Thankful

Since I am so far behind on posting, I figure I might as well start with the most recent happening...Thanksgiving!

We celebrated Thanksgiving this year in Knoxville at Matt's parents beautiful new home.  They were kind enough to invite my mom and dad down to the festivities, which made it all the more fun!   Instead of making the 11 hour trip in 2 separate cars, we decided to rent a mini van and head down as a group.  Having 2 extra sets of hands and drivers made the trip a cinch.  The boys were so good, we actually shaved an hour and a half off the trip from 4th of July.  I am sure it also helped that the boys were a bit older, but constant entertainment from Nanny and Papa and a lot more space made the trip fairly enjoyable!  We ended up leaving around 4 a.m. Wednesday morning, forcing the boys to sleep for the first couple hours.  By the time we stopped for lunch, we only had about 3 hours to go, getting us to Vonore mid afternoon!

Here are the passengers all ready to get back on the road after quick pit stop....

My co-pilot...asleep before we even got back on the highway!

Kelly, Jim, and Addy were already there by the time we arrived and the kids couldn't have been more excited to see each other.  They all played great together, which was a bit of a change from visits past.  We didn't have too many sharing issues and Ethan, Addy, and Henry took advantage of being surrounded by 2 sets of grandparents...junk food, late nights, jumping on the bed, and tons of attention! 

The infamous bath pictures...bath time came with many more questions than normal; so much curiosity at age 3. 

Before we left, I found a local Turkey Trot taking place in Knoxville, on University of Tennessee's campus.  There was an 8K run and a 100 yard Little Gobbler Dash.  I thought it would be fun for Ethan and Addy to participate in the Little Gobbler and both were so excited about the race until we stepped out of the car into the freezing cold.  It took a little persuading, but both participated in the race, albeit a bit cold and over whelmed by all the kids. 

Ethan - running as fast as his little legs would let him!  His exhaust pipes were still warming up!

Ethan - post race and Me - pre race!

Mr. Turkey decided it was a beautiful day for the run...he also ran each "heat" of the Little Gobbler!

Running the nice little uphill to the finish line.  I ran the fastest I have in a long time, finishing the 8k in 41:38, which is about an 8:20 mile!

After the race, my mom, dad and I drove around UT for a bit so they could relive some old memories.  For those of you that don't know, my dad was the Director of Residence Halls at UT right after my parents were married and I was born at the hospital on campus.  My parent's first apartment was in Carrick Hall so they really enjoyed seeing campus and how much it has changed in the past 33 years.  I was overly impressed with their ability to get around campus with ease 33 years later.  Oh, and that my mom's favorite sub shop is still open! 

Where it all began...

My parents were thrilled that the residence hall was open.  Perfect for a photo op!

The sign right outside their apartment, which we think has now been converted to offices!

After our little tour, we headed back to the Hunt's house to get ready for a wonderful Thanksgiving feast.  Carol really outdid herself this year...the turkey was delicious (the turkey sandwiches the next day even better) and she had every traditional side you could think of!  Along with every type of pie to satisfy all cravings.  A truly wonderful meal!  

 The kids table!

Since the weather was so gorgeous the entire time we were there, the kids had a great time playing outside and enjoying the hot tub in the evenings.  That might have been a highlight of the trip for all 3 of them and JB, too!

Henry - trying to find trouble!

Ethan and Addy - burning off some Thanksgiving calories running up the many hills around Hunt's house!

JB and Ethan showing off their muscles...and getting ready to take a swim in the hot tub!

Friday we took the kids to see Santa, but before we left they had to peruse the toy magazines so they could let the big guy know what was on their list.  I think they have all been nice this year so I have a feeling Santa will be very good to them at Christmas. 

We were so fortunate to be able to spend Thanksgiving with both our parents and some of the Hunt family.  We missed everyone that wasn't there, but felt so blessed to celebrate Thanksgiving surrounded by our parents.  The day was beyond perfect and such a great start to the holiday season.  We hope everyone had an equally wonderful Turkey Day!

A few more pictures after we arrived home...

Ethan sporting his slightly large Little Gobbler t-shirt!

Henry just being his cute self!

Ethan show off his mad art skills...with the help of Elyse!