If you’re coming into this week with slightly tighter fitting pants, I hope your hearts are at least a little bit fuller as well. This past week Philip and I packed up and headed to Iowa to spend a few quality days with my family; I left feeling thankful and blessed for be a part of such a wonderful, loving family.

Even though we were only there for about three days, we were able to fit in a lot of fun! I may be biased, but my niece (who is turning 5 this week) and my nephew (who’s 2) may be some of the cutest kids ever. They thought of all kinds of games for Uncle Philip and Aunt Kara to play and it was so much fun. From games to books to tea parties to running around, we certainly were not left “bored” for long. :)

On top of the awesome spread my mom prepared for us on Thanksgiving Day, we were able to celebrate my niece’s and my birthday, since our birthdays are only a day apart (give or take a few years ;)). There’s nobody else I’d rather share my birthday with than this princess. She loves everything princess-related and I love DQ ice cream cakes (I grew up having one every year), so my mom nailed it this year by giving us an Aurora ice cream cake for the two of us. #winning

We finished out our visit by heading to the North Pole (conveniently, the train leaving for the North Pole was only 20 minutes from where my parents’ live and the trek to Santa’s workshop was only 60 minutes, round trip). Cookies, hot chocolate, and Christmas songs made it for a fun way to get into the holiday spirit.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are joyously anticipating the upcoming Christmas season. Enjoy a peak at my family’s small, yet special, Thanksgiving gathering this year!