"We are family"

In short, my family is exactly like the family in the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding. We are loud, laugh a little too much, eat too much, and have a ginormous family. This year, my dad, my sisters and I went down to Rochester MN to celebrate thanksgiving with my dad's side of the family. If there was a song that described my family it would be "good time" by Owl city and Carly Rae Jepsen. One of my many cousins, Tia, is an amazing cook, and she cooks the turkey and most of the appetizers.We always have spanakopita, or spinach pie, and tiropita, cheese pie.  This year, my sisters and I helped make both of those dishes. They were very fun to make, but very messy and time consuming.They ended up being amazing! She also makes homeade pumpkin pie for dessert which is always a treat! The family that was down here was Mariya(my cousion), Johnny(my other cousin), Tia(yet another cousin), Thea Connie(Aunt Connie), Uncle Nick, my dad, Yiayia(grandma), Papou(grandpa), Uncle Jim, Louis(my cousin), and Diana(a family friend).

 Thea Connie makes the sweet potatoes, cranberries, and whatever else we decide to eat. Everyone helps cooking the food but Thea Connie and Tia always end up cooking the most. Before the thanksgiving meal(or feast I should say), we have appetizers  There are always nuts, chips, crackers, and cheeses out. My family makes a special chip dip that is cream cheese and chili sauce blended together. It is absolutely delicious. The adults begin to drink while the youngsters grab a pepsi from the garage, and by this time everyone is laughing their heads off and is already full. Finally my Thea Connie manages to gather everyone in the dining room for prayers. The table is beautifully set with napkins in shimmering gold napkin rings,dishes sparkling in the light, and the candles and flowers neatly placed in the middle. We all begin to recite the Lord's Prayer, and in the background the two dogs begin to bark. After that, we all sing Johnny Apple Seed. When the prayers are done, my Papou says a few words that really makes the family realize how thankful we are for each other and the blessings that God has given us. Everyone takes their seats and the food gets passed around.We all laugh our heads off and everyone talks about random things. It is a great time.In the beginning  everyone talks about how good the food looks and tastes and lots of "great jobs" are heard around the table.

After a while, everyone goes for seconds and everyone keeps chatting. This year, the napkin rings were a big hit. My two sisters, Dena and Maria, and my cousin Mariya, decided to experiment with them and put them on our eyes, noses, and ears. There were twelve napkin rings on the table. Everyone started laughing at us and of course, my Uncle Nick got the camera out. After the pictures, My sisters and I stopped with the rings but Mariya kept going! She eventually got all twelve rings on her face, which was very impressive. She looked hilarious!Mariya is known as "smiley joe" and "the energizer bunny". I cannot recall a time when she stopped laughing or smiling. She is a beautiful greek girl, that has dark, gorgeous features. Her eyes are glazed over with happiness and her hair is always made into a perfect updo. She lights up the room with her smile and makes everyones sorrows go away. With her dancing and singing, she is hard to miss. With every perfect note she hits and the beautiful dance she dances, everything about her is accented. She is extremely intelligent and dedicated. Mariya makes my life better. I wish I lived with her. She is honestly the best cousin in the world.So my entire family was loud and crazy during the meal. When we were preparing the food, I payed attention to how people acted under stress and how they kept themselves motivated to make more food. My family did not get mad and start yelling at each other when someone forgot to bake something or bring something over to the table. They were very clam and covered for people when they messed up. My Yiayia forgot to put the sweet potatoes in the oven and I thought everyone would groan and get really mad. I also thought that Yiayia would have a fit. She just laughed and said sorry ion a joking way, than put them in and kept making other food. Everyone else was clam as well. When there were times we were rushing to get things done, everyone helped each other and was working furiously to complete the task. Not one person yelled at another. If I was with my Mom for Thanksgiving, there would have been lots of yelling. After the meal, Everyone picked up their dish and brought them to the kitchen

. The cleanup crew this year was Uncle Nick, Mariya, Dena, Maria, and I. It was the most efficient cleanup I have ever done. We all took turns hand washing things so no one got upset that they were washing the entire time. All the other family members went into the media room and watched the football game while we cleaned up. My dad's side of the family is very theatrical and musical. We sing to everything and quote lots of different movies and songs. So, as you would expect, we sang and danced through the entire cleanup. It was one of the best times I have had in my life. This continued for a very long time until everything was put away. Everyone was very clam and helpful during this process. No one complained out loud and everyone seemed to enjoy cleanup. After this, all the deserts were brought out and we all chowed down. Again. Then the same thing happened during cleanup. Then we all got tired and decided to watch a movie. Mariya, my sisters and I went downstairs and watched How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, while everyone else upstairs watched Die Hard. Funny contrast of movies huh? We all laughed loudly and cuddled on the couch. About halfway through the movie, my cousin Johnny came in and joined in on the laughter. He is a fan of romantic comedy and chick flicks. After our movie we went upstairs and saw the last of Die Hard. It was such a different atmosphere then downstairs.

 People started to leave after the movie, and my family ate some of the leftovers. To say the least, we were all about to explode. The next day we spent at the mall. It was a great time. We all got great deals and really cute things. We moved very quickly and danced and sang through all the stores. I told you we were theatrical! The next day we went shopping again. We bought a million things from Forever 21 and JCP. It was crazy! We all sang and danced(again), and enjoyed each others company. My family was very loud and hilarious this Thanksgiving. I wonder where I get it from. I had a great time. I am so thankful for my family and I wish I could be with them every second of everyday.