the balkmans came to town

this could get long. but, it doesn't get much better than being surrounded by your favorite people and amazing food. my mom, dad, little brother and sister came for thanksgiving this year. we kicked it off with the mcdonald's thanksgiving day parade bright and early (and then there were some who slept in...)

with my dad, you always manage to get in where you're not supposed to be. we walked into the mcdonald's employee section where they were handing out free hot chocolate with front row seats to the parade. perfect.

chandler let me play with his lenses

the turkey was fabulous. so was the company. and so were the five pies for six people...

we did the black friday thing, only with the start at 9am part. it was still a little crazy, but so fun.

nine floors of macy's decorations at the flagship store. unbelievable.

chandler doing what he does best - taking pictures

the view from nate's office building. we took my family to the top of the aon center instead of the sear's tower. almost as good.

oh i love her.

and because we live in the heart of tourism, we did touristy things. like navy pier. and the ferris wheel.

steph acting her age

dad acting his age

we ended the weekend with chicago deep dish pizza and the blue man group

it was so good. thanks family!
geoff and kash - we missed you a lot.