Thanksgiving.  An American tradition that stretches cultures, ethnicity and religions bringing together every American to give thanks and eat…a lot.  What’s not to love.

In our family Christmas has always been the big event but over the years and now that I’m away more and my brother and sister have their families and in-laws Thanksgiving has become a three to four day event.

Paw Paw and Stella - Thanksgiving Day

We usually have a nice dinner out together on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, then it’s Thanksgiving a day of rest on Friday and then the annual big University of Virginia vs. Virginia Tech game is Saturday and my Dad now throws a huge party at our house.  Biggest rivalry in Virginia.  I went to UVA, however most of my family are Hokie fans as we live a mere 20 minutes from the campus.  It’s a bit of a sore spot with me as I’m the only alumni in the family and shouldn’t they support my team?

We also now deep fry our Thanksgiving turkey and on game day just about anything else we can find.  If you’ve never had deep fried turkey, I highly recommend it.  Quite a treat and nothing like you’d expect.

So it’s a nice long weekend of family time.

We arrived at my Dad’s on Monday night.  Justin spent the rest of his “ultimate sports week” at Penn State and then watched Sunday football with some friends in Arlington.

Stella Sydney and Tripp

I spent the weekend with my good friends from UVA at my friend Kirsten’s new home in Leesburg.  It was a house full.  On Saturday Katina and her daughter Bailey arrived early to hang out followed by my friend Wendy and her two boys, Tripp and Zach.  We all had a sleepover and enjoyed hanging out.  Stella loved all the friends to play with.

On Sunday Kirsten threw a brunch and my friend Tara came up from Charlottesville with her new daughter Olivia.

Was soo nice of everyone to take a lot of time out of their busy lives to spend the weekend with me.  It meant a lot and I was very thankful.

Which leads me to my list of things I’m thankful for this year.  I don’t think I’ve made a list like this at Thanksgiving since I was in elementary school.  Perhaps a tradition I should start!

1.  The time I’ve had this year with Justin and Stella on this whirlwind trip.

Stella

2.  The new addition to our family that will arrive in May.  While a big surprise, we are thankful that we didn’t have any of the agony of trying to have a baby that we had the first time around.

3.  The enormous amount of time we were able to spend with our families and friends while we went on our round the world trip.

4.  Owning my own business with Justin and the life it has afforded us.  While often times very hard and frustrating, we would never change it for the world.

5.  All the new additions to our families’ and friends’ lives.  Having so many children around has brought a new life and energy to our lives that we never imagined.  Seeing life through a child’s eye is incredibly eye opening and fulfilling.

My Sister Deborah and my Brother's new baby Gabe

6.  The many lessons I’ve learned this year in both business and my personal life and especially as a parent.

7.  Our parents who have supported us as we endeavored upon yet another adventure.  Without the help of Justin’s Mom and Dad; and my Dad, in many big and small ways we would not have been able to do what we did.

8.  The love of my Mother, while no longer here, I feel her love every day and am very thankful for the things she taught me and I hope I will be able to teach Stella.

9.  My husband.  The person who makes me laugh even when I want to kill him.  The smartest and best business partner anyone could ask for.  The husband most women dream of (OK, maybe not the sports part but…).  And an incredibly loving and doting father.

The Loves of My Life

10.  My home.  We go home to Vancouver on Tuesday and I couldn’t be more excited.  While I love adventure there’s no better trip than the one you take home.

Travel Tip:

Many airlines are now code-sharing with other airlines.  I now book most of my flights with US Air because they actually allow you to book “infant in lap” tickets on line versus United who makes you call in and hope that when you get to the airport your reservation includes your “infant in lap.”  Well, when I flew from NYC to DC I nearly missed my flight as I just showed up at US Air thinking I could check in there for the flight I booked on their website…well, the actual flight was on United and I had to frantically run to another terminal, by msyelf with 2 suitcases and Stella…not fun.

So here’s a tip:  make sure you double check the airline you are flying on and check-in there even if you book thru another airline.

And…United…here’s a tip for you…please just change your on-line booking system to allow a booking for “infant in lap.”  You will probably save a lot of time and money without all the phone calls and actually lose less customers.