Thanksgiving, Carolina style

It had been a long long time since Kevin and I had made the 12-ish hour trip to North Carolina to visit Jenny and family. So this year for Thanksgiving, I convinced Kevin we should try our first long roadtrip with Gus. And so we went! We left Tuesday morning, and made it there pretty late Tuesday night. One highlight of the trip there was Gus's first happy meal.....I'm pretty sure he just ate a few french fries because we kept giving him snacks in the car to shut him up until Kevin would stop for lunch, but oh well. He enjoyed the toy that came with the food, so it was worth it.

While we were there, the cousins enjoyed playing with each other (for the most part). There was a lot of one boy mocking the other, be it 'words' or actions, and it was pretty entertaining. I think there were no major meltdowns, so that was good. Jenny and I worked to make a decent Thanksgiving dinner....she and Charlie brined a turkey that ended up being amazing. I made rolls and a chocolate pecan pie, Jenny made dressing. These were the most important things. Everything turned out pretty well. My biggest lament - no pumpkin pie. I guess I'll have to wait for Christmas.
Jenny and I made a few shopping runs, Kevin and Charlie and John drove up to the mountains for a Christmas tree, and we ate lots of good food. But as usual, the highlight for me was tasting some new wine. We went to a place Jenny and Charlie had never been before called Flint Hill - good stuff and a neat old farmhouse!

Flint Hill grapevines


Flint Hill winery....yes we were brave to take two little boys!


The Thole's in front of Pilot Mountain (at Ragapple Lassie)


When we went to Ragapple Lassie, Jenny and Charlie watched the boys while Kevin and I did the wine tasting. Possibly my favorite part of the trip! I just love every single wine they make!

So the majority of the pictures I took out there were just of Gus and John together. They had the same coat which made for some good pictures.

Playing in the back yard


Sharing a chair


Escape!


They love their tractors (or four-wheelers, in Gus's case)


Being calm?


Enjoying their sippy cups in the recliner


We had a great time out there, although we were glad to get back home to our dogs....and I'm sure Jenny was glad to have her house back in order, and lacking a bad-languaged lump on her couch.....
So glad they'll be here to visit in just a few weeks!