We came home and went to Jake and Erin's for another Thanksgiving feast. Davey and Booner drove all the way from AZ to be with us. It was great just hangin and later we went back to our house for pie and chill time. I made 3 pies homemade: pecan, lemon meringue, and french silk and Aaron made 2 pumpkin pies from a pumpkin. They all turned out good except Aaron for some reason thought the lemon pie could be left out over night and it didn't hold up too well. That was the one that took the most time too. Blast. Now we know.
The next day we caught all the sales for Black Friday. I made a list out of all the places we were going to go and Aaron even wanted to go with me. I wanted to head out at 4 AM because that was when Kohl's was opening. Aaron thought he set the alarm at 3:30 but it was really set at 4:30 so we got to Kohl's late and the line was insane. So we left since all the things I wanted to get were gone anyway. Target didn't open till 6 so we headed over to JCPenney's and I pretty much got all my Christmas presents there. Then we went into Target and ended with Walmart. Amazingly, Walmart was a ghost town by the time we got there at like 7:00. It was so weird and there were plenty of things left. Last year Walmart was terrible. We got the kids' Christmas presents and Gunnar's birthday present and came home. Oh yeah, our kids were watched by Lorna so we could shop but when we got home everyone was still asleep. Aaron's cousin Tyler came around 8:30 because his finance was shopping at the outlets since midnight. He didn't end up leaving to meet up with her until like 6. Can you imagine over 15 hours of straight shopping? Go Andrea! So the real reason why Aaron was so nice to get up and go shopping with me was so he could get his shopping done. It was now his turn. Costco. 9AM. 50" flat screen. Yep. We did it. We bought the plasma tv, and yes I do feel very guilty that we live off loans yet we spent that money on a tv. Judge away. But it is done and Aaron is thrilled. Oh, I guess I like it too. So there you go. I can't spend anymore $ for a long time. I need to get out of the mentality of sales. No more, even if it is on sale.
I am grateful for a lot of things that aren't things though. I am grateful that we have so much family around that we have to divide up holidays. It is hard and I hate feeling like I am hurting people's feelings but there is nothing better than to be surrounded by family during the holidays. We only have 18 months left in SA, and I am already starting to be sad that we are going to go. I love that I can call my brother David up 7 houses down and ask him to keep on eye on Lily while she naps so I can take Gunnar to the Dr. I love that I can let Lily run loose in my mom's house and all her aunts and step aunts dote on her. I love that Lily and Gunnar get to play with their cousin(s), now just one, and make memories with them.
I am grateful for Aaron and his hard work in school. He is really so smart and just the other day he was saying something about a sore in the mouth and was like "sporal pepticauctal seratus". That wasn't even the words, I forgot it already, but it was some medical speak and I can't imagine how much knowledge he has in his brain. I could never make it through dental school I don't know how he gets all that stuff let alone how he leaves the house every morning at 7AM and gets home around 6PM. How he survives on 6-7 hours of sleep, maybe, every night and still has the mental stamina to put up with me after he is done at school, I will never know. I will entertain the kids, clean, cook, and run errands any day over doing that. I love my job as a mom, and there is nothing better. And there is nothing better than a husband that affords me the opportunity to witness my kids' lives.
Which is a good segue into my third thing which are my kids. I love that I have kids (plural). I thought nothing could be better than my Lily but sure enough there was. Gunnar is equally as good. I love them both and the differences in a boy and girl are awesome. I love having both my babies around. This year was hard for me, and I feel as though I have gone through another rite of passage. I feel older but in a good way. Last night as I was tucking Lily into bed at 10PM because she was still up and continuing her habit of being the last one to leave a party (this girl has the biggest case of FOMO ever), I was giving her butterfly kisses and she then got to thinking about how other animals kissed. She asked me how lions kissed and I said, how do you think they kiss? She then said "'roar' but softly so we don't scare Gunnar." That cracked me up so much because when Gunnar was first born Lily would get in his face and "ROAR" so loud and it would make his little arms fly up all startled and he would bawl and bawl. (And you wonder why Gunnar would never let me nurse him sitting down, because every time Lily would assail him with roars or scratches.) So even though sometimes it feels like she doesn't listen I know some of what we have taught her is rattling around in that brain of hers.
There it is in no particular order. Not very surprising but I figure I better write it or I would be an ingrate indeed. 
![[Comments]](/nb//themes/Default/comments.png "4 comments")
(4) Wed Nov 28 2007 13:04 Giving thanks:
Now that things are settling down here I can finally post a bit about how our Thanksgiving holiday went. It is hard splitting your time between two families but it was done. First we had our traditional dinner with my family on Wed night. The Taylors have a tradition to go to Mo Ranch for Thanksgiving so while Aaron went to the turkey bowl and I took the kids there. It is a buffet style and the grounds are beautiful, but it is always colder in the hill country so you can't enjoy it as much as you'd like. Aaron met up with us, and the whole crowd was there: Ann Taylor (Ben's mom), Ben, Mom, Joe and Louise, David and Ashley, Aaron, the kids and me, Michelle, Lorna, Meg, Garrett, Leah, Amanda, and Ben's dad and his wife. We missed Julie and Chuck and Dave, Alyson and the boys.
- Comments:
Posted by Jenni at Wed Nov 28 2007 17:08
Ahhh-great things to be grateful for! ANd yay for Aaron's new TV! haha---no judgement here! Wish we could have been on the same state to shop Black Friday together...maybe again one day!
Posted by Susie at Wed Nov 28 2007 21:35
Your poor mom! My mother-in-law's name is Susan and people think it's so funny.
Posted by anonymous at Mon Dec 03 2007 23:14
I've never been a "Black Friday" shopper, maybe next year. I can't imagine Andrea... all night shopping! Wow.
Posted by Betina at Mon Dec 03 2007 23:15
I've never been a "Black Friday" shopper, maybe next year. I can't imagine Andrea... all night shopping! Wow.