Time for a photo dump! I figure since it’s almost halfway into December and Tim and I got our Christmas tree last night, I should probably share some scenes from Thanksgiving.

Our Thanksgiving actually started the weekend before Thanksgiving because Slesh and Will hosted our annual Friendsgiving that Sunday. Tim and I spent a good part of our Saturday in the kitchen with music and red wine as we prepared lots of delicious food to bring over.

We made his and her stuffed mushrooms because we couldn’t agree on what kind to make. I made a Mediterranean version with quinoa, feta, walnuts, and sun-dried tomatoes, and Tim made a reinvented version of the bacon and blue cheese ones I posted eons ago. We also prepared a winter kale salad with homemade cranberry vinaigrette and this homemade cranberry sauce. It was fun having a day together in the kitchen, although I guess we do spend a lot of time in there anyways!

Slesh and Will’s was really fun. It was full of friends, laughing, lots of food, festive accessories (from Bridget of course!), game playing, face timing with Erica, drinks, and more. I left feeling grateful for the friends in my life!

On Thanksgiving morning, Tim and I woke up early for a little workout action. We did a quick metabolic resistance workout that consisted of 10 deadlifts, 10 pushups, 10 weighted step ups, 10 single arm rows, and 10 kettlebell swings, AMRAP in 25 minutes. I posted this status on Facebook after our workout which pretty much sums it up!

After our sweat sesh, it was time for family and food! We started at Tim’s aunts for the earlier part of the day and finished up at my aunt’s with my family. We brought more stuffed mushrooms to Tim’s aunts (we doubled the batch we brought to Slesh and Will’s so it would be one less thing to make the day before Thanksgiving), and I made brownies to bring to my aunt’s. My aunt has a nut allergy, and my uncle has a coconut allergy, and I never realized how hard it is to healthify a dessert without any nuts or coconut. My solution was black beans! They came out pretty good. I also tried to make a gingerbread pumpkin bar, but those didn’t come out as great.

This was the first year that the timing worked out for us to get to see both families on the same day, so we were definitely grateful for that. The wine was flowing all day, and I got excited talking about wedding stuff with my cousin who is a bridesmaid in my wedding party. Of course it’s always fun to see my god-daughter who is getting so big.

The rest of my Thanksgiving weekend was a nice combination of friend time and Tim time. Liz and I taught back to back classes on Black Friday, and we grabbed breakfast with the gym crowd afterwards. Tim and I hung in together on Friday night, I got all the details for my Holiday Hustle Challenge ready, we went out to lunch with our friends who were in town on Saturday, and we saw Tim’s sister and her boyfriend for margaritas on Saturday night. Sunday I went to a baby shower and spent the rest of the day relaxing. It was definitely a much-needed break from the grind.

–Let’s chat–
How were your Thanksgivings and long weekends this year? Even though I’m a bit late with this, I want to hear about them!

I’m off to my monthly massage appointment tonight! Fits right in with today’s challenge theme of stressing less. Also, don’t forget about my giveaway for a free week of meals to your doorstep from Just Add Cooking. Not many people are commenting, so you definitely have a good chance of winning. Have a great night, you guys!