At the risk of sounding like a broken record, Labor Day weekend is my favorite weekend of the year. For me, it’s that last summer fade into fall and it combines my favorite things (using alliteration, also a favorite thing): family, football, food, and fall (decor and vibe, not necessarily temperature).

Have you seen that “rich in life” online video trend where people share the things that mean the most to them, making them feel rich in life? Well my rich in life is that my family is close enough to drives and chooses to come join us for Labor Day weekend. Truly, my fav.

Mom arrived on Thursday which I welcomed with open arms because it meant I had a partner to grocery shop with on Friday. Yes, it was a last minute stock up but being back in busy season, it’s the timing that worked. We had fun hopping from the K9-Shop for Finley, to Costco, to CAVA, then to Whole Foods and came home with enough to fed an army. Good thing, too, because with the kids’ almost all being in growth spurt season of life, collectively we can put away some food.

Kris, Cara, and crew arrived in time for happy hour and we kicked things off with the traditional Stathas family martini. Though nowadays it’s just for the ladies. We rolled out pizza dough, baked, sipped, and kicked off a celebratory weekend.

Pizza tip: Chop up fresh basil with a couple cloves of fresh garlic. Add whole fennel seed, salt, and olive oil and mix together. Sprinkle this on top of your pizza sauce before baking and it will level up the experience noticeably!

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Saturday morning started off strong with the fluffiest and most delicious cinnamon rolls. My friend, Jackie, mills her own flour and is an expert baker (IMO) and I asked to buy some cinnamon rolls for my crew. She knocked them out of the park and I’ve already asked if I can preorder for Christmas. 😉

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From there the day unfolded organically. The girls got really into completing physical challenges that were a combination of cheerleading stunts and cirque de soleil moves. Kris and David tended to the pork butts they smoked overnight. We walked the dogs, played some games, and prepared snacks. We hit on everyone’s favorites: onion dip, Mexican dip, puff pastry pigs in a blanket, pimento cheese, and other “healthful delights.”

We donned our Georgia red, lit the fall candles, and just enjoyed getting to hang out altogether.

BBQ tip: if you know a guy that smokes meat, this BBQ Prep & Serve tub is such a great gift idea! It’s strong but also folds flat. You can prep meat (rub or marinate) in it, then it collapses so you can cut and serve using it, too. The lid locks into place for travel. The guys love it.

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We watched all the football, devoured the smoked pork (which the guys knocked out of the park with the help of this probe) with slaw and homemade Nannie pickles, played some games, and all slept very well that night partly due to the Dawgs’ solid win.

The next morning we leisurely enjoyed coffee on the porch, hoping for a hint of fall weather but planning to embrace the remnants of summer. We fit in walks and workouts before transitioning into adventure mode. We decided to go sit in the river and that’s exactly what we did to the delight of dogs, kids, and adults alike.

Finley swam and splashed while Millie the beagle preferred cozying up in her people’s laps. The kids adventured and played swimming games like categories. The adults chatted. It was great fun until the dark clouds rolled in and we had to hightail it home!

The timing worked quite well though, as everyone got cleaned up in time to enjoy a summer storm, followed by slightly cooler temps allowing for a porch game of Cranium, followed by more football, snacks, and burgers.

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On Monday we eased into the morning with coffee again on the porch, made a grand breakfast, then everyone packed their things and headed out. We pulled the house back together, I got a haircut, David grilled chicken, and I gave myself a new Dazzle mani (start with this kit and you will be hooked) while watching the hijinks of the FSU/SMU power outage delay.

Now here we are with a short week ahead of us and full permission to light our fall candles! Oh Labor Day, thanks for the ideal mashup of late summer and early fall. You remain my favorite <3