Excitement and Thankfulness

I'm super excited because I've added a Pinterest button to my page! Look over to the right, just above that add, and click on the link to go check out my Pinterst page! I update it regularly and I'm always looking for other pages to follow. If you'd like me to check out your page as well leave a comment with the link and I definitely will!

I'm always thankful for my girls. They keep me up at night, they drive me crazy, they test my patience on an hourly basis but I never knew I could love so deeply until they came into my life.

I'm also extremely thankful for Chuy's Tex Mex! Two days ago I found out we were getting one in town and I'd be lying if I said I didn't cry a little at the news. I first went there about 10 years ago in Austin and I ate Campfire Enchiladas (which isn't a regular menu item but a special at the time). It's my all time favorite restaurant! I go anytime I'm in a  city with one which usually means that my best friend has no choice but to take me there when I visit San Antonio! Now, we're getting one, and I can't believe how lucky we are as a city!!! I know, I'm being very dramatic about food, but I love this place so much!

Finally, I'm thankful for crochet. I don't get to do it as much as I used to and I'm definitely not very good at it but it's such a relaxing thing to do. I'm currently in the middle of a blanket and I'm about to restart a rug made from t-shirt material. I've started and restarted the rug twice already and I'm determined to get it right!

What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursday

*For Gibbie's school. She absolutely loves it there and has grown so much. Her speech has gotten so much better and she can now write her name. We've decided to keep her in pre-k one more year so she'll get to go to the same school next year as well. Her birthday is the day before the cut off date for kindergarten so we'd rather she be the oldest in her class instead of the youngest.

*Squish sleeping through the night! Every now and then we'll have an odd night of her wanting to eat at 3am but for the most part she sleeps from about 7:30pm to about 7am. I'm not sure how we total lucky but it's amazing and I love it. 

*Crochet. I've fallen in love with crochet in the past few months. It's so calming and a lot of fun for me. Right now I'm in the middle of a blanket and a rug. Here's a picture of me holding Squish while crocheting a rug:

Thankful Thursday Done on a Saturday

So I wrote this a few days ago, published it, then deleted it on accident. Luckily I'm a gigantic nerd and decided to subscribe to my own blog on a ready just to see what it would be like. Today I was going through my reader and stumbled upon my deleted post fully intact! WOO!

OK, I'm back. Really this time. I'll say that I was having a very hard time emotionally and I was fighting with my faith. Actually, I should say that Satan was trying to bring me down because my faith was there, I was just angry. So for today's Thankful Thursday I'll start with an important one that has snapped me back to where I need to be:

*For God's grace. Only by grace am I saved and only by His grace am I here today writing this instead of wallowing in something I can't do anything about. So instead I give it to God and I move on and be my normal, happy, joyous self.

*THE HUBS! Always! This time for just letting me cry and listening to what I have to say in between sobs and not giving me strange looks when he looks over and finds tears running down my cheeks. I'm a cryer, and that scares men, and it scares my husband, but he sticks with me anyway.

*Gibbie working out with me. I started a stroller fitness class two months ago or so and I love it. I don't get to make it to every class but because it's at a park Gibbie absolutely loves it! She even gets me to do some of the work outs at home. She's always right next to me during the warm up and cool down. She's my biggest cheerleader!

*Vietnamese food! I really just don't feel like cooking by Thursday and generally that means Vietnamese food. Thursday is my night with Best friend M so The Hubs will bring home some delicious food from Saigon Taste and I'll eat with the family before heading out.

*My health. As of right now I am a completely healthy person. I've dropped about 25 pounds, I'm confident, I feel great, I know I've become a healthier person this year and I thank God I am able to become even more healthier in the coming years.

I promise I'm back so I'll see you tomorrow. Have a wonderful Thursday night lovelies.

Have some old school Gibbie:

Thankful Thursday

I've been MIA lately. I'm not in a happy place and when I'm not in a happy place I tend to journal but not blog because I don't want to spread the doom and gloom I'm feeling. Today I have things to be very thankful for so I'm going to spread the love.

*Gibbie's doctor's appointment being this morning. After what happened last thursday and not getting a confirmation call yesterday I was on high alert for something to go wrong today. I had The Hubs go in and make sure we had an appointment before I got out of the car because it was raining and he was afraid I'd hurt someone.

*Gibbie's health. The doc said she's doing great though she is small. She's in the middle of the chart with her height but she's in the bottom end of the chart with her weight. He's not concerned because she's obviously healthy. I have to remember that her maternal grandmother and great-grandmother as well as her paternal grandmother are short women so she's probably going to end up like them.

*Having a husband who takes time off to go with us to pediatrician visits. He's been to every well check up except for one and his sister went with us to that one. He never wants to miss anything important in his daughter's life.

*The roof over our head during this crazy rain. It only rains really hard and long here once every 6-7 years. The last time was a crazy flood that washed away parts of buildings and roads in 2006 and I honestly have no recollection of the time before that because I never paid attention to weather pre-adulthoood. I'm blessed to be warm and cozy and the roof isn't leaking anymore. I love the rain but I know that for some it is terrible. A few months ago when our roof was leaking I felt desperate and I know there are those who are going through the same now and I wish I could help them.

*Weight Watcher's candies. So good, especially frozen!

I hope you're all having a wonderful Thursday and I'll try to be back soon with no negativity in my life.

Thankful Thursday

I'm so angry today that it's hard to be thankful. I'm really trying to calm but I don't know how to just sit and calm myself. I vented to my husband who said that he thought I should have a whiskey, so I did, and it helped, but I'm still angry.

Allow me to vent just a bit and then maybe my head will be cleared enough to list the things I'm thankful for. I called last week to make an appointment for Gibbie's 3 year check up. The lady at the doctor's office said that she had openings the first week of September and we scheduled it for September 5 (today). The Hubs stayed home from work to go with us and the appointment is actually scheduled for the 12th, next Thursday. That would be the second week of September so I am angry though I should just be glad that Gibbie is happy and healthy and there's no concerns that had to be addressed today specifically.

Then I took Gibbie to the park around the corner. I was shocked that I got her to leave without throwing a fit! We then went to check the mail and walked home. We went in front of a house on the opposite side of the street and a teenage girl came running out in a panic with no shoes on acting like she was terrified. She scared Gibbie with her quickness and I just tried to pull Gibbie along and reassured her that the girl wasn't coming for her and kept walking. I kept peeking back and the girl, who had ran to her car and quickly looked through it before slamming the door, was just staring at us. We crossed the street, the girl was still watching us. We got to our house, the girl was still staring at us. At this point I figured she was just waiting for someone and not actually watching us but looking down the street.

We get home, start to relax, the door bell rings. I answered it and there was the teenage girl with a teenage boy with her. He looks at me, then at her, then asks her, "is this her?" What the holy hell? So for a few seconds no one says anything so finally I ask what was going on. The girl says nothing but the boy says that she thinks that I went through her car! WHAT THE HOLY HELL!? At this point it takes every ounce of energy to not hit one of them. Instead I just ask why she thinks I would go through her car and then when she runs out of the house I didn't try to run off or hide but instead casually walk away with my very slow three year old in tow. She didn't know. Then I asked why, if I had taken something from her car, I would just answer the door instead of pretending I wasn't home when her and her friend come to accuse me. She didn't know. I ask her if she really thinks I would take something from a random person's car who lives just a few houses away from mine while I have my kid with me in broad daylight. She didn't know. Finally, I asked her if she felt grown up while crossing her arms and giving us a dirty look and scaring my child as I'm walking home from the park. She didn't freaking know. I'm really trying to tell myself that I'm glad they came and addressed the issue with me instead of doing something ridiculous like call the cops. Both of them apologized for bothering me. The girl says she was just paranoid because she has had her purse stolen from her car before. I just told her to keep her car doors locked and shut the door as they walked away looking less deflated than when they showed up.

Adrenaline is still rushing two hours and one whiskey later. I have a terrible headache but I am glad that at least so far I'm not having an anxiety attack or stuffing my face with food because God knows I'm an emotional mess right now. I am having a hard time being a good person right now so I think I'm going to nap after posting this and hopefully the negative will melt away.

So, let me say that I'm still thankful for things in life even though today is a shit day.

*The Hubs always makes it on this list but anytime I need to vent or I'm in the midst of an anxiety attack he always makes time to talk me down and let me say what I need to say or cry into the phone when I can't seem to get any words out. If he can't talk he calls me as soon as he has a few minutes to give me all of his attention. I know that men are wired to fix things but he has learned that when I talk to him about a problem it's not because I need him to fix it for me but because I need him to listen. I think he still thinks he should fix it but he doesn't usually act on it.

*Lonely grocery trips. I used to feel lonely when grocery shopping alone. Now I think of it as a relaxing hour long vacation. Usually I stop at Starbucks on the way to Albertson's and leisurely go isle by isle checking everything out. I tend to remember absolutely everything on my list when I'm alone (and then some).

*Yoplait Greek Yogurt only being 100 calories. Silly, I know, but I really love Greek yogurt and with Weight Watchers I thought I'd never be able to have it again without using a huge chunk of points on one snack. Yay for 2 points snacks!

*Days of Our Lives which makes me realize that everything that happened this morning is nothing in comparison for facing prison for killing a man who was about to kill your ex husband because your fiance's father hired him to do it because the ex husband is sleeping with your future father-in-law's ex wife. Oh yeah!

Here's a picture of Gibbie at the park to even out the negativity:

Thankful Thursday

*The Hubs being an amazing father. I watch them play and see Gibbie's imagination grow with his help. He gets down on the floor and makes her toys come to life with her. He's not the "machismo" type that was disappointed with having a girl. He has embraced her with all her princess tea party girly tendencies.

*Understanding moms. I'm sure we've all had moments where we scream and yell and then feel absolutely terrible about it five minutes later. I have the most amazing circle of moms around me. Best friend M is the one I go to when I just need someone to listen. Best friend J is the one I go to when I just need someone to remind me that I'm not the only one who wants to pull their hair out. Best friend E needs to have a kid already so I can maybe be the one with the wisdom for once (please refer to this post).

*Pretzel sticks. I seriously count out 28 pretzel sticks and put them in a bowl in the kitchen. I take three at a time and leave the kitchen. That way I don't eat them all in one sitting. They are filling and satisfying when I want to stuff my face but don't have the points (Weight Watchers) to do so. I'm so incredibly thankful for pretzel sticks.

*Johnson and Johnson's No More Tangles Leave in Conditioner. Seriously, you might think this is silly, but seriously! I bought the stuff for Gibbie because her super fine hair tangles more than what's natural. I've used it twice on her and she looks like she just walked out of the kid's salon. So, this morning, after I got out of the shower, I though I'd give it a try. My hair has been amazing today. I let it dry naturally and the curls are soft, there's not much frizz, and it smells so good. I doubt I'll ever buy any other product for my hair again!

Thankful Thursday

*Audio Books - I was losing my motivation to go walking in the mornings. I would listen to Pandora but it annoyed me more than motivated me. Skipping every song and then running out of skips. Yeah, I could have paid for it, but I didn't see the point. I do, however, see the point in paying for Audible. For $14.95 a month you can get one free audio book a month and all of the other audio books are discounted. I love listening to books when I walk and when it's a really juicy one it makes me actually WANT to go walk. Now that I've started running I'm almost sad that I finish faster because I don't get to listen to the books as much! Also, there's an app called Overdrive that you can connect to your local library to download audio books from there. The selection of our library is decent but not fantastic so that's why I pay for Audible.

*Weight Watchers - I tried everything from Adkins, diet pills, Slim Fast, starving myself, just trying to eat well and exercise, and nothing worked for me. Weight Watchers has made it possible for me to lose weight at a healthy pace, figure out what portion sizes are good for me, and it lets me eat exactly what I want as long as I stay within my range of points. If I want to eat a Cinnabon I can, but I won't be able to eat anything else all day! I joined April 2 and since then I've lost 24 pounds and I've gone down two pant sizes. I absolutely love the program and I'm so thankful for it for making me feel so great and have so much energy!

*Running out of whiskey - I know, I'm silly. Last week I was saying that I was thankful for whiskey. This week I'm thankful I ran out of whiskey. I felt like I was getting dependent on it to relax and I even started drinking some while making dinner instead of waiting for Gibbie to go to bed. I did the same thing with wine several months ago. It's good to take a break from your vice every now and again.

*Best friend M - As I've mentioned I have four best friends and I keep them all separate (not really but they just don't really cross each others paths ever). Best friend M is who I see almost every Thursday night. We get together, watch Grey's Anatomy, chit chat, have some wine, and relax. I'm so thankful for this friendship. It's my two to three hour break in my 24/7 work schedule. We talk about absolutely everything. She's my place to vent, she's my comforter, she tells me when I'm in the wrong, and offers me time away.

Happy Thursday everyone!

Thankful Thursday

Every week I try to list a few things I'm thankful for. It really helps me realize what is important and what I need to stop worrying about.

*The ability to volunteer at my church. I love the fact that being a stay at home mom has allowed me to spend time with my church. I love the community, I love the people I've met, I love the kids! Last week's Vacation Bible School was so much fun and now I'm about to gear up for a new MOPS year! I'm also a Sunday school teacher and love having my daughter in my class.

*My daughter's ability to enjoy having her nails painted and still say she's a pirate right afterwards. I have never been really girly and sometimes I get surprised by how girly Gibbie is. She loves nail polish, dresses, princess stuff, "cooking" in her play kitchen, and lip gloss (or lip lip as she calls it). On the other hand all of her friends are boys, she loves playing with cars, her favorite color is blue, and she's very loud and rough houses quite a bit. She still hates getting her hands dirty though. She freaked out at the beach last year when the wet sand stuck to her and when we tried do finger paint I thought she was going to have an anxiety attack.

*Whiskey. Though I'm starting to think I need to take a break I am really enjoying whiskey lately. I go through alcohol phases. I've done beer and wine and vodka. Right now it's whiskey. It goes great with lemonade and diet soda. I do not like it straight. Once when we were still dating The Hubs was making himself a whiskey and Sprite and getting me a glass of water. Only he put the whiskey in the wrong glass. Grossest water ever. I still tease him about the whiskey water and it's been almost eight years. Let's face it, I'm potty training a two year old so I need something to get me through it!

*Writing. I've been happier since I started this blog up less than a week ago. It's my therapy. It's my escape. It's my way of just letting go and having a moment to myself. I love sharing, I love knowing someone is reading my stuff, I love reading blogs so it made sense for me to start writing again. I get so incredibly giddy when someone comments on my blog. I used to write short stories too but I just lost interest in some point and stopped. I hope to eventually get back into that again too.

What are you thankful for today?