Thanksgiving..and almost a baby!

 Thanksgiving has come and gone. I can't believe it! We had the Thanksgiving meal with the Beutler side of the family and it was our turn to host. I had spent the week before making pumpkin butter for each family to take home. It turned out so yummy! I also did the place settings and decorations. I made finger turkey puppets for all the kids (It helped make the kid table look festive, but also kept them entertained before and after the meal). It's a good thing I started a week in advance, because we ended up volunteering to take Liz and Scott's kids for a few days before Thanksgiving. We had 10 kids in the house on those busy days prior! 

As we do each year, our family did hand turkeys for an FHE night. I loved Jackson's boy and girl turkeys with a heart over their heads...so cute! I was grateful for nice weather, notice the short sleeves! Only 2 weeks left of pregnancy, I can't believe the weather has been so mild considering it is the end of November!

The day began with football and last minute Turkey-day prep. Danny volunteered to make his first turkey ever...he brined it and deep fried it and it turned out really good (it's not burned, as it may look in the photo, the skin was really really good)! I was impressed for a first-timer! Brian and I were in charge of the pies and sweet potatoes. He did the pies and they turned out beautiful and delicious as always. Sweet potatoes are becoming a new favorite of mine...they could almost rival traditional potatoes on Thanksgiving in my book. We had tons of good food and tons of company! Fourteen cousins and eleven adults made for a crowded house. With three babies under a year old, several under 5, and nearly half of us sick with some cold virus or another, it was a bit hectic. The weather was nice enough that after the meal kids could play outside on bikes and in the yard. It was an excellent day.

After guests had all gone home and the house was picked up, my poor body was exhausted and spent! My feet were so swollen I felt as if I were walking on gel packs of fluid. With hosting comes the responsibility of helping people find things: whether it's medicine for a sick child, or a bed to sleep in, or where to put the dishes, or whatever this or that that comes up. I rarely sat that day. With only 2 weeks left of pregnancy, and having had some extremely busy days with tending cousins and hosting Thanksgiving, there wasn't a part of my body that didn't ache! I was so excited for bed that night! Just as I was beginning to fall asleep, I started contracting. ugh! I blew them off as braxton hicks and tried to sleep, but they continued to get stronger and became a minute and a half apart! I was suddenly scared I was going into labor! Since my last Doctor visit, I knew I had already been dilating and it was possible, although much earlier than expected! Unfortunately I was so not ready for labor (contradictory to what I've been saying the last 2 weeks)! It couldn't have been the worst timing possible.

As it happens when lots of people get together, someone is bound to be sick-- and Brian and I and two of our kids had all come down with colds and coughs this weekend. I was not prepared to bring home a baby into a sick family, nor be sick (and exhausted) while trying to labor on my own! Brian had taken medicine so he could sleep that night, and my mom was out of town for Thanksgiving in Las Vegas, and I began to wonder how I was going to get to the hospital and who was going to take care of the kids!! For an hour and a half I contracted and they were painful enough I had to breath through it. I finally decided to call Liz and see if she could come over if we headed to the hospital. It was 12:30am. Of course she said yes, but then within minutes my contractions subsided and were over! I felt bad for getting all worked up over it, but was relieved it had ended there. I hate false labor but I was too sick and tired to deal with the real thing! YET. Give me a few days to feel better and rest up...and then I am all for it! I hope it comes quickly!!

So...I spent the next day taking down Thanksgiving and putting up Christmas. The halls are decorated. We are set and ready to go. We'll keep you posted! Countdown to baby is 12 days!