Happy Thanksgivingmas!

This year we tried something new, we celebrated Thanksgiving AND Christmas in the same weekend with one side of the family, hence the title of this post. It was a crazy weekend full of lots of family time, but we had a fun and I think this might become a new tradition.

Thursday/Thanksgiving:

Friday/Shopping and Chili Cook off:

Saturday/Christmas:

I love my extended family so much and despite me needing a vacation and 72 hours of sleep when we got back to Ohio, it was so worth it. And now I'm excited to be home for the holidays!

How do you celebrate the holidays with family that lives in other places?

A Kentucky Wedding Y'all

Last weekend my cousin Shirley got married. I love family weddings because I get to have all my family in one place for a few precious hours. It was a beautiful Southern wedding complete with Mint Juleps, bourbon everything and of course Derby pie. It was the perfect first wedding for Aiden to go to. I won't lie though, I was nervous during the ceremony because I didn't want to be the Mom who let her child melt down and ruin a perfectly beautiful moment. But Aiden did great and puffs kept him satisfied and quiet the whole time. High five to all the Moms who have had to entertain their little ones at a wedding ceremony! 

The reception was laid back and fun. There was a photo booth, a popcorn machine, ice cream cart and lawn games outside complete with hay bales covered in quilts for people to sit on. So adorable.We ate, we mingled and then we danced. Aiden was enthralled with the disco ball on the dance floor. He was also enthralled by my brother's hilarious dance moves. Here's a peek at our night...

And they all lived happily ever after.

Beach Family Photo Shoot

While vacationing on Anna Maria Island we knew we had to attempt some family beach pictures. Duh. So Saturday morning we all got dressed and ready and within minutes of when we were going to head out a storm blew in. Wah way wah. Thankfully later that afternoon the storm let up and we hit the beach for pictures. We used my tripod and camera remote and I'm actually really happy with how most of the pictures turned out despite it being extremely bright and very windy. Here's a look at some of my favorites from our family photo shoot and then of course I had to share some outtakes.

And here are some outtakes of the whole crew, which actually might be my favorites...

Wild about Grams!

 For my Mother in law's birthday some of us got together and spent the day at the Cincinnati Zoo! We ate lunch overlooking Africa, watched the Polar bears play in the water and saw some baby monkeys.

After a full day at the zoo (and some necessary caffeine from Starbucks) we grilled out and had ice cream cake to finish off the birthday celebrations. 

I love all the time we've been getting to spend with family lately. Next up...a week together on the beach! Happy Birthday Grams!