Louisiana Couple Discovers $1.8 Million Lottery Ticket While Cleaning Home for Thanksgiving

Well, this pair certainly has something to be thankful for this year.

As they tidied up their home ahead of Thanksgiving, a Louisiana couple made a fortuitous discovery: a lottery ticket worth $1.8 million!

Harold and Tina Ehrenberg discovered the ticket, which was just two weeks from expiring, while cleaning out their nightstand last Saturday, they told ABC News.

“At first I thought that we might have made a mistake, misreading the numbers or the expiration date,” Harold said. They checked the numbers repeatedly until they finally convinced themselves they'd won. 

Added Harold, "It was pretty exciting."

The couple bought the ticket in June and were worried they'd waited too long to claim the prize — there's an 180-day limit in the state for the particular type of ticket they had. But when they made it into the lottery office earlier this week, "They congratulated us and then it became very real," said Harold.

The couple took home about $1.3 million after taxes.

They don't plan to blow it on Black Friday deals, however. The check is going straight to the bank, Harold said.

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