thanksgiving in pictures

Thanksgiving break was pretty incredible. I got home on Saturday the 20th, Braeden arrived the morning of Tuesday the 23rd, and Jen came in the night of Wednesday the 24th. My cousin Adrienne showed up sometime in there and by the time actual Thanksgiving rolled around we had a full house. All the beds and couches were taken, and I ended up sleeping on the floor. But it was so so fun.

I just love Jen and love whenever I get to see her. She is so driven and smart and funny and fun to be with and talking to her always brightens up my life. Braeden fit right in with the family and didn't even bat an eye when my brother Garrett got up at Thanksgiving dinner to say what he was grateful for and said, "You know, friends, and family and... all of Cassi's boyfriends. They're all really great." Really, Garrett? Really? All of them? Not one in particular? Like the one who's here at dinner with us? The one who I am dating right now? Thanks, man. Thanks. My cousin Adrienne always makes everything more fun with her energy, story telling, and simultaneously hilarious and horrifying faces and she always inspires me to be more helpful and of service to others through her example. The Nelsons (our friends from Brooklyn who came out for Thanksgiving who I could write pages and pages about but will restrain myself for now) are like family and fill my soul with happiness every time I see them.

On Friday I went and visited the Siemans, one of the families I babysat for this past year, and it was so fun to see the kids again and see how much they'd grown in even such a short time. They got to meet Braeden and Jen and it was really cute how excited they were to see me. I love those kids. I brought my camera to take a picture with them, but of course once we were there I forgot to pull it out. Classic.

On Saturday I got to see my friend Erin from high school in person—we text and blog and email a lot, but in person visitations are a real treat these days. Braeden made us all Nutella and banana crepes and we all just sat and chatted and she told me that she approves of him, which is always nice. Haha.

I am so thankful for the friends and family that I have and the experiences we are able to share together. This is a fact. So much so, that I am thankful for them even when it's not Thanksgiving.

And now, a few pictures, a very few, of one event: (see if you can guess what it is...)

Jen, Braeden and I went to see the Macy's Day Parade balloons get inflated. (Also blown up, but that sounds a lot more destructive....)

Jen's favorite was Kermit the Frog's butt. Can you see it? It's that giant green orb on the horizon.

I liked Horton from Horton Hears a Who. An elephant is the noblest of creatures, as everyone knows.

Braeden sat next to the pilot of the Buzz Lightyear balloon on the plane out to Jersey, so of course we had to get a picture taken with it. "To infinity... and beyond!" Not quite as cool as my friend Erin who's brother got to pilot one of the balloons, but close...

But my favorite, of course, was this old man we saw in the crowd with this incredible beard. "Santa? Nope..."

Hooray for Thanksgiving!