T-day Twin 2008

Our Twin Falls Thanksgiving 2008...

began dark and early with a Turkey Trot.

You know that frozen bird you maneauvered with your brut strength into the sink a few days ago?
That's kind of what it felt like.

I DID prepare well though, and had to shed a layer or two mid-way

to some adoring (frozen) fans.

Dilemma:

My last race: 110°. This one: 33°

How about something in the middle for the next one?

Since it was so balmy when we got home, we busted out the baseball stuff and a frisbee or two.

There's no sense wasting all this great weather on stuff you have to do inside.

After we kept dropping the ball on account of having no feeling in our extremities, we came in, thawed out, and found other (warmer) bonding activities.

Our youngest, feeling under the weather (upholding an Extended-Burch Family Tradition),

stayed in bed most of the day, but kept his spirits up and found energy sufficient to destroy our half-completed puzzles and meticulously-arranged Lincoln Log compounds.

We got around to eating eventually...
We missed those of our "regular group" who have joined us at this same table for the past few years, but found a sweet bonding comfort together, despite being sans guests this year.
It warmed up with the grand entry of the sun, so we decided to head out for a joyous family adventure in attempting (again) to take a family picture without a photographer.

(yeah, it never really is joyous...)
But what am I thankful for? A husband who tolerates it, and does his best to pretend he's not irritated, and then still buys everyone ice cream when it's over.
We managed a handful of good ones, but there were definitely plenty of out-takes.

It was ffffffreeezing.
We consumed way too much pie upon returning home, while watching "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" and feeling the residual effects of the tryptophan...

And so...we're off to bed now, after a fulfilling (in so many ways...) day.

AND lastly...to the {almost entire can of} cranberry sauce that will sit in tupperware in the fridge for the next 9 days before it slithers down the disposal, we'll see your pretty face next year!

the photo tag...

I finally decided to play some tag. I guess mostly because have taken ZERO other pictures, and I feel the need to post SOMETHING. ...AND I was really curious what the 4/4 thing would bring up. This was the fourth picture in my fourth folder on my fourth portable hard drive. (I added that last aspect because I actually don't keep any pics in "My Pictures" at all).

It's Avery K. from a group of dance pictures I took for the "Dancing Darlings" last Spring. awwwwwwww...we're going to miss that this year.

Happy Photo Tag to everyone.

acclimation

We spent the morning getting acquainted with our new surroundings.

It was freezing.
Doug made fun of my gloves and ski jacket.

I suggested we do the whole thing later in the day when we could still feel our fingers to take pictures, but I was out-voted. My gaggle was too excited.

The Shoshone Falls are beautiful. We can't wait to go back and see them in the spring when they're bigger. The park was all but deserted. I can't imagine why. I guess everyone else agreed with their spouse that the afternoon would have been warmer.

We also visited the Twin Falls.
That park is beautiful too, imagine this: we had it all to ourselves.
Did I mention it was cold?

While uploading these pictures, I found the ones I took on our last night in PV.
It got pretty echo-y in the house. (Sniff.)

And, this is how we all cozily slept that last night before we woke them up at 4:30 am and loaded them into the frozen vehicles and headed out in our U-Haul entourage.

Since having semi-adapted to the weather here (the children, that is) the kids have found much with which to entertain themselves.
On our second day here, after emerging from Kyle's room after putting him down for his nap, it was silent in the house. I looked everywhere for signs of my other children, only to find them doing this in the backyard. All of their own choosing...

I've been spastically trying to make various rooms livable, while attempting to catch up with some editng I'm very behind on (thanks for being patient..if you're one of the ones waiting), and trying to avoid going to the store more than once a day for things I keep discovering I need.

And oh...did I mention, it's COLD here?

It's COLD here.
All the more cuddling and bundling up fun to be had by all...I guess.

Idahome

2 moving trucks
1 auto trailer
1 Suburban full of children, mother and diet coke

8 stops (for gas, bathrooms, icees)
17.5 hours of driving
in 1 day

all to lead us here:

Don't let the weather in these pictures deceive you. I took them when we came acouple of weeks ago. In contrast, it's raining/snowing/sleeting and significantly overcast currently.

Watch for more. Including...

1.) the Idahospitality
2.) the un-intentional un-hitching of a trailer
3.) the concussion

The Yanks, The Cardboard, and fitting our house into the garage...

I HAD to take a break from the chaos that is freely reigning around here to post about how:

Our kids had their last sh'bang at their school tonight.

Bret pounded out the patriotic cadence charistmatically.

Tate saluted stalwartly to "My Country 'Tis..of Thee"

and Whitney wailed out the chorus to

"Yankee Doodle went to Campus..."

We came home to our maze of boxes

and then tucked our tykes onto their air mattresses

before nudging their lil' noggins with a kiss or ten.

We're trying to see if we can fit our
entire house into the garage.