Thanksgiving + Birthday

We spent Thanksgiving down at Lake Wateree with Mark's dad and stepmom, which was exactly as chaotic as expected and exactly as tasty as expected, too. We drove down with Ali on Wednesday and spent the night with all four kids, then Nick and Barbara (and Mark's stepsister Emily and her family) all got there on Thursday.

At one point we had Opa and Oma on the couch with all the grandkids to pose for pictures, and it went something like this:

-- which mostly cracked us up. (Why do we never remember to take pictures til someone is walking out the door and someone else is desperate for a nap?)

On the drive home, we stopped at a Waffle House for dinner (these travelers are thankful for some places being open on Thanksgiving, although you probably won't convince me it's necessary for, like, Macy's to be) and we had a cold little booth and Charlotte was super upset and really struggling* to say what she needed, but once we got past that and ate some waffles and perked up, we all said what we were thankful for, and it was kind of great.

I love my family so much.

Also, it's Marky's birthday today! And I am thankful for him, most of all.

{insert a million heart emojis here}
{and maybe a turkey one}
{and another heart for good measure}

Happy birthday Mark! You are my most very favoritest, ever! And happy Thanksgiving everyone!

*post for another day, coming soon