Thanksgiving 2013

We spent a wonderful week in Turlock with my parents over Thanksgiving.  It was very special to get to spend time with them, my brother Tom, and my grandparents for a few relaxing days.  We went down there without any agenda or things that we had to do, which was exactly what we wanted - just a week to hang out and enjoy family.  Cody and I got to leave the girls with my parents to go out to dinner and see a movie (a rare treat for us these days!), and we left Lucy with my mom so that both Cody and I could take Ella on a special date to see the movie Frozen (which she is now obsessed with - she insists that we call her "Elsa" from the movie).

Picking fresh oranges from the trees in my parent's yard for breakfast...

 Ella enjoying the sunshine with grandma...

 The girls loved getting some quality Grandma time...

 I took notes and watched the best cook I know (my mom) prepare a wonderful Thanksgiving meal.  She is the best hostess and I still don't know how she does it all! I think she cooked/baked for three days straight and still managed to hang out with us!

 So nice to be able to play outside...

 Love the special relationship that my mom and Ella have always had.  Even though they live a few states away now, nothing has changed!  Grandma is the "lucky one" who Ella chooses to help her on the potty every time, tuck her into bed, sit next to her in the car (squished between two carseats!), is the first one Ella asks to play toys with, sit next to her at the table, and is the first person she asks to see in the morning when we're staying with them...

 At In-N-Out before going to see Frozen...

Ella loved getting to pick roses in Grandma and Grandpa's garden...

 So special to spend time with Great-Grandma too!

 My cute parents with their granddaughters on Thanksgiving...

 Lucy hanging out with Uncle Tom...

Enjoying a sunny walk to the park on Thanksgiving...

 Hang on Lucy! :)

 Uncle Tom being...Uncle Tom...

 Lots of  "playing in the leaves" pictures, but I love all of Ella's different facial expressions.  We're used to wet leaves that aren't so fun to play in, so Ella clearly loved this..

 Lucy ready for her first Thanksgiving meal...

 

 Not much food actually made it in her mouth, but she had fun playing with it!

 My sweet grandparents with the girls...

 While we were driving to the Sacramento airport, Ella asked to look in Grandma's purse...the next thing we knew, she had found and put lipstick on!  Hilarious to me that she knew exactly what to do with it :)...

Thanks for a great week mom and dad!