiday season. He had been at a luncheon earlier in the week that had this amazing fruit turkey as a centerpiece. So, he picked up a bunch of fruit and had a nice activity with the grandkids making Alf, the turkey.


A few hours later, the grand kids enjoyed another creative turkey making with grandma, apples, and candy this time! Andrew had specifically asked if they could make apple turkeys with grandma like they did last year. They had a great time making their turkeys to place on the kid table for Thanksgiving dinner.


A little backyard footie with kids, dads, grandpa.







Not sure this is really appropriate for the hostess to profess, but it's my blog and record, so I will. This meal was perfect! Every part of it was homemade and cooked to perfection! My big question this year was to brine or not to brine. I brined and it was amazing! So glad I made Grammy Hasler's cranberry ice, perfect!
Amelia LOVED baby Mary! She was constantly aware of Mary and if she was napping, crying, or getting a diaper change. So cute!
The day after Thanksgiving we went to a land preserve just up the road from our house. We had a great time and the kids did so well on our 2+ mile walk.

While hiking, the kids each found a stick and grandma had a great idea make bows and arrows. This idea quickly evolved into playing pilgrims and indians ALL day long! We ate lunch outside and even ended the day with a musical production. Funny kids!
While kids were playing pilgrims and indians, the men were busy with my backyard "honey do" list. We had a couple trees come down this last summer that we needed to take care of, and we wanted to move our swing set.

While looking at the scene above, I said to Mom C. and Katie, "How many Christensens does it take to chop down a tree? None, just call the home teacher!" Ha! It was fun to see these guys be manly and all take their turn with the chainsaw.

The kids were fascinated with the chainsaw and with the one tree that came crashing down.
Mission accomplished! Trees down, swing set moved, men felt manly!
And here are our wild indians, going out to hunt for food one last time before it got dark. Below is the musical production. Their program was amazing, even included a cheer for Jimmer Fredette!

This picture epitomizes our whole Thanksgiving vacation. It felt cozy and comfortable to have family in our home. Cousin laughter, games with grandparents, running, reading books in the afternoon, creating outside, great conversations and enjoying the comfort and love of family. Thanks for making the trip, we love you!