Turkey and Sheeps

I'm not sure when it happened.

But somewhere along the way, Thanksgiving weekend became my favorite holiday. {yes, the entire weekend. not just the day itself}.

Or it at least tied itself with Christmas.

Oh shoot. But I sure love Halloween too.

Can we just count October 31st - January 1st as one long holiday?

Anyway. I love Thanksgiving. A lot. Every year I look forward to going to Gabe's grandpa's farm. And now that Lyla gets excited about things and even remembers them, it brings fun to a whole new level.

This year, I didn't get to enjoy all the hustle and bustle of farm animals and shooting skeet and going on a 3 mile after-dinner family walk because of the whole newborn thing. It was super-freezing out, and you know, babies eat like every 15 minutes.

But Lyla sure had a grand time.

The whole way to the farm, she kept talking about how she couldn't wait to ride the "sheeps"(goats) and see the "titty tats" and "chitzens"(chickens). It's amazing that she remembered them from last year. And she was so excited to eat turkey and "pumpin pie".

This year, we had nearly half the crew that we normally do at Thanksgiving. Which was probably around 20 of us. And it was nice. Since I was stuck inside with babe, I got to catch up with everyone. And go back for seconds and thirds.

I don't know what it is about the Thanksgiving feast. Oh wait. Yes I do. Everyone brings their "specialty dish". Not to mention everyone in Gabe's family has quite the knack for cooking. So I obviously look forward to it 364 days of the year. And since it's only one day of the year, I tend to cram my plate to the brim. Couple that with breastfeeding, and I've got myself an excuse to go turkey-sweet potato casserole-cranberry sauce crazy. Oh. And the rolls. I go overboard on the rolls. It's an unspoken rule of mine.

So, while I stuffed my face, Lyla got to ride the goats and shoot with the boys.

And this year was extra fun on the way to and from the farm. Gabe introduced me to the #1 podcast at the moment - Serial. You guys. I can't even. There is just so much for me to say about this brilliant {true} crime story. So much, that I'm not even going to say anything. Just go check it out. I will say that we listened to over 4 hours in the car and then came home, put the girls to bed, and listened to another 3 hours while sitting next to the space heater. Like olden times.

I can't wait for Thursday when the next episode airs.

Anyway. It made for a super car ride.

Then the weekend continued with Christmas decorating and sugar cookie baking with the fam.

Lyla took her decorating duties seriously. And she named every.single.ornament as she strategically placed them on the tree. She especially loved "dad's drums", the "pickle", and the "dancing cow with boobies".

And she took particular interest in the tree we put in her room this year. She got so excited the moment she saw it, she ran in giddily screaming and clapping "THANK YOU CHRISTMAS!!!" I haven't even turned the tree lights on yet. {Mostly because the cord is too short and I can't find our extension cords anywhere}.

Sure makes me excited for Christmas this year.

And I had every intention of creating a super cute advent calendar with activities for us to do everyday. But let's get real. I have a new baby. And...I don't even have time to shower on a regular basis. Let alone create some DIY project I found on Pinterest.

But I am happy to report that I've learned to let things like that go.

Because it's more about living in the moment at the moment.

Thanksgiving weekend was perfect. And although we didn't have the chance to do our traditional watch Christmas movies and sleep by the tree on the day after Thanksgiving, we're going to find a way to squeeze it in somewhere among all the Christmas goodness in the next few weeks.

And if it is even half the hit that Thanksgiving was, Christmas is sure to be a good one this year.