Well it’s been over a week, but I finally had a minute to sit down and share a little peek into our Thanksgiving festivities this year.

This was Marlee’s first Thanksgiving, which meant we made some changes to our usual crazy busy day. For the past 13 years that Ryan and I have been together, we have always done our best to take care of everyone and attend everything. This means that the past 12 years, we’ve attended 3 or 4 Thanksgivings on Thanksgiving (2 or 3 for Ryan’s family and one for mine) and then my grandma’s on Sunday. This just didn’t seem like a good plan for our little lady who can get overstimulated quickly in big groups and fights naps like no one’s business when there’s a lot going on.

So for the first time ever, we simplified our day and prioritized our family! We kept Thanksgiving day to just one side of Ryan’s family and his immediate family. Friday we spent some family time with Ryan’s immediate family before they headed north again. And then headed back home to prep for a Thankgiving visit from our friends, Matt, Tisha, and Nathan. And Sunday with my extended family. Our little lady still fought naps like no one’s business, and she got over stimulated at Ryan’s extended family gathering. But this definitely went better than if we had tried to do it all again.

It’s funny how different each baby is. Ryan has a cousin who’s little guy handles big events like this with ease! He doesn’t seem to get overwhelmed by the noise or the busyness. But Marlee is a bit more sensitive to it. It just goes to reiterate the idea that you know your child and you’ll know what they need. It was pretty sweet watching Marlee interact with her little cousin Charlie, who’s pretty close in age. They both wanted to touch each other’s faces. Nathan and Marlee were pretty precious too. Nathan was so excited to see her and wanted to play with her so badly!

We feel incredibly blessed that we’re getting to celebrate so many firsts with Marlee this year and I’m looking forward to starting all the Christmas fun and traditions too! So here’s a quick little peek behind the scenes into our Thanksgiving fun!