off to ia we go

I am so excited that we are leaving for Iowa today. Jimmy has some meetings in Waterloo the rest of this week and heads to Seattle for work next Monday and Tuesday, so my boss was gracious enough to let me tag along and work from Waterloo for those few days to avoid us having to drive another vehicle back for Thanksgiving. Which means we will be “home” for almost 2 weeks and I am really looking forward to it. The whole Davis clan will be around this year - my older sister, Kirsten, and her family live in Denver, CO and they will roll into town next Tuesday night through Saturday. I can’t wait to see her 30 weeks pregnant and get some good laughs from our 2 year old nephew Asher, he’s such a personality and is just hilarious! My younger sister, Jacinda, will be getting to my parents next Wednesday morning, and we will get to see lots of my brother and his family in the days to come since they live just 4 miles from my parents! I love seeing my family after it’s been awhile because they really are some of my closet friends that I miss when I don’t see, and my nephews and niece are the greatest, I love them more than I ever thought possible – Lord knows how it will be with my own kiddosJ!

Devin - our oldest nephew, he's 4

Eden, our only niece, she's 2

Asher, our younger nephew, he's 2
Much to Mommy's dismay he got into my suitcase and found something he thought he'd try on:)

The nice thing about Jimmy and I being from towns close to each other is that we get to be with both families for the holidays. So we will split our time between the Davis and Grover households and the Grover house is never short of fun either. I am really looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner at his Grandparents house and a big Grover family Thanksgiving on the Sunday following Thanksgiving. We actually do a “Thanksmas” with the Grover family combining both holidays because there are SO many of them. Jim, Jimmy’s dad, is 1 of 12 kids who all have lots of kids and many of them are now married with kids too. Jimmy literally has over 100 first cousins on the Grover side. So, needless to say, it’s a big family and I am still learning all their namesJ! Jimmy’s mom, Robin, is also planning a Christmas trip for the Grover siblings and her and Jim so I’m excited to hear where she’s at with that and help her finalize the plans (if needed). More to come on the determined destination - all I have to say is that it will be warm I will be in a swimsuit fat pregnant drinking virgin pina coladas and I’m going to love itJ!

And I almost forgot to mention one of my favorite things about Thanksgiving - BLACK FRIDAY! My mom, sisters, and I are among the crazy people that get up at the crack of dawn to run into stores in hopes of snagging a good deal. We never used to do this and honestly I have no idea why we even decided to start a few years ago, but we did. We now are spending Thanksgiving evening looking through sale ads and mapping out our plan of attack! I have some humorous stories from years past that may or may not include my stumbling/stepping on a midget, Jacinda loudly telling people they stink and need to take a shower, and my mom and I almost getting beat up for “cutting” in line – we were only hiding behind cars people! We always debate which vehicle will give us optimal space for our purchases and comfort, this year we may need to take into account that two of us will be pregnant and therefore, may need some additional spaceJ Regardless, we have a great time, get tons of Christmas shopping done, snagging some things for ourselves as well – even if it means getting up at 2:30am!

So that’s our Thanksgiving plans in a nutshell. I am in need of some relaxation and family time and am sure I will get it in the next few weeks!

One thing I am not looking forward to about heading back – the cold weather! The Ugg boots and sweaters are packed!