Thankful it's over

As Thanksgiving has just passed, I should write of that for which I am most thankful, which is that Thanksgiving has just passed. It was a long weekend of eating with family, family, and more family. I love them, but a little bit does go a long way. I missed the Wednesday preparations, as I was out Christmas shopping with some friends, but the fun started Thursday morning as my Aunt Arlene came over around 10:00 to help prepare lunch. We (my parents, Arelene, and I) ate around 12:00 and my sister finally arrived with her husband and two children at 1:30 or so. This would be excusable if she lived three states away rather than on the other side of town. We chatted and played games (mostly Chronology) throughout the afternoon.

Our house cleared out by 5:30, and my parents and I headed to my Aunt Linda's house, less than five miles away. There we chatted again, ate again, and played more games (this time Mexican Train). Here we had Aunt Linda, Uncle Bob, and their granddaughter Kristina, Arlene and her daughter Beverly, my cousins with their spouses and children, and various in-laws of cousins that I had never met before ... craziness!

Craziness? Hmm ... actually that word better fits Saturday and Sunday, when I was at my Aunt Kathy's house in Cleveland. This was a busy weekend of shopping and basketball games and no plumbing. Yep, ten people in one house and no toilets but the ones in the gas station down the street. Sleeping arrangements were also fun. There were five people in beds, four on couches, and one on the floor. I had a couch and shared a room with my aunt's granddaughter, Kristina, and my Uncle Jeff's mother, who, though sweet as can be, suffers from dementia. Fun, fun, fun.

I think that was more than enough fun for one weekend.