So Much to be Thankful For

Three years ago- Thanksgiving was care-free, we showed up, drank some famous punch, maybe a bloody mary or two, ate until we could barely walk, hung around the house until the sun went down and then came home and went to bed.

Two years ago-Thanksgiving was still pretty care-free, showed up very pregnant, drank water, and ate only what didn't smell like it was going to make me throw-up.  Came home, and fell asleep as soon as I could find a comfortable position in bed.

Last year- I was tired on Thanksgiving. Why? I was pregnant again, only I didn't know it. I had a 10 month old.  Thanksgiving became less carefree.  Celebrating holidays with kids is more fun, but so much more work and planning!  Passed Eli off to every other person that walked by that wanted to hold him, making sure he ate, and napped was such a chore.  It was a glimpse into the next few years of celebrating Thanksgiving. 

This year.  Oh.  Exhausting.  But still wonderful, and still my favorite day of the year.
Let me go back a few weeks.  The AC at my parents house did some serious damage upstairs.  The ceiling was basically peeling off in certain rooms, the carpet had to be completely pulled up due to water damage in two rooms, the walls in the bathroom and my room had to be replaced, new tile was put down, new cabinets were put in in the bathroom. Oh, it was a mess.  It was determined that two new units were needed in the house.  After all, they were the original units put in in the early 80's.  So, of course why wait until after Thanksgiving, right? They started on the new ac units on Monday.  This may not seem like a big deal, but this meant there were about 10 men, who looked like they were sumo wrestlers, were in and out of the house, in and out of the attic, replacing not only the actual ac units, but all of the insulation, and the guts of the vents (I don't know the proper lingo here).

Had you been in our house just 24 hours before our guests arrived, you would not have believed that our house had been in such shambles.

Oh, and on top of that, I got sick Tuesday night and felt like I had been run over.  Wednesday Blaine went into work early and we headed to my parents house to help get the house ready because the AC guys were still working and there pieces of celing on the floor, boxes everywhere, dust and furniture all over the place!  Only, the only help I was was laying on the couch, sniffling, while my mom made me tea.

That afternoon, we headed to the fire station for a pre-Thanksgiving chili dinner.  I pulled myself together as best I could to make it through dinner.  Thank goodness there were others there needing to love on a baby because the minute I walked in the door, Owen was held by everyone but me, it was great!  And of course everything that Eli needed to entertain himself was right in front of him--firetrucks, cute girls, and a giant chalk board.

But we had a good time and ate some good ole' tamales and chili, you know, traditional Thanksgiving feast!

Thanksgiving at our house is almost like Groundhog Day.  Its always the same, only we make a few tweaks from the year before to make it better.
The turkey fry, followed by family and friends trickling in around noon, eating, drinking, more people showing up, more eating, game watching, and more eating.
The day felt like a jugging act.  Put Owen down for a nap, feed him, put Eli down for a nap, feed him, Owen goes back down, Eli is up, Owen is up, Owen is hungry, where is Eli?  Who has Owen?  Owen goes down for a nap, feed him...you get the point. 
Eli had no problem finding playmates.

There were kids (ALL cousins!!!) everywhere, but of course some of the older kids were more interested in their electronics!

Owen was able to have some bonding time with Ethan, or Effie as Eli has named him and I think all in all it was a great first Thanksgiving!

There was a bunch of game watching

Lots of eating

And a lot of hanging out with family...

Of course Thanksgiving is all about being with family and there was no shortage of that this weekend! 
Friday night all the cousins who lived south of the river gathered for pizza and hanging out.  Of course all cousins were invited but it just so happened that only us Southies came.  Between us, there were 5 boys under 4 so they all had fun stealing toys from each other! 

We kicked off a new tradition of going to the Chuy's Children Giving to Children Parade the Saturday after Thanksgiving. 
Lucky for us, we had the perfect spot to watch the parade!

As a side-note, have I introduced the store cat on the blog yet?  This is Mariposa, she is in charge of critter control at the store, she lives there and hangs out in the front window during the day greeting the customers.  Customers know her by name and stop by for a quick pet all the time!

Since Blaine headed to work that morning, I decided to brave the parade alone.  Luckily I had the store to throw all my stuff down in,  and use to feed Owen in!  And although Rachel and my dad were both working, they couldn't resist just staying inside.

My dad even brought out a ladder so Eli could get a really  good luck at the parade!

I remember parades being really exciting as a kid.  As an adult, not quite as exciting. I even tried to convince Eli that the parade was over half way into it but he was on to me, so we stayed for the whole thing.  He even cried when we left it was so much fun!  And judging by his 3 1/2 hour nap, he was pooped!
Following tradition, Sunday morning was pollachinkas!  If you want more details on this, you could probably just go back and read my post from last Thanksgiving, its pretty much the same story every year.  But there were two new faces this year, Owen and Miles.

Here are a few more pics of the fesivities.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Three Quick Months

Owen,
You are three month now, and are just as happy as can be!  You have the most infectious, sweet smile.  You are holding your head up now with no problems and are easily entertained by Eli sticking his face in yours.  Somehow you find that entertaining, we will see how long that lasts. He just insists on being where ever you are...

                             
You are sleeping really well! Thank you!  You like to hang out in the stroller on our runs, and just be outside.  You love the pacifier which is a new concept to me. I have a love/hate relationship with it though. I can see how much it relaxes you, and it makes it so easy to put you to sleep!  But when it falls out of your mouth right before you are about to fall into a deep sleep and you wake up, I find it a bit frustrating.  I don't know what it is about you boys and your loveys, but you love yours just as much as Eli loves Larry.
We thought it only be appropriate that he have a name also.  So, meet Gus...

Getting you to take a bottle seems to be an uphill battle.  We are still working on it.  I have a love/hate relationship with the bottle too I think.  Breastfeeding for me has been such a luxury. I love it.  I wanted it so bad with Eli and it just didn't work out.  With you it is, and I love it more than I thought I would. I try not to forget what a blessing it is to be able to breastfeed.  I'm scared that you may decide you like the bottle more than the boob and I'm not even close to giving that up!  But do you have any idea how nice it would be to have a night to ourselves??? Or have a date night without having to worry that you are screaming your head off because you are starving?  Or make your dad get up with you during the night?  We will get it one of these days!

You have become somewhat predictable with your naps, and are kind of getting yourself on a schedule, kinda of.  But you are pretty easy to read, and I love that about you.  You love your bath and kick around in there like a little fish in shallow water.  So far you don't protest diaper changes or your car seat. You are a talker! You are chill.  You are patient.  You are awesome! I love you more every day!

You love your Aunt Rachel just as much as I thought you would, and she, of course, loves you like her own and tries to convince you that she is your mom. 

These past few months have gone by so quickly, its hard to believe!
You are very lucky to have both of your great-grandmothers so close to you!  On Sunday we went and surprised Grandma with coffee and bagels to start off her 85th birthday the right way.  And then we had dinner with the family to celebrate.  She makes you smile when she sings to you in French. 

Of course Eli had to be in on the fun and helped her blow out her candle.

I'm excited about the upcoming week to celebrate your first Thanksgiving! Its my all-time favorite holiday, and more than ever I am so thankful for the little boys in my life!