blog adultery

so it has come to my attention that people do actually read this. wow. i stopped blogging for a bit because some friends of mine decided to start a little community blog together. so i've been posting on that. after checking on it everyday for the last few weeks though, i've realized that kate and i are the only ones writing anything, and also, it's apparently supposed to be private. so here i am again. i want to post something i put on there because it's pretty funny and provides some lovely insight into the inner workings of the savens family.

i call this one thanksgiving savens style.

thanksgiving with the savens this year was tradition at its finest. our thanksgiving routine has changed a bit in the last few years due to house sizes and sibling arguments, but this year was great. the final count this year was 30…we must be crazy i guess. all 30 of us were packed in my grandparents’ house…and when i say packed, i really mean it. some of you have been to my grandparents house, and it is not that big…and definitely not 30 people big. but like i said, it was great. we had a few family members drive in from st. louis, which was great because it had been about eight years since we had seen them. everyone arrived around 4 or so, at which time the champagne was popped and the appetizers were rolled out. this year we had chips and salsa (it is texas after all), a ginormous cheese ball with an assortment of crackers, and deviled eggs (a traditional dish for us that i have yet to partake from . everyone hangs out for a few hours, chatting and watching football, eating appetizers, and drinking…a lot. that’s one thing that the savens do quite well. as everyone is catching up, making jokes, teasing everyone (especially leah and i…the only aggies of the family), and having a good time, my grandma and my aunt are in the kitchen putting the last minute finishing touches on all the food. we have a lot of food. i mean, it’s a bit ridiculous. this year we had 2 fifteen pound turkeys and a turduckin (this was a first for us). we had a honey ham, 3 crockpots full of mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes covered in pecans, broccoli and cauliflower casserole, homemade gravy (my personal favorite), collared greens, broccoli and cauliflower “sunny” salad (bryan’s favorite), and a couple more casseroles that i was too full to eat. and of course, the dessert, we had our famous pumpkin gooey butter cake, two pumpkin pies, and two cheese pies. needless to say, we had far too much food. before we all sat down to eat, all 30 of us gathered in the living room and stood in a circle holding hands. we do this circle prayer every time we get together, especially at thanksgiving. we go around the circle, starting with my grandma and say a prayer or what we are thankful for. this time is typically filled with jokes and tears, sincerity and silliness, and it’s wonderful. we end with my grandpa, who blesses the food…then it’s time to eat! we started eating around 7, which of course, was kickoff for the a&m-texas game, so some people sat at the tables we had set up, but we all migrated to the living room soon enough. the rest of the night consisted mostly of watching football and rubbing every a&m touchdown in everyone’s faces. we had a lovely time. thanksgiving with the savens is always an event. this year was one of the first times in about ten years that we had little ones running around again. bryan used to be the youngest, but we had new little ones this year, and i couldn’t have been happier. there is definitely something different about the atmosphere when babies are there i guess that is really it for the savens thanksgiving. it was a great time and now we just have to wait for christmas eve…believe it or not, we do it up bigger and better then! i hope everyone had a lovely time with family and i wish you all a happy thanksgiving!

so obviously that was a bit late, but i wanted to share it with you anyway. i hope you are all doing positively fabulous. and now i need to get back to the last bits of my school work for the semester. aww...procrastination.

buona notte...e ora, devo studiare!