Thanksgiving 2018

We started out our Thanksgiving Day with a run. Every year the Utah Food Bank sponsors the "Human Race." It's a 5K and registration is a donation to the food bank. 

We also ran this race in 2017

After the race, we ran into cousin Stuart and his wife. That was a fun surprise!

Then it was time to begin meal prep where we were hosting G'ma and G'pa Dewey, brothers Geoff and Mike and Aunt Cheryl.

And just to keep things real, the smoke detector went off more than once because of spillage in the oven. Yay. Good times!

I love these times and snapshots of family together. Geoff and my mom. And all the hugs that go around. Life on this earth doesn't last forever and I'm so grateful for the times we have together and the love we share.

After the Dewey side of the family went home, we trekked over to Grady's home and spent time with Brown cousins. Its the best, to have a strong relationship with cousins.

Time with Grandpa Brown. Somehow he always draws the grandchildren to him with his masterful storytelling and his ability to listen deeply to others.

Thanksgiving 2017

Bright and early Thanksgiving morning, we headed out to run

The Human Race.

This is a 5K/10K race sponsored by the Utah Food Bank. Registration is a donation to the food bank. 

It was sooo fun and I'm determined to make it an annual family tradition. Even Bryce made it across the 5K finish line.

Yay for the Browns!!!

Thanksgiving dinner was at moms. 

There was a little fiasco with the turkey. 

Fiasco #1:  Dallin was planning on deep-frying the turkey but it froze a little bit in the fridge and you can't put anything frozen in the oil or else...kaboom! 

So Sarah ran to the store and purchased a whole new bird which put us a little behind schedule (by an hour) but it all turned out great. 

In the meantime, the kids played Turkey Tag outside.

The object of the game is to pull the feathers (painted clothes pins) off the tails (shirts) of the other turkeys running around.

Fiasco #2: Setting up the family picture. I wanted to take the picture outside for better lighting, but the sun we set up the chairs in a place where the sun was shining from the side. And it just ended up being confusing to move chairs, move people, make everyone happy, too many helpers. So the picture turned out like this. Its ok. It will do. I'm no perfectionist when it comes to stuff like this. But it was stressful and I feel a little bad when I look at the picture. Oh well....moving on...

Syd zoomed in on one of the timer pictures that didn't turn out. I think its hilarious!!!

As for the turkey that was a little frozen and didn't get used - I took it home nad cooked it the next day. Two turkeys in two days. It was yummy. What a treat!

Fiasco #3: We are finally ready to eat, one hour later than we thought. We are looking around and notice that Geoff and Mike weren't there. So the question starts making the round-

"Did you tell Geoff the eating time?"
"No, did you tell Geoff?"
"I thought you were going to tell Geoff."
"Seriously, did no one tell Geoff and Mike when we were eating?"

And then Geoff and Mike were deluged with texts telling them to come come come! And we are sorry sorry sorry.

Geoff said, "Well, I knew you'd be eating sometime so I just thought I'd drop by at 2:00." Which is exactly when we ended up eating.

Thanksgiving - Saguaro Lake

The day after Thanksgiving we spent the afternoon at Saguaro Lake. Sooo beautiful. Though a little windy, the weather was beautiful. The rolling hills, the slant of the sun, the water. Couldn't have asked for a better day on the lake. 

The kids made good use of the paddle boat and the paddle board. 

Still taking care of left overs...

Some people eat pie with a fork and plate, but Parker, he eats pie like a pizza.

The day closed with going to Leisel and James' for a hotdog roast over an open fire and visiting.

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day began with a beautiful hike up SanTan mountain. Perfect way to work up an appetite for the big meal to come.

We were joined by Uncle James and Peter, Uncle Clark and Spencer, Jordyn and Trisha, Dave and Susan and our own rowdy crew. And look at Bryce, trying his hardest to stay out of the picture!

I'm so sad I didn't get a picture of the beautiful tables Mitzi set for dinner. We ate till we couldn't move ourselves away from the table. All the traditional dishes were there plus extras. Ham, Turkey and all the trimmings!

The kids jumped on Clark and Mitzi's golf cart and rode to the park. A little later I finally pulled myself off the couch and walked to park to watch them play and burn a little dinner off.

The kids were playing football with a neighbor.

For a little bit, Sydney laid on the sidewalk like a gecco, soaking up the Arizona sun!

We returned home from the park, took a photo, and started in on seconds. 

From beginning to end, this Thanksgiving Day was a beautiful day filled with warmth, family, food and relaxation.

Most of all, Love. Thick, warm, lasting love.

Thanksgiving - Tempe Lake

ROAD TRIP TIME!

Thanksgiving in Arizona!

We left right after school on Tuesday (actually right after Camille's jump team) and spent the night in Kanab. 

Then we finished up the trip on Wednesday and headed straight for Tempe Lake where we hit the water in a kayaks and paddle boats!

Camille got a single kayak.

Sterling and I shared a paddle boat with Bryce.

Parker and Rachel shared a double kayak.

And Sydney had her own single kayak.

It was the perfect day to spend on a lake and a great welcome to Arizona!

When we were finished on the lake, we continued on to Dave and Susan's place in Scottsdale. We were welcomed with chili dogs and games at the church gym. Dave pulled out a huge parachute which was sooo much fun!