Thanksmas 2014

Every family has its unique make up, its traditions, its quirks, (its skeletons), it's own character.  One thing that makes my dad's side of the family unique is the annual Thanksmas celebration.  My dad has 4 siblings, each having at least 3 children.  

Those children (we, the grandchildren) are in the age where we're becoming young professionals, marrying, having kids, moving, traveling, etc.  So the crew is getting pretty big and spread wide and far.  Branches of the family can be found as far east as Virginia, as far west as California, as far south as Texas, and as far north as Nebraska.  

But we all try to make it back for Thanksmas.  Fortunately for my family (since we moved back), the celebration is just a few miles away.  This year it was held back at Grandma and Grandpa's farm, a delightful change from the community rooms where we'd been having it.

The day started with the essential thing for any good celebration: food.  The spread was spectacular.  It was your typical Thanksgiving/Christmas fare of turkey and ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, beans, vegetables, gravy, salads, rolls, pies, cookies, cakes, candies.  That we all managed to waddle around after lunch was a miracle in itself. 

Perhaps the funniest, most unflattering picture of each individual in this
picture that I've ever seen.  Clearly an unexpected snapshot, and I love it for that reason!

After we ate, we were praising the Lord for the beautiful weather, so we all headed outside to enjoy it.  There were all kinds of things to do: play football, blow bubbles, ride bikes, shoot guns, chase kids, talk with adults, and generally just enjoy the great weather.

This picture documents a few things: (1) the crazy good weather we enjoyed
on November 28, (2) Great Grandma Jewel enjoying blowing bubbles just as
much as 3-year old Lily, (3) the incredible amount of vehicles it took to get us
all to the farm, (4) the huge farm yard capable of holding that many cars without
feeling cramped.  Unbelievably blessed!

The activity that occupied the most people for the longest time was
the impromptu gun range set up on the edge of the farm.  Since the cousins
are (for the most part) older, we can enjoy activities like this together.
We had a great time.  The clay pigeons, not so much.

It was quite an impressive show of fire arms and marksmanship!

Grandma and Grandpa.

Grandma and Grandpa with all the grandchildren who were present.

The whole family.  If I am counting correctly, there are 34 people
in this picture, and we were still missing 12 people.  And my count might
be off... I know everyone, but it's seriously getting hard to keep track of the count!

After an afternoon outside, we headed in for the annual game of "GIFTS" (bingo) where winning means a trip to the tables full of all manner of goodies and useful items.  Then we all (somehow) managed to make room for another round of food for supper.  The day ended slowly as we trickled out a carload or two at a time.  

I don't know about the rest of the family, but this was my favorite Thanksmas in recent years.  So great to be back at the farm, though we missed each one who couldn't make it.