Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving this year, I got to fly home to Raleigh since I had just driven two days prior.  The Knoxville airport is small, but very nice.  I got through security quickly and anxiously waited an hour and a half to start boarding the plane to Atlanta.  In Atlanta, I grabbed Quiznos and ate it as I journeyed to my terminal (on the other end of the airport).  I also got a quick swirl cup from TCBY before boarding :)  Mom and Dad picked me up in Raleigh and took me home!!


Thanksgiving morning I went up to the barn and rode Ivan bareback for 30 minutes at the walk since his foot was sore from a bruise.  It was great to be back on him and nice to be at the barn.  The rest of the day was spent helping mom cook Thanksgiving dinner.  Justin came over shortly after lunch after feeding and milking at the dairy.  Thanksgiving dinner was amazing, as always.  We enjoyed delicious food and family and friends!  Two new recipes that I shared were a peanut butter pie and a new sweet potato casserole (both recipes from Brooke).  They were a big hit :) 


Friday Justin and I went back to the dairy because he had to put some hay out using the bobcat.  We met Margie, Mark, and Gillian Bowles for lunch at North Hills Club (where our reception will be).  It was delicious!  Justin and I love their family to death and we enjoyed catching up!  After lunch, Lauren (the events manager) showed us the ballroom and a few photo albums of pictures from weddings there.  It got me all excited again about our wedding :)  That evening, Justin and I went to my parents house for leftovers.  Again...delicious. 


Saturday morning I went and got my hair cut at Bobby Jo's new place.  She has been cutting my mom's hair for over 20 years and since Rita (she's been cutting my hair since I was born) was not in, I had Bobby Jo give me a trim.  Justin and I then went to the barn where I rode Ivan again at the walk for 30 minutes.  We cleaned up, had lunch, and went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 with mom, dad, and Tim.  It was awesome!!  After the movie, Justin, mom, dad, and I walked over to Lynnwood Grill which is next to the theater and had dinner. 


It was great to see everyone at church on Sunday.  I got to see a lot of my friends and got a warm welcome from everyone.  Jeannie (my maid of honor) and her fiance met us for lunch afterwards at Carolina Cafe and Bakery where I had my favorite lemon poppyseed muffin along with some awesome loaded potato soup.  It was great catching up with her and hearing all about her upcoming wedding next Fall.  Now she'll be my matron of honor :)


Leaving Sunday was not fun.  At all.  Of course it was sad to leave Justin, to leave my parents, and to leave my home, but it was not helped at all by the fact that I was flying alone and that I knew no one would be there waiting for me when I got into Knoxville.  The flight to Atlanta went smoothly.  I grabbed Qdoba and headed to my gate to eat it.  The plane we were to board had just come in internationally, so they had to do a security sweep and clean it.  That took a very long time and we ended up boarding about 45 minutes later than normal.  I got into Knoxville late and then was delayed further by a baggage jam...Finally I made it home to find an attention-starved kitty and my quiet little apartment. 


This past week has been fine.  Classes ended Tuesday and I had a final exam on Friday.  I have one more next Thursday and then this semester will be officially over as far as classes go.  I'm trying to stay busy, going to the slaughterhouse, making media, reading articles, and trying to stay focused.  As the holidays grow nearer, I'm getting more and more excited about seeing family again.  Although it won't be for nearly as long as I would like, it will be very nice to be around the ones I love for Christmas and to bring in the new year.