Christensen Thanksgiving 2014

Thanksgiving was at our house this year, with our little family of seven. And, I made it all myself. This was both terrifying and exciting for me. I roasted a turkey, which I stuffed with homemade stuffing. I made a ham. I made real mashed potatoes. I made cranberries. I made homemade rolls. We also had pumpkin pie, banana cream pie, and homemade cherry cream pie. Josh added in the canned cheese and chips... whatever! And, we had some raw vegetables. I pulled it off. I was so exhausted at the end of the day after cooking, baking, cleaning, and cleaning some more. This morning, as I type this, I am so grateful that I did this. I have had many years of watching my mother, my maternal grandmother, and my paternal grandmother cook, bake, clean, and serve. I am grateful for the lessons they have passed on to me. I am so thankful for the food that I had to feed my family. I am so thankful for the appliances I had to cook with. I am most thankful for my family of seven. Gosh, I love my family. My kids are amazing. Every single day. They are amazing.

Thanks and Cruisin'

Sunday night, we went to my parent's house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was very, very nummy! It was a pirate-themed Thanksgiving dinner because they announced that we are going on a family cruise in January! All of the adults already knew about it, because there has been lots of planning going on. Jackson also knew. But the rest of the kiddos found out on Sunday. It was so fun to watch their reaction and to hear them planning what their activities will be. Amanda is not allowing Brooklyn to go with us so tears and sobs were a part of the party. But Papa and Grandma promised to take Brooklyn on an amazing one-on-one before we go cruising. She loves Papa and Grandma! She wanted Papa to hold her and he got lots of cuddles out of him. I'm pretty sure he lives for that. I do too. So, off to the Bahamas and St. Marten we go in January!