This year we had two Thanksgivings. The first one was at Kevin and Karla's house the day of and the second one I hosted at my house on Black Friday. I bought a turkey and all the fixings because ultimately we wanted to make turkey noodle soup out of it. So we planned on having some people over for food and to celebrate Trish's birthday since we don't get to see her very much. I wanted to have a birthday party for her since it was near Thanksgiving.
Kevin and Karla wrote us all an email, since that's what we've been doing to let everyone know instead of phone calls, stating what time, what was being served and who's birthdays we were going to celebrate. It was all set. Ben was going to go to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving and I understood, you never know how much longer you will have your grandparents. He just has his grandmother left and she is in a nursing home in Puyallup.
Jenn's parents were here this year for the month of November so we had to factor in them only if they wanted to come. We asked Doug and Jenn if they wanted to participate in family things and they said they would ask them. They arrived on November 20th and were going to stay until December 10th. I actually heard back quickly and Doug told me that her parents were coming over to meet our family. He also added that they would have more food to bring.
The Friday after they arrived, we planned on having a dinner at Doug and Jenn's. We decided on pizza, salad and ice cream sandwiches. It was a nice visit. We got to know them a little bit and we ended up playing Jackbox on the TV. It was hilarious and we all had a great time.
On Thanksgiving, Erika and Zach were going down to Vancouver to visit his mom and dad so they weren't coming to Kevin and Karla's house. Everyone else seemed to be coming including Jenn's mom and dad. I wasn't sure if Karla's family was coming or not. I guess we would see when we got there.
I drove myself to Tumwater and stopped by to see Grammie on Thanksgiving. I was probably going to be the only one who visited today. I am often the only one who does weekly. I told her about some of the stuff that was going on and that we were headed to Thanksgiving at Kevin and Karla's. I told her that we loved and missed her.
I was one of the first ones at their house so I sat in the Escape for a min. I called Mom to see if she and Grandma were on their way and they were and Dad drove separately to pick up Grandpa. I really didn't want to be the only person here. I took a long time grabbing my stuff and making my way to the house. Kevin came out to say hi and talk about random things. Mom and Grandma pull up and unload stuff as we walk into the house. A few minutes later, Dad and Grandpa drive in. I asked Doug when he was going to arrive and he said that they were going to be late because Jenn's family thought it started later than it did. They decided to get cleaned up and start cooking things later than anticipated and Doug was irritated. They were about 45 minutes late and we waited to eat food. Karla's parents weren't able to make it this year due to health reasons.
We ate dinner around 2ish and most of dinner time was spent talking about random things and everyone getting to know Jenns's parents, Carolyn and Gary. We put away a lot of food and almost didn't have room for dessert.
I did manage to eat some pie later on. After dinner and kinda cleaning up, we all sat down and had a mini birthday party for me, Mom, Dad, Grammie and Trish. Family holidays were still hard without Grammie. I missed her so much. It just wasn't the same getting together without her. That joy was missing. I miss those family gatherings so bad that I try to transport myself back in time when it was happier and we were complete. We briefly talked about Christmas when mom told everyone who they had.
It was time to take Grandpa home, he really can't sit for very long without being in his chair at home, so Dad took him home. We picked up all of our stuff and put it in the cars, thanked Kevin and Karla for their hospitality and Mom, Grandma and I went to Walmart down the road to see what kinds of stuff they had for their Black Friday sale. Last year I bought my carpet cleaner and it has come in handy several times throughout the year. It has definitely paid for itself. This year I bought a vacuum cleaner because Erika had declared that she was moving in the spring and was taking her good one with her. I also got a couple towels, wash clothes, a bathroom mat and some more Pyrex containers.
We went home and I started getting ready for my Thanksgiving dinner the next day. I cleaned the house a little bit and wiped stuff down. I even put together the vacuum to clean the floors. I got a shower and went to bed.
The next day we slept in a little bit and then continued getting our house ready for people to come over around 6. Around noonish, we got the turkey ready and put it in the cooker. I made sure I had everything else out so we could systematically get everything cooked when it needed to be. I did assign mom a few things like sugar cookies and the veggies and dip. Doug and Jenn said they were going to come over to my Thanksgiving but her parents were going to stay at their house. They needed a break from them and I didn't blame them.
I got everything done before everyone came over. I invited Trish, Amy and Ed, Erika invited Zach, Mom, Dad and Grandma came and Doug and Jenn. Grandpa didn't want to come but we did get a plate of food ready so Dad could drop it by on their way home. Tracy had already gone home and Kevin and Karla did their own thing as far as I know.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Next Adventure: A Mount Rainier Day Trip to Longmire
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