wonderful winter weekend...

I knew things were off to a great start when we found a new car! Hooray! I will have to take some pictures tonight so I can show you the 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Ben was convinced he didn't want to go with a Jeep, but after test driving one on Wednesday, he was willing to change his mind. Now we're back to owning something that can handle in the snow...which means we might get to test its all-wheel drive skills tomorrow.

Wednesday night we headed over to my mom and dad's - Mike came home from Japan for Thanksgiving so we spent quite a bit of time with him. We had an informal family gathering complete with a round of Settler of Catan (amazing game). Again, no pictures...I have some work to do.

Thursday we went back over to my parents for some time with John, Cheryle, Max, Jessica, Mike, Scotty Keen, and Uncle Ted. After our yummy dinner, we went out to Bobby and Kelli's new place. Jordan and Jamie met us out there and then we played a few games - including another round of Settlers.

Friday was Thanksgiving, Round 2. I have pictures to prove it! Don & Suzy took pictures and they were gracious enough to send them to us. :)

Here is a picture of our host and hostess - Ryan & Emily

Ben & I - just being silly...like always!

Here we have Grandma Nancy (Suzy's mom) & Suzy. Grandma Nancy makes a mean jello salad that continues to be Ben's favorite. I might have to beg her for the recipe. :)

Hero is Emily & Ryan's child. He was a bit unhappy that we kept his mom and dad occupied for so long. This must have been taken as we were playing our card game - Class Struggle.

Don & Suzy - so cute! (I guess I should start referring to them as mom and dad, but it's tough to make that jump.)

After Friday's fun, we were ready for some down-time. Ben went with Bobby, Kelli, and Mike to the Apple Cup. My husband was sad to see his Huskies lose. While the crew was out freezing their butts off in Seattle, Laura and I did a circuit training class at the gym and then made some more cards...big surprise. (I'm still sore!)

Sunday morning we went to church (unlike some Seahawk prayer warriors), watched the 2nd half of the game, and then pulled out all of the Christmas decorations. As soon as my grades are finished (the trimester ends on Friday), we'll begin unpacking the red and green boxes.

I enjoyed my time away from work. There were far too many things I had planned for this 4-day-weekend. However, my time was monopolized by family and friends...and I LOVED IT ALL!