Thanksgiving Again!

Another Stierle Thanksgiving has come and gone. I don't remember where this last year has gone... and I'm sure I won't remember where this next one will go, either. This year was pretty remarkable, as usual. Thanksgiving is the "Stierle" holiday, meaning all the kids bring their spouses and we all get together every year. Christmas is for the other sets of in-laws. So, we do it up right every year. My father-in-law creates a theme and event t-shirts every year (this year was 'Pig Out or Tap Out'). We have incredible amounts of food, and bake for days beforehand. This year I think we had over 30 pies! It is tradition that the men each eat a whole pumpkin pie for breakfast that morning. One year I joined in and actually ate all my pie, then finished my husband's (or so the legend goes!). The men are also supposed to do the dishes, which has evolved into another tradition- each year, we buy plates, glasses and silverware from the dollar store, fabric for the tablecloth, and at the end of the meal, we wrap it all up and toss it into the bed of a truck to take to the dump. Don't believe me? Here is the proof!

The table, all set before the feast

Starting the wrap-up

Over the railing into the truck bed....

And there it is! Thanksgiving cleanup, man-style!

It's pretty dramatic, and each year we try to invite someone new who has no idea that is what we will be doing. It's pretty funny to watch their faces as they realize yes, we are actually throwing it all away.

The clan before the feast!

After dinner, our family friend Mike played us some awesome music. Nicholas just loves to hear him-he always starts dancing when he hears him start to play. It's funny because Nick has been listening to Mike since he was in my belly. My in-laws threw me a fabulous birthday party when I was pregnant with him, and Mike and his band were there playing. Now, Nick loves to hear him play, and always starts dancing. That's so neat.

Well, we can't wait for next year. Our family just keeps growing. This year, we had 2 more new cousins, and next year we will have another 2! Family is awesome! We are truly blessed to have such a loving, supportive family so close. It's easy to get caught up in petty arguments, and be annoyed with each other's faults and shortcomings. But when I take a step back from all that and examine my life, I am incredibly blessed by and thankful for each member of my family-extended and nuclear. If I had been given the choice of who my family was, I couldn't have chosen a better set. Family to me is really like a puzzle. We are all SO different, but when we are together-it fits. There really is so much to be thankful for.