Our Thanksgiving Recap

Whew! Thanksgiving came and went like a blur...am I the only one who felt like this? It is one week later and I have yet to post anything outside of my photography business.  What a blessing my business has been this year, but my personal part of the blog has had to be put on hold. I have been so wonderfully busy!!!

But, brace yourself Bessy for a Looooooooong post...but with pictures.  That makes it ok, doesn't it?

This was our year at the in-laws house with all of the cousins.  I'm guessing around 50 family members were there.  Normally it is over 60 but several chose to go to a stinkin' UT game instead....UT lost.  I'm grinning from ear to ear.  Don't hate me, I'm just being honest....and still grinning from ear to ear. 

Okay, back to the family gathering. We started off with delicious food. I was so hungry that I didn't take a single picture of the delicious main course offerings...but I'm sure if anyone did, it would be Uncle G. He only snaps pictures of food.  That's another story, for another day.

I did grab my camera when it was time for the best part of the meal~dessert!  I found these two already checking out the delicious Oreo balls.  Oreo Balls! That makes me giggle too...perhaps I need to lay off the coffee today.  

 After the dishes and leftovers were carefully put away, it was time to open presents! I'm not kidding. Part of the extended family lives far away and this is part of how we celebrate every other year.  Thanksgiving dinner and then Christmas after dinner. 

The kids could hardly wait to see what was in each of the beautifully wrapped boxes.  My mother-in-law and her sisters buy a gift for each grandchild.  Isn't that sweet?!

The little girls were all given the cutest tutus, boas, jewelry, and heels.  The hit of the night seemed to be the pirate gear.  An impromptu pirate fight broke out.  It was hilarious!

The little princess in the bottom of this next grouping was so funny. She would pretend to be dying from a sword wound, but would turn and look at my camera before hitting the floor.  You can tell by her beautiful smile in the last image, that she was quite fine and ended up winning the duel. 

Nonnie and Poppie had bounce houses, big slides, and an obstacle course set up and the kids had a blast playing!  I went outside and heard, "Aunt Kiki! Take my picture!"  Music to my ears.  It was dark outside but I was still able to capture the fun. 

 Rachel had fun painting Miss E's nails.  So sweet!

 So much fun!

Then it was time for the adults to play LRC.  It's a fun game called Left, Right, Center.  A bunch of Baptist playing a game with dice and dollar bills....I'm giggling again.  My girls got to play too.

 Can you tell from the pictures below who won the pot of money?  My Rachel! I love how happy her Aunt Sissie and her sister are for her!

 Back in the dessert bar, I saw this.  This little sweetie was really needing some fudge.  Her sweet Nonna was happy to help a girl out because she knows what she likes. So precious!

 Nonnie and Poppie lit the outdoor fire pit for S'mores.  I love these images!

And then Rachel challenged her daddy to ping-pong!

 
Her daddy won...and then Hannah challenged me!  I handed my camera to Rachel and these are the images she captured.  Apparently, I am a bit dramatic when I beat the pants off of Hannah in Ping-Pong.  Who knew?

And then Poppie defended Hannah's honor by beating me mercilessly! Not bad for an old guy!  Just kidding, Poppie!

 We went home with full tummies and memories. It was a fun Thanksgiving/Christmas celebration.