A DIFFERENT SET OF USUAL SUSPECTS Thanksgiving at Richard and Barb's house was wonderful as usual, but we had a different cast of characters this year. Ken and family are usually here but they're in Mexico until June. Barb's sister and her family from New York State, who usually come for Christmas, came for Thanksgiving this year. Here's the rundown. Pay attention. Connie - Barb's sister Scot - Connie's husband Brittany - their daughter Sammy - their son, who I think is 5 Jarad - Brittany's fiance Ben - Scot and Connie's son Bob and Dee - Scot's parents Alyssa - David's girlfriend who came for the evening The regulars, or irregulars if you prefer, were Richard, Barb, David, Catherine, Doris, Sam and Lois and Roxie the Perfect Dog (except during thunderstorms). Got all that straight? Now we can proceed.
Richard does a job on the turkey.
Sammy waits patiently at the kiddies' table.
Ben, David and Catherine. Someone should have told the teens, "No shoes, no service." 
The hungry horde waits semi-patiently.
We probably need to change the name of the kiddies table to the teens table. This is Brittany, Sammy, David, Catherine and Ben.
Everything tasted great! Bob, Dee, Doris and Sam dig in.
The evening's entertainment included a tour and explanation of Richard's mini-plant for his bio-diesel business.
Sam-the-chemical-engineer-emeritus looks it over. He was among the ones who understood it.
The Pictionary crowd. NOT a quiet and sedate group.
The Senior Sofa. Bob, Dee and Doris.
David wondering why his team is being so dense. Maybe because they don't appear to be paying attention? It was a great day. What I appreciate most about these gatherings is that no matter what family members are present, we all get along. We're so blessed by the families our sons married into. All of them, without exception, are people we enjoy being with. When we used to visit Ken and Tammy in California, her family welcomed us and made us feel right at home. All of Barb's family are wonderful people. We always look forward to times with our extended family. My heart goes out to people who dread the holidays because they have to be with family. How sad. We look forward to holidays mostly because we get to see the people we love most. |