Thanksgiving in New York & Aunt Mary's 60th Birthday

Luke, Andrew, Deborah, James, Rachael & Anna
This year Anna and family made the trip to New York to celebrate a Fagella family Thanksgiving dinner.  There were lots of things to be thankful for this year!

First, we were thankful just to be able to make the trip.  After Joe's hospital stay and various other family members with assorted colds and the flu, we were not sure if we would make it.  Make it we did!

Second, we were thankful to Uncle John, Aunt Yvonne, and Deborah for hosting the festivities.  They even had The Godfather, Part II playing when we arrived.  John and Yvonne were also celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary.  Aunt Yvonne fondly recalled the first time John brought her home to meet his family.....and proceeded to tell them she didn't speak any English (she of course did).  One can imagine how that family dinner went as they tried to communicate with her.

Third, were were thankful that most of Anna's cousins were there, including Luke who made the trip from his new home in Wyoming.  Anna had a great time hanging out with them.  She also perfected her Long Island accent thanks to James.

Fourth, we were thankful for the chance to help Aunt Mary celebrate her 60th birthday.  James made an awesome video with hundreds of people saying happy birthday to Mary (check it out here) .  We watched the video as a family, although some parts of the video bordered on PG-13 (when you have one man in his birthday suit and another one in his underwear....well Anna has something to tell her friends at school this week).  The video also featured a guest appearance by Whoopi Goldberg.  How much better can a birthday get?

Fifth, we were thankful to Aunt Mary for hosting us for the rest of the weekend, along with Aunt Lucy and Aunt Terri.  She had a second Thanksgiving meal prepared.  Anna got to enjoy a post-dinner late night snack with James, Luke, and Andrew on Thanksgiving night, where she ate roughly 10 more desserts.  In addition, James took us on a tour of one of the nearby Vanderbilt summer houses (always a treat).  Theresa got to visit her favorite local bookstore.  It was a relaxing weekend!

Finally, we are thankful for a very smooth trip home, complete with a delicious breakfast at a New Jersey diner.  Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Birthday to Aunt Mary, Aunt Lucy & Aunt Loren!

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