Funny Guy Friday... So much to be thankful for...

    Funny Guy Friday is written each week by my husband, Mark. So, I married a Funny Guy! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
    Thanksgiving is one of the greatest holidays of the year for our family. Unlike Christmas, there is no pre-holiday rush to shop, except for purchasing food at the grocery store, and we have the opportunity to spend time with our family. Every year, Thanksgiving Day starts with my side of the family getting together for a pre-game breakfast and our annual Turkey Bowl.
    For the record, my son Matthew (note: when he dropped a crucial fourth down pass two years ago, he was Cheryl's son) walked away with this year's MVP trophy in a thrilling 19-19 tie. I must admit, I left the football buffet full but not satisfied due to the tie. I am not competitive but Gee whiz, if my nephew's kid would have caught that stupid extra point, we would have won the Turkey Bowl for an unprecedented fourth year in a row. Remind me not to have him on my team next year----the loser. And don't keep giving me that "he's only four years old" excuse, he was on the field to make plays. 
    After the game we returned home to prepare the Thanksgiving feast. We always like to host and each year we alternate which family we have over. This year we hosted Cheryl's family.
    The sights and sounds of my in-laws' Thanksgiving week began with my sister-in-law. Sue, flying in from Washington with her husband and three kids on Monday. Her husband is a pilot and he met up with the family in Utah. He had a first class ticket that he graciously gave up to his wife. This is where the fun began.
    She sat in her aisle seat, and, as she described....did what you normally do, you know when you first sit down in first class and you start looking around to see what everyone is doing and what they are reading. Two things struck me about this comment. First, I have never flown first class, so I don't really know what people do in first class. Second, I have a hunch it is only people who don't usually fly first class that are the ones that sit down and start looking around to see what everyone is doing and what they are reading. I think what happened next confirms my hunch.
    The gentleman across the aisle looked familiar to her as he watched his computer and kept running and re-running plays from an NFL game. She also thought he was working on a document that had something to do with fumbling. Apparently, she was doing some serious eyeballing at this point as she also noticed that he had a huge Super Bowl ring with that trophy on it. She started to put two and two together and recognized that the guy sitting across the aisle from her was former Redskin coach and Hall-of-Famer Joe Gibbs.
    She started to get a little nervous because she knew that she had to say something to Joe Gibbs because she knew that when she got home, everyone in my family is going to wonder why you would sit next to Joe Gibbs and not say something. 
    It's funny because I think that my family would wonder why you would sit next to Joe Gibbs and say anything that would bother the guy. Anyway, Joe got up to go to the bathroom and at that point her 11 year old son wandered up to first class to see his mom. Having your second class kids come visit you in first class is, I am sure, something that the other first-classers must have appreciated. Anyway, she told her son who Joe Gibbs was and that he had been sitting in the currently unoccupied seat right across the aisle.
    Her son went back to his dad who confirmed that he too recognized some guy that had gotten on the plane. This prompted a second trip to first class to see his mom and this time he wanted to meet the coach---now mom had her angle to break the ice with her new best bud, Gibbsy---an 11-year-old shield if you will.
   When Coach Gibbs returned to his seat, she leaned over and said to him there is someone I would like to introduce you to. This also struck me as very funny because that is something that you say to someone that you know when you are introducing them to someone else that you know. You don't go up to a stranger and start introducing people---she skipped a huge, critical step in the whole introduction process.  Anyway, Gibbs responded with a confused look and so she asked, you are Joe Gibbs aren't you?
    Well, it turns out he was not exactly Joe Gibbs. He was, however, an NFL referee. Hence the fumble document and the NFL videos. He also had participated in two Super Bowls. Hence the Super Bowl ring. Sometimes when you put two and two together you get five. Wow, what do you say at that point... Do you know Joe Gibbs? and if you do, would you mind introducing him to me and my son?  Funny start to a fun week.
     Cheryl's entire family was in town on Tuesday for a planned photo shoot with a professional photographer. This was a gift from the kids to Cheryl's parents. Nailing down the date did not prove to be easy, unless Cheryl's sister Sue had managed to divorce her husband, as I had suggested in at least three of the emails that I had sent leading up to this. He is the pilot, and he had to leave on Wednesday. Tuesday had to be the day as it was the only day the entire family could be together. Divorce was off of the table. Cheryl advised me that she did not care that I had court in a county two hours away. Take care of it and get to the shoot....or else our divorce will be put back on the table!
    Cheryl and her sisters planned a day of photos at a local hometown park and also at a nearby Mansion. The idea was to get photos at recognizable locations in the city where they grew up. Great idea, what could possibly go wrong?
    You know, I think that Noah, when he planned to build the ark, also thought what could possibly go wrong?... right before the rains came. Did I mention that it rained all day Monday and Tuesday? And as you recall, changing the day was not an option. Cheryl's sister chose to steadfastly cling to her stupid marriage to the fly boy. Because of the rain, the plans had to be altered. Everyone met at my in-laws home and we started with individual family photos, and we were going to then see if the weather would give us a break.
     At some point, the photographer mentioned that she thought that we could take photos of the family walking along a familiar street that leads up to the Mansion. The street is unique because it has a tree tunnel. Great idea but there are these things called automobiles that travel down this street on a pretty regular basis. No problem, she knew a City police officer that would meet us and stop traffic. Awesome, a photographer with connections. It worked out well for the officer as well, as he was able to throw the cuffs on my niece and throw her in the back of his cruiser. Apparently, there was a warrant that we didn't know about. Luckily, her uncle is a lawyer and we were able to cut a deal for her release.
    The weather cooperated just a little, and we headed to the Belair Mansion for a few photos of the entire clan. We arrived and began walking about the property looking for the best location. After mulling about, we were ready to line up for the photo when a different City police officer arrived and questioned if we were some type of organization! I suppose he suspected we were part of the "Occupy Bowie" protest that you may have all read about. It was either that or he, too, was looking to arrest my niece. After convincing him that we were not part of any "Occupy" movement, which wasn't too difficult because we were all showered, well groomed and could prove that we had jobs.....we continued with our photos.
All things considered, another great day!
     Thanksgiving dinner was awesome. Cheryl's sister Annie was once again a huge help in the food preparation (see last Thanksgiving's Funny Guy Friday) and I was both full and satisfied with this buffet. However, there was one moment that highlighted the difference between hosting Cheryl's family and hosting my family, besides the fact that my sister-in-law does not put cranberries in her sweet potatoes. This moment occurred when my father-in-law got everyone quiet and stood up to make an announcement.
    Now when this happens when my family is all together, it means someone is either getting married or is about to have a baby. With everyone's attention on him, my father-in-law announced that he had found a jacket in the back of his car and wondered if any of the grandkids would claim it. My daughter Grace and I laughed because we both thought that Grammie was pregnant. We are thankful that she is not.
    Anyway, I realize that I do have so much to be thankful for. The Lord provides for me every day and has blessed me with a great wife, three terrific kids, wonderful parents, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews and friends. He even came through with great in-laws. Thanksgiving provides such a great opportunity to spend time with all of them. I hope that you all had a great Thanksgiving and that you all had the opportunity to spend time with your loved ones.   Happy Thanksgiving!

Rainy Day Photo Shoot

Turkey Bowl 2011 Players

Turkey Bowl MVP Winning Catch

Funny Guy with the Boys

Thanksgiving Dinner