Surprise Thanksgiving

Last night we surprised my mom and her husband with a 

Surprise Thanksgiving.

This might be the most fun thing we've ever done for them.

In our family, my brothers and I alternate Thanksgivings together with Thanksgiving with our in laws. We never deviate from the plan. The dilemma this year is that it is a year that we are going to be with in laws, yet my mom and her husband have multiple health complications

and will both be undergoing procedures while we're away. 

That might seem harsh that we'd continue to go away, (if my brothers' in laws were 

not close by in town, I would reconsider absolutely) yet my in laws have their own health challenges with the addition of several years on my mom and her husband,

we have to seize the opportunity to visit them when we can.

I just felt like I wanted to do something special because

Thanksgiving is about family and being together.

I didn't want to miss out on making memories

with them and I hope that there will be

many more Thanksgivings we

enjoy with them.

So, I will let you in on a little

Thanksgiving secret.

Whole Foods.

That's the secret.

Whole Foods has a nasty reputation for being ridiculously expensive

and I agree. However, the secret is that there Thanksgiving boxes are the

biggest bang for your buck that you will find during the holidays.

I could not have prepared half of the meal for the price I paid 

for EVERYTHING!

Turkey, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, green beans, dinner rolls, and pecan pie. (My mom's favorite.)

I had enough for 8 so that they could have left overs and we could too.

$ 89

There.

I whispered it.

It was fantastic too!

I expected mediocre flavor

but they delivered!

I think I'm in love with the stuffing.

I will definitely do this again.

And, heating it all up took enough work and attention

that I tricked myself in to thinking I'd actually made the dinner.

It was so fun.

We boxed up candles, napkins and napkin rings, and wine glasses.

I wanted to be sure since we were surprising them that all the pretties would be

easily accessible.

We squished into their sweet little space and made the most fun memories.

I realized that I don't have very many pictures of my mom and I together

so it wasn't hard for her to sit still for a quick photo session.

Apparently it's harder for some to sit still.

And just for fun,

this picture below cracks me up because it looks like

Jake's knocking our heads together. Like some goofy 

Three Stooges stunt.

And when families get together aren't there always these kinds of photos?

So, I'll send a coffee card to the person with the best comment below of what 

I'm saying to the kids right there, or what TrueLove's saying behind the 

camera or what my mom's thinking.

If anyone is still reading.

HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING.

I will resume posting after the holiday.