We're So Thankful!

We missed the rest of the Halberstadt crew in Asheville this Thanksgiving weekend!  William and I took FOUR hours to get from Chapel Hill to Charlotte on Wednesday night (normally a 2 hour trip) because of the holiday traffic.  However, it was completely worth it, because we got to pick Maris up at the Charlotte airport and whisk her to Asheville for the holiday.  Perry did not love the traffic, but he LOVED having Mel as a buddy in the back seat and was pretty good the entire way from Charlotte in his cute car harness.


Mom and dad were very sweet and had dinner (Sushi from Wasabi, our favorite japanese restaurant in Asheville) waiting for us when we got in around 9, and then we did some turkey prep and turned in.  Dad and I walked the puppy Thursday morning up to the cul de sac, and then the cooking began.  I can't claim large contributions to the cooking this year on Thanksgiving Day, because I fell asleep for several hours during the middle of the day while William watched football!  We had a nice group of 7 people for the meal - Mom, dad, William, Maris, and I, plus Ed and Amy Euler.  Of course, we ALWAYS miss Saba and Savta!!  We taped our thankfuls so you could feel like you were there, video is below.

Friday Mom, Maris and I did some fun shopping during the day, and then the whole crew (Mom, Dad, William, Maris and I) hiked up the mountain in the afternoon.  Dad took this picture with Perry at the top!

On Saturday, we got to wish Mom happy birthday, and Maris and I helped her organize her jewelry and scarves.  At lunch we went down town for sandwiches at City Bakery, and afterward we made a pretty silly sculpture of everything on the table at lunch (pictured below) - we had to bus our own tables, so in the end the mess was only for us to clean up!

For dinner we went to L.A.B. in downtown Asheville, the first time we had all been back since the evening before the wedding.  Afterward mom opened her presents (a super warm coat and vest from dad) and cards (Maris and I had gotten mom and dad Paul Simon Tickets for their November birthdays, so mom already knew her gift from us).  We had almond birthday cake from Sisters McMullen for dessert, and it was delicious!  Today we organized leftovers and took a walk on Vance Gap as a family, then William and I packed and headed back to Chapel Hill.  We were very sad to leave everyone, but it was a wonderful weekend and we were indeed thankful for every minute we had with the Mann-Stadt part of the Halberstadt tribe.  Hope everyone's Thanksgiving was just as wonderful!


Love,
Chailee, William, and the Mann-Stadts