We are thankful

After working 3 out of the 4 nights before Thanksgiving, somehow I managed to get everything packed and we were loaded and ready to head to Aiken by noon on Wednesday. Matt graciously took the kids to the Y in the morning so I could get a little bit of sleep, and expertly loaded the car.

We ate lunch at home before we left, and were able to make it to Aiken in 4 1/2 hours with no stops. Hudson slept for a long time, and thanks to Auntie Amber's DVD player, Alden sat quietly watching movies and eating Cheezits.

Grandma had a wonderful dinner ready for us when we got to Aiken, and we got to visit a little bit and let the kids play before baths and bed. I can't tell you how good it was to sit on the couch with Matt and watch TV (especially because Glee was on). I cannot remember when we did that last. It was AWESOME.

The morning of Turkey Day, Matt got up with the kids and let me sleep until after 9 and we had a great big breakfast. One of our favorite Aiken traditions is the Blessing of the Hounds on Thanksgiving. We did realize on the way down there that we didn't have the backpack, so Matt ended up carrying/shouldering Hudson on the walk into the woods. Both of the kids were excited to see the horses, and Alden was very vigilant about warning us to avoid the horse poop. We had to wait a little while for the hounds to make their entrance. Alden kept calling them "pounds." One of the "pounds" got loose and ran off into the woods, and she was very interested in pursuing the "lost pound." After the ceremony, we let the kids run around and we tried to take a picture. This seems to be the hardest thing in the world to get both children to smile and look at the camera at the same time. AHHH!

On the way out of the woods, Alden met a little boy named Christian and they chased a car and played the whole way. This made the walk go much faster. Hudson wanted to walk some, too, but couldn't quite keep up with the big kids.

We had a little lunch, and we all took a nap. GLORIOUS. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings, although we really missed Leigh Anne, Eric, Rachel, Michael and Baby Jake. Alden ate a lot of turkey. She claimed that she didn't like ham, although 2 nights later, she loved it. Hudson enjoyed the cranberry sauce. Both of the kids chowed on the pumpkin pie that Grandma made. I think between them and Matt, they ate 1/4 of it that night. Once the kids were in bed, Matt and I watched The Right Stuff. Wow, that is a long movie.

Friday, Matt and I got up and went on a run. Then, we all packed up and walked around Laurens Street. We checked out the toy store, of course. We walked in and Alden saw this baby doll playset, and exclaims, "OH, Look! How cute!" Hudson was a trooper riding around in the stroller. Matt got three new bowties to add to his collection.

We got the kids down for nap (although Alden never slept) and Matt and I had a date with Lily to walk around the woods. I know I have said this before, but Hitchcock Woods is one of my favorite places on earth.

Before dinner, we got the kids outside and walked around the neighborhood. Hudson saw the moon and flipped out he was so excited. He was doing this cute little running in place thing, and pointing and making noise. He knows the sign for bird now, and kept doing it when he saw them flying around. He and Alden ran in the woods; Alden was a fox and Hudson was supposed the be the "pound."

The kids played together so well. Alden was generous and kind to her brother, which is a rarity. I think us just being able to spend so much time with them helped, too. It was fun to enjoy our kids without the responsibility of laundry and meals looming.

Alden was in Tinkerbell mode a lot, and kept telling Hudson to be a hawk, and telling Matt to be a thistle...except she would say "fissle."

Saturday, Matt and I drove into town and did a long run around the Historic District. We took the kids to the park after lunch. We almost didn't bring Lily with us, but it ended up being a good idea, because she was a hit at the park. At one point, only Alden and Hudson were on the playground and the other 8 kids were petting Lily. She was in heaven.

We went to the woods again during naps and decorated cookies once the kids were up. Alden helped Grandma cut them out and we all had fun icing them...and eating them.

Saturday night, Matt and I escaped and went out to get ice cream. We had seen a sign for pumpkin milkshakes on Thursday, and it had been on Matt's mind since. We walked around downtown, and went to the new Wal-Mart to look at toys. What a great date!

We went to church on Sunday morning, and had lunch at FATZ. We love Fatz. Love it, love it. After loading all our things back in the car, we got on the road and drove to Charlotte to visit with Nana for the night.

A strange phenomenon occurred during our vacation. Our kids LOVED eating bananas. Have they eaten any since we've been home? No. Have they really ever eaten them at our house? No.

There is something about Nana's house and holidays. They just don't seem right unless we are there. Probably because that's where we went every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but it is just so special to be there with her and the rest of the family. Hudson really liked Nana's stuffed turkey ("gobble, gobble") and Alden remembered right where the books were that she likes. We managed to fit even more food in our stomachs at dinner time, got the kids in bed, and stuffed a little dessert in there, too. One of my favorite things is sitting around and talking in Nana's living room at night.

Hudson and Nana fixing their hair.

Nana fixed us an excellent breakfast and we played outside for a little while before going to lunch at Foskoskis. We headed back with two sleepy children...and two sleepy parents...and a tired dog...all of us thankful for a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with family.