There’s so much to be thankful for. When life moves too fast I sometimes forget this very statement. This Thanksgiving was laid back and slow and it was a welcomed respite in this season. My dad came back to visit and while we planned to start cooking about noon, the sunshine kept us outside for longer than we expected. We might have said we would all be happy with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner but we gave in and made a delicious feast to enjoy that night. There’s so much to be thankful for, even in the simple moments.

My phone camera is full so there weren’t many photos taken. And I managed to only capture the one dog because the other is camera shy (REALLY).

It’s special to have grandparents. I have fond memories of mine. I’m thankful for my mom and Cici who make the trek to come hang out with us. There was crafting time, time around the table and Rad and I might have just improved our card playing skills in a battle between the adults. I’m thankful for planted memories in my kids hearts.

(Mabry might have been stunt riding which caused the injury to her face).

Birthdays are a big deal for me. Probably because I love to love on my people. I’m thankful for another reason to make Mcree feel special! His birthday celebration lasted day after day with Pop here then Mimi & Cici and time in Hilton Head, a traditional Mexican dinner out, playing in the yard with some of the neighbor kids, convincing another neighbor kid to build his lego sets he got and he even got a new bike thanks to Mimi and Cici. This boy was spoiled! Eight is going to be a great year for you Mcree!

Beach walks always bring about interesting finds. You just never know what will wash up on the beach. This day was especially exciting. Gress found a crate in the surf filled with it’s own animal habitat. There was coral growing all around it, barnacles, several different crabs and lots of sea stars. After inspecting all of the animals, Gress tried his best to launch it back out to sea while the tide was rolling in. I love to see his care of all things living!

The petting zoo might as well have been called torture us by holding your food in your hand and not coming near. My kids were scared to feed the animals. Maybe it was the gangly teeth or the threat of an animal biting their fingers, but these poor goats and alpacas just wanted some food. Instead, Mabry just wanted to pet them all and then throw the food on the ground and Mcree wouldn’t even get close. Pretty sure Mabry is now in love with horses.

We spent the last week in Hilton Head with my dad. He has a Marriott timeshare and you could pretty much just stay on the property and have enough entertainment to never leave. What did the kids want to do THE WHOLE TIME? Swim in the pool and hot tubs. So we tried out several of each and they were crazy enough to swim in the cold pools even on the coldest days! There was also a great magic show one night, candle making, hot chocolate served all day, beach walks, puzzle making, games, golf, shuffleboard, bocci ball tournaments, a make your own yogurt parfait bar, and exploring koi ponds. It was a great getaway and week to just be together before we start back to school in another week. I’m very thankful for my Dad who pursues relationships with us all and allows us to have fun getaways!

I asked Mcree what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday this year and his reply was, “something everyone would like.” That pretty much sums him up. Easy going, go with the flow, happy to just be along for the ride, thankful, patient, reserved, introspective, sweet and loving. He will always try the stunt first even though his pain tolerance is low. He will run the fastest and scream the loudest, but will let you know when his bravery is failing him with just a look on his face. He will find something to do out of nothing and be content with whatever is in front of him, including dirt which he is usually covered in. He is smart and makes school look easy always begging to read his books. He makes life fun and we are so thankful to have him in our family. Happy 8th Birthday Mcree.

We learned during the first hurricane on our island that we have to be outside to see our neighbors. Some neighbors we see often, some we just wave at, and some we never see unless the power is out and it’s hot in their house. Many neighbors know our dogs well from the other side of the fence even though we don’t know their names. And some we have met because of the dogs. We consider many of our neighbors our family. In fact, the day before Thanksgiving, our next door neighbor has a pre-thanksgiving gathering where we fry turkeys and gather to share in a meal together. Before we even moved into our house 5 years ago, we got invited to this exact gathering and this is how we knew we lived amongst very special people. It’s a tradition for us all to gather and catch up. It’s unlike anything I have ever experienced in all the places I have lived.

Rad regularly takes the kids out to the street to ride bikes. They ride up and down neighbor’s driveways and we put cones out to slow down the passing cars. The cones in the street, or maybe it’s the sweet faces waving at the cars, are like magnets for people to stop and say hi or make a comment. One week, several neighbors came out of their houses to come hang out because we were out there. It’s a special place here on the back island. I’m thankful for this “family.”

These are my favorite things about homeschooling….meeting up on a random day for a nature outing because one mom wanted to explore a park. 4 of us moms showed up bringing our 14 kids in tow. We hiked, found many nature finds including a snakeskin, a frog that wouldn’t stop peeing when you held it, a lizard, a family of beetles under a rotting log, a few alligators, a heron with a snake in it’s mouth, and Gress even uncovered a survival knife buried in the grass. I love to watch these kids interact because there are no barriers to young and old hanging out. They love to teach each other and share what they know. None of these moms are from Savannah but yet we all share a love for a way of teaching our kids about life and learning. These are special connections. Ones I am thankful to have in this season of homeschooling!

Gress and Rad had the great opportunity to race in the Leukemia Cup Regatta the other weekend. They both raced in Sunfish boats, which is a smaller class boat. It was a cold and windy day. Perfect for sailing. Rad came in 3rd in his class and Gress came in 4th. It was an incredible experience for them both. Rad has it in his mind that he wants to get the 3 Harrell boys on the water racing next year raising money in his brother’s honor (who died from Leukemia). Hopefully that will motivate them to grow their skills! The last time Mcree went out sailing with Rad, 5 minutes into the race, Mcree asked when it would be over. HA! He definitely will need to work on his stamina!

And then there were just the 3 of us (Mabry, Mcree, and I) to forge our own adventure. We headed to Skidaway State Park for a picnic, exploring and a bike ride. It was sweet to have just the 2 kids. We had a blast.