Still Thankful...

Even though the "official" Thanksgiving Holiday has come and gone, we are still thankful over here at the Ruley household.

Here are some highlights from our Thanksgiving Festivities:

Owen's Pre-school *POW WOW* Buddies

Wagging their lil' turkey tails
Gobble, Gobble

He loved every minute of their performance...it was so fun for me to finally have a turkey! My older three were all Pilgrims. :-)

Right after O's big moment came Ella's 1st Grade Class Feast

Her next door desk neighbor

who drew a picture about how much she & Ella loved each other

Ella's drawing...a few more friends & a touch of royalty!

This snuggly hug shows just how much Ella cherishes her friends...it melts my heart to see how much she adores others

Just for fun - a pic of the CUTEST turkey cookie ever!

A beautiful sight

Momma and her lil' helper finishing up the final touches to our Thanksgiving meal

Uh oh...my little man is sneaking around the buffet of desserts

Ahhh! He's definitely on the prowl!

Good thing the Ruley gang start arriving...Mimi with her 3 babies

Next thing we know Owen comes down in the OSU jersey Uncle Brad gave him...he seriously can't go without a jersey on for more than a couple of hours!

Time to eat!

Been waiting months to eat Uncle Bob's famous stuffing...yumo!

Before we knew it, we were summoned up to Abby's room for a Girls' Concert!

Some serious singin' went on....

along with some serious dancin'!

"YMCA" drew a crowd...Aunt Gayle was summoned to the dance floor!

The night would not have been the same without my dear friend Stephanie (& her hubby John). They have joined us for Thanksgiving for the past 6 years or so. We adore them!!

The next day one of my best friends from H.S. stopped by with her youngest of 4 boys...couldn't you just eat him up?! He was like a walking Gap ad!

Time for the King Thanksgiving! And that means, the annual Dog Pile!!

and Human Sandwich!

Baby Tanner was initiated into the boys' club - how sweet is it that my 11 yr old wants to hold him?! Now that is an attribute that makes a Momma smile. :-)

And...it's time to eat again!

One of our little furry friends figured out a way to get in on some of the fixin's too!

Following dinner, my newphew Mason gifted my O with a bag stock full of awesome pro sport jerseys! Nothing speaks Owen's love language like a jersey!!

The 9 year age gap does nothing to separate these two...

They love sports...and they love each other

It wouldn't be Thanksgiving weekend without a movie ~ Oma took my girls & cousin Emma to see *Tangled...they loved it!

Thanking God for blessing us with a Terrific Thanksgiving with family and friends...and praying that we can stay in that "place" of love, joy & peace as we move into December!