I’m Thankful

I know everyone does a thankful post every year, but I still think it’s such a great thing.  The fact that we take one day out of the year to stop and be grateful is wonderful to me.  I wish we took more time to show gratitude throughout the year, but I’ll take one day over none at all.

There are many things I’m thankful for.  I’m thankful to be alive and in good health.  I don’t think I appreciate this enough.

I’m thankful for Cody.  I know it probably seems like all I talk about, but I got a good one.  He is the best thing that has ever happened to me.  I’m thankful for him every single day. Some days I am unworthy of his unconditional love and I’m thankful he still keeps me.  He is the kindest, most giving man I have ever met.  I really can’t wait to make him a dad.  (In the future of course)

Photo Credit: Ampersand Photography

I’m thankful for my parents.  I know for a fact that I don’t tell them enough just how thankful I am to be their daughter.  I’m thankful for everything they taught me growing up and still teach me today.  They taught me that having what you need is much more important than having what you want.  I didn’t know it when I was younger, but I definitely know now, that they were super parents.  Not only did they teach me all about life, but they taught me about unconditional love.  The love you find in fairy tales.  The love that defies all odds.  They’ve been to hell and back and still love each other.  If that isn’t true love, I don’t know what is.  Not to mention if their daughter tells them she wants to move 1500 miles away and they don’t try to talk her out of it.  Instead they just say that they love me no matter what and they’ll always be there for me.  I know that if I have half the compassion my mom has I will be proud. And if I can have a sense of humor in any situation like my dad I will also be proud.  Both of my parents are the most compassionate people I know and I hope that I am just like them.

I’m thankful for Cody’s parents or as I call them, “My Texas mom and dad.”  I know that I can go to them for anything.  They share such compassion towards others, whether it be friends, family or complete strangers. I’m so grateful they have welcomed me into their family with open arms and hearts.  They are amazing people and I’m so glad they are such a huge part of my life.

I’m thankful for my dog son, Riddler.  He is always happy to see me.  He knows when I’ve had a bad day and I need some extra loves.  He reminds me that a good cuddle and some kisses can change the world.  He has the cutest personality and keeps a smile on my face always.  I don’t know what I would do without him.

I’m thankful for my job.  Not just that I have a job to put food on the table, but that I work for company that I love.  That I have a job that I love.  I know it’s really hard now a days to have a job that you enjoy and coworkers you also enjoy being around.

I’m thankful for Cody’s job.  For all the same reasons above.  I love where he works and all the great people he works with every day.  I wish we would have found his job sooner because he works at the best clinic in the whole wide world with the most caring people around.

I’m thankful for so many more things that if I named them all this post would turn into a novel.  One huge novel so for now I just want to end by saying. I’m so thankful for everyone in my life.  It has been a wild year, but I’m grateful for everyone that has stood by me.  I can’t express enough how each and every one of you have transformed my life in some way.  Yes, even you complete stranger.  I’m thankful that you’ve taken the time to stop by and see my little sliver of the world.  So to each of you I say, thank you.

What are you most thankful for?

My Confessions

I saw a blog post a couple of weeks ago with confessions.  I really liked it because a lot of the time I feel like we all get caught up on showing the world only our very best.  Which leaves everyone else (me included) feeling like their life is sub-par.  So I thought I would do a post of my confessions.

1. Last month I forgot to pay our electric bill and our power got shut off temporarily

Life is chaotic right now and I’m human.  I cried for a solid five minutes when Cody called me at work to tell me the power was off.  After being on hold for 45 minutes and paying what was due the power was restored.

2. I still haven’t purchased a wedding dress and my wedding is six months away

This one is a hard one for me. My inner thrifter won’t allow me to spend tons of money on a dress I’m going to wear once. I’m in love with a dress, I just can’t bring myself to fork up the dough for it.

3. We own one pot for cooking

When we moved into our apartment last year, we had five different sized pots.  Since then we have rusted and worn out 4 of them and the one we still have is barely usable, but usable nonetheless.

4. We don’t own a whisk, a hand mixer, much less a full Kitchen aid

I would love to have all of these “necessities”, but we haven’t purchased any.  I make cookies the old fashion way as well as mashed potatoes.  I wish I could say it’s because I want to make my ancestors proud, but really we just haven’t purchased these things.

5. My favorite snack right now is mini Kit-Kats dipped in peanut butter

My two favorite things peanut butter and Kit-Kats.  Give it a try, you won’t regret it.

6. My entire life revolves around wedding planning

I wish I was exaggerating. All of my free time goes to planning every detail of the wedding.  It’s not a bad thing it just makes for crazy wedding nightmares every night.

7. I think about eloping at least twice a day.
I may be slightly exaggerating on this one, but I think about it a lot.  And the reason we are not doing it is because I want to share my special day with everyone I love.  That is more important to me than just running off and getting married.  But just know I think about eloping often.

8. I haven’t been to the gym in three months

I hate the gym.  I enjoy running outside, but lately it seems there isn’t enough time in the day to do it.  I want to go for a long run otherwise I feel it is unsuccessful.  I could go to the gym considering it’s in our complex, but I don’t.


9. Cody and I went to the mall the other day and neither of us purchased a thing!!!

I’m very proud of this one.  I don’t know if it was because I honestly hate that ’90s fashion has come back. Or that I compared everything I liked to the same dollar amount I could be paying for something wedding.

10. I don’t eat breakfast most days

This one is bad.  I know I should eat breakfast for multiple reasons one being that I’m notorious for hangry around 11 am and my lunch isn’t until noon.

11. I wake up a half an hour before I have to be at work

Yep, I’m that lazy.  I don’t bother with make-up, I put together my outfit the night before, (Cody just laughed when I read this to him.  Because most days I don’t plan ahead) and I do whatever with my hair.  I’m lucky that we live practically in the backyard of my work otherwise I don’t know what I would do.  I definitely don’t miss my long commutes from Salt Lake to Ogden.

12. I still get zits

Lots of them actually.  Currently I’m sporting at least two big ones on my face. (And it’s not from wearing make-up)  Whoever lied to me and told me I wouldn’t have zits when I got in my twenties, needs to be given a whipping.  I know that a lot of them are from stress, but I feel like there is not a single face wash out there that solves all of my problems long term.  I’ve pretty much accepted that I will deal with zits until I die.

I know some of these confessions are silly, but some of them are serious and have brought tears to my eyes.  I know that I am blessed and that these are just minor bumps in the ride of life.  I hope that the next time you feel inferior because of someone’s “perfect life” you think of my post.  Because I will be the first one to tell you that I am far from perfect and that’s okay.

Are there some confessions you want to make known?  Leave me one (or more) of them in the comments.

The Texas Difference: Food

If you are hungry you should probably turn away now, because this post is full of delicious food.
A while back I did a post on “The Texas Difference” with words and phrases.  Well I thought it would be fun to do a food post.  I have embraced all foods southern and Texas.  I really don’t know how I lived without some of these foods my entire life. (And I never want to live without them again)  I have a saying “everything tastes better in Texas”.  Which I believe whole heartily.  Now whether or not it’s a fact, it’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
  My grandparents on my dad’s side are from New Mexico so some of these foods weren’t completely new to me, but some definitely were.  A lot of them you can find throughout the US, but it isn’t the same.  (Trust me)

Step right up and have a glimpse into some of the greatest food Texas offers.

Grits When cooked correctly these are delicious.  To me it’s very similar to cream of wheat only grittier.  (pun intended)

Deep Fried Green Beans I like regular green beans and I love deep fried things so these are amazing.

Chicken Fried Steak There is a restaurant in town called Babe’s Chicken, best chicken fried steak money can buy.

Biscuits Same restaurant as above, the biscuits are to die for.  Seriously though and they’re limitless.

Brisket I love me some brisket.  It’s smoked, it’s barbecued, it’s delicious.

Cornbread I love cornbread before I moved here, but they take it to a whole new level here in Texas.  It includes whole kernel corn and yummy mix-ins like jalapenos.

Collard Greens Honestly these are my least favorite things.  Take a bunch of leafy vegetables boil them, add butter and you have collards greens. I have no idea why people like them so much here.

Okra (I love me some deep fried okra) Okra is like a little I could eat these for days.  Crunchy, salty, deliciousness.

Fingerling Potatoes I had never had purple potatoes until I moved here, they are delicious.

Chicken Fried Chicken  If I had to choose my favorite food it would be this.  It’s like regular deep fried chicken only a million times better.

Sweet Tea I personally don’t drink it, but it’s at every restaurant and my “Texas dad”(Cody’s dad)  loves this stuff as does everyone else.  It’s offered both sweetened and unsweetened.

Southern Green Beans What makes these so special?  Take regular green beans cook them in butter and add bacon, lots of bacon.

Creamed Corn The best creamed corn I’ve ever eaten was from the restaurant I mentioned above. Creamy fresh goodness.

Deep Fried Pickles Like regular pickles only breaded and deep fried.

Tex-Mex I think the main difference is you can get chili con carne (a chili sauce) on top of your tacos, enchiladas etc.  Plus you can get Queso basically everywhere.

Texas Chili Basically regular chili plus a little more heat and hold the beans.

Corn Nuggets Holy mother of goodness.  It’s basically creamed corn deep fried.

Deep fried Catfish It’s fresh, it’s fried, you eat it at a fish fry.

Bread Pudding Mmm my mom used to make bread pudding and Texas bread pudding rivals hers pretty squarely.

Banana Pudding How I had never tasted the goodness of banana pudding before we visited/moved here is beyond me.

Hmm am I missing anything?  

After writing this post I’m questioning how I haven’t gain 50+ pounds.  I don’t think a thing on here is healthy.

Have you ever traveled outside of your home state and discovered amazing foods?

Dear Twenty Something Girl

Dear Twenty Something Year Old Unmarried Girl,
You are enough. You are not “too old” to find the one. You are not alone. You do not need to settle down just to satisfy others. You are beautiful.  You are smart and you are young. You will never get to be this age again. Live it up. You shouldn’t feel obligated to marry someone because you’re afraid no one better will come along.  Don’t sell yourself short. Don’t listen to the nay-sayers. And most definitely don’t compare yourself to everyone else. This is your life, live it how you want. Be picky because you deserve the best. Also know you are never too old to find true love.  If you just started dating someone. Take it slow. Take the time to get to know them. Don’t gamble your entire life on just a couple of weeks or months. Have fun, there is no need to rush. Just be you.  And make sure you’re getting what you want. After all this is your life.

Sincerely,
An Unmarried 23 Year Old

P.S. I may be engaged to be married,  but there were many times before now that I wished someone had said these things to me.  Because there were a lot of other people who were saying just the opposite.  Just know you are enough.

Love is All I Need

I know I wrote a post a few months ago about what was important to me for my wedding.  Since then my perspective has changed quite a bit.  I’m still excited about my wedding, but not necessarily about the ‘show and tell’ anymore.  What I honestly think is most important and the most exciting, is I get to marry Cody.  Not only that, but I get to do it in front of my closest family and friends.  I get to show everyone I love, just how deep my love for Cody is.  That I want more than anything in this world to have this man by my side every second of every day.  I want to be the mother of his children. To get to raise little humans with him.  To get to share every happy moment with him and be able to confide in him in the not so happy moments.

I think when you first get engaged all you can think about is how your wedding is going to be the best ever. You want the best of everything.  The best flowers, the best cake, the biggest venue, the prettiest dress.  If you’re anything like me you start getting quotes and realize that you don’t particularly want to be paying off your wedding for the next ten years (Or maybe you do and there’s nothing wrong with that either) just to show off to a bunch of people you don’t really care about. 
People who aren’t even invited to the wedding, but you may be friends with exclusively through social media.    And the people who you do care about you, don’t care if you spend $2,000 or $20,000 because they’re there because they love you and want to share in your joy of your marriage.

I’m guilty of judging people’s weddings.  I will be the first to come out and say it. And I have been harsh through the years.  Like “why did so and so do this and they should have done this.”  I totally missed the mark.  I should have been paying more attention to the bride and groom instead of the stupid centerpieces.  Were they happy?  What were they doing?  Were they in love?  Did I feel the joy that was radiating off of them?  So even though most couples had no idea I was judging them, I just want to say publicly, I’m sorry. And I truly believe love is all you need.  That is what I’m now focusing on for my wedding. Love is all I need.

Do you agree?  Are you also guilty of getting caught up in the monetary value of a wedding?