Day Twenty of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for ketchup! How else would my nearly 18 month old eat a spinach, onion and garlic frittata for breakfast?

Day Twelve of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for Keegan Theater! Being a friend of the theater means randomly popping in for a performance and everyone being so genuinely happy to see you that they introduce you to others in this incredibly positive light! Thanks Keegan for the friendships, and the memories!

Day Eleven of Being Thankful!

Today I am thankful for every single Veteran out there. For those who lost their lives fighting for our freedoms and for those who didn't die in battle or war, but who came home to their loving families! Veterans like my Grandpa, Harvey Reece! Thank you Papa!

Day Ten of Being Thankful

Today I'm thankful for Virginia Tech. A full moon, Thursday night football game, beers and bourbon on Houston Street pre-game, KKG, VTTV, SPJ, an education, southwest Virginia, and friends who just "get" me... all of these things are Virginia Tech.

Day Nine of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for my past. We all have a past that inevitably shapes who we've become. I am thankful that I be learned from my mistakes, forgiven myself and live in the present. Someone told me once, that one reason God created time was so that there would be a place to bury the failures of the past. I don't think that's entirely true. We have to remember where we've come from to remind us of where we're going! However, you have to let it shape you not ruin you. The more anger towards the past you carry in your heart, the less capable you are of loving in the present.

Life is too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right. Forget about the one's who don't. Believe things happen for a reason. If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.

Day Eight of Being Thankful

Today I'm thankful to live in a country where we are free to express ourselves through our right to vote! I left my house before 7am this morning to head next door to Emerick Elementary School to vote.

Day Seven of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for the glorious sound of a toddler laughing! Laughing and screaming, dancing and jumping the moment I walk in the door from work!

Day Six of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for the modern conveniences of things like an indoor bathroom. After a weekend camping with great friends, I'm glad we are heading home but thankful for the opportunity to be reminded of how blessed we are.

Day Five of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for the warm sun. Shining through our tent this morning after a long cold night camping outside, it warmed my face enough to get a few more hours of sleep! Day two of the farm party is well underway!

Day Three of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for milkshakes, The cookies and cream/coffee milkshake I choose at the Moo through in Remington VA gets its own celebration of gratitude! Founded by the Smith family in central Virginia, their families mission is to bring fresh, local, honest dairy products, including but not limited to ice cream and glass bottled milks, to local residents. The Moo Through is a drive through 60's style milkshake parlor but with an updated twist of local products and picnic tables outside! Right on the side of Route 29 between Warrenton and Culpepper- it's a great lunch spot. Grilled cheese with bacon and tomato, a hot dog that's better than any stadium dog I've ever had, creamy and tangy coleslaw, among other choices offer a nice compliment to the variety of ice creams and milkshakes. My husband opted for the non classic gingersnap and coffer milkshake, I went with cookies and cream pairs with coffee.

But best of all, their son is studying agriculture at Virginia Tech so he can continue the family business! Go HOKIES!

http://moothru.com/

Day Four of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for the beautiful state in which we are fortunate to live. As we drove to North Carolina for a camping farm party, and we drive past the beautiful fall colors in Southwest Virginia I am thankful for a state that has four seasons and beautiful areas to see the fall colors!

Day Two of Being Thankful

Today I am thankful for yoga. I'm thankful for the ability to leave everything behind and loose myself for an hour and a half, stretching, pushing myself, finding my inner voice and listening to it, trusting my body and my self. Today I am thankful for yoga!

The One For Being Thankful!

I am not going to make excuses for why I can't keep up with this whole blog idea, but again I will try to energize this blog. It's a commitment that I'm having a hard time committing to for reasons I can't define. To get into the habit of posting more frequently I'm going to try something new for this entire month. The month of November. The month you get to eat turkey and dressing, think about Christmas shopping, throw away the Halloween pumpkins after they rot, hopefully cut down a Christmas tree and wait for winter to arrive. But the truth is November is more than all those things. November is for being thankful. Being mindful of our blessings and looking with joy and confidence into the future. So for each day during the month of November I will find something I am thankful for and write about it.

Today I am thankful for my new friends. Having a baby changes relationships with your friends. You seek friendship in others as a means of socializing your child. You sometimes hide behind stories about first words, first steps, teething and a whole host of other infant and toddler milestones. But then it happens. You find that you've made friendships that transcend your child. Friendships where you want to spend time together without the children.

This past week has been filled with many such friends. I am thankful for workout buddies who are moms but also my friend. I'm thankful for friends who drag me to kick boxing class on Saturday mornings when there's snow (more on snow in October another day) on the ground. I'm thankful for laughter through sweat as we kicked it out together! And I'm thankful for friends who persuade me to rally for Halloween, grab a last minute babysitter, and throw on a silly costume. Only to head out and laugh harder than I've laughed in long while dance more than my sore body could handle, and come home far too late on a school night. For, somewhere in all the baby play dates, countless diaper changes, milestone discussions with each other, and meals at restaurants with two toddlers, it happens. You find a couple that are deserving of the title - friends.