Tree Huggers

Hmmmm...Lucy & Leigh together in a tree. I wasn't so sure this was a good idea, but much to my delight, this scenario resulted in some pretty smiles without any blood, screams, or tears.

Something to Smile About

Gobble, Gobble

Arguably there's no better sight to wake up to on Thanksgiving morning than this--Nanny's Sous Chef hard at work in her unders.

Next, it was time for a little loving on Rebecca, clearly happy to be choked, while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Of course, Thanksgiving is not Thanksgiving without GDaddy tearing apart a 40-lb pork shoulder and Nanny showing off the Bird of the Day.

Thrilled to have our buddies join us, Hunter & Leigh couldn't get to Miss Karen fast enough. Meanwhile, Mr. Dave gave Ruby some special attention.

Mr. Dave's fancy remote controlled car was a huge hit with Billy & the boys.

The Practice Meal

Every Thanksgiving Eve, we gather at Uncle Billy & Aunt Susie's for a preamble to The Big Meal the following day. We call it The Practice Meal.

 

 

The kids love spending time with their cousins, cooking s'mores over the fire, and especially playing the ring toss game that Uncle Billy has rigged up.

 

Colors of the Wind

Hunter and the SandMan were thrilled to land a duet in the school Thanksgiving program. And what song could be a better medium for such bourgeoning talent than Colors of the Wind, from Pocahontas?!?

Nanny & Grandaddy didn't dare miss this opportunity to witness their musical genius. 

Not to be outdone, Leigh managed to get a little Native American bongo-playing in during the TK show.

And For The Mommies

And for us Mommies, there's not much happier than sights like these.

Happiness Is Also

...going to the American Girl store in Hotlanta with your BFF to pick out a special doll for your birthday!

Jackie was thrilled to finally get Kanani, no less than the 2011 Doll of the Year, for whom she'd been saving up allowance money for months. And Miss Allie won the 2011 Mother of the Year award for patiently counting out all the $1 bills it took to purchase this beauty.

So much to choose from!

We didn't have the heart to tell the store manager that the dolls waiting to have a tea party in the nearby cafe looked more like a display from the Holocaust Museum than a scene in the American Girl store.