Thanksgiving with the Timmermans

Today I am home sick, so I thought I would blog! My blog has been quiet for the past few weeks because Ben & I hosted the Timmermans Family for Thanksgiving! There were 7 adults & 3 kids all sleeping under one roof for 3 days. It was a blast! Andrea, my sister in law, and I did a lot of pre-planning which involved, Turkey dinner recipes, meals, where pillows and blankets would come from etc! Lots of planning! And it went without a hitch!

Everyone arrived Friday evening. Mom & Dad Timmermans drove with Mark, Ben's lil bro, from Abbotsford and Ryan & Andrea, Ben's older bro & wife, drove with their three kids, Rachel, Kyla & Levi, from Edmonton. On saturday we headed out to The Calgary Zoo! We have been there with Ryan and Andrea and the kids twice before but this year was going to be extra special... as the new Penguin Exhibit was finally open! It was soooo cool! Definitely worth just going to the zoo for that! Although the three 4 month old baby Tigers were also amazing! We even got to watch them feed! Unfortunately I was so tired by that time I didn't get one picture of the Tigers! haha

Sunday was the day we celebrated Thanksgiving! Andrea & I, mostly Andrea, did the turkey. It was the first time for both of us! And if I do say so myself, it turned out AMAZING! Not too bad for beginners! It was also special that Ben's cousin Nicole was able to join us as she is living not too far from Calgary right now! It was my first time hosting not only a celebration like Thanksgiving but also dinner for more than 6 people!! And I have to admit it went practically seamless! I could have never done the entire weekend without Andrea! and it was nice to be able to host Mom & Dad Timmermans as they host the entire family twice a year!

Hanging out with Dad & Grandma

At the Zoo! Kyla was SO PROUD she found the King Penguin!

The girls were in awe of the penguins and could have stayed in there all day!

This poor little penguin sat alone and never moved. He was so little!

Uncle's are the best for... Swinging!

Levi's "I just woke up and why do you have a camera in my face" look:)

Rachel showing of her insane Wii bowling skills! Out of 12 rounds she usually got 7-8 strikes! Always won!! I think Ryan beat her once!

Thanksgiving Dinner! So delicious!

Ben carving his first turkey! He did a great job!

After Andrea & I slaved over dinner we decided the boys could clean! After many sighs from Ryan & Mark, they conceded and started helping Ben! 

Kyla & Rachel being treated to Mani/Pedi's at the Timmermans Spa. 

Levi had already taken his first steps before coming to our house but everyone got to watch him take a full 4 steps at our house! He was so proud of himself!

The weekend was a huge success and we had so much fun!