Finally getting around to a Thanksgiving Wrap Up post! Having almost the whole week off was wonderful and having our oldest home from school was the absolute BEST. Of course it got me all kinds of excited about our Winter break and the fact that he comes home on the 12th!
Since I wasn’t hosting this year #amen we put up our tree and decorated the Sunday before Thanksgiving. You’ll see all the decorations next week and most likely our almost finished kitchen! Trust me, I thought it would be done ages ago but there are still just a few little things to be completed.
I mentioned last week that we were invited to my sister’s in laws farm. We sometimes refer to it as the “property” because it’s not an actual working farm but you get the idea. It is beautiful! 
The pavillion is more of a giant, screened room. It has ceiling fans, a refrigerator, a fireplace and is plenty big enough to accommodate our ever growing clan! It overlooks the lake and when the weather is good the boys love to go out on the boat or just fish from the dock. Of course there are chairs for those of us who just wish to relax! The cows are pretty cool to watch and get pretty loud! But
the best part of being out here in the country is the fact that there’s no tv to distract us. We had lots of tables set up and there was just constant chatter! Now if we come out here in the Summer you better believe there’s a tv and satellite dish hooked up because no one wants to miss Nascar! #exceptme My sister is an extremely talented interior designer and I swear that woman can make anything beautiful! She and her sister in law came out the weekend before to arrange tables and decorate. It was really so pretty! However, I failed miserably as a photographer that day and not only failed to get a picture of my sister but of the decor! 
My nephews and nieces were more than willing to pose for pictures with my parents. I didn’t grow up with cousins so to see how close they are how and much they enjoy one another makes my heart so happy! 
It’s also pretty awesome to look around and realize that our kids are raising kids – seeing the next generation get married and have babies is surreal. My little niece is such a love and she’s so much fun to have around.
Normally we have excellent weather on Thanksgiving and we stay outside all day and into the night. This year it decided to rain on and off and that made for a short day, We arrived at noon and everyone started leaving by 2:30 ish. Before I could start demanding and making everyone get in pictures, they were gone. Which kind of stunk. I went around and took pictures at each table but of course missed several people.
I shared some pictures on Facebook (a few more than I did here) and of course someone had to call me out for not having any of my sister and brother in law. Can you believe that? It was pretty upsetting to me, I hadn’t even realized it until her comment. Here’s the thing, that didn’t need to be said, so unkind and unnecessary. I expect better behavior from a grown woman, especially someone who is my sister’s friend. The same woman did something similar on my birthday. This led to me making the decision to take a break from Facebook for awhile. If I can’t post pictures of my family, my nieces and nephews without drawing negativity I’m happy to sit out. Her rude behavior says way more about her than me and you’ll be happy to know I didn’t fight back. Because the truth is when you play in the mud with a pig you both get dirty but the pig actually enjoys it. My friend Angie told me that years ago and it’s true. I’m sorry this woman is so unhappy with herself and her life that she needs to tear others down. Well, sorry to tell her this but she isn’t hurting me. I wake up happy and grateful for the beautiful life I have each day and the people who are in it. I am not perfect and I am okay with that, I also realize how powerful words, whether spoken or written, can be and I choose to use them wisely.
Maybe that’s the lesson from Thanksgiving. Maybe your gathering wasn’t perfect either; maybe someone got their feelings hurt, maybe someone said or did something they shouldn’t have. I hope you know you’re not alone. It happens to us all. The behavior of others cannot be controlled but we can certainly control how we behave and respond.
So, how’s that for a wrap up? Not what you were expecting I’m guessing! Things got a little deeper than I had expected but hopefully that will benefit someone. I thank you for stopping by today and I can’t wait to share my holiday home with you next week!
BTW, I wore my Lush tunic – it’s on super sale and you NEED this top!
