Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I spent Tuesday night through Sunday morning at home, and it was great to have a break for a few days before exams start later this week. Although I love being at school, I counted down the days till I got to see my family (including grandparents and cousins!), play with my dog, SLEEP, and cook in a real kitchen. A little recap from the week…
My sister and I drove home on Tuesday night after our classes ended. After grabbing my non-cuddly pup for some snuggles and having dinner with my family, I went to bed early for the first time in what felt like forever, crashed hard, and slept for 10 hours.
I woke up Wednesday morning, took a kickboxing class at the gym, ran some errands, and did some shopping before the Black Friday madness started. Pretty soon, the rest of my family arrived, flying in from Arkansas and driving up from Georgia.
Sister + cousin
My plate x2
We kicked off the week of food and celebrations with a birthday dinner for my grandpa. My mom made a salad and steamed broccoli and I contributed lasagna and roasted veggies.
We also made apple crisp, my grandpa’s favorite. I definitely overestimated how much I could eat and especially after taking a major break from desserts during Whole 30 and also just eating smaller meals and more snacks in general at school, I was ridiculously full.
On Thanksgiving morning, I opted to sleep in a bit and then I did 7 easy-paced miles on the quiet roads. Part of me wanted to sign up last minute for a turkey trot since I did a great local half marathon on Thanksgiving for the past couple of years, but I knew rest would probably be more beneficial, especially with finals coming up.
I got back and watched the pilot episode of Lost with my cousin. I know I’m a few years behind but wow, it was so good. I feel like I could become addicted way too easily… Any Lost fans out there?
After that, it was time to cook! My mom and I decided to simplify our menu a little bit this year, so we didn’t have to make quite as many dishes as we typically do. We made turkey, gravy, healthier mac ‘n’ cheese, sweet potato casserole, fresh green beans, mashed potatoes, and salad with dried cranberries, almonds, and avocado.
I fortunately didn’t end up in a food coma (unlike the night before- hah) because I knew I had to be ready for our annual Thanksgiving afternoon tradition– a family kickball game.
We walked to our neighborhood park where there’s a big grassy field and played a few innings of kickball of my family versus my cousins’ family while the dogs ran around.
Almost every person in my family is really competitive, but everyone’s a good sport when we play together. Kickball’s my favorite Thanksgiving tradition. I loved it when I was in elementary school, thought it was the lamest thing ever when I was in middle school because I thought everything was lame, and started loving it again a few years ago.
Sister, grandpa, cousin
After kickball, we saw the 4th Hunger Games movie at the theater. I thought it was pretty good and was glad there was a happy ending. After the movie, we enjoyed my aunt’s chicken enchilada soup and her chocolate chip cookie pie.
On Friday morning, I decided to pass on the crowds and craziness of Black Friday shopping and go to the “Great Turkey Burn-Off” at my gym with my sister, cousin, and mom instead. Our gym does an event every year where they host a bunch of big classes on Black Friday (and I always find the name funny since the turkey’s probably the healthiest dish most people eat on Thanksgiving). I did a 30 minute kickboxing class with my mom, and then I did weights with my sister and cousin for 30 minutes. So far, so good on my plan to incorporate more strength training!
For the rest of the afternoon, we laid around eating leftover mac and cheese and doing some online shopping. I made a double batch of roasted winter veggies for the family, which everyone surprisingly enjoyed, despite the fact that the veggies included some unusual suspects like rutabaga and parsnips.
I also roasted a big pan of broccoli, which is one of my new favorite things to roast. I wash and dry several heads of broccoli, chop them up, drizzle the florets with organic melted ghee (clarified butter- about 1 tablespoon per baking sheet) and then sprinkle them with black pepper, salt, and garlic powder to taste, and then bake them at 425 degrees for 18 minutes. It’s super crispy and delicious! 
I also enjoyed some Talenti Hazlenut Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, two new flavors my ice-cream-and-gelato-loving grandpa picked up at Whole Foods. Veggies + gelato = balance, right?
Our big group went to dinner on Friday night and played Password afterwards while enjoying some pumpkin bread hot out of the oven for dessert.
All of the family left on Saturday, which meant it was time to face the mountain of papers and study materials I’d been blissfully ignoring for the past few days. I figured I could use a break and I wanted to be able to spend time with my family!
So tell me…how was your Thanksgiving? What was your favorite Thanksgiving dish this year?
Always the mac and cheese, even though I don’t know many people who make it on Thanksgiving.
Hunger Games fans: Do you like the books or movies better? Team Peeta or Team Gale?
The Hunger Games movies are some of the few movies that I think may actually be as good as the books.
Did you do any Black Friday shopping? Did you find any good deals?
I love Lost! I watched it when it was on originally, so it’s been a while, but I remember it as one of my favorite shows. It’s gripping and well-done.
In a very out-of-character move, I did no schoolwork while I was home. My exams are next Monday through Wednesday, and our reading period starts this Thursday… so I should probably get on that.
I can’t wait to watch some more of Lost! Maybe over Christmas break 🙂 I’m glad you got to take a break from schoolwork over Thanksgiving. Our reading day is this Thursday, too! And my first exam is Sat :/ Good luck on your exams, Ellen!!
I LOVE your tradition of a kickball game. Although I’m sure I would have protested it during middle school too ha. I saw Hunger Games with my family too…I’m still team Gale. But only because I think Liam Hemsworth is gorgeous.
Oh and that pie chart about studying. STORY OF MY LIFE.
I honestly can’t decide! Since she and Peeta had some super cute babies, I guess I can be Team Peeta now 🙂
OMG kickball… my family could use a tradition to move after stuffing our faces all day. I fell asleep at 730PM Thanksgiving day. I am totally shameless.
I mean, turkey makes people sleepy, right? 🙂 Hope you’re having a great week, Jamie!
I love that you family plays so many fun games together during the holidays! I wanna join in haha.
I didn’t have any mac n’ cheese on Thanksgiving, but I more than made it up for it the next when I was at Disney and got the pot roast mac n’ cheese. Yes…it was amazing.
Whaaaat, pot roast mac ‘n’ cheese?! Sounds incredible!
I LOVE roasted broccoli! My friends and I usually eat roasted broccoli when we eat fondue and it’s delicious! We cook it until the broccoli almost burns so that they’re as crisp as chips! Sounds like your Thanksgiving was filled with super healthy foods! My Thanksgiving was pretty much all fried foods haha.
Mmmm, roasted broccoli with fondue sounds INCREDIBLE! It does get so crispy. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving, Lauren!
What a brilliant Thanksgiving tradition! I celebrated my first ever Thanksgiving this year with some of my running friends from the US and we had a brilliant time- I will be making the effort to celebrate annually from now on 🙂
Your kickboxing sessions sound pretty cool too- its always been something I’ve wanted to try.
Best of luck with the exams- they will be over soon and then… CHRISTMAS!
xx
Yay for your first Thanksgiving!! And thanks so much, Charlotte. Counting down the days till Christmas…24 to go!
Ahh! So glad that your Thanksgiving break was amazing and relaxing by the looks of it. It’s always amazing when one gets to spend time with the family! Especially ones you haven’t seen in a really long time Thanksgiving for me was a little tense this year but I pulled through.
I tend to always prefer the books to the movies (says the bookaholic in me) but I must admit that the directors did a phenomenal job on the Hunger Games movies and they were actually spot on for the most part :). I am team Peeta all the way! Especially after the second book!
Your family is too cute, especially your grandpa! I LOVE your family tradition of a family kickball game – so cool!
Your pup is adorable! Such a little fluffball, I love it! I never got into Lost because the ending was spoiled for me. I’ve heard most people give it up, but those who stick with it are happy they did so. Maybe you can make it!
Hunger Games questions: Neither team for the men. I find the love story party irrelevant and actually takes aware form the love I had for the story. I also thought the books were much much much better.
Thank you for the fun recap! It’ so nice to see your holiday celebration. 🙂 Have a wonderful week, Liv!
Oh no, I hope I can make ti through Lost without finding out the ending! The plan is to start watching again over Christmas break 🙂 Hope you have a great week, Julia!!
I seriously need to make your mac and cheese. I love shells and cheese, they are the best shape (unless you count Sponge Bob shaped pasta lol). My favorite dish at Thanksgiving is stuffing. My dad made me my own pan this year which was THE BEST! I made sweet potato cheesecake bars which were a hit.
I am team Peeta, but I still haven’t seen Mocking Jay 1 or 2. I read the books and they were good. Easy to read and exciting. I also love J.Law <3
Your sweet potato cheesecake bars sound amazing! And you’ve got to see the movies- Jennifer Lawrence can do no wrong 🙂
I love the idea of having a big kickball game on Thanksgiving! We have a tradition of doing a big neighborhood football game Thanksgiving morning, but unfortunately not enough people could make it this year. I just saw part 1 of Mockingjay yesterday, so I am looking forward to seeing part 2 soon. I read the books years ago, and I have to say I’m team Gale!
Your neighborhood football tradition sounds like so much fun! Hopefully more people will come next year 🙂 Hope you love part 2!
My favorite dish is stuffing. Stovetop stuffing just doesn’t compare to the stuff cooked inside the turkey! I also love sweet potato casserole. Luckily no one else really likes it, so I get to eat most of it myself. I liked the first Hunger Games book, but not the other two. I hated the ending of the books, so I’m curious to see if I like the movie ending better.
I wasn’t a fan of the last book’s ending, either, but I liked the ending of the movie!
Your family is the cutest! I love the idea of doing Mac n Cheese at Thanksgiving. My family made me some vegetarian stuffing which was delish but I gotta say I’m in it for the pie.
I somehow tend to forget about pie throughout the year but I LOVE it
Your grandpa is so sweet looking! 🙂 And I love that he loves ice cream as much as you! Mac n’ cheese sounds like a great, unusual addition to Thanksgiving. And this year I think I’ve realized just how much I appreciate solo runs sometimes more than doing a fast paced, high adrenalin race.
He really is the sweetest! And YES, even though I love races, some of my very favorite runs are just the quiet ones I do by myself
I LOVE Lost! Such a good show – you should definitely watch it all! And how fun to have a kickball game!
Ahahah! That graph though… so true! And wow! I love all your fun memories! You and your family are so beautiful! …and your grandpa is precious! YES, veggies + gelato = balance!! All about that. Also I love that you hit up the gym so much! Props my friend, props! And the football game… what a fun (fit!) tradition! Glad that you had a blast!
YUM! Thanksgiving food is the best food 😉
if you actually studied and worked on saturday then you did more than me, haha. sounds like you had so much fun! break was awesome. cooking up a feast was awesome 🙂
I’m definitely “Team” Gale. I was a KatnissGale fan from like page 1, before Peeta was a thing, haha. But honestly I dont love the movies that much!
Omg your family is so stinking cute! You look like you had a lot better weather than I did! That last meme cracked up since that was what I did most of thanksgiving break as well! All of those veggie dishes look amazing as well!