Happy Thanksgiving

Let's see if I can keep this short and sweet and let everyone get back to celebrating (or preparing to celebrate)...

I feel like every year there's more to be thankful for. Is that a part of growing up, or am I just that blessed? I work at a private Christian school so I teach my kids daily Bible lessons and one week our theme was blessings. It's funny how a lesson designed for first and second graders can make you look at your own life. There's so much to be thankful for that I just overlook things sometimes. So a quick list today...

• my job. Thankful doesn't begin to cover it, I'm definitely blessed by being there.
• my family. Mine as well as my husband's. How many people can have their brother-in-law live with them and genuinely enjoy i?
• the ability my husband and I have to support ourselves without getting into debt. That's so hard for so many these days that it's a big deal to me that we live in a house and have our individual cars. It's not something to be overlooked.

I also wanted to throw some things in from Pinterest...

Source: cardiganempire.com via Ashley on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Ashley on Pinterest

Happy Thanksgiving friends. I'm thankful for all of you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone is able to be with friends and family today and share some good times and good food.

I have so so much to be thankful for this year. My husband has a great job. I finally have a great job that I worked hard to prepare for. My family is happy and healthy. Hubby and I are able to live in a house now where we feel infinitely safer than we did at our old apartment. I have an amazing church group that I work with. My friends are the best anyone could ask for.

Take a minute today to remember what you're thankful for.

One More Thing

I'm thankful for a lot of things, but it might get kind of boring for y'all if I had spent the whole month of November elaborating on what I'm thankful for and why. So I left a big one for today.

I'm thankful for my husband. :)

I'm thankful that he's introduced me to new things. Like "real" camping where you have to drive to the bathrooms. And hunting (even though I'm not totally sure I'll do any hunting of my own). But there are times where I'm sure my mom is thinking, "WHAT happened to Ashley and why is she into these things?" Blame it on the hubby.

I'm thankful that he'll be an amazing dad one day. He's amazing with the kids, and Tad is like our own (but you knew that). I love watching them together because I know he'll be adorable when we have our own.

I'm thankful that we're the same person at times. There are plenty of times where we look at each other and KNOW that we're thinking the same exact thing. We would probably frighten people if they listened in on us while we're vegging at home.

I'm thankful that he takes me on random adventures. Whether it's a random trip to the movies, a trip to the shooting range, or a drive to find some snow for me to play in.

I'm thankful that I found this wonderful man and that he's not only put up with me, but loved me for seven years now. He honestly makes me a better person (just ask my mom) and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us.

Love you honey.

Wow

Growing up I felt like I had a big family. My parents each have three siblings. Then I had all my cousins. It always felt like a lot of people to me.

Then I got married.

I ended up with parents, step-parents, grandparents, four more siblings, over ten aunts and uncle, and close to one hundred cousins.

Hubby has a big family. And that's an understatement. But I like having a ton of family. So today, that's what I'm thankful for.

I'm thankful that I have the chance to go visit my family, even far away. We were able to go visit my grandpa a couple years ago in Alabama. And I'm hoping to swing in for a visit when we go to Florida next year.

I'm thankful for siblings that I love spending time with. And for the fact that my brother and I have become closer as we've grown up. I also love that we have the same hair.

I'm thankful for friends that are part of the family right now. Leon (on the left) and Scott (on the right, grabbing my face) have been part of our lives for over ten years. I've known Leon for more than half my life now. They're just a couple more brothers for me. And I love it.

I'm thankful for my boys. My husband, dad, brother, and Tad. They're always entertaining. Especially last Christmas when they all got lightsabers and started a battle.

And I'm thankful for my sisters. I didn't have a sister growing up even though I had some cousins that were pretty close. And when I met hubby, I was petrified about meeting his sisters. Because I didn't get along with a lot of girls. But I love his sisters. We're close enough that we just drop the "in-law" title. And Beth and I have shouted "sissy" at each other more than once.

I'll finish with the thankful list tomorrow. And the wish list that normally shows up today, will show up Friday. Because, duh, it's Black Friday and you guys will need to know what to buy me...

Today I...

I'm thankful that I'm fortunate enough to be good at something and actually enjoy it. I have no clue where the baking gene came from. My mom and grandma can bake, but they've never been super interested in decorating. Perhaps it came from my time working at a bakery? Which would surprise me because I didn't enjoy myself while I was there. THAT'S for sure.

So today I'm thankful for my random cake baking/decorating talent. I just wish I had more opportunities to use it.

There was the birthday cake for my Tad this year. Which he loved. And I'm still pretty proud of. Totally his idea and I was able to do it for him.

I'm also thankful for friends that have had enough faith in me to put me in charge of their parties! It takes a lot to trust your son's first birthday goodies to someone. I'm so lucky to have people who have that much trust in my work.

And I'm thankful for friends who are just awesome and give me a chance to try something new. I played with fondant, I played with shimmer powder, and I attempted my first red velvet when I made these for a friend's birthday. It was SO fun.

I'm aware that I could totally come off as cocky about my skills. But I'm just thankful that I have them. I could never get paid for baking again, and I'd still enjoy doing it.

Monday and...

I'm going to try something this week. Seeing as how it's the week of Thanksgiving I'll post some things I'm thankful for. So original, right? Well, deal with it...

This is kind of a given, but I'm unbelievably thankful for this kid.

I'm thankful that I've been able to watch him grow and get ready for school. And I'm loving watching him learn at this insanely fast rate. I swear I'm helping raise a genius!

I'm thankful that hubby and I are able to take him to experience things. Whether it's the beach, the zoo, the snow, or just the movies. I love the times we spend with him and I love asking him what we should do next.

I'm thankful that he's such a wonderful, compassionate child. We're beyond lucky with this little one around. He's funny. He loves so easily. He sings. He's just amazing! I hope when hubby and I have our own one day, ours can be as cool as Tad.

Okay, so I was kind of sappy today. But I've spent the last couple days with him and I'm loving every minute of it. From making snowflakes and cards at my mom's, to making up songs, to playing pirates with my brother... this kid rocks.