Thanksgiving in the South

Most years during the Thanksgiving holiday, my family would rent a house at SunRiver or Black Butte and we would all caravan over and stay for 5 days. It always included lots of card and video game playing, way too much food and hilarious late-night moments. So, we knew right away that there was no way this year’s celebration could measure up to those of years past. But, thankfully, some friends of ours from church (whose family is all in Colorado) invited us to spend the day with them at their neighbors house. So, we accepted. I knew it would be difficult being far away from my family on a holiday that is usually so rich with tradition for us, but at least we wouldn’t be at home by ourselves.

We went over to their house around noon and let the kids play before nap-time (they have three kids – ages 10, 2½ and 18 mos.). Then, while they were sleeping, we made place cards and started preparations for the big meal. Their neighbors were roasting a turkey in the oven and in addition to that, they also deep-fried a smaller one outside (see pictures below). We had never seen this done before, so it was interesting to us…and apparently, very common here in the South. I made garlic mashed potatoes and homemade rolls and there were probably a dozen other side dishes, as well. It was a nice dinner and their neighbors, whom we had never met before, were so gracious to invite us into their home and let us join their meal. In fact, they even bought a gingerbread house kit for the smaller kids to put together and decorate, which Lauren absolutely loved (although, I think more of the candy ended up in her mouth than on the house).











































The next morning, I woke up bright and early to join two of my girlfriends on a shopping trip down to Gaffney, SC. We met at 4:30am for breakfast and then drove over an hour to the most amazing outlet mall I’ve ever been to. The best part about it was the Pottery Barn Outlet. I could have spent all day just in that store alone…and we got some great deals, so it was really worth getting up early for. We had a fun day of shopping and fellowshipping, but after 12 hours on my feet, I was exhausted!! While I was gone, Ryan had a great father-daughter day with Lauren and managed to put up the Christmas lights on the house (pictures coming soon). We all went to bed early that night to catch up on some much-needed sleep after a busy weekend!

Thanksgiving Feast

We had Lauren’s program and lunch at her preschool this last Monday and it was so precious! As hard as it is as a parent to watch how fast she is growing up, it was such a proud moment to watch her stand up there and sing these songs she had learned. She was in the front row, right in the center, even though she was taller than just about every other kid up there. If you can’t tell from the pictures, she was dressed up as corn. :) She was our little performer…singing every word perfectly with a smile on her face. And we were the dorky parents, taking video and pictures (and I was in tears). She said to me afterwards, “Mommy, when I get bigger, I want to sing on the big stage like you.”

After the program, we were treated to an amazing Thanksgiving spread of every food imaginable. They have some interesting “traditions” out here, like sweet potato pie and some others that we didn’t dare to try. It was a great chance to get to meet some of the other parents and talk with Lauren’s teachers. They said that Lauren is one of the most talkative kids in her class (no surprise there) and that she has a very active imagination. Her latest fascination is learning about the human anatomy. She is convinced that she wants to be a doctor and is constantly asking me questions about her bones and veins and muscles. She can name almost every organ in the body and has learned about blood flow and digestion. It is amazing how they can absorb so much information at this young age!

A Challenging November

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything, mainly because nothing really seemed “blog worthy”.

Unfortunately, the last couple of weeks have been marked with many illnesses for our family. First, I was diagnosed with a bacterial infection and had to be put on antibiotics. One week later, Lauren and I both came down with colds and fevers. Then, Lauren got a third-degree burn on her left pointer finger (trying to help Daddy make dinner). When we took her into the doctor for the burn, they diagnosed her with an ear infection and asthma. This girl has such a high pain tolerance that she didn’t cry when she got the burn and she told me her ear didn’t hurt. So, now she is on antibiotics for the ear infection and an inhaler three times a day for the asthma. Oh, and they gave us some burn cream for her finger and wrapped it up (it is healing nicely now). One day after that appointment, I went into my doctor and found that my bacterial infection had returned…back on the antibiotics for me. The doctor’s only concern with this is that if I continue to get these infections, it can cause preterm labor. So, we are praying that Nolan (did I mention that is the name we picked?) hangs in there until we are at least in the “safe zone”…and that I will not have to go on bedrest at all, like I did with Lauren. Thankfully, in the midst of all of this, Ryan has managed to stay completely well!!

We also celebrated my 29th birthday this past week. It was a hard day for me, being so far away from my family. I cried almost all day long, especially when I got the cards and presents and flowers that everyone back home had sent. But, Ryan and Lauren did take me out that night for a wonderful dinner at an Italian restaurant – and that cheered me up.

This coming week will be quite strange – our first Thanksgiving on our own. We have no plans yet and I think we will probably just end up staying home. I am not going to cook a whole turkey for just the 3 of us, so we will do a non-traditional dinner. But, we will still get to have a turkey meal, thanks to Lauren’s school. On Monday, they invited all the parents and grandparents to come and enjoy a Thanksgiving feast. The kids will put on a short program for us and we will all get to have a special lunch together. I’m sure we’ll be posting pictures next week of Lauren in her little costume. :)

On a lighter note, Ryan was able to get some pictures this week of the gorgeous fall colors near our house. It is absolutely spectacular to drive around and see the beauty of God’s creation every day!

Halloween Memories

We had such a fun Halloween this year. It was a beautiful evening, about 65 degrees and clear outside, as we walked around trick-or-treating. Lauren dressed up as Tinkerbell (costume compliments of Grandma Miriam) and was the cutest little fairy you’ve ever seen. She collected a whole bucket full of candy and every little girl she passed commented on how cool her outfit was, complete with blinking lights on the wings.

I walked most of the way with Ryan and Lauren, meeting new neighbors as we went and “protecting” Lauren when we passed a scary costume or decoration. Then I realized that if I didn’t head back to the house to hand out candy, we were going to be stuck with a huge bowlful of leftovers! So, I jogged back up the hill and answered the door for a while. When Ryan and Lauren got home, she didn’t want to look at the candy she had received or eat any of it – she wanted to answer the door and hand out candy to the other kids. I think she had more fun doing that than she did trick-or-treating!

It was a very fun evening of making memories – here are some pictures of Lauren in her costume and our pumpkin carving skills. :)