Thanksgiving Recap

We spent the better part of last weekend in the mountains of North Carolina. Sapphire Valley, to be exact. We love visiting this area and it is always nice to be able to get away, get a fire going all day in the fireplace, and just relax with family.

We had gorgeous weather ... cool mornings that warmed up to comfortable afternoons in the 60s. We spent a lot of time outside on the porch and playing in the leaves.

For Thanksgiving dinner, we opted to go against the grain and smoke a pork butt instead of having the traditional turkey. It was delicious and it was fun to do something different. Everyone contributed different sides and desserts and we were full for three days straight.

We finished off out non-traditional Thanksgiving meal with an equally non-traditional sweet treat ... S'mores! But it was a dessert very fitting to the weekend we had.

We also enjoyed swimming in the just the pool (because we definitely obey rules and did not let any children under 14 in the hot tub).

We also got to experience a little bit of Black Friday ... complete with a visit with the Big Man himself (I know Santa is only in the background, but we really did see him. We just weren't allowed to take pictures ... so said his entourage).

And after all that fun we managed to fit in a trip to get our Christmas tree on the way home. Nothing says Christmas like over-scheduling your children in the name of mandatory holiday cheer!

I think Adah liked this one ...

Peyton wanted to take home the ones that were just her size. We convinced her that bigger was definitely better.

Luke was pretty tired out by this point and I found him conversing with the couple who was selling the trees ... while using their lawn chair to "rest his legs." He was about to head into the their trailer for a snack but I stopped him before he ate all of their food for the next few days. The boy can put away some food.

We finally made it home tired, full, and with Christmas tree in tow (or attached to the car roof). Thanksgiving is definitely my most favorite holiday because it combines some of my favorite things (family, relaxing, extra long weekends, parades, and FOOD) without the stress that I sometimes feel with Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas too, but there's just something about Thanksgiving that warms my heart. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving filled with lots of food, family, and fun. And now, here comes Christmas!!