Thanksgiving with the Jones Family

Monday Penny began leaving for our trip on Wednesday insisting she needed lots of time to get ready. She is my mini me... although she started earlier than me this time. We didn't have too much school work to do so that was nice. It gave me time to run some errands I needed to get done before the trip- baby wipes from Costco and a return at Target. At Target we ran into Lucy's friend Claire who was there with Brielle. Lucy had asked to hang out with her that day and now knew why it wasn't going to work. It felt awkward to see them there but Lucy handled it well. I really wish we could find Lucy a better friend. One that wants to hang with her more often. 

Monday evening Lucy had a volleyball game and I finally went. Ruby and Tyler came as well. Her team did not win but Lucy is definitely doing better, she really goes after the ball. It was fun to watch her and Ruby behaved pretty well, even if it was past her bedtime. 

Tuesday morning I ended up needing to prep a meal for Caroline's family, she was in the hospital (she had cranial pressure which is all fixed now). I just made my enchiladas and picked up a salad and chips and dip for her family. Also that morning I worked on packing for the trip and dropped off keys for Sharon (so she could take packages in) and Grace (so Reggie could feed the guinea pig- yes it's still alive). Grace also have me rice crispy treats to make up for the ones stolen at the service project, she's funny but also, she's a great friend. 

That afternoon, the girls and I went to see "Wicked For Good". It was a fun watch but they did change quite a bit from the musical. The girls seemed to enjoy it for the most part, they just said some bits were boring and they didn't like the love song.

Wednesday morning was spent tidying up the house because I didn't want anyone with the key to my house to encounter a disaster. We didn't leave to West Virginia until Ben got home from school- it was a half day so he was home by 11. He really didn't want to miss school and we weren't in a rush. We took 2 cars so we didn't have too squish. I was in the Squeak with Ruby, Steven and Ben. Lucy, Penny and Tyler were in the Traverse. I took the boys so they could help with driving and also,  Steven was super helpful with Ruby. I started the drive, then Ben drove and Steven finished. I made a mistake and without realizing it,  gave Ben the toughest drive- it was in the city and lots of traffic and lane changing. He did well all things considered. Just one time that he didn't merge well with a semi but we didn't due obviously.  Steven got the hilly curvy WV drive and did well too- minus completely running a red light. We listened to the book,  The Rangers Apprentice, which ended up being a good listen. Ben and I both enjoyed it. It had adventure and some revenge- Ben loves revenge. We also managed to stay together with Tyler's car. He's good at following and we had walkie talkies which was helpful. Once we arrived at Mariah's, chaos ensued. The kids were all happy to be together and instantly started playing together and being silly. 

Mariah's house wasn't super big (but it was flipped recently so it was really pretty) so we got a hotel room for the girls and Tyler and me. The boys stayed in Mariah's living room. We ended up at the hotel fairly late and had a really challenging time getting Ruby to sleep. She really just needed to cry it out but we can't do that at a hotel. She eventually fell asleep in bed with Tyler and me. I'm not sure why I bothered bringing her pack n play. 

Thursday morning we headed over to Mariah's. Tyler got started on the turkey and I enjoyed a relaxed thanksgiving. I spent most of the day holding Mariah's newest baby, Sterling. He is a really chill baby and only cried when he was hungry or tired. The kids watched lots of TV- The Thanksgiving Parade in NY, Bad Guys 2 and after dinner they played Gang Beast for hours. Steven spent most of the day on the couch. Ben spent most of the day getting attacked by his cousins. The girls all spent a lot of time dressed up in fun costumes. The only thing I really did besides hold the baby, was make the mashed potatoes and clean some dishes and tidy up the kitchen. It was really nice not being in charge for once. The food itself was great- all the usuals except I didn't do my sweet potato casserole or Mac n cheese- but I think everyone survived without them. It was a good Thanksgiving. 

That night when we got back to the hotel the girls went swimming at the pool (just Lucy and Penny). They didn't last long because it was overrun with obnoxious people. Probably the same ones that sounded like elephants above us every night and morning. It was another tough night with Ruby in our bed,  but we survived. 

Friday morning we took our time getting ready and then headed to Mariah's. They made some delicious breakfast and then Tyler and I sat and chatted with Mariah. It was a great conversation until they got into an argument/ debate over Israel and then they spent at least an hour, if not two,  discussing their beliefs. I know they're not actually mad at each other, and they both love arguing, but it's not my thing so I was bored and it also upset my tender hearted kids. They don't like contention.  

When they were finally done(or more accurately I was able to interrupt them) the kids ate lunch and then we went on a drive to see a waterfall. The drive was tough, very winding and nauseating. It didn't help that we missed a turn and ended up on a  long back road u turn.  We all felt a bit car sick when we got there but luckily no one puked.  It was super cold and the boys had to borrow Mariah's coats because they didn't bring a good winter coat. They looked funny. Despite the cold, it was a pretty view and a good time. 

When we got back, we ended up ordering pizza for the kids and then us adults (and sterling) went out to dinner. We went to a Mexican restaurant and the food was actually really good.  The conversation was also mostly nice. Mariah does have a lot of opinions on raising kids and I don't always agree with them (there are things that she won't understand about teenagers until she actually has some) but that is really just the Hatch way. 

Saturday we headed off early because the weather was looking sketchy for the afternoon so we wanted to try and beat the bad weather. Everything went really smoothly until the last 30 mins and unfortunately, Steven was driving when things got rough. The roads were starting to get slippery and we passed a recent accident (no emergency vehicles there yet) where 2 cars had flipped over. That was scary. And then our car slipped for a bit and that really scared me with Steven being behind the wheel. I trust Tyler but I don't trust Steven quite as much.  Thankfully we made it home safe and sound.  And then we spent the rest of the afternoon/ evening putting up the Christmas decorations.