Thanksgiving vacation

Having a week off of school in the Fall is so glorious.  Sports are over, the hot weather has ended, and we always enjoy our week off.  The kids were anxiously awaiting the arrival of Grandma and Grandpa Thompson, and Masen, this year, and the girls kept us relaxed by inviting us to their Spa/Restaurant that they called "Lounge Time."  Plastic food and a massage on the couch - doesn't get much better than that!  Ella also pulled her last front baby tooth in her own little "tooth pulling station," complete with a mirror and box of tissues.  Finally our guests arrived!!  We had a fun week planned, complete with a birthday lunch and shopping day, trip to SeaWorld, and of course all the cooking and eating.  It was a good thing we went to SeaWorld on Tuesday, because as the boys were out on a bike ride with Masen and Grandpa on Wednesday, poor Grandpa Thompson took a mighty tumble over the handlebars, into the road, and straight to the Emergency Room via a kind passerby.  After several hours of X-rays and waiting, he was discharged with a broken collar bone and four broken ribs.  OUCH!!  He was quite a trooper and happy to be able to rest in the Laz-E-Boy while we cooked and got ready for Thanksgiving dinner.  And it was quite a feast!  Bryan smoked the turkey, and it was absolutely delicious.  We had gourmet mashed potatoes, homemade stuffing, the vegetable medley, homemade cranberry sauce, and my grandma's rolls.  Mmmmmmm!!!  After dinner we dined on 7 different homemade pies - coconut cream, banana cream, chocolate cream, praline pumpkin, chocolate pecan, raspberry, and dutch apple pie.  I know that is an insane amount of pie for only 9 people, but there just wasn't a pie that we were willing to do without!