Thanksgiving Weekend

Happy Thanksgiving!!!  Aren't 4 day weekends just the best thing ever?!!!  

When I was home in AZ this past October, my mom sent home the turkey below as a Thanksgiving present for Dave.  We seem to be collecting these animals that sing and dance and are holiday themed -- all thanks to my mom!  Gee thanks Mom!!  :-)  This one sings (and bobs his head) to a little Thanksgiving ditty to the tune of "Turkey in the Straw".  I don't know what it is but I can't help but laugh and smile every time he breaks out in his song and dance routine -- the turkey that is.  :-)  I guess that is the point, eh?!

Our Thanksgiving weekend started on Wednesday with some cuddle time -- between Dave and Buster the cat!  They both look like they're ready to dig into a big bird the next day!

Thanksgiving Day came with its normal traditions in the Pedersen household: a fire, biscuits and gravy for breakfast (my dad's fabulous recipe) and viewing the Macy's Day Parade on TV.  A new tradition involves what Dave termed as "Arts and Crafts Day"--and as I was on the phone with my parents in AZ, my dad informed me that it was Arts and Crafts Day in the Harris household as well.  These boys and their trains!!!  Dave bought an N-scale train last year before Christmas that I said could go up this year the weekend of Thanksgiving -- and he didn't even waste the morning!  :-)  The train really is quite mesmerizing and hypnotic....and quite relaxing.  Minutes fly by as you watch the little engine and its boxcars go round and round the table.  My dad informed Dave that he now has two tracks; one with a passenger train, the other with a freight train.  The wheels are now spinning in Dave's head as to how he can improve......and grow his display.

After our delightful morning, we joined some friends and their extended family for a most enjoyable Thanksgiving celebration!  The food was AMAZING (especially the corn casserole and the stuffing!!!), the wine flowed, the games were engaging, and the company fantastic!  We arrived at the house around 3pm and left at 12:30am -- it was an incredible afternoon and evening!  We were....and ARE....so thankful that we were included in their family's celebration!

The next night was the grand illumination at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens here in Richmond.  The garden puts up over 1/2 million lights through out the grounds and the result is just magical!  We took my family to this event last year when they came for Christmas.  Dave wanted to be there for the opening night and it was really quite amazing to be a part of the countdown and then see the garden slowly light up all around you.  This year's theme is butterflies (last year's was spiders).  Inside the conservatory, they had beautiful trees and model train displays.

Here is the sunken English Garden, looking towards the conservatory.  It really is a magical place!

Every year that we have lived in Virginia, we always do a day trip over the Thanksgiving weekend.  It is a chance for us to enjoy the state, enjoy each other, and just get away from the daily routine.  This year we decided to revisit a place we had been to just a month earlier -- White Oak Canyon.  If you have been reading this blog, you will remember that Dave took me to this amazing place in the Shenandoah National Park for my birthday.  Well, we decided it was time to go back and do the 6 miles all over again for two main reasons: 1) all the leaves would be down and it would look completely different than it did just a month ago and 2) we were certain that with all the rain we've received just in this past month, all of the waterfalls would be spectacular.  And boy, were we right!  

In the picture below, Dave is standing in front of a fall that was a mere trickle just a month ago.  *Notice the hat*  This hat is his pride and joy when it comes to articles of clothing in the winter.  He has had it as long as I've known him.  It has seen the mountains of Flagstaff, the foothills of Boise, and even the posh cobblestone streets of Aspen.  And now --it has been introduced to the Blue Mountains of Virginia.  A little girl (on the shoulders of her father) passed us at the beginning of the hike, let out a burst of laughter and commented on "that man's funny hat" to her father.  As we approached the Lower Falls, a man passing us laughed at the site of the hat and told Dave that he would love to have such a hat.  On our way back to the car, we passed a couple men, one of whom also made a comment as to how cool Dave's hat was and how he wished he had one.  Dave was pretty pleased to say the least.

If you look back my first entry about this hike, the waterfall you see below (the Upper Falls) was shrouded in mist.  Not so on this beautiful, if terribly chilly, November day!  But I must make a correction: this is the 2nd highest waterfall in Virginia -- not the highest as I previously and erroneously stated.

The Lower Falls were just full of water.  It has rained (and I mean rained all day) at least one day every week since the middle of October and more often than not, it has been multiple days of rain per week.  And then we had the lovely weather event which has since been named "Nor-Ida".  A combination of a Nor'easter with the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida did quite the number in Virginia at the beginning of November.  Over the course of 2 1/2 days, we had over 10 inches of rain.  It has truly been the wettest fall I can ever remember (which isn't too difficult if you were born and raised in AZ).  :-)

I just had to throw the picture below in for comparison purposes.  In my previous entry about this hike, I included a picture of the very same location and made a comment about it looking like Narnia and how I expected to see Mr. Tumnus any moment.  What a difference 1 month makes!!!

The 4 day weekend always allows us a chance to have a break in our weekly routine and more importantly, the time allows us to reflect on how blessed we are.  We are so thankful for our jobs, for our house that we rent which is in a safe neighborhood and is accepting of our furry pets, for our cars that work and are reliable, etc.  We are so thankful that we are of able body and have the ability to get out and enjoy the beautiful state we live in.  We are so thankful for each other; to have our best friend at our side to go through life's joys and trials.
But most of all, we are thankful for you -- our friends and family who are both so near and so far away.  It is your love and support and friendship that have helped us become the people we are today and continue to shape who we are in the future!  Thank you!  Happy Thanksgiving to one and all and may every day be full of thanks and praise!