Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a wonderfully enjoyable Thanksgiving celebration this year, as we hope you all did as well. We arrived at Grandma and Grandpa Shibata's house on Wednesday night just in time to go out to dinner with them, Uncle Joel, Aunt Jenn, and TJ and Great-Grandma and Grandpa Speckhard. The kids must have been hungry. Marie ate her entire meal and Joey…well, he ate all his french fries at least.

On Thursday morning, Uncle James, Aunt Jacyln, JJ, and Gracie along with Aunt Jess drove from Pittsburgh over to Aurora. They arrived mid-morning, so we had a yummy Thanksgiving brunch. The rest of the day was spent visiting, playing hide-and-seek among other things, heading outside for some fresh (though slightly damp) air, and enjoying the company. We even got a semi-decent shot of Great-Grandma and Grandpa with all the great-grandkids. Well, except for the one I've been carrying around. :)

JJ, Joey, and Marie all hiding from Aunt Jess while playing hide-and-seek.

Left to Right: TJ, Great-Grandpa, Joey, Great-Grandma, JJ, Marie, and Gracie

Marie faithfully helped Grandma Shibata in any way she could, "painting" the turkey, stuffing the turkey (or at least getting it close to where it was supposed to go), and making the rolls. She loves to help in the kitchen and is really getting to the point where she can be a big help! After mentioning things that particularly make us thankful this year and saying grace, we feasted on the traditional Thanksgiving fare, turkey, stuffing, potatoes, rolls, green beans, cranberries, and pie. We of course ate too much and all went to bed with full tummies.

We are so incredibly thankful for all of our family and friends, near and far, for our health and provision, for our country and our homes. It is humbling to think of how undeserving we are of all the many blessings that have been bestowed on us. God is truly great!