Thanksgiving 2011

thanksgiving was sure not to disappoint this year- we ate and ate and ate and then ate some more. all the while, we were sure to give thanks.

the day started out at grammy's house where we ate a fabulous lunch. i foolishly left the camera in the car. i was so concerned with getting to that table that little else entered my brain. i am obsessed with grammy's stuffing so this is an event i look forward to 364 days a year. i snarf it down, sit back, close my eyes and imagine heaven. the taste is the perfect combination of yummy stuffing goodness and nostalgic childhood memories. i love it. i once asked her to write down her recipe so that i could attempt to recreate it, but after the third or fourth time she said, "a good amount of this and a fair amount of that," i realized that this recipe was all in her head. it wasn't something i could write down. my goal in life is to make this dressing with grammy enough that i have it in my head too... and in my mouth... and in my bellly.

after my stuffing-snarf-fest, we headed to orem to meet up with the taylors. there are so many of us now that the idea of sitting down to a meal in one of our homes is a little much. thus, this year we settled into a church where we all fit just fine. all 42 of us (which only includes cade's siblings and their children... woo hoo!). we were focused on food yet again- so our pictures were hit and miss, but we were sure to get a few shots of the fun.

the kitchen was all a-buzz as we all finished the last minute food preparations. as we were all whizzing around the kitchen setting things up, we started to realize how much food we had all prepared. hoping that all 42 of us were hungry, we sat down to a FEAST. we ate and ate and ate... took a chatting break... and ate some more. despite all our efforts, however, the food table was still bursting with yummy food. i guess our 84 eyes were bigger than our 42 stomachs... it was all superb, however, so it made for a great feast and some fabulous leftovers.

after the meal, the kiddos played and colored while all the adults chatted.

violet is an expert at keeping busy...

and ivy was a peach (i can't say it enough: what a GREAT baby).

it was a great day to give thanks for a family who truly knows how to love. this year we do have so much to be thankful for so i am always glad there is at least one day dedicated to remembering just how good we all have it.