Thanksgiving

We went into this holiday season thinking we would be spending it just the four of us. We knew we would not be able to make a trip home, and at the time none of our family had made any plans to come out here. I am so glad that things changed. When Josh's cousin Jessica contacted us and asked if they could come down for Thanksgiving we were thrilled! Their family is currently stationed up near Chicago and, like us, have no family close by. We jumped at the chance to have them stay with us.

Anyone with little children knows that traveling with them - or having company with them - can have its own set of challenges. Jessica and her husband, Przemek, have an eighteen month old little boy named Gabriel so we went into the weekend knowing we'd just see how everything went. I'm so glad to say it all went wonderfully. The boys all had fun playing together - goodness knows we had plenty of toys to go around! Jessica and Przemek made themselves right at home so we could just relax and enjoy visiting.

Thanksgiving dinner was absolutely delicious. I can only take credit for the pies (you know I love my desserts!) and the rolls. In all else I was simply Josh's sous chef, an extra set of hands. Boy was it good. In addition to having Jessica and her family over we also enjoyed sharing dinner with a gentleman from our church who did not have other plans. We had great conversation and Josh and Jessica even got to Facetime their family back in Virginia who were celebrating Thanksgiving together.

The rest of the trip was just spent being together. Visiting, showing them our new church, exploring Springfield, and lots of good eating. It was great, and we hope that one day soon we can go up to Chicago and let them show us around.

We have so much to be thankful for this year. God has provided for us in so many different ways. I am particularly thankful for the new friends that God has brought into our lives and for how they have loved and embraced our family.