We Are Thankful!!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, full of family, friends, and food!! So many fun traditions continued, and some new ones were started. It's always amazing to me how much can be fit into a few days!! To sum it up...

1) We continued our "Eating the Plates" pilgrim dinner from last year. And, I told Mark at the end of the evening that if our kids didn't enjoy it so much, it would definitely be dropping off of my list of traditions. :) It is very hard work to be a pilgrim for a day! And, we even cheat ALOT with modern day conveniences (notice the griddle in the background)!! But, it is definitely one of the most-loved activities around here...so, I guess we'll find a way to keep it around. It is amazing to think about what it would have been like to be a pilgrim...it would have worn me out, I tell ya. Cooking all day and ending up with meals that no one really loves. I don't know about that. Anyway, it definitely is a memory we will always enjoy.

This meal began as a way for us to really experience pilgrim life last year, and has now turned into a greatly anticipated day for a different reason: It's the day that Mark Daddy Daddy has to eat beans, which he detests with all of his being. :) I think the countdown started somewhere around mid-September, and there was such joy on their faces as it finally happened. Here's the play-by-play of Mark eating lima beans, which were a part of the succotash stew.

And, here's the giddy reaction of the girls...
It was quite the accomplishment to get their Daddy to eat a bean!

And, as much as Mark hated the beans, Carlie and Abby Kate were that much more miserable at being forced to try new things as well. Carlie's favorite part was the corn soup...her least favorite part (saying it nicely) was the butternut squash. Let's just say there was gagging going on. AK's favorite part was the bannock cakes dipped in maple syrup. Her least favorite part was everything else. :) And, Kendyll's favorite part BY FAR was the Indian Pudding.

We also took time this night to talk about our blessings, finish writing in our thanksgiving journal, and read some of our favorite entries from last year. That was a real treat, and makes me want to keep the journal going for years and years!

2) We were off to Gammy & Papa Ron's house the next day!! It was a fun few days at the ranch for Thanksgiving this year, with a housefull of family members, and lots of things to do outside.

S'mores...

Leaf-jumping and bug-hunting (see the tiny ladybug?)...

Cousin-lovin...

We attempted quite a few group pictures, and this one cracks me up. Not only is my lighting awful, I love that AK is attacking Braden's head, Avery is eating a stick, Carlie is scratching her ear, and Caleb is crying his eyes out. They are basically all totally beat down by this whole thing. :)

...and then there was still more picture-taking...

...and we even tried some skeet-shooting! My first time to hold a gun, much less fire it!! And, I nailed that little clay-skeet-thing! (How is that for some technical talk?!)

We also started two new traditions with Mom that will be very fun for the grandkids. They each got to pick their first annual ornament for the grandkid tree. Here are the older ones with their ornaments hanging...

They also got "Christmas Countdown" activities from Mom, and they have been pulling out one bag a day, which holds puzzle pieces, a treat, as well as an activity they must do each day. They have had so much fun with this, and have enjoyed doing things they wouldn't normally think of (like "make your sister's bed today"!)

Abby Kate's countdown is Santa's face, and a beard full of cotton balls. She is much more interested in the cotton...but she is still loving it too. (And, she says "ho ho ho" every time she sees it. :) Thank you, Mom, for thinking of this for them. They absolutely love it. :)

3) Next, we headed to Fort Worth for some fun. First, we surprised the girls with last-minute tickets to the Disney on Ice show! It was a really good show, and the girls were so thankful for this treat. Look how close we were to the characters! It was definitely the place to be, especially for Abby Kate to really enjoy it. She was in absolute awe the whole time. (And, yes, since then Kendyll has added "ice skater in a show" to her list of possible career fields. :)

4) After the show, we met Grandad, Grankay, and Cailee at Corner Bakery for some yummy soup and salads before the big Christmas parade downtown! It was one of the better ones over the years, I have to say! I think that was for a few reasons:

1) Dad & Kay got reserved seats this year. So, no fighting over a curb this year! VERY nice.

2) The weather wasn't quite as cold as usual, which helped us enjoy it better

3) The floats seemed a little nicer and the parade was the perfect length.

Of course, next year Dad says we could possibly be an entry of our own. So, then the parade will hold new meaning for us! Dad, if we do it, can we please get some Shiner mini-cars? Please?!

The parade night is always a fun one for all of us, and I love that it kicks off our Christmas season every year. :)

I am so thankful for the abundant blessings in my life, and was continuously reminded of so many of them this Thanksgiving week.

Kendyll's Program & Project

It's officially Thanksgiving break around here, and I think we're all excited to have no school for a week!

Yesterday was Kendyll's Grandparent's Day program, which is one of the things I loved most when we first looked at Providence for our girls. It is a sweet time to listen to these children recite everything from poetry to scripture to old classic hymns. Here's our little cutie:

Kendyll and some other cute first grade pilgrim girls...
Even Abby Kate got to be a pilgrim for a few minutes...

Here are some of the grandparents (being blinded by the sun!)--Pops, Grandma, Gammy, and Papa Ron. (We missed you Grandad & Grankay!)

The family picture (minus Abby Kate, who is too loud for things like this...thank you Aunt Cassie for letting her yell at your house instead. :)

And, the best part of the day is the students showing off their semester projects. It is so neat to see what each child creates and is interested in. There is anything you can imagine!! Kendyll's project changed a few times over the last few months. What began as a plan to scrapbook about our trip to London, eventually changed to a completely different project (although we're still hoping to make a very cool book about our London trip eventually!).

Instead, Kendyll raised money by having her very own walk-a-thon, called Walking for Warmth. Kendyll set a goal to walk 10 laps around our duck pond, which ended up being about 5 miles!! Many family members and friends pledged money per lap for her to meet her goals, and she ended up raising $626 dollars because of all the sweet people who supported her. :)

Here we are in our family walkathon. It was so much fun, and really made us realize that we are ALL capable of walking 5 miles! Who woulda known?!We took turns walking with her, and got to jam to her Ipod along the way (which she LOVED). Mark did a Sonic run for us at Lap 7, so we could have an ice cream break before Lap 9. It was the perfect way to cancel out any burned calories with a banana fudge sundae!

Here's Kendyll's triumphant stance at the end of the 10 laps...followed by the quote "And I'm not even a little bit tired!" (Which is quite impressive if you know Kendyll at all. :) I think it was the ice cream sugar surge toward the end...)

After raising the money and completing her walk, Kendyll went to purchase 60 yards of fleece fabric with her money...enough to make 10 boy blankets and 10 girl blankets. For the next few days, Kendyll, Carlie, Mark and I made fleece blankets until our little fingers couldn't move any more.

Her final part of the project was truly the best part. We delivered the blankets to a local shelter, which provides transitional housing and counseling for children and mothers who have been victims of domestic abuse. These children lit up the room with their huge smiles, and they befriended Kendyll and Carlie like they had always known them.

They could not stop saying "thank you" and asking Kendyll how she made all of these blankets. You could tell they were thrilled with their new blanket, and we decided in the short time we were there, that we would definitely like to continue our involvement with these new friends. It made the entire project worth every minute...and it wil be something we'll never forget. Kendyll has mentioned them every day since then, and keeps asking what day we're going back!

Kendyll was so proud to have her Walking for Warmth book displayed yesterday. And, we are so proud of her huge heart that literally continues to expand bigger and bigger as she ages. Kendyll, I pray you will always have a passion for others in need, and that the Lord will use you in mighty ways!!

And...A HUGE thank you to all of you who were involved in this project and who not only sent your money for this cause, but also offered your encouraging words to our little six year old! :) She soaked in every email, and we truly appreciate it!