Texas Lou

I had a wonderful holiday celebrating with my family and hope that everyone else did as well!  Here’s how it went!

Saturday morning, I woke up early to finish cleaning before my family got here.  My brother, Mikey, got in around 2 so he, Ben, and I decided to go have a late lunch at Brixx Wood Fired Pizza.  Afterwards, we did a little Christmas shopping and then went over to my friend Collin’s house for a Christmas get-together with friends.  After a fun night and a white elephant gift exchange, we headed home.  My mom and Carrie didn’t get in until about 3:30 AM.  Ben and I woke up to let them in and gave them the tour of the new house since they hadn’t seen it yet.  After a short visit, we all went to bed to rest up for the next day.

Sunday morning, we got up and took it easy.  I made everyone coffee and cooked bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast while Mikey made us all bloody marys.  After breakfast, we watched our Texans play and hung around the house visiting and looking at the fun stuff that my mom brought from Texas that she’d been storing for years.  We decided we needed to get out of the house for dinner and went to The Local since it is one of the few restaurants in Charlottesville that Mikey, Carrie, and Mom had never been to.  We had a great dinner and all ordered something different so we could each try a few bites of everyone else’s dinner.  Afterward, we stopped by our condo to show them how the renovations looked and then watched for Christmas lights on our way home.

Monday morning, we got up and all enjoyed some light breakfast and visited.  After everyone had showered and gotten ready for the day, we headed out for lunch.  We went to Basil to have some great Mediterranean food complete with tabouli, hummus, baba gannoush, lebne, grape leave, and complimentary baklava.

Complimentary Baklava from Basil

It was a delicious lunch and we were all stuffed!  Then we went to see the movie American Hustle.  We enjoyed the movie and then headed to Pier One to exchange some gifts and then to the grocery store to buy ingredients for Christmas dinner.  When we got home, we all helped to make sausage balls and pralines.  Then we sat down to watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (one of my favorite Christmas movies).

Tuesday was my birthday and we headed over to one of my favorite restaurants, Beer Run, for brunch.  I got my favorite dish, nachos, and we all enjoyed bloody marys and beers.

My Sister’s First Growler

We did a little Christmas Virginia wine and beer shopping before leaving and then headed home to make some baklava and caprese kabobs to take over to my in-laws house where we celebrated Christmas and my birthday.  My mother-in-law Virginia Mom made the most amazing spread of food…she had everything and it was all so delicious!  Then we ate some of this amazing cake:

Amazing Peanut Butter & Chocolate Cake

My Virginia Mom made the cake out of black beans but it tasted just like chocolate and it had layers of chocolate and Reese’s Peanut Butter cups on the inside!  It was delicious AND full of protein!

The family sang happy birthday to me:

And I blew out my candles making a wish (it’s a secret):

Making a very important wish!

Then we opened gifts and enjoyed each other’s company for the rest of the evening.  We went home and everyone scrambled to finish putting the last minute touches on their gifts and complete their wrapping.  Our tree looked like this:

Our First Christmas Tree

Christmas morning, we awoke to this:

The Stockings Were Hung By the Chimney with Care

And my mom surprised Ben by hand-making him a stocking to match the ones she made my sister, brother, and I as babies:

A fishing Santa because Ben loves fishing

We all opened presents, enjoyed mimosas, and ate sausage balls and had a wonderful Christmas morning!

Mom and her kiddos

The kids

Then we went to work on dinner.  Mom made augratin scalloped potatoes, tenderloin, creamy horseradish sauce, bacon-wrapped green beans, rolls, Granny Scott’s Wilted Leaf Lettuce Salad, and blackberry cobbler for dessert!  It was all so delicious and she outdid herself once again!  Ian, Sarah, and Phyllis joined us for dinner:

 We finished the evening by spending time together and Skyping with some family in Texas.  In was the most amazing holiday and now I am so sad that it is over and so sad that my family had to leave.  However, I am so happy and grateful they could be here and can’t wait to see them again soon!

Merry Christmas everyone and happy New Year!

P.S.  Thanks to Sarah, Mikey, and Carrie for many of the pictures!

I know I am a few days late but what a busy week I had!  My mom, sister, and brother came to town for Christmas and we had an amazing five days!  Here’s what I’m thankful for!

1. I’m forever grateful for my mom and sister who rented an SUV, drove 1300 miles from Houston, brought me some of my belongings being stored in Texas, and then turned around and drove 1300 miles back 5 days later just to spend Christmas and my birthday with me!  I love them so very much that I could never fully express it in words.
2. I’m grateful for my brother who drove from South Carolina to spend Christmas and my birthday with me!  We had a blast shopping, eating, watching football, and lounging!  I love my little brother!
3. I’m thankful for my Virginia family who not only make my Texas family feel welcome when they visit, but also treat me like blood!  My mother-in-law made the most amazing birthday dinner and birthday cake and my father-in-law, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law all helped celebrate.  I love them all!
4. I’m thankful for my husband Ben!  He is part of my heart and helps hold me up when I am down and keep me grounded when I am being a fool.  He is the love of my life.
5. Lastly, I’m thankful for internet, cell phones, Facebook, Skype, and all technology that allow me to feel a little bit closer to my family when they have to leave and also allows us to celebrate the holidays virtually with family far and wide!

I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas!  I know I did!

This is something my mom has been telling me for years and I have been trying hard to always remember to CHOOSE to be happy.  Unfortunately my emotions have much more control over me than I’d like so I continue to learn and to work on allowing myself to choose to be happy.

This is a great article I ran across “This Is Scientific Proof That Happiness Is A Choice” that is worth a read and that I’d like to refer back to when I’m having a hard time remembering that my happiness is my own choice.

Happy Thankful Monday!

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful for a wonderful day Christmas shopping with Ben yesterday, and I’m very thankful and happy about our very first Christmas tree (pictures to come once it’s decorated).  I’m also thankful for a strong husband who is able to lift and move the tree and also knows how to take care of it (Ben wants to root the tree outside after Christmas is over).
2. I’m thankful for a wonderful weekend with family.  Friday night, Ben and I joined his parents and two nieces for our annual holiday trip to Richmond for the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens‘ Dominion GardenFest of Lights.  Then Saturday, I spent the day baking and doing Christmas crafts with my mother-in-law and nieces.  I made two terrariums that I’m very proud of!
3. I’m sooooo very thankful that I got to spend a day with my cousin Jennifer!  Her husband was in Baltimore for business so she came with him and drove down for the day on Wednesday.  We started off by catching up over lunch at Timberwood Grill, then headed to Monticello to do the tour since she had never been.  Then we went to the Downtown Mall, bought some Virginia Wine at Market Street Wine Shop, and met Ben for dinner at South Street Brewery.  We ended the evening by baking brownies at home.  Thursday morning, we had breakfast at Bodo’s before Jennifer headed back to Maryland.  I was sad to see her go but soooo happy that we got to spend precious time together.  I love my family!
   

   Jennifer & I at Monticello

4. I’m thankful for the wood stove in our house and for a husband who has been building fires to keep us warm.  Our heater broke again on Friday morning so we were forced to start using our wood stove.  Wow does that thing work great!  It heats the house almost well enough that we don’t need the heater!
   

   Eva checking out the first fire in the wood stove

5. Lastly, I’m thankful for the holidays and family to spend them with.  Last year I was somewhat of a scrooge because we couldn’t have a Christmas tree, I didn’t have much PTO saved up yet (and I work in retail), I was turning the dreaded 30, and I couldn’t go home for Christmas.  This year, we have a beautiful house to spend the holidays in, I can take a few days off of work, my family is coming to spend Christmas with us since we have plenty of room in the new house, we have our first Christmas tree together (after being together for seven and a half years), and I’m not turning 30 this year 😉 !

Have a great week and enjoy the this time of year!

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!

Considering that my job is tied to computers and the internet and my company does a fair share of marketing driven development, I thought this was an interesting infographic posted by lifehack.org:

Good morning and happy Thankful Monday!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Tuesday night, my friend Kristen came over to visit while I cooked this cranberry sauce recipe and my mom’s Broccoli Cheese Casserole.  Wednesday, I worked from home and then we enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner with Ben’s parents, Ian, Sarah, and Sarah’s family.  Everything was delicious and I ended up stuffed!  I especially LOVED the citrus apple cider that Ben’s mom made…best apple cider I’ve ever had!  Thursday, Ben and I watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and then I enjoyed a nap before heading over to have Thanksgiving lunch with his mom.  Then I  had a great phone date with my best friend/cousin Megan.  I worked from home again on Friday and then went to Friendsgiving for more yummy food and fabulous friends at Collin’s house.  Saturday, Ben, Sarah, and I went to see Hunger Games: Catching Fire which was much better than the first one and I splurged on movie popcorn. Sunday I was very productive and got some more boxes unpacked.  Even though I had to work, it was a nice holiday filled with wonderful people.

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

1. I’m thankful that in less than a month, my family will be here to celebrate Christmas with me.  I’m so thankful that they are able to travel to Virginia this year for the holiday, especially since last year was the first year the four of us were not all together on Christmas.
2. I’m thankful that my dad, step mom, and three little brothers made it home safely from France and had a nice vacation.
3. I’m thankful that my mom made it safely to Dallas last night and got to spend some time with family.  I’m also thankful for a great opportunity she has.
4. I’m thankful for loving family and friends that I was able to spend the Thanksgiving holidays with.
5. I’m thankful for my new bookshelves and my husband who put them together for me.

Happy December!

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

I feel like everyone is especially thankful this week because Thanksgiving is on Thursday.  Here’s my thankful list for today:’

1. I am thankful for my husband Ben.  He made me french toast for breakfast yesterday, and even though he has this week off of work and didn’t have to get up early, he got up at 6:30 AM and offered to make me breakfast before work.  He made me french toast again (DELICIOUS) and it’s the first time in a long time I can remember eating my breakfast at home and not taking it with me to work!  He is also coming to meet me for lunch today since he has the day off!  I love him and I’m so lucky to have him!
2. I’m thankful for having a working heater and for modern heating systems.  It was 17 degree this morning when I left the house and yesterday the high was only 35 degrees.  I am definitely not a fan of winter and cold weather so to be able to stay nice and warm inside is something I appreciate greatly!
3. I’m thankful for a healthier mind, body, and outlook on life this year.  This time last year, I was very depressed and anxious.  I knew I was going to have to spend the holidays (both Thanksgiving, my birthday, AND Christmas) without my family for the first time ever and I wasn’t adjusting well to having to leave my old job and everyone that I loved working with as well as my wedding being over.  Thanks to a great deal of hard work, research, soul searching, and mindfulness techniques that I learned (including these Thankful Monday blog posts), I am learning how to be happy and find happiness from within.  I still have a long way to go and recognize that this is a lifetime process that I can’t just stop once I think I’ve mastered it.  I’m just so happy to be in a much better place than I was a year ago.
4. I’m thankful for wonderful friends who brighten up my life.  Tuesday, I enjoyed girls night with two good friends and their lovely daughters.  It’s always fun to see their babies growing up and to catch up with them.  Then Friday, I had frozen yogurt (YUM) with Sarah, Meghan, and Meghan’s cut little baby at Bloop, followed by dinner with lots of friends at Miller’s to bid farewell to my awesome friend Wilson before she moves to the west coast.  Then I got my Bodo’s fix (I hadn’t had Bodo’s in way tooo long) while visiting with Ian, Sarah, and Cris.  My life is full of wonderful friends!
5. Lastly, I’m thankful for a family to spend the holidays with.  I know that alot of people don’t have anyone close to them to spend Thanksgiving with or can’t afford to travel home to be with the ones they love, so I am thankful that I married a man whose family loves me and lives nearby.  I always remember a man that I worked with at VGT named Charles.  Every year, he and his wife would invite everyone in the company (there were at least 250 of us) to his home for Thanksgiving dinner.  Alot of people at VGT relocated for the job so I think this gesture was especially generous because so many people were living far from their families.  Sadly, Charles died not too long ago, but I will always remember his generosity, especially around Thanksgiving time.

Happy Thanksgiving and have a wonderful week!

Good morning and happy Thankful Monday!

Today, I am thankful for the following:

1. I am grateful for our wonderful friends Robert and Crystal who invited us to stay with them at their timeshare this weekend in Massanutten.  We went to the awesome indoor waterpark that has slides, a lazy river, hot tubs, and a really cool surfing rider.  We had a blast and I am always grateful to Robert and Crystal for inviting us on such fun weekends.  I can’t wait until we have our next adventure with them!
2. I am thankful for my husband Ben.  I know I mention him often on my Thankful Monday list, but I really can’t say it enough.  I am so lucky to have found this man who loves and understands me and I’m even luckier to get to spend the rest of my life with him.  I love him so much and am so grateful for everything he does for me.
3. I am thankful for my wonderful in-laws.  Wednesday night, we stopped by Ben’s parents’ house and his mom made us a delicious dinner of beef stew and homemade bread.  She always welcomes us for any meal and makes the most delicious food.  In addition, she is constantly sending home fresh eggs, fresh herbs, fresh veggies, homemade pasta and pesto, and freshly baked bread with us.  I’m so grateful and lucky to have married into a family that I like AND love!
4. I am thankful for my parents.  They always give me the best advice and love me unconditionally.  My mom is my best friend and with that, she always tell me what I need to hear (not what I want to hear).  Both my parents are so smart when it comes to life and business and they always have a wonderful way of explaining why something does or does not make sense.
5. Lastly, I am thankful for my job.  I know I have said it before and I’m sure I’ll say it again.  I don’t love my job and I don’t always enjoy it, but I have learned so much in the past year and a half that I’m sure will help me throughout my career and I am lucky to work with really nice, down-to-earth people.  I am also very lucky to work somewhere that has a flexible schedule and recognizes the importance of family and the work-life balance.  I am grateful that they took a chance on me when I had very little web and database programming experience.

Have a wonderful week!

Good morning and happy Thankful Monday!

Today, I’m very thankful for the following:

1. I’m so proud of and thankful for my hard-working husband.  Not only does Ben keep our house, indoor and outdoor, in top-top shape, he does it all while working a full time job, renovating our condo, and fitting in a workout every single day.  He really is my super man.  This weekend he spent hours stacking firewood for the winter, ripping up carpet in the condo to prepare for new carpet installation, and making the weekly trip to Lowe’s for supplies.  He even managed to fit in an evening of hunting and go to the grocery store for me.  I’m so happy he is in my life and I hope he knows how grateful I am for everything he does.
2. In honor of today being Veterans Day, I am thankful today and every day for all of the men and women and their families who have dedicated their lives and hard work toward this country.  It is the ultimate sacrifice and they do not receive enough gratitude in my opinion.  Thank you to them all past, present, and future.
3. I’m thankful for our kitties, Revolver Ocelot and Eva.  They turned 5 on Saturday and while I can’t believe we’ve had them almost 5 years (it will be 5 years in February that we adopted them), I also can’t remember a time without them.  They make us smile every day and I love them so much!
4. I’m thankful for the opportunity to mentor again with Computers 4 Kids.  I am mentoring my third student and she is so funny and clever and has a great eye for fashion.  I have been enjoying getting to know her and in the few short meetings we have had I believe we have both already taught each other several new things!
5. Lastly, I’m thankful for a clean bill of health from my Endocrinologist.  When I went to see her last, my thyroid was somewhat over-performing.  While that did help me to some degree to lose weight (22 pounds so far), it is not a good thing.  With this most recent appointment, she said my levels are right back to normal which makes me glad.

Have a wonderful day!