Happy Thanksgiving!

We spent Thanksgiving this year at Nana and Grandpa's house, where we enjoyed time with not only them but with GG, Uncle Tim and his family, Aunt Ellen and Uncle Jim, and cousin Shannon and Dillon, Gilbey, and Anneke, too!  It was a full, happy house with lots of kids, giggles, good food, and noise.

And so we spent the long weekend as follows:

Helping Nana in the kitchen (which in Kid Code really means eating whatever Nana is trying to prepare)...

Dancing in the living room...

Throwing leftover bread cubes to the birds (later, Liam asked me, "Mom, why is there stuffing in the backyard?!")...

Feeling grateful for Nana, who made lots of good food to eat...

Eating that good food that Nana made...

Spending quality time with family...

Including Lily...

And brothers-in-law...

Having "5 minutes of Mandatory Hugging" imposed after taking a game of "wrestle" a little too far...

Gilbey, Dillon, and Liam hugging it out

Celebrating sweet Genevieve's first Thanksgiving...

That face!

Enjoying great company and conversation while eating some more...

Hanging out with cousins...

A peaceful moment with Dillon, Liam, and Gilbey

... and watching Polar Express in 3-D!

We couldn't have asked for a better day!

On Black Friday, while the rest of the world was out shopping, Shannon, Tim, and I decided to get the kiddos out of the house and let them run around the York Agricultural and Industrial Museum.  I had been there before with Shannon when Dillon and Gilbey were just little guys, and it was fun to go back.  I loved seeing the kids run from display to display yelling, "Read this one!  What does it say?!" at each placard.  They were so interested in all of that old machinery!

Joergen, Liam, and Gilbey

Anneke, Joergen, Colin, Gilbey, and Liam peeking out of an old trolley car

Best buds Liam and Gilbey hanging by the tractors

Liam and Gilbey chatting it up old-school style at the telephone exhibit.  They couldn't believe that all phones used to be like this when I was a kid!

And what is this?  Yes, Joergen, that's what Mommy learned to type on in high school!

Liam earned a million dollars!  The kids loved learning to crack the giant safe and discovering their reward inside.

After heading home for some lunch and naps for the little ones, we snagged Grandpa and headed down to the Nixon Nature Center to check out the animal displays (which took great convincing on my part with Liam, who was totally upset at the idea of taxidermied animals); however, upon arrival, we discovered a sign on the door that they were closed for the holiday (and Liam must have gotten over his concerns, because then he was just upset that we couldn't go in!).  No matter; even though it was cold out there, we got the kids to at least run around outside for a while in an attempt to burn off at least a fraction of their pent-up energy.

Typical Joergen in a group shot...

Now what to do with two car loads of kids?!  We still had free admission to York museums for the day for purchasing tickets to the agricultural museum earlier that morning, so we decided to head to the only one left that was open... the York Historical Society.  There, we met Nana and had some fun exploring the exhibits - and in particular, the "Discovery Center for Children" which was really just a room with an old classroom setup and a bunch of turn-of-the-century gadgets, gizmos, and toys.  The kids had fun practicing their letters on slates while Gilbey and Nana served as teachers at the front of the room.

J, Liam, and and Anneke working hard

Although it took us a while to figure out, we got a kick out of the old-time 3-D picture viewer.  Just try prying that thing out of Joergen's hands, I dare you!

It was a busy day of exploring and a very fun weekend overall.  So much to be thankful for!