Josie's First Thanksgiving

We definitely had a lot to be thankful for this holiday & that made celebrating Josephine's first Thanksgiving even more special. As if turkey and mashed potatoes aren't enough to make a day great, we also got to spend more time with Josie's great-grandma and our family in Indiana and extended the trip to a weekend in Chicago with Aunt Manda & Uncle Mike. Since they hadn't seen Josie since she was born, this was an important trip for all of us! And it couldn't have been more perfect.I'm actually getting a little ahead of myself. The photo above was taken at M&M's at the end of our weekend, but as I said, the festivities actually began early Thanksgiving morning. We woke up around 6:30 am with intentions to leave by 8, but after an earth-shaking diaper blowout that ruined Josie's thanksgiving attire, we didn't make it to the car until just after 9. (And not a moment too soon, because just as we drove away, the first runner in the annual Turkey Trot race came buzzing down the street with 11,999 people behind him.) The drive to Marion, IN was uneventful - just the way we like it. Josie slept almost the entire way & played happily for the twenty or so minutes that she wasn't sleeping. We arrived in Indy safe, sound, and hungry. Douglas & Brent certainly didn't disappoint, and we had quite the Thanksgiving feast. Here's a photo of Josie having her first Thanksgiving dinner with her dad.

After dinner, it was playtime. Josie spent lots of time making faces for her Grand-daddy and Great-Grand-nana. (Poor Ollie the dog got a little jealous.)

After playing for a while, Josie (and the rest of us) assumed the normal post-turkey pose and just spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and watching football. Here's Josie sacked out with Grandma on the world's coziest chair.
So, I guess it would be dishonest of me to say that the relaxing only lasted one afternoon. Actually, that's what we spent the remainder of the whole weekend doing. This trip to Chicago wasn't about great holiday deals on Michigan Avenue or another trip to IKEA. It was all about chillin' out together & everyone getting in their cuddle time with Josie. Here's Josie with her Aunt Manda.

And a big double kiss from her Aunt & Uncle M&M:
And watching football with Daddy- (yes, we're aware that our daughter has an addiction, and recognition of the problem is the first step toward recovery):
I should also mention that the full set of Thanksgiving weekend photos from me & from Manda are now added to a new album in Josie's Shutterfly collection - www.josiemarie.shutterfly.com - you'll notice that there are a lot of photos where Josie appears to be staring off intently in the opposite direction of the camera into the exact direction of the tv.

Here's Josie & I settling down for a long winter's nap while M&M went out to the store to get the fixins' for our Thanksgiving Mexican Fiesta.

And here's Josie all snuggly in front of the fire. I think it's safe to say that Josie loves her Aunt & Uncle.
Overall, it was the perfect weekend! We left Saturday afternoon after filling up Josie's belly and (unbelievably) made it home in about 4.5 hours. We only stopped once for gas & a quick trip through the drive thru. Thanks to the CDs of white noise that I made, our new favorite "kids music" by Elizabeth Mitchell & the back seat full of toys, Josie was very content for the whole drive. She slept all but about 1/2 hour or so. I had pumped some milk on the way to Chicago from Indy & saved it for the ride home, so I just fed Josie in her car seat instead of having to stop to nurse her. We also spent some time "reading" her Spots & Dots book (which mesmerizes her). All in all, it's great to know that Josie does so well in car. I'm sure there's another trip to Chicago right around the corner. Heck, maybe next time we'll actually leave the house. :)

Thanks Douglas & Brent for a delicious dinner! Let us know when you open your B&B and we'll be your first guests. Thanks M&M for letting us rearrange your furniture & totally take over your house. You don't know how awesome it is to have someone cook & clean up after you. It was like a vacation! It was the perfect weekend!!