to be with you

Okay, I know. I suck at the blog updating. And I'm sorry.

There, I got that out of the way. Now I can move on to more cheerier things. Like Thanksgiving. Yes, I know I completely skipped Halloween. In a nutshell, our life group went as a page from a Where's Waldo book. I thought it turned out great:

And then November happened. Matt's parents came to visit, which was fun; I was super busy at work, which was not as fun but not terrible; and I found out Staci Mae is pregnant, which is incredibly fun!!

Matthew and I hosted our first-ever Thanksgiving here in Bellevue. Natalie and Kevin came up from Springfield on Wednesday night, and then my parents and Nancy arrived on Thursday afternoon. It went so well and we had a great time! It was the first time any of them had been here since the wedding, so I really enjoyed showing them our house and just making new memories together. We didn't do too much out of the ordinary- we played games, watched movies, etc. I went out for Black Friday for the first time ever. Kevin is big into it, and he and my sisters went out at 4 or some crazy time like that. Dad, Matthew and I were a little less brave and went out at 6. We didn't get anything much, but it was fun enough. I don't know that I'll want to go every year, but every now and then would be just fine. So, all in all, a good time was had by all.

The table. Liz let me borrow the fruit decorations she used for our life group meal the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. This allowed me to not have too much on the crowded table, but still have it be special. Thanks, Liz!

The whole gang. Charlotte came for the meal and some games. Party games are always more fun when Charlotte's around!

Nancy performing Uncle Bruce's famous "trip". He holds something that would make a mess if it fell (wine, pie, etc.), and the he trips. My Oma would always be so scared of that! So even though he couldn't make it, Nancy paid him homage by tripping herself.

Scrabble: a Palof family tradition. Mom and I started the game light years ahead, and Dad and Natalie eventually caught up, but it was Matthew and Nancy who ended up winning it all. Turkeys.

At dinner Friday night: The lefties and Kevin.

And the righties and Natalie. Just being silly...

Matthew and I decided awhile ago to wait to write our wedding thank you notes and send them as thank yous/Christmas cards instead. It's been a daunting job, and I've procrastinated a little too much on them. But we finally got started this week and have a good chunk of them under our belts. And it's actually been a really good way for me to keep a thankful attitude even though Thanksgiving is over. I've just been feeling blessed all over again by the amazing people we have in our lives. I've been singing this Sara Groves song called "To Be With You" a lot this season as I think about how grateful I feel to have such a great family and friends. I pray that you will enjoy all of the people in your life throughout this whole season as well.

To Be With You
by Sara Groves, Ben Shive and Andy Gullahorn

We come in from our travels
Lay our gifts beneath the tree
my mother's in the kitchen
the parade is on tv
my father's with his father
their setting out some toys
the kids all want the train he's had
since he was a boy

to be with you
to be with you
i love this time of year
it always brings me here
to be with you

I fall in with my sisters
just like when we were young
my grandma holds the baby
she rocks and softly hums
we gather round the table
we close our eyes and sing
Praise God from whom all blessings flow

to be with you
to be with you
i love this time of year
it always brings me here
to be with you

Praise God from whom all blessings flow

We set out milk and cookies
the kids are quick to bed
they know St. Nick is coming
and nothing need be said
we gather by the fire
reminiscing by it's light
the kids will be up early
but it's hard to say goodnight

to be with you
to be with you
i love this time of year
it always brings me here
to be with you