Thanksgiving 2010

We had an exceptionally nice Thanksgiving this year.

Because Mom's kitchen was under construction (they've been remodeling) and my house is too small to comfortably accommodate a large herd of hungry people, the obvious alternative was to have Thanksgiving dinner at my sister's house this year.

It was lovely!

The food was, of course, fabulous. And there was lots of pie, which never made an occasion worse. The real joy of the occasion, however, was the company. Everybody stayed at the Smith's for hours after the meal was finished, playing games, visiting, and generally enjoying being together.

Some highlights:

There were some intense water noodle/light saber fights going on across the house. Here, Tessa battles against Little Marty.

The Skousens did their usual lounging/cell phone mumbling thing.

Abraham introduced the kiddos to the Skousen family-invented version of the game "Rotten Egg," in which one player (here, it's Calysta) dresses up like a store customer and selects an egg from the bunch (l-r, Soren, Briar, and Marty). The egg then undergoes rigorous "testing" from the store patron and the store owner (played by Abraham). Bad eggs are thrown into the dumpster; good eggs go into the customer's basket. It was a hoot.

The boys did their usual skirmishing over their most prized possession--Mommy. (And here I thought we'd moved away from the objectification of women.) They also played with their cousins and Liam went on a wild rolling-around-on-the-ground spree.

My Mom relived her glory days as Miss America.

Abraham and Hillary played in a snowdrift without footwear.
(They were raised in the backwoods and couldn't afford shoes but when their Pa was able to shoot a bear and tan the leather to take to the shoemaker in the neighboring town. This only happened once a year or so and with eleven children in need of shoes, the kids just learned to do without.)

Hillary and Collette washed dishes. Other people did too, I think, but I was busy being wallowed on and pulled at, so I didn't assist.

Arielle and Grandpa snuck off to the basement to clean Arielle's gun. I like the juxtaposition of Arielle's fashion accessories (scarf, earrings) with the firearm.

There was also sledding and Pictionary. And possibly a movie.

It was a lovely occasion in which we were able to celebrate the things for which we are most grateful: the gift of family, the joy of health, an abundance of food, safety and freedom in which to enjoy these gifts.

That evening at Family Song/Prayer, I had everyone say something they were thankful for. When it was Soren's turn he was ready. Without hesitation, he said: "I'm thankful for snow and....Scrisscruss (Christmas)!"

And with that we moved into the Christmas season. It was a good beginning.