Thanksgiving 2021

I can't celebrate Christmas if I haven't posted about Thanksgiving on the blog so here we go!  Two days after our quick Utah trip, the Johnson's drove up for Thanksgiving.  I tell people the Johnson's aren't like family.   They're more like friends to us because we choose to hang out together because we have so much fun so there's no obligation.  

April posted much more about our good times on her blog.  I felt like I ran around all day every day with nothing to show for it except for producing large quantities of food.  Anyway, they came and we all hung around having a great time mountain biking, relaxing, hot tubbing, riding the e-bikes, playing games, and eating a lot of food.

The little boys waiting to eat but threatened with their very lives if they touched anything.  So they safely chose to sit in the corner and wait.

Look at their empty plates!  I slave for hours on food my boys don't even like.  Marcus had the nerve to suggest a true feast would be all-you-can-eat at McDonald's.  I have no words.

Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, even though the gravy didn't turn out.  I smoked my first whole turkey and it was so juicy we didn't know what to think.  It's funny how much effort goes into making a juicy turkey.  We all grew up eating dry turkey doused with plenty of gravy so when I serve something flavorful and tender, we all suspect there must be something wrong with it or that it needs another hour in the oven. The best part about dinner was laughing so hard as we heard Alexa cheerfully announce, "One hundred farts coming your way!"  and then she played one hundred different far sounds, all met with giggles and laughter from the obnoxious little boys table.  

The after-dinner entertainment: Wrestling!

The goal was to get the other person's sock off.  Thankfully Marcus's boot didn't seriously injure anyone.

On a whim we decided to take the ferry to Bainbridge Island.  The Johnson's never leave Sammamish when they come so they got to see a lot more of WA than usual.

card games pass the time nicely

Bold and Cover Your Assets are the recent favorite card games

We discovered Faye Bainbridge Park and it's awesome!

Our last Thanksgiving together.  I am definitely feeling the pangs of separation as each day brings us a day closer to Marcus's graduation, mission, then life.  I'm excited and sad all at the same time.

Henry already knows Uncle Toby = a Good Time.  He watched in awe as Uncle Toby skipped rocks

Some things never change, like Ethan climbing on top of everything!

We had to try out Moira's ice cream shop near the ferry terminal.  It was delicious!  We had no problem eating in the forbidden seating area.  People in WA are still very terrified of Covid, even though most are vaccinated.  

Walking back to the ferry in the rain

The Cuzins watching all the cars drive onto the ferry.  We walked on while Randy and Toby drove with the cars.  It never gets old seeing how many cars can fit on the boat.  

We lucked out.  We were the last of the cars to get on and the first to get off.

Henry ate every M&M from this jar.  It's mounted on a board that allows one candy out at a time and Henry was obsessed with it.  I found him hiding upstairs with it.

We went to the Snowflake Lane Parade in Bellevue.  It wasn't cold but it was windy and one of the floats tipped over.  It was hilarious!

The parade isn't that great but it's good enough and a great way to kick of the Christmas season.

The wind kept blowing her dress up and my boys thought it was hilarious

The kids will tell you it was stupid but don't let them fool you.  They had fun.

We will always remember the time we got totally lost walking aimlessly through parking garages and stairwells trying to beat the crowds at the elevators.  Eventually we ended up back at the elevators to get to our cars.  

We did the polar bear plunge and I have no photos of the event but let me just say that it's painful and a little scary.  I seriously wonder why my heart doesn't stop from the shock of the cold water.  But it's a fun tradition my boys won't ever do unless we are with the Johnson's.