Thanksgiving in Tillamook

This year we spent our first Thanksgiving ever in Tillamook. Brendan usually had to work in the past but he was able to get a few days off. He couldn't join us for the whole time because he still had to work one of the days, but it was fun to have him there with the family when it was possible. Joanna, Valerie and Liz drove down from Utah as well as my Aunt Dorothy and Uncle John as well as 6 of their children (along with 2 spouses, 2 children and a boyfriend). It was fun to have so much company. Unfortunately, I didn't snap any pictures of the actual feast or family all together. But here are a few pictures that map out some of the adventures we had.

When my parents first moved to Tillamook, my Dad enjoyed driving around on the logging trails in the hills above their home. He found this great lookout spot that he calls "The Top of the World". From the Top of the World you can see all of the Tillamook Valley and the bay. We usually take a trip up there when we are visiting. I remember the family taking Brendan up there when we were dating. It's a pretty awesome sight.

Here are Mom and Dad at the Top of the World with the valley, bay and Pacific Ocean behind them.


Here are Liz and Hobbes. I love that Hobbes is clinging onto Liz so tightly. They weren't close to the end at all.

One of the many beautiful views from the Top of the World.

After everyone left to head back to Utah Brendan and I began our search for the perfect Christmas tree. Dad and Mom have a Christmas tree farm they started several years ago. This was our first official Christmas tree. For the first few years of marriage we didn't worry about it since we didn't have space for a tree and we always spent Christmas at our families' houses. But last year we wanted to have one for Hobbes. We ended up wrapping Christmas lights around an indoor palm tree that our landlord left. It was nice to have a tree but it wasn't a real one.

So thanks to Mom and Dad for generously letting us have one of their trees. Here was the lucky winner. Dad said he needed to be thinned out anyways because he was blocking other trees around him.

Hobbes had fun running through the trees.

Here is the freshly cut tree.

We are really glad we had the tree this year. It was nice to have the smell in the house and to decorate it. We made a couple of popcorn garlands to hang on it. I caught Hobbes eating them a couple of days later. So we took them off and just stuck with our ornaments. This experience taught me that I need to water the tree a lot more than I thought as well. The tree lasted a few weeks but then dried up and the needles would fall off. So we'll try again next year and see if we had keep it alive and brilliantly green until Christmas Day!