Thankful

Let me start by saying that the absence of a Thanksgiving post up to this point in no way indicates that our family is not thankful =) We certainly have much to be thankful for and had a great time over the holiday weekend.

We headed down to Tennessee to visit my folks, and were also able to see Unce Matt and (future aunt) Hannah! We even drove down to Aunt Robin and Uncle Mark's house Thursday evening and saw some of the Rader clan.

So without further ado, here are some pictutes from our trip:

We went out to my family's favortie chinese restaurant "Chef Wang's" and enjoyed some good food together.

All the gals were able to go out and do a little shopping too. Here is a picture of Madeline with her Mimi at the coffee shop, taking a little break from the hustle bustle.
My lovely sisters thought it would be fun to go to the bookstore, grab a cup of coffee, and have some "together time." Maybe I'm missing something....does it look like they're bonding????
We took advantage of every opportunity to ham it up for the camera. Here's a shot of all the girls that Timothy decided to jump in on at the last minute.
And of course we have the recurring theme of birthdays....here's Madeline and Timothy with Aunt Heater. If it looks like they couldn't love her any more, it's because they couldn't! They are crazy about her, and today is her birthday. Happy Birthday, Heather!!!

When we were down in Tennessee, my dad had his birthday too. The kids worked hard to create birthday messages for Papa. They included unbiased reflections of how smart, nice, handsome and wonderful he is. =)
The kids had a lot ot fun over the break, here they are playing around at Mimi and Papa's house in front of their Christmas tree.
Madeline with Mimi and Papa.
Madeline even helped make Thanksgiving dinner.

We headed down to Robin and Mark's house, and Mike had fun playing some sequence with his cousins and Uncle Rod.

Madeline made some pictures, always the artist, here she is with our newly engaged cousin Kristin. Congrats!
Timothy found his niche playing video games....I know, what a surprise!
Madeline always loves getting to see cousin Katelyn.
Here is Mike talking to Aunt Robin and Uncle Rod before we left.
We had a great trip and loved seeing everyone. We're already looking forward to Christmas because p-chem will be over....I mean because we'll get to see everyone again! ;)

Tonight is the kid's Christmas musical at church, Madeline has a small solo, and is very nervous. We know she'll be great! I'll make sure to get some video and pictures from tonight!

Happy and blessed,

shannon