Blackmans on the Web (log)

For 2011 we have Ann’s mom and dad here along with the usual suspects. This tradition gets more special every year. How lucky we are to have such great family and friends nearby to celebrate the day.

thanksgiving_2011

55 Photos

Kind of hard to break the tradition. Here again are images from our day. Image updates every 15 minutes automatically (if it doesn’t, just refresh your browser)

We’re done! Here’s a brief slideshow of the images.

There’s nothing like San Antonio Fiesta! Mom and Dad nabbed a hotel right on the riverwalk and despite having to dodge some raindrops, a great time was had by all! Saturday afternoon was spent in Kyle at the Calvonos with baby Anthony as the rightful center of EVERYONE’s attention!

Photos by Scott. Thought (below) by Ann.

Reside: To be inherently present; exist

… An aha! moment in Santa Fe: That where you reside and where you live don’t always share the same address.

Whew! Great day. As always. Food was terrific (turkey was especially good this year). Bill and Lorette were here for the first time in a long time. New babies: Anthony and Allison. Great to have the boys home too.

FR: Sam, Sarah, Amber, Oliva, Peter, Allison, Amy SR: LeAnne, Jacob, Lorette, Bill BR: Pat, Diana, Joe, Anthony, MariFe, Matt, Alex, Shelby, Ann, Scott

..and present. And boy have they grown. The photo on the left was taken when the boys were in elementary school at Smith Elementary. Ashlee Verbruggen and Sam were in the same class together. Ashlee’s dad, Hans, suggested Sam and Alex go to a dance recital with him. He took this picture. Ashlee ended up going to a different middle school and they lost touch a bit. Then, back in High School Ashlee is a Sweetheart. Sam’s girlfriend Sarah is a Sweetheart. Sarah introduces Sam to her friend Ashlee and – shazam – the friendship is rekindled. This weekend we went to the State Fair. Big group of us. And there were Alex, Ashlee and Sam and that picture popped into my head. Sure glad I got it!

More photos from the 2009 Texas State Fair HERE

The countdown began for Sam’s last week at home with a nice evening with friends at Billy Bob’s. Billy Bob’s is in the Stockyards in Fort Worth and is billed as “The World’s Largest Honky Tonk”. Wouldn’t argue with that. Six of Sam’s friends and several parents went along for some two-steppin’ and knee slappin’. Great time was had by all. Even Alex and Shelby came up from Stephenville and showed us all how to REALLY two-step. Wow, somebody is going to throw their back out doing that, for sure. Click on the photo to see the fun.