Texas Lou

Good morning! I have been so blessed to get to “live” in Texas for 5 weeks the last 2 summers allowing me to spend time with family that I don’t get to see very often. My time in Texas is coming to a close and that always makes me really sad (picture me kicking and screaming all the way back to Virginia in the minivan like a kid). I know that sadness can be combatted to some degree by practicing gratitude so here we go!

1. I am beyond grateful for this amazing family I’ve been born into! Not only am I lucky to have them, I’m also lucky to be part of a crew that makes so much effort to keep our bonds strong!
2. I am grateful for my mom. She’s amazing, she’s confident, she takes care of us all. I hope I can be half the woman she is one day. She has opened up her home, her time, her love, and her support to us. We basically come in and take over her house as this loud, chaotic family of 5 and she is always happy to have us.
3. I am thankful for an amazing vacation at our happy place with my family. We beached, we swam, we ate amazing home cooked food, we drank, we watched the Corpus Christi Hooks play and indulged in dollar hot dogs at Whataburger Stadium. We sang and danced and played cards. We shared our ups and downs and commiserated with and supported one another in our difficulties. I couldn’t have asked for a better vacation, in a better place, with better people.
4. I’m thankful for my best friend back home. She is an amazing person and is 1 thing that has me looking forward to being back in Virginia. I’m also thankful that she knows me so well and knows that I’ll be sad leaving my family and Texas and has been planning fun stuff for us in addition to checking on our house and pets.
5. I’m thankful that several close family members who have had surgeries recently are ok and healing well.

I hope you all are able to find a bit of gratitude in your day today!

As always, I have lots to be grateful for. It is the end of the school year and that has me retrospectively examining what improvements and growth I’ve seen in my kids over the past few months and the factors I’m grateful for that have helped them along the way.

1. I am grateful for the most AMAZING teachers my boys have had this year! Seriously, we are so blessed to have wonderful, engaging, kind, intelligent educators who have taught them since August!
2. I am grateful for the growth and learning my kids have been able to experience. We are so lucky to live in a country and society that makes space for children to learn, play, and not have to grow up too fast.
3. Although with the move into summer comes a change in routine and a scramble to figure out what kids will do while us working parents go on about out schedules, I am thankful for the annual break to slow down, enjoy each other more, and let kids be kids without as much pressure and responsibility.
4. I’m thankful for all of the beautiful slide shows, pictures, and videos my kids’ teachers have shared with me this year, especially over the past couple of weeks.
5. I’m grateful for the numerous fun and exciting events the teachers and school have planned for the kids. From water day to pajama day, the kids have had a blast celebrating the end of the school year!

Wishing you all an amazing and grateful summer!

Hi friends! I haven’t been posting here as much, but I have been continuing my practice of keeping a gratitude journal when I first wake up and before I go to bed to help reframe my mindset and I can tell it really helps me stay in a more positive and optimistic space. I still enjoy expressing the things I’m thankful for here, so I’ll keep this up when I can!

Today I am thankful for the following:

1. Someone I love who is at a higher risk for illness getting a clean bill of health
2. Getting a promotion at work recently and feeling appreciated and like I make a difference for the amazing people I work with
3. Warmer weather and sunnier days
4. That my family in Houston was ok after the recent strong storms and that they all have power back now
5. That I know how to advocate for my children and never give up on helping them to improve and succeed

Have a great and grateful day!

Hello and happy New Year! It’s been a while, but I’ve had a resurgence in my gratitude practices, so I want to keep writing here as well!

1. I am thankful for another new year and a fresh start! This year, I am trying to have more self-compassion, go easier on myself, and forgive and let go of some of the hard things I’ve faced since March of 2020. Luckily, I’ve learned a lot about myself and others, but I’ve also carried too much pain and think I’m finally coming to realize that letting go and forgiving is much easier than holding on to the hurt. I am grateful for this realization!
2. I am thankful we are all starting to feel better after both the flu and strep welcomed us into 2024! I’m also thankful for access to medication and doctors!
3. I am grateful for an amazing Christmas spent with my mom, sister, brother, and our families! This was the first time we’ve been together for the holiday in 5 years and we’ve had 4 new family members since then!
4. I am so grateful for my little boys who teach me to be a better and more patient person every day!
5. I am thankful for my amazing mom who always welcomes us into her home for as long as we want!

Wishing you all a happy and grateful New Year!

I have so much to be thankful for this week!

1. I am grateful for a fun weekend with my kiddos! We spent Saturday at the Fluvanna County Fair and Rodeo. It was my kids’ first fair and rodeo and we had a blast seeing old friends and new friends, riding rides, making bird feeders, playing in a corn pit, playing on bouncy houses, learning about lady bugs, watching professional axe throwers and log rollers, playing on big construction vehicles, watching cowboys, bull riders, and mutton busting, and enjoying each other!
2. I am thankful for beautiful weather and a fun day swimming at the river with our best friends!
3. I am so very grateful it is the first day of school and we are all getting back into a routine. We had an amazing summer and now we are ready to get back into it!
4. I am thankful for my best friend Lindsey and that she always plans fun things for us including a sunrise hike last weekend and a fun family day at the river.
5. I am thankful my kiddo is feeling better after a short virus and that he was recovered in time to go to school on the first day.

Happy day friends!

Wow, am I grateful!

1. I am grateful for the opportunity to “live” in Texas for 5 weeks this summer! What an amazing summer it was!
2. I am thankful that my children got the chance to spend so much time with extended family getting to make memories and form bonds with cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.
3. I am grateful for all of the time I got to spend with some of my favorite and most important people making memories and catching up.
4. I am grateful for all of the fun things we did and experiencing all the firsts with my kiddos! Pool parties, cookouts, the most amazing 4th of July fireworks show, Six Flags and riding roller coasters with my kiddos for the first time, painting with my mom and the kids, road trips, baby showers, multiple aquarium visits with a spectacular dolphin show, date nights, a girls weekend, baby cuddles and meeting new precious babies in the family, hugs from my aunts, uncles, and cousins, Tex-Mex, happy hours with my mom, eating the most delicious homemade meals made by my mom (but not gaining the 10 pounds I gained 🙂 ), Lego Discovery Land, trips to the neighborhood water pack, a visit with cousins to Hawaiian Falls, beach days, eating freshly caught-fish, and so many more!
5. I am grateful for this most special and unique and loving family that I was born into where everyone values each other and makes the effort to stay close! And I am grateful that I have the opportunity to share this family and our values with my kids!

Hi friends! I am so grateful lately! Let me tell you why!

1. I am grateful for getting to spend tons of time with family over the past few days! We’ve had pool parties, 4th of July cookouts and firework celebrations, a Cousins’ Night dinner, and a girl’s weekend at the lake! I LOVE my family and am so thankful for the opportunity to spend so much time with them this month!
2. I am thankful that my mom always welcomes us with open arms and makes us feel 100% comfortable and at home despite the fact that my 3 little boys might accurately be compared to wild animals at times!
3. I’m thankful for the chance to be somewhere with clearner air. The air quality in Virginia has not been great due to the Canadian wildfires so I’m glad our lungs are getting a bit of a break.
4. I’m thankful for Buc-ee’s and that you can find tham outside of Texas now! Best place to stop on a roadtrip EVER!
5. I’m grateful for fun times this summer!

Have a great one!

Hey friends! As usual, I have plenty to be grateful for!

• I am thankful for a great team at work! Every one is so open and collaborative and easy to work with!
• I am grateful for my kids having the opportunities to participate in activities like football, basketball, and cub scouts.
• I am thankful for spring time and the nicer weather we’ve been having.
• I’m thankful for a nice place to live and a nice place to work.
• I’m grateful that we aren’t where we were 3 years ago when the pandemic first started.

Have a happy day!

Hi friends! I’m trying hard to be as grateful as ever.

1. I’m grateful to work for a company that seems to genuinely care about its employees.
2. I’m thankful for my health.
3. I’m thankful for having enough money to provide a comfortable and good life for my children.
4. I’m grateful for amazing coworkers who are also my friends.
5. I’m thankful it is the end of my work week. 🙂

Good morning friends! I’ve got so much to be thankful for!

1. My youngest had his adenoids out on Monday and I am so grateful that after almost 3 years, he finally has them out and has some relief. The surgeon said he was 90% obstructed! I am so grateful to the wonderful doctors, nurses, and staff at UVA! I’m also thankful for running into an old friend at the hospital.
2. One of my other boys hit his nose really badly on the playground on Sunday and we had to go to the emergency room. I am so so so thankful that he was ok and that they don’t think he broke anything despite it looking really gnarly! I am also thankful for a short wait at the ER and great doctors, nurses, and staff at Martha Jefferson (we are really getting a tour of the medical facilities in town this week!!!).
3. I am super grateful for the ability to work from home while my son recovers from his surgery and to take time off whenever I need (and make it up later) so I can take my kids to doctors appointments.
4. I am thankful for Fridays off work. It gives me time for self-care and to make up any work time that I need to for the week.
5. I am thankful my kiddos are all playing basketball. It is one of my favorite sports and I loved playing growing up and now I love watching them play and learn the game!

Happy day to you all!