Turkey!

The wife and I went to my parents farm for Thanksgiving weekend. I haven't been back home since June, so it was a welcome trip regardless of the holiday. Instead of spending time with the extended relatives, Mom thought it would be nice to just have a small celebration and be thankful in a small fashion. I agreed! We arrived just before the Packers game started (as scheduled) and there was plenty of turkey, stuffing, potatoes and carrots to go around. Mom also made these butter rolls that were to die for! =)

On Friday, Elizabeth and I wanted to go to Galena, Illinois to stock up at their winery and visit the little shops in the historic town. We were a little freaked out to find that our favorite popcorn place was gone - but then were joyous when we found it had just relocated further down on the other side of the street. Have you ever had Grape Popcorn?!?! Splendid...

Elizabeth wanted to run 10 miles in preparation for her next marathon, so I plotted a course through the hilly countryside. She finished it, but I'm sure she will want to look for flatter terrain in the future.

Mom wanted me to put up Christmas lights on the balcony, so that was my task for Saturday. Dad was 'volunteered' (to his dismay) to assist and it made the job a lot quicker. I also helped Dad get the pool ready for winter - the water was 32F. Needless to say, we didn't go swimming.

I ended up getting almost an entire batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies by the end of the weekend. I like going home to visit and it's great to spend time with my family. 2-3 times a year just isn't enough, though - so I hope to be able to make it a little more frequent in the future.