Thanksgiving on the Compound

How do I explain the Hill compound? Hm.

Chris' Dad (PD) invited Chris' cousin (Colin, but everyone calls him Kodiak, except for me who calls him Conrad) to live with him. So PD and Conrad live in house #1. Chris' brother (Justin) is married to Laura. She and Justin live immediatly next door in house #2. They have a pal, Casey, who lives with them-- as well as Laura's brother (Andrew). Makes perfect sense, right?! Chris and I stay with PD and Conrad when we visit and my parents, who come for Thanksgiving, park their motor home between the two houses. So for Thanksgiving, the Hill compound includes 10 people. Add to the mix Johanna and Jeremy (who don't live on the compound, but visit every day) and little Maria... well, it makes for an exciting holiday! Perfectly clear, right? No? Well, ok... here's a crudely drawn chart:

Ah ha! Now you understand the Hill Compound!

It's become tradition that Chris, my parents and I travel to Baton Rouge to spend a week on the compound each Thanksgiving. This week includes two card tournaments, a Laser Tag throw down, a Thanksgiving meal for 30, an Iron Chef competition, a Secret Scarf Society Meeting and a Cookie Extravaganza. That's just a taste of the chaos-- in the "downtime" we are busy with runs to the warehouse, Gumbo making lessons, Harry Potter watch parties and (this year only... hopefully) a morning spent with the Baton Rouge vet!

But before I can get into all the fun... let's start with the trip to Baton Rouge. (Otherwise titled, "Five Photos of my Adorable dog, Gordon!")

Gordon and my dad are two peas in a pod. Gordon's favorite spot in the Motor Home is on the back of my dad's chair while he's driving.

He likes to think he's a part of the action. Here's my dad maneuvering through the parking lot. First he said, "everyone look to the left to make sure we aren't going to hit anything."

So Gordon looked to the left.

Then he said, "now let's look to the right to make sure we're clear."

And Gordon looked to the right.

Then my dad said, "Gordon, are you sure we're set?"

And Gordon nodded in approval.

This is a true story. Anyone else concerned that we have a dog as our lookout?

After safely exciting the parking lot... Gordon finds himself off duty. He likes to sit on my lap in the front seat to take in the scenery:

Once we made it to Baton Rouge we were greeting by the members of the compound. PD had set up a Wine Tasting Table for us which we enjoyed throughout the week.

That night we enjoyed our first annual "Hill Compound Mexican Train Domino Tournament". Photos and stories from that will be posted tomorrow!