For the past 3 years we have hosted Thanksgiving at our home for which ever family members are able to attend. This year was our largest group with twelve. We had 4 generations with a span from Rose (19 months) through great-grandpa Bechtel (89).
As always, we had WAY more food than we needed, but enjoyed it all :) The guys took on deep frying the turkeys while us woman did all the sides.
So since we had the fryers out anyway, why not start with some wings as an appetizer?
I put the Aunt Kate's to work with making fruit salad. Rose was so cute with her two Aunt Kate's - If she was with one and we asked 'where is Aunt Kate?' she would look at the person who was holding her and then at the other Aunt Kate and get this perplexed look on her sweet little face :)
Here are the turkeys hard at work...
Or not so hard at work...
Ah! Time to carve the birds!
We were able to fit everyone at two tables in our dinning room. I think this would be the limit and if we have more people we will have to spill into the living room.
Rose enjoyed sampling from everyone's plates. Rose actually took a nap and woke up just as we were starting to serve food. Last year she completely missed the meal, not that she would have eaten much of what we had last year anyway. This year she seemed to enjoy the cranberry sauce, baked corn, and mashed potatoes the best!
Here she is in her cute Thanksgiving dress :)
Ok, I think this is my favorite thing from the whole day. Rose LOVES to play on the iPad and can unlock the screen, find her folder of games, and click on what she wants. She will gladly take her beloved iPad to people to hold her while she plays. Today she went to Great Aunt Ruth and Great Grandma Catherine, both of whom have probably never held an iPad before and happily showed them how to play some of her games :)
And that's what it's all about, we had a wonderful day with our family!
Now on to the rest of the long weekend! Justin took off on Friday, so we got to spend LOTS of time together, well not really. Justin was busy working on house projects and Rose and I had lots of playing to do! Justin completed the outside porch railing and worked on Rose's book nook. He also built her stairs so she can now wash her own messy hands after her finger painting :)
We did get to spend some family time Friday morning when we went out for breakfast with the Stillinger family. I was busy with Rose, but apparently Uncle Matt was informing Justin that Rose should have a sibling...well, not gonna happen. BUT she would love lots more cousins to play with ;)
Rose also reached the 19 month milestone this Saturday (and Becky turned 30!). The most exciting development this month has been Rose's increase in language. She has a few words that we hear: dad, doggie, blanket, 'o' for open, and thank you; but this week she started saying 'go' very repetitively which is very significant in language development. We finally got this word out of Rose by pairing language with motor activities that she loves: spinning in her chair and swinging from her blanket. Hey, whatever it takes :)
Rose also loves raspberries, water, and finger painting. She is showing imagination with her play and such gentleness with her dolls. She continues to be obsessed with playing in water and now with the stand to reach the sink, washing her hands is a 10 minute activity! She also eats well most of the time, but definitely has her favorites. She would eat a whole pint of raspberries from the farmer's market if we let her. Rose really loves any fruit, cheese, and crackers. She insists on using a big fork when she see's us with them at dinner and does really well. She is also drinking from regular sized cups. Rose is working on going up and down the stairs and can kick a ball. She is able to follow directions and even knows some directional terms. Rose is able to match a few shapes and we are starting to work on matching coloring, so we'll see how that goes. Rose continues to amaze us with all she is able to do for such a little girl!
December is shaping up to be a busy month with lots of fun for Rose, but before I get caught up in sending Christmas cards, decorating the house, and buying presents let me end the blog with what I am most thankful for:
Our families-
I am really happy the Rose is surrounded by so many of her extended family members. I also love that she spends the day with her grandma's who give her lots of hugs and kisses while I am at work.
Our home-
Although I am constantly whining that it will never be done, I am grateful for a home to raise our little girl and welcome our family and friends.
Our health-
We realized this year with Matt's accident that things can change so quick, but are thankful he is healing well. Justin, Rose, and I have only suffered from the occasional runny nose, so we have no complaints!
Our paychecks-
While we would rather win the lottery and stay home with Rose all day, if we have to work (and we do) at least our jobs provide us with lots of flexibility.
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