Thanksgiving in Alabama, part 1

This year, the Howards spent Thanksgiving down in Alabama with the Glenn/Watson side of the family. We drove, splitting the 11-12 hours in half by stopping over in Bristol, VA. (It is always a little odd to think that halfway to Pell City is still in the Commonwealth of Virginia!) Liam held up well, despite not wanting to sleep in the hotel OR nap in the car very much.

After catching up on some much needed sleep Friday evening, Geoff, Liam, Mims, Baba, and I packed up and headed to Auburn for the Homecoming game. Our first stop was at Connor and Shannon's house, where we got to see Baby Avery's nursery. It is GORGEOUS with a palette of dark, chocolate brown with pink and green accents. Then Connor, Shannon, Geoff, and I headed for Mama Goldberg's, an Auburn tradition, where we met up with some dear friends for beers before heading into Jordan-Hare Stadium.

It was a gorgeous day for a game, and despite having to sit near the few Samford fans who made the trip down, we had a blast. After the game, we met Mims, Baba, and Liam at Toomer's Corner, for what is probably our last time (and Liam' ONLY time) to roll the trees. (Read the sad story here if you must).

Liam LOVED Toomer's, and you could see it in his face that he knew this was a special experience. I know some people think it's silly to get upset over dying trees, but it is more than that to me. Generations of Auburn people have been celebrating Auburn victories at Toomer's Corner, and to have Liam and Baby Avery miss out on that due to a crazy, unbalanced man (who is a fan of the OTHER football team in the state of Alabama) just breaks my heart. I hope Auburn's amazing scientists can pull off a miracle.

The next week was all about playtime outdoors, enjoying the BEAUTIFUL weather. Baba hooked a wagon up to Grandwacky's tractor and took us for a ride down by the lake. Liam LOVED it.

After a while, Liam was not content to ride anymore. He had to help Baba drive the tractor!

Liam also enjoyed playing ball/being chased by Uncle Connor.

All in all, it was a fabulous week, topped off by a scrumptious, Southern Thanksgiving meal, prepared by my Mom and Aunt Betty. But more about that in the next post.

Our love to all!