thanksgiving 2012

Let me preface this post by saying....I have been severely slacking in my picture taking lately.

And by "slacking," I mean that I don't even carry my camera with me most days anymore.

Gasp!  I know, it's like I'm a completely different person since acquiring the much nicer iPhone 5 with a better camera and flash!

Ok, so this year for Thanksgiving, I didn't have to make a turkey.  My sister Airi did.

My brother made the ham and my sister Elika made the pot roast.

(I know, I know...which one doesn't belong, right?  We were trying to be creative with our proteins this year...)

I made the mashed potatoes, heated up the corn, and made a large pan of tofu watercress salad.

(I know!  We were going for an eclectic Western-Asian theme this year) 

So, here's most of the kids.  I notice some of the little ones were missing...but when you're dealing with so many kids, really, it's kind of inevitable, right?

This was merely a smidgen of the food.  I didn't even bother taking pictures of all of it because it was SO much food!!  But right here is the main stuff anyway, right?

 After dinner, we gathered all the kids together for some friendly wrestling.

Yes, I said wrestling.  This lasted for quite a while, actually.

And involved most of the kids in various competitive combinations.

 Including a ninja or two as well.

 Airi's friend made a huge Thanksgiving mural and had all the kids (and adults) draw their handprint and decorate them into turkeys.  Cute, right?

Here's Anna's turkey.

 Jojo's turkey.

 Kela's turkey.

 Kaden's turkey. (that the girls decorated in his stead)

And my turkey...that the girls also decorated.

Apparently, mine also was the only one that spoke.

No reference to my constant nagging and scolding, I'm sure.

This year's Thanksgiving was a LARGE affair at my sister's house, filled with many friends and extended family, in addition to our own fairly large family.  The food was aplenty and the kids had so much fun gathered together to play and chat and eat!

Because isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about?  Enjoying good food with great company.  We are so blessed to be able to enjoy both!   :)