Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1)

We had a great weekend with family up in Michigan over the Thanksgiving holiday. The weekend kicked off with our fourth annual Giere Classic 5K. Chris and Ronnie joined us for the first time this year.

Ruth walked the short course…that is until she realized Jake was about to run past her, and then she decided to throttle up. He was a good brother and let his sister cross the finish line first.

These two were running buddies.

After the race, we relaxed, chatted and played games. Then everyone got dressed up for dinner.  Poor Jeremy forgot to pack his button-down shirt, so he wore one of Derek’s.   He was quite concerned about the excess fabric.

My mom carved the turkey…with supervision.

After a cousin sleepover, my dad took the girls for a walk to the windy beach.

Then we celebrated two birthdays. Uncle Jim and Nathan suddenly grew mustaches during the party.

The weather was beautiful on Friday, so we spent much of the afternoon outside.

Two of my cousins recently adopted puppies, and they brought them over so we could meet them. Guess who was especially happy about this?

Most of the family gathered again Friday night for a delicious meal. It was fun to have a new member at the kids’ table.

We drove home Saturday night and headed to church before having to bring Jake to the airport.

As always, it was tough to say goodbye to him. I’m still waiting for it to get easier.

We ended the weekend with hearts overflowing with thanks to God for family, and most of all for Himself and allowing us to know Him!