Thanksgiving Hangover

I've never actually been hungover, but I can't possibly imagine that it would feel any worse than the past 24 hours have felt for me!  Womp womp.  I'm blaming it on the sugar crashing happening following the super consumption of treats and goodies and excess food over the past several days, combined with an almost total lack of water consumption on my part.  Yeah, I know.  That was not smart, that was not smart!  {Name that reference. Hahaha.}  Whatever the reason, I've had a splitting headache from the moment I woke up this morning and it's been rough.  Getting everyone back on schedule has taken a lot more out of me than I was mentally prepared for!  Haha.  However -- despite the less than ideal aftermath, I'd do Thanksgiving 2017 all over again in a heartbeat! 

 {This year's attempt to focus on gratitude resulted in this awesome looking turkey by the end of the month -- starting November 1st, each day all of us would write something we were thankful for on a feather and stick it up on the wall.  There are some pretty entertaining answers up there.  Hahaha.}

 Ethan finally got to get that boot off, the day before Thanksgiving break!

 (Some of my favorites -- "My invisible pen that's lost."  -- Jane, Stranger Things -- I'm sure you can guess who, Taylor Swift's New Album, and Panera/Wendy's.  Hahaha.)

Last week started off with the not so awesome news that our van needs a new transmission.  Boo.  With just a couple of days until our departure to the Carolinas for the holidays, we were naturally concerned about the odds of us making it all the way there and back safely.  Our solution?  A rental!  And to make things even MORE fun -- as well as to experiment a bit for research's sake -- we decided to take two cars down to see how feasible a mode of transportation that might be for future road trips.  And you know what??  It was the bomb!  Hahahaha.

We split the cars down gender lines, and Scott and I each had our road trip roommates with us for the ride.  Scott drove with the girls in his car, and Ethan was SUPER excited to ride in the rental car with me and the other boys.  {The Apple CarPlay feature was a big draw for my technology boy.}  In all seriousness, the 8 hour drive couldn't have gone better.  Any and all problems we typically have when crammed together in one car for road trips (cough Ethan cough cough) were solved by splitting us up. 

We left last Wednesday morning and arrived at Sarah's at the end of the day.  What followed next were a few days of awesomeness.  :)  With Laura and her little family living fairly close to Sarah, and Amy and Freddie flying in for the festivities, it was ALMOST a full sibling reunion!  {We missed you Emily and Jacob!}  It was SO fun for my kids to see their little cousins, and nothing says fun like hanging with family.

 Best tablecloth ever!

Games were played, a music video was attempted, crafts were done, family pictures were taken, and a feast was consumed before our week was up.  It was a blast.  Sarah and Andrew were so gracious to host ALL of our crew while we were there.  The highlight of the trip for me was being able to see my kids interact with their cousins and fall into such an easy rhythm and bond even though we don't get to see them very often.  The trio of toddlers (Isaac, Annabelle, and Everett) were beyond adorable, and it was so fun to see everyone running around and playing.  Hanging with my siblings reminded me once again that family is the best.

 Doing DoDo's hair.  Hahaha.

 While the Thanksgiving prep was going on inside, Ethan was helping to haul out the holly with Andrew.  :)

 Here we are prepping for our family photo positions.  The kids were super thrilled as you can see.  Hahaha.

 Sneak Peak -- here's the winning combo!

 Family game of "Celebrity."

 (picking teams)

 
We were sad to pack up and head out Saturday morning, but the rental car needed to go back and the kids were getting antsy to set up our OWN Christmas decorations after helping to deck the halls at Sarah's.  Haha.  They wasted no time upon our arrival home to start hauling the boxes up from the basement and pulling everything out.  Thanksgiving seemed to go by in a flash, but at least we have another holiday to look forward to.  Let's just hope it won't result in another holiday hangover for me.  Hahahahaha. :)

And we're home sweet home!