We {heart} Thanksgiving in NYC!

We set a precedent early on (before kids even, I think) that we don't travel for the holidays, which eliminates unnecessary stress due to long travel and allows us to form (and keep) our own family traditions which we hope the boys will grow up loving, and look fondly upon one day. Every Thanksgiving, we go watch the balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade be inflated all around the American Museum of Natural History, followed by a balloon inflation party hosted by friends of ours whose apartment overlooks the museum, and Thanksgiving morning consists of a trip to the one and only Krispy Kreme in the city for delicious, naughty donuts (!) followed by a morning run through Central Park and, of course, viewing the actual parade! We tried out a new spot this year, at the south end of Central Park on top of a large rock outcropping, which turned out to be a real winner of a spot! Not too crowded, eye level with the balloons, easy access from Central Park! And for the second year, we had Friendsgiving dinner with dear friends. 

As a part of the holiday weekend, we also went up to West Point to see our friends who work/live there. The weekend included gingerbread house decorating and lots of college football, including the Clemson game. We had such a good time hanging out, I only took a few pics!

Aside from the aforementioned reasons for staying home for holidays, we also feel like the city is such an incredible place to be during the holiday season, and it's true we  make many sacrifices to live in New York, but the balance of that is often taking advantage of the unique aspects of living here. It's like no place in the world, and at no time is this more true than during the holidays. Speaking of, we are incredibly grateful for many things this year. The boys are both thriving in school, our jobs are both very fulfilling and provide a much-needed work life balance, which is a combo that often hard to achieve. We feel blessed to live here, to serve here, to be called here as long as the Lord allows. Happy Thanksgiving to all!!