Thanksgiving 2024

On Sunday morning, I was enjoying a nice leisurely- sleeping in and taking things nice and easy. Rayleigh came to my bed side and whispered, "Mommy, Jack and I got all of the Christmas boxes in and Ella helped us drag the tree in."

The kids had stacked ALL of my Christmas decoration boxes in the living room and brought the tree into the family room. I was seriously impressed and very thankful that they worked so hard- even though we were a few days away from being able to open any boxes and decorate at all.

We finished reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and watched the movie together and ate turkish delight! I love when we read a good book together and watch the movie when the book is done. I hope the kids look back on this family tradition with fondness- I know I will remember these days as some of the best in my lifetime!

But before we could get started on decking the halls, I wanted to deep clean the house which was a lot of hard work. The biggest project, though, was sanding and painting the piano! Jack has taught himself how to play a very difficult song (Golden Hour) on the piano and I'm so impressed! I wanted to get the piano in first and it took so many hours but I'm happy with the way it turned out. Parker helped me push it inside and it looks great! Jack (and the girls) spend lots of time each day playing and I hope they can learn more this year having a piano back inside the house.

Thanksgiving was a super nice day. No drama. No problems. The kids helped me make the dishes we brought to share. Ray helped me with brownies, Ella helped with the jello, and Jack and I attempted to bake homemade rolls... but they turned out more like hard tack. So next time we cross the plains in a covered wagon, we'll be fine. But until then, the bread way too hard to eat at Thanksgiving dinner.

We tried to take another family photo before we left, but I wasn't happy with the way they turned out, again. I think we might not send a Christmas card this year- and that's ok. I'm trying to keep things simple! I also gave Parker a hair cut and Tanner got all mad at me when he saw I was using his razor. "THAT'S MINE!"

Anyhoo, I knew it would be a few hours before we could eat once we got to Jon's but it was worth it! The food was soooo good. Rayleigh offered the prayer and gave the most beautiful blessing. She asked for us to be happy and have a good time and she was just so sweet and simple. The big girl cousins made sure that everyone was happy and taken care of and did such a good job collecting everyone's "Thankful" notes. We had a good time reading everyone's responses. One reoccurring theme was being grateful for the beach and sunsets and family time and I think that's really beautiful!

Jack was a little sad when people started to leave before the cousins had time to play laser tag. But the Bullock's rallied and Jack's dreams came true- they played laser tag at the park for about an hour before we headed to Fashion Island to ring in the Christmas season by visiting the first and biggest tree. It's a cherished tradition and I love walking around Fashion Island with the sights and sounds and Christmas vibes on full display (without the crowds). We got home kind of late so we didn't get to watch any episodes of Friends... but our hearts were full and we were happy.

This year I'm so thankful for my sweet little family. They mean absolutely everything to me and I'm so proud of all of the wonderful things everyone is accomplishing.

Because of our Redeemer, we can be a family forever. We can live in paradise for eternity enjoying the richness of our blessings and there is no better comfort in the world than knowing that.