Thanksgiving the start of Advent

I must confess first that I didn't take any pictures this weekend. Mostly because the battery was dead and I couldn't find the charger anywhere. BUT we had LOTS of fun and activity! Great food, a fabulous wedding, family & friend visits, and last but not least, a Hokie win over the Hoos!

Thanksgiving was low key with Uncle Dan and Fr. Luke joining our family. Everyone had their favorite dish and desserts from homemade pasta(Mike) to cheesy hashbrown casserole (Uncle Dan) and cookies slathered in icing (Jujube & Uncle Dan). The deep fried turkey was finished in 30 minutes--soooooooo good! My husband is the master with a vat a peanut oil and a Cajun spice rubbed turkey.

On Saturday we were blessed to witness the wedding of our dear friends Rhoda and Matej. It was such a beautiful ceremony with the mix of Filipino and Slovenian cultures. Their love for God and each other was so apparent. My first tears were not for Rhoda walking down the aisle, but when Jujube (Julia) came down the aisle in her little dress and bowed before the altar. She was great even though the basket of flowers weighed as much as a gallon of milk. Literally. Mike and I were so honored to be the cord sponsors and thankfully we did not strangle the couple or mess up Rhoda's beautiful hairstyle. The reception was rockin' and besides the first dances, I don't think the DJ played anything slow. The dance floor was full the whole night--gotta love the Filipino party culture! Plus we enjoyed the reception sans kids. My parents came down to help out and watch the kids this weekend during the wedding festivities as well as get a jump start to holiday decorating in the School household. My mom, or "Lola" as she is known to her grandkids, is the master at holiday decorating! When we dropped off Jujube after the ceremony the tree was up and sparkling in the window and I found Lola scrubbing my baseboards. She is the woman! Grammie, Grandpi, and Great-grandma School also visited for a few hours before the wedding. Saturday ended with a sweet victory over UVA. Tech has had a rough season, but at least we beat the Hoos!

To conclude the weekend...The first Sunday of Advent, tree decorating and Cane's chicken. After we said goodbye to Lola and Lolo, we listened to holiday tunes and decorated the tree. I love that our tree now has ornaments made by Julia's little hands. Now if I can keep another set of little hands (Cazin) off the tree! After many weeks away from the Lifeteen Mass since Mike started working for the diocese, we started off the new church year back at St. Thomas. We have missed the 5:15 Mass dearly and it was good to be back with our community and hear the music of the Lifeteen Band. The night ended with Cane's chicken and a clean kitchen (and a smooth bedtime)--my kind of Sunday!