1st Thanksgiving (and a picture overload)

Oh, HAAAAY! I've missed y'all!

We went home-home for the entire week of Thanksgiving, so I took a little blog break to spend time with friends and family. We had such a great week, and it was awesome to get to enjoy so much family time! Ready for some cuteness?

We left last Sunday morning and made the 3-hour trek back to Abilene. Jaqsy girl was a traveling rockstar; she slept about half the time and chatted me up the other half. 

I have a feeling this won't be the last time I'll see those eyes conning me into something ;)

angel eyes

Grammie welcomed us with a hot lunch, and we just spent the afternoon playing and napping! G-Pop came home from work that night, and he got to be off with us for the entire week, too! Poor Grammie had to work the first half of the week, but we were pretty lucky to have so much time together.

We spent Monday and Tuesday having lunch dates, visiting with friends and Rob's family in between baby naps, and running errands to get ready for Thanksgiving!

On Wednesday, my dear friend, Kaila, came over to finally meet Jaqs! We've tried to get together several times, but she's an Okie now, so it's not like she can just drive down any ol' weekend! I had SO much fun catching up with her. She's one of those friends that I can pick right back up where I left off with, and I adore that about our friendship! I'm happy there won't be as much time until our next visit :)

I think J was pretty excited to see Kaila, too!

 Thursday was, of course, Thanksgiving! We have many things to be thankful for each year, but this year was especially sweet with the addition of our baby girl. I can't even imagine my life without her; she brings us unending joy and has taught me a lot in her almost 8 months of life. God is so GREAT for providing me this blessing.

We had a small Thanksgiving with my side of the family this year, but my momma still cooked up a feast! I wasn't as helpful this year as I usually am, but I tried in between chasing my babe ;) We had a DELICIOUS meal, and Jaqs even got to try some mashed potatoes; she much preferred her old favorite, sweet potatoes!

My cousin, Jessica, has a baby girl, Kenlee, who is about 6 weeks younger than J, and they came over to play after lunch! Jaqs was napping, but Kenlee hung in there until she got up. It was so cute to watch them together! They were just grabbing at each other's outfits and hands/faces. It was pretty adorable, and I think these 2 are going to have a lot of fun together as they get older!

3rd? cousins!

my Nana, dad & the girlies!

Jessica and me with our babes!

We went over to Rob's grandparent's house that evening for their Thanksgiving! We missed their meal because it was the same time as our first one, but we got to have dessert and hang out with everyone, so that's what we really cared about :) Jaqs LOVED watching their dogs run around. We don't have any, so it was all new to her. Rob held her and chased them around, and she was CRACKING up! It was hilarious and so precious, but much to my hubby's dismay, I stand by my no-pet policy for now! HA!

Grandma Galusha & Jaqs

After the Galusha festivities were over, we came back to G&G's house to wind down. Jaqsy Pea is all about rolling around nekkidies before her bath-time! Freedom!

giving mama paci sugars

On Friday morning, I went shopping with my mom & her BFF. It's tradition, and it is always a blast! I know a lot of people think that Black Friday shoppers are CRAY, and some of them are, but we just do it for the fun. I love being able to get a ton of gifts purchased and marked off my list in such a short amount of time. Bonus? I got some awesome deals this year, and I'm nearly done with my shopping! Whoooooop.

That night, our family friends came over for pizza and football, so I got to spend some time with my Nattie girl. If you've been reading for long, you may remember her, but I claim her as my "niece" even though we're not related. I just love that girl and can't believe she's FIVE now. I've loved watching her grow!

Jaqs & Natalie got some QT in also

On Saturday morning, we had to get up and get moving because we had a mini-photo-sesh with Megan! Of course it was the one FREEZING cold morning of the week, but Megan has a little girl, so she wasn't phased by the occasional whining of my girl. I've only seen a few teasers, but I'm anxious to get them all! I just know she got the perfect picture for our Christmas cards :)

mmmm, breakfast + GG lovings + practicing our new growling trick

J's outfit + teaser from Megan!

it's safe to say we're OBSESSED with this little lady

We headed back home on Sunday, and once again, the pea was a near perfect traveler! This time she decided to stay awake the entire ride, but she was happy the whole way home, so I'm thankful for that. Once we got home, Jaqs conked out at 6:45 and slept until 8:30 the next morning, so I think she was worn out from her week of FUN!

 Thanks for always being the BEST hosts ever, Mom and Dad!

Can't wait to do it again at Christmas :)

I think I'm all caught up now and can get back to 'regular' (whatever that is for me) blogging. I hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving and are filled with joy during this magical season!