Texas Lou

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Good morning and happy Thankful Monday!

Since tomorrow marks the end of the 2013 and Wednesday marks the beginning of 2014, I thought I do a special 2o13 Recap of the things I am thankful for this year!

I’m thankful for a very productive year.  At the end of 2012 and when I turned 30 a week before 2013, I made myself a promise that I’d make 2013 a very productive and memorable year.  Though it wasn’t productive in the ways that I thought it would be, I think the improvements I made were even better than the ones I imagined.  They include the following:

1. Bought my dream house with my husband!
2. Traveled alot (10 out of the 12 months):
   • DC in February with good friends
   • New Orleans for my cousin Jennifer’s bachelorette party in March
   • Padre Island in April to visit my mom and spend time with family
   • Houston and Galveston in June for my cousin Jennifer’s wedding and to spend time with family
   • Nashville in June to visit good friends
   • Baltimore for a fun girl’s weekend to celebrate Independence Day
   • Seattle and Victoria, Canada in July for my cousin Catie’s wedding and to visit family
   • Nag’s Head in August to have a girl’s weekend at the beach
   • DC in September to see the Book of Mormon with friends
   • DC in October for a great training course for work
   • Massanutten with good friends in November
   • Cape Cod in December for my husband’s cousin’s wedding and to spend time with his family
3. Did alot of work to improve my happiness and mental health (reading, learning to meditate, cognitive behavioral therapy, online learning, exercise).
4. Trained for and ran the Charlottesville 10 Miler in March with my husband!
5. Got a great review and a raise at work and also learned to be more experienced and confident in my job.
6. Spent alot of very important time with family and friends.
7. Ran 1 race in June (4 the Wounded 5K), 4 races in the month of September (Charlottesville Women’s 4 Miler, 9/11 Heroes Run, Special Olympics Pepsi 10K, and Benefit 5K for Shiloh Thompson) and 1 race in November (Shelter For Help in Emergency 5K) and greatly improved my running, pace, and personal records.
8. Lost 25 pounds (FINALLY – this had been a goal for a long time)!
9. Won tickets to the King Family Vineyards Pink Ribbon Polo Classic, Top of the Hops Beer Festival,  Virginia Chili Blues & Brews Festival, and an entry to the 4 the Wounded 5K – it was a lucky year (maybe it was that red egg we found)!
10. Helped several friends welcome sweet babies into this world!
11. Bought several pieces of furniture and large appliances for our first house (couch, book shelves, washer and dryer).
12. Bought and decorated our first Christmas tree together and celebrated our first Christmas in our new house with our families!
13. Created 2 amazing gifts that are still in the works (more on those later)!
14. Many more!

It was an amazing year and although there were ups and downs as there always will be, the wonderful things listed above will be the things I remember about 2013 and am grateful for when I look back on this year in the future!  I know 2014 is going to be one of the hardest but most rewarding and amazing years of my life thus far and I am truly looking forward to the challenge.

Happy New Year!  I’m wishing everyone a happy and amazing 2014 and please remember to try and be thankful.  I will continue to be!

Good morning and welcome to this week’s Thankful blog post…on Tuesday!  I was traveling all day yesterday so I didn’t have a chance to post my regular Monday morning Thankful post.

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful for a wonderful long weekend in Cape Cod!  I’m grateful that I got to see a new part of the country I’d never visited, got to see where my husband spent his summers as a child, got to visit with family that we don’t see very often, and got to meet new family members.
2. I’m thankful to my in-laws for planning the trip, booking the hotel, renting the car, paying for way too much, and allowing us all to have a nice family vacation together.  They were more than generous on this trip and I’m grateful to them for the whole experience!
3. I’m thankful that our cousin Kimberly found her best friend and soul mate in Matt and that we were able to help them celebrate this weekend.  They both seemed so happy to be joining each others’ families and I am ecstatic for them!  And Kimberly sure knows how to pick them…Matt is a wonderful and funny guy!  They had an amazing and beautiful rehearsal dinner, fabulous wedding complete with ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception, and Sunday brunch at the beautiful Wequassett Resort .  It was a wonderful place to stay and to hold the festivities!  I’m also grateful that Kimberly and Matt gave us the opportunity to help them celebrate their marraige to one another!
4. I’m thankful that I finally got to meet Ben’s Uncle David and Aunt Dee.  They were both so hospitable and nice and shared many pictures and family heirlooms with us when we visited.  I probably learned more about Ben’s extended family in one weekend than I have in the seven and a half years we have been together.  I’m also so very grateful to get to visit with and get to know Ryan, Olya, Marcia, Kimberly, Matt, and all of their friends and family.  Family, friends, and relationships are the most important thing in the world to me, so I’m always grateful for the chance to nurture them and allow them to grow.
5. I’m thankful that we all made it safely to Cape Cod and back despite thunderstorms and winter storms all along the way.  We were lucky that we didn’t run into any terribly slippery roads or extreme weather conditions and I’m also thankful to be home now and see our kitties that we missed so much!

Have a wonderful week!

P.S.  Here’s a picture of Ben and I from the wedding on Saturday!

Good morning and happy thankful Monday!

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful to be back home with my husband and kitties after a week away in Reston for training.  I missed them alot and being away from them always makes my heart grow fonder! <3
2. I’m thankful to my work for giving me the opportunity to attend a really informative and well-done Learning Tree course last week on web development.  I learned so much and got to check out Reston, an area I had never been to.  My hotel and training center were in Reston Town Center, a really cool place if you ever have the opportunity to check it out.  The whole experience was wonderful and I’m really grateful to my work for paying for the trip and giving me the opportunity to learn!
3. I’m thankful that I got to see my yaya Cris last week.  She lives in Northern Virginia and since I was there for training, we hung out Thursday night and went to Mister Days with some of her friends.  I had a great time and was soooo happy I got to catch up with her!
4. I’m thankful for date days/nights with my husband!  Yesterday, we went to see Gravity with free movie tickets I had and then we had lunch together at one of our favorite places, Sticks Kebob Shop.  The movie was really good but caused me alot of anxiety…if you see it, you’ll know what I mean!
5. Lastly, I’m thankful for a healthier me.  In the past 7 weeks, I’ve worked really hard and lost 14.5 pounds!  I’m at my lowest and healthiest weight since 2007 and I am motivated and excited to lose more!

Have a great week!

Good morning and welcome to my weekly Thankful Monday blog post!

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful for the opportunity to see The Book of Mormon musical with my friends Cris and Carolyn at the Kennedy Center on Friday.  Thanks to all of us working together, the plans for the night turned out great!  I’m cherishing these little trips right now as once I have kids they will be fewer and far between.  The play was hilarious and the Kennedy Center was a beautiful venue!  What a great night!
2. I’m thankful for the generosity from my sister-in-law’s dad.  He was cleaning out a storage unit this weekend and gave us several items that homeowners would need including a shop-vac and a miter saw!  I’m so grateful for his generosity and the future spending he has saved us!
3. I’m thankful for family.  Sunday, we had lunch with my in-laws to celebrate my nephew’s 20th birthday.  It was nice to spend time with the whole family and enjoy my mother-in-law’s awesome lunch, including her famous coconut raspberry cake!  She and I also made bacon wrapped figs using the figs from our fig tree.
4. I’m thankful for the cooler weather we’ve been having.  Our air conditioner has been broken so the cooler weather in August has been a blessing!
5. I’m thankful for a fresh start this Monday!

Have a great week!

Good morning!  I apologize that I haven’t written a Thankful Monday post in TWO WEEKS!  But, I’ve been a very busy girl.  I spent 10 days in Seattle and Victoria, Canada celebrating my cousin’s wedding, site-seeing, and spending time with family, came home for 5 days, and then left for a 4 day weekend at the beach in Nags Head.  I’m feeling refreshed but I’m super sad my fun trips and time with family and friends are over.  I think being grateful will help cheer me up, so here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful for an amazing trip to Seattle and much cherished time with my family.  I LOVE my family and just saying that makes me feel that it doesn’t give my feelings about them justice.  I’m such a lucky person to have these people in my life!
2. I’m thankful for a wonderful trip to Nags Head in the Outer Banks with Sarah and Cris.  We had the best time celebrating girls weekend and I’m extra grateful to Cris and her parents for letting us use their condo at the beach!
3. I’m thankful for my husband who has spent so much time traveling with me and then putting up with me being gone on trips without him.  He is very supportive of me and my love for family and traveling and has even been a wonderful shoulder to cry on when I’m sad that my trips are over.
4. I’m thankful for my family.  I can’t say how much they mean to me and spending time with them only makes me realize how lucky I am to have them.  I wish I lived closer to all of them.
5. I’m thankful for a very smart and skilled friend who helped us diagnose a problem with our air conditioning so we didn’t have to pay to have someone look at it (I’ll of course buy him dinner as a thank you).  Between the new house, fixing up the condo, my car payment, and Ben’s car being in the shop for the past month, we need to save as much as possible!

Hope you have a wonderful week!

Good morning!  I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July!  Mine was amazing!

This Monday morning, I’m thankful for the following:

1. I’m thankful for this amazing country that I live in and the sense of pride and hope that is felt on the 4th of July!  I know we all take our freedoms for granted, so I want to remember to be grateful for the freedoms we have living in the United States and for the many men and women who have, will, and continue to fight for our freedoms.
2. I’m thankful for amazing and fun friends!  I had a wonderful girl’s weekend in DC and Baltimore with two of my best friends, Cris and Sarah.  We watched fireworks, did site-seeing, enjoyed delicious food and good beer, met up with lots of other awesome friends, enjoyed live music including a live band, dueling pianos, and an Irish folk group, and we hung out on the boat of a former congressman!  I know there are always adventures to be had when I’m with these amazing ladies!
3. I’m thankful for my mother-in-law who spend much of her weekend helping my husband catch up on weeding and gardening.  When I returned from my trip, things looked quite different and much better than they had when I left.  They weeded, trimmed hedges, and planted things in the sweltering heat and the pouring rain!
4. I’m thankful for a job.  I’m REALLY not liking my job these days and so tempted to apply for new positions elsewhere, but I want to remember to be grateful for a job that pays decently and has  benefits.  Without it, I wouldn’t be able to take trips like I took this weekend or live in a house like I live in.
5. I’m thankful for my mom, the nurse , and technology.  She was able to diagnose a case of poison ivy (my first) via a text message picture and tell me how to start treating it.

Have a wonderful week friends!

Good morning and welcome to my weekly Thankful Monday blog post.

Here’s what I’m thankful for this week:

1. I’m so happy and thankful that I got to see my good friends Cheryl and Dan and finally meet their new baby, Lillian!  They moved to Tennessee last summer before Lillian was born and I’ve missed them so much.  Lillian is the sweetest, most adorable little baby and being around her made me want to have one of my own.
2. I’m thankful for my amazing and patient husband who spent 1100 miles and 18 hours in the car with me this weekend so we could make the trip to Nashville to see Cheryl, Dan, and Lillian.  What a man!
3. I’m thankful that no matter how much my current job gets to me, I always have the option to look elsewhere.  It’s nice to live in a free country where I can change jobs, careers, and employers if I want to.
4. I’m grateful for the feeling of hope.  It’s what gets people through tough days and I was having a few tough days last week.
5. I’m grateful for new friends and old friends…I’m so lucky to be surrounded by wonderful people.

Have a great week and love to you all!

Hey everyone!  Welcome to Thankful Monday/Tuesday (really it should be called Thankful 24/7)!

I was enjoying an amazing long weekend with family in Texas this weekend so that’s why I’m late posting.

Here’s this week’s list:

1. I’m thankful that we got to celebrate my cousin Jennifer’s marriage to her best friend Eric this weekend in Houston, and I’m also thankful that I got to see so many family and friends that I hadn’t seen in years/months!  It was like a wonderful family reunion!
2. I’m thankful that in addition to seeing much of my dad’s side of the family at the wedding reception, I got to see a ton of my mom’s side of the family too!  How lucky am I that I got to be surrounded by so many of my loved ones on a rare trip home to Houston!  I’m very grateful for the effort everyone made to be together!
3. I’m grateful that we could afford the plane tickets to Texas and also that we ran into minimal bad weather and travel delays along the way, especially since there has been so much bad weather happening lately.
4. I’m thankful for the opportunity to visit an old family favorite restaurant, Gaido’s, for a delicious meal with my family.  My parents used to take us here all the time when I was little and I have lots of wonderful childhood memories of eating here so it was nice to walk down memory lane.
5. I’m thankful that my husband was able to come along on the trip and spend time with my family and I and meet many family members whom he hadn’t yet met.  It’s always extra special to me when I can have him as a travel companion with me.

Have a wonderful day!

I was in Texas this weekend and traveling all day yesterday so Thankful Monday has turned into Thankful Tuesday!

This Tuesday, I am thankful for so much after spending a wonderful long weekend with my family at the beach!  Here are just a few of the things I am grateful for:

1. I’m thankful for my mom.  I’m thankful that she hosted my sister, brother, Ben, and I at the beach this weekend, cooked us some of our favorite meals (swedish meatballs…yum), and showered us with gifts (reusable bags from the cities we attended college in, Texas honey from my uncles’ beehives, and delicious HEB tortillas!  I really have the best mom in the world (but I am a bit biased since she is MY mom)!
2. I’m thankful for my brother, Mikey.  He’s always so much fun to be around and we enjoyed his company this weekend while we joked, shared some delicious Saint Arnold‘s beer, and basked in our favorite home-cooked and Texas meals.  My brother understands what its like to live far from home and outside of Texas because he currently resides in South Carolina and I feel like we’ve become closer since sharing that experience.  I’m also so thankful that Mikey stayed up until 2 AM (3 AM his time) driving us from Houston to Padre after our flight was delayed…what a trooper!
3. I’m thankful for my sister, Carrie.  She has the sweetest smile when she is being positive and despite what she might think, I love her very much and enjoy spending time with her.  I’m thankful she was able to get off work this weekend to spend time with us, and I’m also very thankful that she provided her car for transportation so that we did not have to rent a car.
4. I’m thankful for my dad.  Despite having a busy work day and a conference call scheduled, he took time out to meet us for a Tex-Mex lunch at Chuy’s yesterday and then drove Ben and I to the airport.  He even managed to fit in a quick reunion with my step-mom and little brothers!  I’m really grateful that I got to see my dad and spend a little time with him since we were only in Houston for a few hours.
5. I’m thankful for Debbie.  I love Debbie and she has always been one of our favorite “aunts”.  I’m thankful that Debbie was able to spend the weekend with us and also so grateful that she took time to drive us back to Houston since Carrie had to leave Sunday to go back to work.
6. I’m thankful for Josh, Caroline, and their two sweet kiddos.  It was so nice to see them and spend Saturday at the beach with them!
7. I’m thankful for my Uncle (Amo) Jamil, Aunt Norma, and their family.  They drove from San Antonio to Padre to spend some time with us on the beach on Sunday.  It was so sweet to spend some time with my little cousins, play in the ocean and in the sand with them, and get to know them some.  I miss living close to them, and I’m so grateful for every time we get to see each other.
8. I’m thankful that I got to see my step-mom and my little brothers even if it was only for 30 minutes.  They are growing up so fast!
9. I’m thankful for my husband, Ben, who lets me drag him all around Texas, especially when I know he’s not crazy about traveling.  It’s much less sad to leave Texas and my family when he’s traveling with me.
10. Lastly, I’m thankful for the really cool TVs and free movies that United Airlines provided us.  Being able to watch Zero Dark Thirty and This Is 40 on the plane made being delayed for a couple of hours a lot less frustrating!

I could go on and on, but I’ll stop at 10!  I hope everyone has a beautiful week!

Good morning and happy Thankful Monday!

I certainly have ALOT to be thankful for this morning, including but not limited to the following:

1. I’m so thankful that Ben and I closed on our new house!  We are now homeowners and we absolutely LOVE our new home.  I ca’t wait to throw parties in it, raise babies in it, and make a lifetime of memories!
2. I’m so thankful for wonderful family who helped us do some moving this weekend.  A special shout out goes to Ian for his heavy lifting, Peter for letting us borrow his truck, and Sarah and Phyllis for the many meals they cooked for us to keep us going!
3. I’m thankful for the beautiful weather we had this weekend.  Not only was it quite enjoyable to be outside, it helped make moving alot easier without having to worry about extreme heat, freezing cold, or rain.
4. I’m thankful for my husband, Ben, without whom I wouldn’t be able to afford the house of my dreams.  It’s also been so amazing to experience this rite of passage with him by my side.
5. Lastly, I’m thankful that I’m headed to Texas next weekend for the first time in almost a year (I think that’s the longest I’ve ever been away from my home state) and that I get to see my family who I love so much!

Have a beautiful and very happy week friends!