Since it's almost Christmas-- how about some Thanksgiving!!

As many of you know, I have 2 cameras. One I keep in my purse and take the quick little shots here and there. The other is my big SLR camera I lug around here and there. My little camera does not get uploaded very often but today, much to my surprise, I uploaded it and realized most of our Thanksgiving at my families in central California was on it. So, without further ado, here is Thanksgiving right before Christmas!!

The boys school does a Thanksgiving feast that the parents serve. I was there volunteering with Mia (love that at the private school I can bring Mia anytime I want-- public school I could not). Here is Ethan with some of his pals.

Mia and Ethan eating their pie.

We then got out for our week off school and headed to the desert to camp and ride. We went to Ocatillo Wells which is close to the Mexico boarder .

I think this is Owen. Both the boys had received new bikes (we sold their old ones and were able to get them new-- used-- bikes for the same price we sold them for so it was a natural swap and the bikes are much more at their riding level).

Ethan

Ethan again

Owen

Happy little Mia

The three riding fools!! Ethan, Owen and Carson. They had so much fun and rode like crazy the whole trip. Ethan is eating something sticky that is why his hand looks-- ummmm-- odd!

Hannah and Mia spent some good time together!




We got home from Camping and the next day was Thanksgiving and we hosted it at our house. Here is most of the group (minus the cooks). Kevin cooked everything like normal and it was amazing!

Yes that is my 93 year old grandpa and 94 year old grandma on the far back left. My grandpa had a cut that would not stop bleeding so my mom- the nurse- used what we had in the house and put gauze on the cut adhered by hockey tape around his head. It was hilarious-- he looked like one of the ghosts from scrooge.

Kevin reading Psalms 100-- he felt it was very appropriate for Thanksgiving!



We then headed to my family in central California for the rest of our vacation. They live in Central CA where my parents grew up. My grandma passed away about 2 years ago and while the kids have sold the house and the land around the house (the house was on 20 acres) they have retained the Gillum property which is about 500 acres in the western Sierra Nevadas. It is such an amazing place and we go there every year for Thanksgiving. This year we decided to post a family sign since the property has been in the family for soooooo many years.

It was freezing cold and we decided to post the sign on one of the highest hills next to kind of a monument. We also head to the Gillum to shoot.

Ethan with his gun!!

The sign overlooking the land

We put all the existing Owen family names which is my dad and his sisters and their kids and their kids etc. As you can see, the sign has a ton of names and those are all my aunts, uncles and first cousins (and their kids). Crazy how big our family is!!

The sign next to the existing monument that is just a natural outcropping of rock.

My dad, my brother and my uncle Ted next to the sign.

By the time we got the sign in the ground there were few of us left. It was sooooo cold that most went back to the trucks because it was so cold. Here is my dad, brother Brad, Ethan and I.

I forced the boys to come out of the truck for this picture. Love the gun pics-- they look so funny.

The wind on the hill made it feel 20 degrees colder. With wind chill we were below freezing on this day. I know that sounds pitiful to many of you from cold places but for us California weather wimps, it was deadly-- lol!!!

On my grandparents land they had pomegranate orchards at one time. Over the years they have not irrigated the trees (like many years) so most of them have died but there is a grouping of trees that have been naturally irrigated from the ground water. There are probably 20 acres of trees that still produce fruit and since they are dependent on just the ground water and it is not a ton of water, the fruit is sooooo red and sweet it is crazy! Much much much better than anything you could buy in a store. These are the best pomegranates you will ever eat--- crazy!!!

We picked a ton of fruit and my brother came back with his father in law a few weeks later and got 500 pounds off the trees. Since Brad is a chef and they have a community serviced agriculture program through Amy's Farm (the farm field trip place they own), they wanted to use the pomegranates for that.

The boys downing the pomegranates. They were amazing!!!

After we go to the Gillum, we head to my cousins house to make sausage. It is a tradition and we love it!!!

Sausage making in progress!!

Mia and Savannah enjoying the sausage

So this is a Thanksgiving update. Hopefully next time I post it will be a Christmas update. Off to finish my shopping!! Have a blessed day!!!