The Lee Family: Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving! One of my very favorite holidays! I woke up and headed to the main house where Olivia was newly awake and Uncle Steve was on his computer. I grabbed a cup of coffee and cuddled with Olivia near the fire while we waited for everyone else to wake up. Soon everyone was up and we made breakfast tacos since we didn't plan on eating our Thanksgiving meal until the afternoon, so we wanted some protein and real food in our bellies. After breakfast, the girls stayed in their pjs and we played a couple of hands of Uno while Uncle Steve made his awesome homemade apple pie and Aunt Shirl relaxed with us. After a few Uno games, the girls continued playing on their own with their dinosaurs and a few games of Memory. Mike visited with extra chairs that we needed to seat all 12 of our Thanksgiving table and he also had the turkey that Uncle Steve would be putting into the oven after the apple pie was done. The pie turned out perfectly and as much as I looked forward to the entire afternoon, company, delicious food, and everything else, I really couldn't wait to eat Uncle's awesome apple pie!

We showered and got dressed and I had the girls get into there nice outfits, not only for our meal but I wanted Aunt Shirl to take a good photo of the four of us to use on our Christmas card. Unfortunately, my camera's battery completely ran out and I didn't bring my charger so I was stuck taking photos with my iPhone. Aunt Shirl had her small camera with her which works well, but I was really hoping we could use my camera! We decided to stand right outside the back door and she actually got a good photo of the four of us as well as a cute picture of the girls together. After photos, CK and I did one final grocery run for a few things that we needed and we returned just as the turkey made it's way into the oven! Aunt and Uncle's very first turkey on their first Thanksgiving in the hacienda was in the oven!

Aunt and Uncle's guests arrived around 3:30 and included Mike and Chris who also have a house in Santa Fe and who have hosted us at their house the past several Thanksgivings and for 4th of July burgers. There were also two additional couples who we met this past 4th of July and who are very interesting and friendly. We started off with appetizers of cheese, crackers, nuts and other goodies. We also enjoyed champagne out on the patio while the girls played out in the arroyo. They put on their jackets and gloves and headed out to climb, explore and make up stories. We told them to stay within eyesight of the hacienda and we could hear them and see them. While they played and everyone was occupied, I called my Aunt Cathy in Colorado and wished her a happy Thanksgiving. It was great to talk with her and I always feel like we could talk for hours.

Finally it was time to eat dinner! We called the girls inside and had them wash their hands before we ate around 5pm. Everything looked delicious and we had all the usual dishes: turkey, my favorite stuffing that has apricots and sausage that Aunt and Uncle have made for many years, mashed potatoes, the best gravy ever (another of my Uncle's specialties, brussel sprouts (my Aunt's specialty), roasted sweet potatoes and root vegetables, and several salads brought by the guests. It was all fantastic and delicious! Sofia grabbed some turkey and was heading in for sides when I pointed out the brussel sprouts right in front of her. She made the worst face and I was lucky enough to get a picture! I happen to love brussel sprouts and both our girls swear they hate them even though they haven't tried them. I did get Olivia to try two and she said they weren't bad! After eating Thanksgiving dinner, we talked, ate Uncle Steve's delicious apple pie and pumpkin tart and visited for a while. The guests said their goodbyes and headed home and it was a very successful evening. Given the recent elections, we were a little curious as to how the evening might go, as was Uncle Steve, but it went fine. Sofia and I played a few games of Uno and then the girls went off to bed. We all helped with the dishes and then headed off to bed as well. Such a fun (and tiring) Thanksgiving!

Uncle Steve's sliced apples in a yummy cinnamon mixture ready to be made into a pie