Thanksgiving!

I'm actually going to start with the day before Thanksgiving...because I finally got the pictures from Lucas' phone. Why were the pictures on Lucas' phone? Because I discovered my camera battery had died when I went to take the following pictures. The camera battery is still dead because I keep forgetting that it is dead until I'm trying to take another picture...

Anyways, remember the combine? Well, my family's business also deals with some pretty large farm machinery, and once Papa heard that the twins were into such things, he promised our next trip to Nebraska would include the opportunity to climb in one. He delivered! We got a tour of the brand new building (that is almost finished). I have to say, it was pretty cool, for me, to see the building alone. My grandpa and his brother started the business, and it is amazing to know how it began, see how far it has come, and think, "The people I love did this." Anyways, in the shop there was a big sprayer, so Papa took each twin up for a chance to "drive."

Ry-guy, so focused!

"Come on, Papa. How do you REALLY start this thing?"

To show you what they were actually in and give you an idea of the size. Oh, wow. Cool, cool. To quote the twins :)

Now to Thanksgiving day. I still can't figure out how it worked, but my camera took a bunch of pictures (part of the reason I wasn't prepared for the battery to be dead at the reception, when I would have loved to have taken pictures of the twins playing with my cousins). Mostly outside. Nic & Ariel were kind enough to take the twins out (in the beautiful weather) and play. I tagged along for pictures, but they did all the work. Huge props to them. I was actually feeling miserable and trying to pretend I didn't. This was a welcome break!

A ladybug ball!

While they aren't in focus (as they were in other similar pictures), this was the only one where you could see the smiles on both their faces. They were having so much fun! Allie loves her uncles, but she seemed to especially have Uncle Nic wrapped around her finger. I know he would probably deny it, but I found that she frequently went to him when she wanted something that she knew Daddy or I were likely to refuse...and he usually gave it to her without hesitation.

Ryan seemed equally enamored with Aunt Ariel. While he had a tendency to act shy in her presence, whenever she was gone he was asking for her. She was the one he wanted to make sure he hugged before bedtime (or show his cool cars underwear). She has a loyal fan :)

Playing normal catch wasn't enough. They transitioned to passing the ball over the bushes!

Buses don't drive in bushes? Are you sure?

The classic ring and dash...only they didn't dash and nobody answered!

It started to get a little too silly, and then we went inside to eat.

I imagine that none of my family is going to love that I am posting these pictures of them passing the plate, but they are the only pictures I got of them the entire week I was there. So I am posting them anyways!

My mom always managed to hide...

When we couldn't have Thanksgiving with our families, we had a tradition of having Thanksgiving with friends who became like family. We were lucky enough to be able to skype with them in the afternoon. If we couldn't be with them in person, it was good enough. I'm thankful for dear friends, wonderful family, and all the time I get to spend with them making memories. I am so blessed.

the twins just weren't quite sure...

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!