Girl Chat - Favorite Fall Activity

We may be starting to embrace all things Christmas over here, but it is still technically fall, and we do still have some things to check off of our fall bucket list before it’s over.  Fall has always been my favorite season because there are just so many wonderful things to do as a family, most of which are outdoors… pumpkin patches, corn mazes, pumpkin carving, high school and college football games.  The weather is usually perfect here in the fall (although a little on the hot side here this year) and it’s a time when everyone starts to prepare for the exciting holidays to come.  And did I mention college football?  ;o)

Because I love fall so much and because we do a bazillion activities, it is really hard just picking one favorite.  When I actually sat down and started reflecting to write this post, the one thing that I couldn’t stop thinking about was Thanksgiving.  While Christmas will always have my heart, Thanksgiving comes in a very close second.  As a matter of fact, it’s so close, that it’s my second favorite day of the whole year, just second to Christmas Eve.  And yes, I love Christmas Eve even more than Christmas Day.  I always have.  Nothing beats that magical feeling that’s in the air on Christmas Eve.

Thanksgiving 2016

Thanksgiving 2016

Thanksgiving 2016

Thanksgiving 2016

As are many of the other things from my childhood, our Thanksgiving was steeped in tradition.  When I was little, we would always wake up early and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in our jammies.  Then my brothers and I would pull up chairs to our kitchen island and help my mom whip up candied sweet potatoes and cakes and other goodies for Thanksgiving dinner. 

The evening was spent feasting on ham and dressing and cheesy potatoes and my Aunt Joy’s famous cinnamon muffins and salad with my Mama Cass’s (my grandmother – my Mom’s mom) homemade ranch dressing.  My cousins and I would all run around and play until late into the night while my parents, aunts, and uncles would sit around playing guitar and singing. 

Thanksgiving 2015

Thanksgiving 2015

Thanksgiving still looks very similar for my family to this day.  We get up, I make homemade waffles, and we all snuggle up on the couch and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade while poring over the Black Friday ads.  It’s the one day of the year that we go out and get a newspaper!  Late in the morning we get ready and then we meet my father-in-law and the rest of Brian’s family at the local country club for a huge brunch.  The food is always incredible… delicious meats and vegetables, fruits and cheeses, and more desserts than you could ever imagine...

After brunch is over, we always take a stroll down by the river to walk off our meal and then the rest of the afternoon is spent relaxing, napping, and cooking for our big Thanksgiving dinner.  We still meet with my mom’s entire side of the family for Thanksgiving dinner every year and it’s a tradition that that I still love. 

We typically celebrate again with my mother-in-law in step-father-in-law the following Saturday or Sunday and they always prepare a crazy huge delicious feast as well.  The kiddos all play out in the yard afterward, and it’s always another great day of family fun.

The most magical part of Thanksgiving to this day, though, is going to bed full and loved and knowing that the most wonderful time of the year will begin the very next morning!  

Day after Thanksgiving 2015

So I guess if I had to pick one favorite fall activity it would be celebrating Thanksgiving.  Plain and simple.  We have so much to be thankful for in our little family and taking an entire day to celebrate that and be with the ones we love?  Well I suppose nothing can beat that.  

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