Stuffed Thursday, Black Friday, Long Saturday

Every year, Josh and I rotate spending Thanksgivings between my family and his. This year it was my turn, which I was very excited for! We drove to Tremonton on Wednesday. That night when the kids were going to bed, we told my parents that we were going to see a late show in Brigham, but actually we drove to SLC and picked up my sister Tawna from the airport. It was a surprise visit from her, and since we got back to the house around 12:30am, she waited to surprise my parents until the next morning. My mom's facial expressions and response was hilarious!!! I was so glad Tawna came!!!
My contribution to the feast this year was home-baked Rhodes rolls, homemade freezer jam, and spaghetti noodle salad. The turkey was fabulous, the mashed potatoes and gravy done perfectly, and the array of stuffing, yams, salads, and finger foods were simply scrumptious. I love Thanksgiving! Mick & Jen and their girls and Cody & BreAnne also came over, and we enjoyed the day together with Katrina and Mom & Dad. Our tradition at Thanksgiving dinner is to go around the table and name one thing that we are thankful for. There were some colorful responses this year, which I won't go into, but the children's answers were priceless: Aspen said she was thankful for animals, Jonah said flowers, Micah said bikes, and Ammon said he was thankful for friends and family.
After dinner, we played card games, ate delicious pie, and then watched home videos for hours and laughed and laughed. It was truly delightful!!! We had such a lovely day, and I was thankful that my mom and dad were able to host us all, and especially glad to see my dad doing so well! I had a great day with my family, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Friday morning, Josh and Tawna and I were up early and headed to WalMart in Brigham at 4:15am. I saw several people I knew from my high school days--how ironic is it that the only day a year I see people I know from my past also happens to be the morning I don't shower and am without a ballcap to wear?!!! I actually enjoy participating in Black Friday every other year when we go to Utah; it's so nice to have my mom home with the children, and have the opportunity to spend a few hours to do kid-less shopping, regardless of the amount of people that are out. I think it's fun! This year, the Wal-Mart employees were numerous and nice. It was a pleasant experience, and we got everything on our list. We headed over to Logan after that for more stores, more shopping, and some breakfast, and we were back home by 9:30am. The day was spent relaxing and hanging out in the quiet house. Well, at least it seems quiet after everyone else leaves! I love that my parents have a basement, because my boys play downstairs and the main floor is so calm. It's so nice--unlike my own one-level house! My mom got a gingerbread house kit and she helped the twins put it together. I thought it turned out so cute!!! My mom is always so great at coming up with activities to do together with the children, and I really appreciate that about her.
That night, we had a girls night out (we missed you Tabbi). The sisters and sils and my mom went to dinner and then we saw Twilight. And I LOVED it!!! I thought Edward was portrayed a little more stand-offish in the movie than the book, but other than that, I thought it was pretty accurate and done well. I loved Bella, and I loved the Cullen Clan, and I absolutely loved Bella's dad whom I didn't like in the book. I can't wait for the next one!!! We had a real laughter-bonding evening together!
On Saturday, we headed back to Salmon, with a stop in Pocatello at Tiffany's house (Josh's sister). Josh's family was meeting us there after moving his grandmother. We had a great time with Tiffany's family. Ammon played the wii with his cousins, and the twins loved playing with the cousins' giant castle toy, and Kanyon was thrilled to be out of his carseat.
I enjoyed being with Scott and Tiffany and their kids for a little bit before Kathy and Edward, Gideon, and Malachi and his friend Lacey joined us for dinner. We had a nice dinner together and were treated to dessert as well. I was so grateful for Tiffany for coordinating it all and for letting us have such a nice long stop at their home.
We got home to Salmon that night around 9:00. It was a long day, a long trip, and a long week, but we are so happy that we visited our families and also happy to sleep in our own beds once again!