Thanksgiving at Auntie Laurie's Farm

We spent the Thanksgiving holiday at Eric's aunt's farm near Sacramento.  It was a full house this year with Eric's aunt, our family of four, Eric's dad and brother, Eric's brother's girlfriend, and my parents.  In addition, there were Laurie's two dogs, our Pippa, my parents' dog, and Eric's brother's huge puppy.  That's 10 people and 5 dogs.  Like I said, it was a full house.

The first morning we were there (Thanksgiving Day) was foggy.  It was so magical looking that I had to head outside and snap some photos.

 Eventually, Carter threw on a jacket and joined me.

 After breakfast, the skies cleared and we headed outside for a few projects around the farm.  An outdoor light was replaced and a new planter wall was built.

 Here are the blocks for the planter wall:

 Carter rarely looks into the camera lens, so I had to post all of these.

As finishing touches were being put on the wall, the kids and I headed out to look at the neighbor's horses and pony.  Check out my girl with the camera!

 

  Brian's girlfriend and his puppy joined us.

Exploring

Later, both kids got to drive "Dr. Pepper" with my dad.  They had a blast with Papa as he let them take the wheel and be crazy drivers.

 Laurie then got her horse, Blue, ready for a ride.

 Beau and Pippa weren't too sure about the big horse.

After Laurie rode Blue for a while, it was time for the kids to ride.  They loved it!  First was Ashlynn's turn.  She looked like such a big girl and really rode with confidence.

 

Then it was Carter's turn.  He did so much better this year.  A few years back he was scared of being on the horse and this time he rode with some confidence.

Friday was another beautiful day that was sunny from the start.  Our family was a little sunnier from the start too because we got a better night's sleep on the second night.

We went on a hike/ walk with the dogs along the American River in Rancho Cordova.

All the dogs

The four Cavaliers, representing the four colors the breed comes in: Merlot (ruby), Beau (black and tan), Misty (blenheim), and Pippa (tri-color).

Carter was a trailblazer.

Carter walking back to the car along the bike trail.

Okay, next up is something that could probably be its own blog entry, but since it was part of our time at Laurie's, I'm leaving it here (and hoping you aren't so bored with photos that you're leaving this post).  Ever since I ordered Ashlynn's Little House dress for her birthday (and party ... and Halloween), I thought about how fun it would be for her to wear it among the prairie grasses at Laurie's house ... and she did.  Forgive me but I posted a bunch of photos.  At first I wasn't so sure I got anything special, but the more I look at the photos, the more they grow on me.  See what you think.

 Photographing someone in glasses without getting too much glare is tricky!

 My mom joined us for a bit.

 Eric was there too.  This shot of him somehow reminds me of the movie Meet Joe Black.

 Just a couple more ...

After our little photo shoot we checked out the barn one last time,

 enjoyed the beautiful fall colors,

 made some long shadows,

 harvested a few gourds to take home (this one is Carter's because it has a "C"),

 enjoyed the sunset,

 and said good-bye to Laurie.

It was a nice Thanksgiving weekend.  Hope you had a good one too!