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With a grateful heart...


The house is quiet, and I'm the only one up. The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade is playing in the background. The dinner rolls are rising and my coffee is already getting cold. It's windy and chilly here today. It is the perfect vibe for a Texas Thanksgiving. We have the privilege of hosting one of Jonas's college friends from Washington D.C., Sophia, since she couldn't make it home for the week. We are enjoying trying to Texasifiy her! This week has been restful in the only way that can be if you have a houseful of young energy like I do. They sleep in till past 10:00 a.m. and are up past midnight!  They are constantly on the go and hungry. And I wouldn't want it any other way. I am not ready in any way to have an empty nest. 

I write in this space to reflect and show gratitude for my life (maybe not frequently enough). It's always been a little bit of therapy to review my month and all that has happened to be grateful for. Sometimes the day-to-day things, weigh us down and we feel overwhelmed and anxious. Research is not wrong when they say taking a moment to list what you are grateful for improves your outlook, mental health, and overall happiness. This blog is my forever gratitude list. 

I'm grateful for my Senior, Lorelei.

This year I am savoring every moment with my last Senior, Lorelei, my baby. She is enjoying high school, particularly the extracurriculars. She went all out on Homecoming! She asked her bestie to go with a friendship HOCO proposal, made magnificent mums, and cute Senior jean shorts for the game. 






She had the idea to make a few Halloween mums since HOCO landed on Halloween this year.
 




She looked amazing for the dance. 

We are all grateful for our NANA! We love how she gets to share in so many of our magical moments. 



Sweet sisters!


Her Senior dive season is well underway. Her dive life is full of fun and friends, even if it's not full of wins. 



She DQ'd for two failed dives, but still had a great attitude. I told her I had seen a huge improvement in her confidence level. It's been a hard return to dive after her surgeries and chronic pain. She's doing more than could possibly be expected. 





I am grateful for another birthday and my JoBo!

Jonas turned 19! We celebrated with a quick day trip to Austin to see him. We squeezed in his favorite activities, hiking and eating! 

We picked him up in the dorms and headed out. 






Jonas found a great hiking trail called River Place Trail. Just beautiful!


We ate at Kerbey Lane on campus. He'd never been yet!


His own Alexa! He loves the one in the kitchen at home. I just knew he needed one for his dorm room.
 

I am grateful for sister sleepovers! I love that Savannah still spends so much time with us. 


I am grateful for family fun and fall memories. 

While so many people love starting the Christmas season early (no judgment here!), we had one last fall adventure. Lorelei had been wanting to head to The South Texas Maze all season. We were pleasantly surprised to see the many new additions, including a zinnia field!





I am so grateful for the strong females in my life!





The weather, activities, and company were a perfect combination to wrap up fall. 

I am grateful for a new car!

Thanksgiving break started with a bang...drumroll please! I GOT A NEW CAR!!! Yes, you heard correctly, Uber Mom got a new set of wheels! At least new to me. I have been driving my white Suburban for 14 years! It's actually 16 years old, as we bought it two years old with only 32,000 miles. It now has 225,000! And although it is still running, it has MANY issues. I had to capture my last drive to work. 


Talk about gratitude! I wasn't sure I would see this day come. I was lucky enough to find my dream car, slightly used, with low miles, a full warranty, a great price, and lots of extras. 




I am grateful for John who encouraged me to get this car (amongst other things), saying how I deserved it. I still struggle with mom guilt. But I am working on it!


I am grateful for my silly girl Savannah! She's a forever source of joy in my life. 


I'm grateful for Bailey. He's not a huge fan of me sharing much on the blog about him anymore, as he's a private guy. But I'm grateful for his support in so many ways. He's quite the young man. 

My gratitude list goes on and on...friends, coworkers, my kids friends, my home, pets, extended family, books, music, and so on. 

I am grateful for you all! My friends and family who take the time to read my words. Thank you!

I am excited to share this week with you all but will save it for the next post. 
As I am sure, today will be filled with even more gratitude, food, family, fun, and a bunch of fabulous photos.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
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