Thanksgiving

 We had a great Thanksgiving! We traveled to North Carolina to visit with our family there. We headed to Troy, NC to visit with Brent's family first on Thanksgiving Day. His extended family (aunts, uncles and cousins and his parents and siblings) all still gather at his grandparent's home on Thanksgiving Day. We were especially blessed with year that his granddad (Big Papa to our girls) was able to be at home this year. Last year, he had gotten an infection, had a prolonged hospitalization and was in rehabilitation over Thanksgiving. So we were all so thankful he was home on Thanksgiving this year!

                                                     

These T-shirts were our pre-Thanksgiving project this year. Rachel and I had a great time putting them together while Rebekah napped one morning.All was well until I realized I didn't have fabric glue...yes, I had to put them back together after a Walmart trip for glue!

Uncle Alvin, Cousin Melanie and Aunt Annette

Rachel playing with her cousins and uncles

We had a great time visiting with our aunts, uncles and cousins as well. Owen and Aidan even played a duet on their fiddle and banjo for us! They are both doing a great job!

Bekah was not feeling her best (gotta love teething) and she was glad to be held and her grandparents were glad to hold her!

The girls with Uncle Jared and Aunt Brooke and Uncle Jason and Aunt Brittany

Thankful for time with Big MaMa and Big Papa

McGuirt Family, Thanksgiving 2012

       On Friday, we held Thanksgiving at my Mom's house with my family. My family has switched to Friday to celebrate Thanksgiving so we can be with Brent's family on Thursday. As my grandmother says "I don't care which day we do Thanksgiving, as long as we are together."                       

Mimi getting hugs from Rachel

 Rebekah is now officially walking and she loved the steps at Mimi's house. At home, we have a full flight of steps and she can only sit on the bottom step. At Mimi's there are 3 carpeted steps with a wall and she went up and down (and up and down-you get the idea.)

Mom and Ashelyn

Grams and I

Pop and Bekah

 We had a great lunch together. My mom and my grandmother are both wonderful cooks! Brent was so glad to get some of Gram's field peas (one of his favorites). Now if I can just get my grandmother to write down her recipes. She tends to cook with a pinch of this and dab of that-I have told her I might need her to be a little more specific in her recipes for me!
In the afternoon, we headed out with my sister to downtown Fayetteville for "A Dickens Christmas." For the last several years, the day after Thanksgiving, Fayetteville has had this celebration downtown. We started out going to it because my sister sang with her high school chorus in it for a couple of years. Now, it has kind of become tradition to go. This year we were able to make it to the Children's Museum as part of this too (yeah for $1 admission this day). Aunt Ashelyn helped my girls make Victorian ornaments (yes, she made Bekah's for her).

 Finally, it was time for the tree lighting and this year... Fireworks!

Photos by Brent McGuirt Photography

On Saturday, before we had to head back to Virginia, we got together with my Dad and family for lunch. We had a good visit with them as well

Grandpa, Ethan and Bekah

Emily and Bekah

Grandpa, Rachel and Rebekah

Our Family,Thanksgiving 2012

             We had a wonderful Thanksgiving visiting with all our family. We are so blessed with all the blessings the Lord has so graciously given us this past year and each and every day. We are thankful most of all for Jesus, because it is by His Grace alone that He saves us and gives us any good thing we have!

" Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17