What a Thanksgiving we had!  We knew it was going to be a fun and adventurous time but little did we know that we would be joined by parents from up north!  On Wednesday night, after spending about 90 minutes indulging in the Delta Sky Club and then making our 2.5 hour flight to Phoenix, we arrived to the Miller’s home to find two unsuspecting guests; Phil and Sue Snodgrass.  We were shocked to say the least.  We stayed up way too late talking before all calling it a night.  Bryan and I both went to bed feeling so overjoyed and loved.

Thanksgiving morning started…late!  Trish was already at it in the kitchen and even had the turkey out of the oven by the time we were out of bed.  Bryan led four of us on a morning walk through his neighborhood to stretch our legs before the big feast.  We sat down for our turkey dinner sometime around noon and the spread was amazing; turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, rolls, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, corn casserole, gravy.  We had everything we would want and it was all delicious.  Especially enjoyable having the six of us around the table together.  With our bellies full we did the dishes and packed up the car to head east to Greer, Arizona.

Our four hour drive went smoothly and the views were enjoyable.  The Texas vs. Texas Tech game was starting so we caught most of the first half at a bar called the Lions Den near Pinetop-Lakeside.  We shared several orders of zucchini fries and pickle fries and drinks before continuing on at halftime.  We arrived to our wonderful cabin in the dark and wind and hurried to unpack the cars.  Dad, Bryan and I ended up sitting in the car for a while to listen to the game on the radio once we were out of luck getting it on the TV.  Trish brought us out hot cocoa and once it was decided that Texas Tech was going to overcome Texas (in a very close game) we headed back in for cake before calling it quits for the day.

Friday morning started early for some of us.  Bryan, Mom and I geared up and headed out to hit Sunrise Mountain for our first ski day of the year.  The wind was howling but the sun was out making for pretty good conditions.  The snow wasn’t great but we still managed to get in over three hours of skiing and had a good time skiing together.  Back to the cabin for the highly anticipated leftovers and football and then we were packing up the cars again to test our luck at fishing.  Once we found a sheltered spot by the marina at Big Lake we were casting like old hands and landing more rocks than fish.  But eventually the fish started taking; first with Dad, then Bryan, then Mom and finally with me.  It was a successful trip for all fisherman and one sneaky eagle.  Friday night after a very full day outside in the elements it was good to curl up on the couch with a hefty bowl of chili and cornbread, watching more football games, and telling more stories.

Saturday marked our last day in Greer and Bryan and I again woke up early to see if we could catch anymore fish.  We tried Lake Tunnel and then the River where we landed only one more trout but had a pleasant morning lakeside in the sunshine.  Bryan and I met the family back at the cabin for the start of the Michigan vs. Ohio State game and a delicious brunch cooked by the moms for us.  Unfortunately, the game wasn’t as good as the food was and I sourly packed up to head back to Phoenix.  The drive back was again beautiful but long and we pulled into their driveway around dinner time.  We had the opportunity to meet Clem and Roxy was home.  We had dinner of Rudy’s BBQ until we were filled to the gills, watched more football, and whiled away the time before we had to take my parents to the airport.  At around 11pm we dropped them off and said our goodbyes and made our way back to Chandler.

Sunday morning was a super late start for all of us and I woke up with a horrendous headache which I’m sure was fueled by dehydration.  Once up I had some BBQ leftovers and then Bryan and I headed out to climb Squaw Peak at the late hour of 2:30 pm.  Squaw Peak was a steady but short climb of 1.2 miles each way and about 1,200 feet in elevation gain.  It did not feel at all easy for us though.  We really struggled with the dry air and whatever else was going on in our system.  We made it up to the rocky top in 45 minutes, enjoyed the views for a bit, then headed back down in 45 minutes.  We were back at home to watch our recorded Seahawks vs. Steelers game without commercials.  Trish made us a truly remarkable dinner of those shiny trout we caught, grilled with hatch chilies, some pan fried okra, hashbrown potatoes, coleslaw, and cooked carrots.  Everything tasted good and I really enjoyed eating my catch.  We watched Sunday Night Football and had a piece of pumpkin pie before trying to get to bed at an early hour for our early wakeup call.

Monday morning was awful.  Not only did we wake up at 2:30 am Pacific Time, but we both felt nauseous on the plane, we had to work full days, and we had to say our goodbyes.  Seattle is sunny but chilly at the moment and I am seriously in a trance from lack of sleep.  A good nights sleep should get us straight but we had an amazing Thanksgiving 2015 thanks to our amazing parents!

Chelsea