This was a very different (and very happy!) Thanksgiving for my side of the family. Meet Mila, our newest niece. She came into the world on November 6 weighing 6lbs 11oz. She is a teeny tiny bundle of pure joy and sweetness. If I could add the heart-eyes emoji to a blog post, you know I would.

It was so special for Tim and I to meet miss Mila this Thanksgiving. To top it off, we arrived about 9 hours before my mom, brother, and brother-in-law, so we got her all to ourselves the first day (more heart-eye emojis). At just over 2 weeks old, she was the sweetest little snuggle bug the whole time we were there. I loved holding her while she was sleeping and "talking" to her while she was awake.

Tim and I arrived on Wednesday morning and helped my sister and brother-in-law do some Thanksgiving grocery errands before heading back to their home. When we got back, my sister dove right into Mila's routine - feeding, burping, changing, sleeping, and repeat. Ah the life of newborns ;) It was so special getting to spend some one-on-one time with my sister before the rest of our family arrived. We caught up, talked about life and motherhood, and doted over Mila, the nursery, and all of Mila's cute clothes and accessories.

That night after my family arrived, we ate our traditional night-before-Thanksgiving meal: crockpot soup (a delicious, organic red pepper tomato soup) and a spread of breads, cheeses, apples, and crackers. It's always one of my favorite nights of the trip.

Thanksgiving morning arrived and we watched the parade (and football on split screens), cooked breakfast, relaxed, and prepped for dinner. We also snuck in the cutest photo shoot of little miss Mila in her Thanksgiving outfit. I can't handle the cuteness!

On the left: the first family Thanksgiving photo with the beautiful mama and papa <3

On the right: Our family has so many wonderful and talented cooks in it. Lucky for us, that means holiday dinners are always perfection. And this year was no exception! Just look at those delicious plates.

And for dessert we had homemade ice cream, made by my brother-in-law's sister, Rebecca. She made pumpkin pecan and coffee ice cream flavors. Holy moly, you guys. They were both amazing. I think an ice cream maker will be one of the next gadgets I purchase for my KitchenAid mixer.

Black Friday consisted of more baby cuddles and a visit to what I like to call our family's gathering place, Yard House (we hit one up almost every time we're together), before heading off to the airport. We, of course, did another photoshoot with the babe before leaving the house.