It's been awhile since I've posted an update here! Things are going great in Indiana. Nick and I just got back from a holiday trip to Iowa for Thanksgiving, and now I am counting down the days until Christmas break! Only one week of classes and one week of finals til my first semester of Optometry school is over! Hard to believe it has gone so fast. For Christmas, I believe Nick will only be home the 22nd through the 25th. Then he has to head back for work. I am planning on driving seperately so I can spend a bit longer with friends and family in Iowa. Tentatively I will drive home on the 20th and stay til the 1st or maybe 2nd? Not sure yet!
Anyways, these pictures are from Thanksgiving in Iowa. Nick and I went to 3 Thanksgiving celebrations while we were home. The first was Wednesday night at Bill and Lisa's house (Nick's parents). We ate and visited with Bill, Lisa, Nick's sister Melisa, Nick's brother Nate and his girlfriend Heather. It was a great night with roast beef instead of turkey - a nice change so that all the meals weren't exactly the same. The second get-together was Thanksgiving noon at Nick's grandma Mary's house. There were around 25-30 people there and we had a feast - all the usual Thanksgiving items, I'm sure no one left hungry! I also got to play cards with all of the younger kids while the adults socialized - it was a fun time (the other picture here is of me with Nick's cousing Chelsea who was the flower girl in our wedding).
Then we headed to my parent's house where we had an early dinner with my parents, Grandpa, Aunt Terry and Uncle Joe, Aunt Barb and Uncle Mike, and cousins Kristine and Karen and her husband Adam. Another great meal and conversation time here! Plus Kinnick and Herky had the opportunity to meet their dog-cousins; Karen and Adam brought their greyhound Razzy and the greyhound Sophie that they are fostering. 
We were also able to spend time with friends over break on Friday night, and had a great time eating at Zeno's in Marshalltown and playing darts and pool afterwards. On Saturday evening we were able to help my parents put up the Christmas tree and snap a few festive family photos in the process.
We are very thankful for the great time we had, the safe drive to Iowa and back, and we are also thankful that my grandparents (who were sick over break) are feeling better now! We are also very thankful that the dogs slept almost the entire 9 hour trip both ways!
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