Thanksgiving

This year we decided to so something crazy. We have missed both of our families so much that we wanted to work it out to see everyone over the break. Our plan: leave Knox Tuesday after school. Drive straight to Nashville for a birthday celebration with Jason's family (see last post). Cook-out at Derek's house on Wednesday. Thanksgiving lunch with Jason's family Thursday afternoon, then quickly get in the car and drive to Memphis Thursday night for dinner with my family. The girls shop until they drop (literally) on black friday-the real holiday in my family. Saturday pack up and head back to Nashville in time to watch the bulldogs beat up on the "black bears." Sunday-reluctantly head back to Knoxville and get ready for a long week at school.

We realize this plan is crazy busy-but when else will we be able to do this. It might be our last year like this, so we need to take advantage of the opportunity. Who knows where we will be or what Jason's school will be like next fall!

Here are some pictures from our first few days in Nashville:

By the fire pit at the Caswell's..

At the fire pit at the Caswell's.. (notice the puppy Nola)

At Derek's house, getting some love from Brutus..

So when we got to Memphis we were so excited to see my family-and my extended family (my dad's brother John and his family were there, per tradition). 

Jason holding the sweetest new addition to our family (via Laura), Avery.

We ate Thanksgiving dinner and (per tradition) waded through towering stacks of Black Friday ads. This year so many sales started early, that Jason went home with Hayden and the kids, and the sisters (and honorary sister- Becs) started our shopping! 

From Left: Laura, me, Julie, Becs...
Waiting outside of Target

They handed these out in line at Target--pretty tasty too. 

Chaos at Walmart

Poor Mama, waiting in line to CHECK OUT at Kohl's.. 

We spent most of Friday recovering from our all night shopping spree, watching football, and playing games. Back to Nashville on Saturday to catch the biggest game of the year-when MSU beat "The School Up North." (3rd year in a row I might add..)

Although we got caught up in traffic on the way back to Knoxville, all the driving really paid off. We were so happy to have time with our family. It flew by!

What was the first Thanksgiving all about?
Getting out of your comfort zone-Indians and Pilgrims alike. Praising God for all you have with all you have.
That's what our first Thanksgiving is about too.
All we have known for our whole lives is how our individual families celebrate Thanksgiving. Now we are each stepping out of our comfort zone to experience new things with new people. We have learned a lot about each other, our families, and how big our waistband can expand. Plus we spent a lot of time reflecting on all we have to be thankful for this year- in our opinion, we are most thankful for each other-because being together helps us to get through the things that we find hard to thank God for.

Happy Holidays! :)