Giving Thanks

I am finally able to sit down and write. What a busy week we had! My husband's brother, his wife and their 4 kids came to visit us for Thanksgiving. They arrived last Tuesday and stayed until Friday afternoon.  We haven't seen them for a long time, and we had a great visit.  Wednesday was spent shopping for the Thanksgiving meal, and cooking as much as we could ahead of time.  We were able to prepare the desserts and some of the side dishes that evening, so that Thursday we could focus on the main meal.  I did prepare these pumpkin ravioli ahead of time, which was a labor of love, but so worth it the next day for all of us who weren't opting for turkey the next day.  We had 2 vegetarians in our group, as well as my husband and I who only eat fish.  My husband was able to modify the stuffing recipe so that it was meatless, and we had plenty of side dishes to satisfy everyone.

My 9 yr old and husband post-race

Home-made race bibs

  Thursday morning we decided to make our own Turkey Trot.  The local YMCA was hosting a run, but the cost was pretty steep: $23 for adults (over age 16) to run, and $16 for kids.  We had 7 kids and 4 adults, so we opted to make our own race, just for fun.  My 11 yr old son offered to make the race bibs, and I think they turned out great. We headed to a local park that my husband and I regularly run at and after a quick impromptu national anthem, we were off.  My daughter was the only one who didn't run.  She got a fun ride in the stroller, while the rest of us ran/walked the route.  The fastest runner was my 13 yr old nephew who was able to finish in approx. 21 minutes.  He was followed closely by my 9 yr old son, who ran the distance in approx. 22:15. Pretty good for a 4th grader!! My husband kept up with these 2 so that they would know when to turn, and to be the time-keeper.  My brother in law was ahead of me the whole race, so I followed him.  I finished in approx. 25:30.  I felt good, tried not to push the pace, since it had only been 11 days since the marathon.  Everyone put in a great effort, and regardless of the pictures I took post-race, I think everyone had a fun time. Once we finished the run, we returned home to finish preparations for the Thanksgiving meal.  We all had a very nice day, and were very satisfied with all the yummy dishes.



The ladies

The boys



 On Friday, we headed to Hershey Chocolate World, did a quick tour, and then sent the kids to Create Your Own Chocolate Bar.  So much fun!!

Some help with the "re-lighting" candles!

 Saturday was my daughter's 4th birthday.  She had some yummy waffles prepared by Daddy, then was ready to open up her gifts.  This was a Disney Princess birthday! Afterwards we went to Nutcracker program at our local library, then out for dinner to Red Robin, which was her choice. We enjoyed cake for dessert that she had picked out at the grocery store, and her birthday was complete. 
Well, until Monday when she celebrated her birthday at her preschool. I made these piggy cupcakes at her request to share with her friends.

Then her birthday was complete!

 So, after the busy week of much to celebrate and give thanks, I can sit down and enjoy the first snow of the season!

 

 

 

 

So now, questions: Have you ever done your own Turkey Trot? Are you enjoying any snow where you live today?