Thanksgiving 2013

We began our Thanksgiving celebrations by having lunch with Kemper at his school.  He was so excited for us to come eat with him and that it would be his first time buying hot lunch.  The little things that excited 5-year olds crack me up.  We had the option of turkey or ham, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes, corn, green beans, stuffing, gravy, rolls, orange slices and macaroni & cheese.  I thought Kemper's head was going to explode with excitement when he saw all of the milk choices and couldn't believe that if he bought lunch every day, he would get to choose chocolate milk without asking permission from mom or dad.  

James was even able to get off of work long enough to join us!  It was so neat to see all of Kemper's classmates interact and to see how Kemper behaves in his class (although I'm well aware that we weren't getting a true picture since parents were there and I'm sure he behaved a bit differently).  As the kindergartners marched down the hall, I noticed their hats and was so excited to see what Kemper had listed as what he was thankful for.  We had to stifle a giggle when we got to him and saw what he had listed.  Upon asking for clarification, he informed us that he was thankful for the color blue, he was thankful he liked his name (Kemper was written on there), and he was thankful that he was 5 years old.

How we were able to get the turkey prepped and in the oven and some of the side dishes prepped.  

Since we don't travel to Virginia for Thanksgiving, we have always invited friends over to celebrate with us.  Our first Thanksgiving in Tennessee, James was deployed so Kemper and I had dinner at a friend's house but otherwise had a pretty low key day around the house.  The next year, our friends the Liesens came over and the following year, Amber and Addi came over while Blake was deployed.  This year, the Liesens were coming over again and we were looking forward to spending time with them as they were actually packing out their house the very next day in preparation for their PCS.  

Kemper had seen the handprint turkey Hudson brought home from school and wanted to make his own.  

It worked best to have our big meal in the evening so that all of the little ones would be well rested after naps.  James brined the turkey a day prior to Thanksgiving and got it prepped and in the oven around noon.  He even made sausage balls to snack on and requested that I make a jalapeno chicken cheese ball (thanks to Allen and Tori for introducing us to that yummy appetizer!).  Justin came over a bit early to watch football with James while I got the rest of the food ready.  Jenny came over once their kids got up from nap and we were almost ready for dinner by then!  Thank goodness for good naps!

Someone sure was excited about Thanksgiving dinner!

On the menu was:  turkey, gravy, dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, rolls, and cranberry sauce.  It was all delicious!  I wouldn't call it a relaxing dinner for the adults but the kids enjoyed themselves (and we all got a kick out of the kids).  When asked what they were thankful for, Kemper held steady with his name, favorite color and age while Sam went with "harvesters".  Sam kept us laughing at dinner...he is such a sweet little boy and just cracks me up with his matter of fact tone.  

Everyone is ready to dig in!

Harper found her a buddy...she was a fan of the sweet potatoes!  

After dinner, we just enjoying hanging out with Justin and Jenny and watched the kids play.  While there is a big age difference between Kemper and Sam, they played so well together and had a great time.  Hudson and Harper are only 4 months apart in age and their personalities are so much alike it's scary!  They were in the same class at school and were good buddies so they had a good time together as well.  After they went home that night, Hudson started saying "Harpy" and has asked for Harper nearly every day since then.  

We didn't ask them to pose but they seemed to coordinate their pose well!

I am incredibly thankful for these sweet boys.  

We tried to get a picture of all of the kids together....it was quite the task.  We did get one that was a bit better than this but I still laugh when I see this one.  Hudson was being quite the clown at this point of the night. 

See...a little bit less crazed!

Our last Thanksgiving in Tennessee.

I'm like a broken record but when it comes to an Army family, we are truly blessed beyond measure.  Holidays away from family can be bittersweet but for the last 8 years, we have been blessed with wonderful friends who are like family at this point.  Our paths briefly crossed in Germany but Jenny and I really didn't meet until we both got to Tennessee.  You don't realize just how small the Army is until you PCS...it is crazy how many friends we have crossed paths with again that we met in Germany.  It makes PCSing a bit less difficult knowing that we will probably cross paths again at some point in our lives.  The Liesens have packed up and moved on but luckily, they're stationed close to home in Virginia and we know that we'll be able to visit with them again soon!