At the end of our weekend in Asheville, Mom drove over to meet us and pick up Willa Kate to keep for a few days. Mom has kept Harper and Win on their own several times, but WK hadn't had her "special week" with MarMar yet, so we thought maybe the three days in between Asheville and Thanksgiving at Mom's may be a good fit. Sweet pea has been so excited! And we were so excited to drive the 4.5 hours home from Asheville (and then 3.5 hour trip to Dandridge three days later) sans Willa the Car Whiner.
And it was a good thing we didn't have her, since our Thanksgiving pilgrimage got off to a slow start. As we were gassing up the Yukon on the way out of Roanoke, I hopped out of the driver's seat to run inside while Sam was pumping gas. A few minutes later, Sam came in to grab a drink, and then I saw him run back outside. He had seen the lights on to the Yukon and realized I had left the keys in the ignition. So... our needed-to-be-replaced-and-since-has battery had died. Sweet! Fifteen minutes from home, and already having to ask the gas station attendant to jump the battery. Oops! And since we were joining every. other. person in Roanoke leaving after work on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, we got to sit through three wrecks in between Roanoke and Christiansburg, which is usually about a 30 minute drive on I-81. Despite all that, it didn't feel as stressful because we only had Harp in the car. And she was worn out from school and slept for most of the trip. Redemption.
 |
| Helping MarMar stuff the turkey |
To kick off Thanksgiving, Marmar helped the grandkids assemble blessing bags for the first responders that are often times away from their families on holidays because they are serving the community. She took the time to explain what police, firefighters, and paramedics do as they filled the bags up with a Chex Mix-esque recipe.
Each of the ladies made a few dishes for the Thanksgiving meal, so lunch was on the table by 1 p.m. with zero stress. Yay! We ate, and ate, and ate, and watched football, and ate, and then watched football. And played games, and ate, and watched a movie, then ate. Hello, stretchy pants! I did some online shopping, but Leah and I didn't attempt the outlets again this year. Neither of us had Christmas lists yet (or had drawn names with our in laws to even know our gift recipients), so we decided to just stay in.
The highlight of the weekend for the kids were PapPap's hayrides. Mom & Butch have a four wheeler with a trailer, so they hooked it up and took the kids on rides around their property and the neighborhood. And I don't mean little five minute loops around the yard. I mean the gone on an hour long adventure kind. When I stop and think about how much these children are loved, it is truly overwhelming. I am so grateful that they have so many people in their lives that love them, invest in them, speak Truth into their lives, and constantly think of new ways to bring a smile to their faces. Not many kids can say that they have six grandparents that would do anything and everything for them.
On Friday, we took the kids over to the Dandridge Fire Department to deliver the Blessings Baskets. Those folks were so sweet to our little ones. They let them try on equipment and climb inside the vehicles. It was 65 degrees, so the kids also enjoyed a little fun rolling down their big hill in between talks. MarMar and PapPap are all about community service, and it's one of their goals to help instill this in their grandchildren. It will certainly part of their legacy, as my girls get to think back on memories like these.
It has been such a busy four weeks, so it was so, so nice that once we got to the Lake House, we didn't have any agenda. We just got to unwind for four full days. Hallelujah.
No comments
Post a Comment