Thursday, November 20, 2014

Coffee Date


Good Morning, Y'all! As of today I have been at my new job for a week. I'm still loving it. Everyone asks me at the end of the day, "you sure you're coming back tomorrow?" I'm not sure if they're scared I'm leaving or what. Either way, I always say yes and I keep coming back. I feel like it's been awhile since I let myself go in the blog, so I figure a Coffee Date would be a perfect time for that

...If we were having coffee, we probably wouldn't be at my house. It's a mess. I'd take you to the cute little coffee shop in downtown Monroe. Not even exaggerating a little bit: my place is a mess. I haven't cleaned it in far too long. Oops. I'd then ask how you were doing and catch up.

...If we were having coffee, I'd admit (probably in tears) that I have been not nearly patient enough with Zander lately. He and I have been yelling at each other way too much lately, and I know he's doing it because I'm doing it. It's a vicious circle that I know I need to be the one to end. I'm trying. I'm praying. It's hard, y'all.

...If we were having coffee, I'd confide in you that I'm really nervous about this being the first Thanksgiving without my Grandma. We used to always have Thanksgiving at her house. I'm looking forward to having it at my mom's house, and we'll still have Grandma's table, but part of me is sad that she won't be here.

...If we were having coffee, I'd tell you my mother in law will be joining us at my mom's for Thanksgiving. We're very happy to have her join us, but Josh and I had to encourage her to say yes. She wasn't sure if she wanted to go.

...If we were having coffee, I'd also tell you the great news that my Mother in Law got last week. After two years of working part time with the company she's with, they offered her a full time position with benefits and paid time off! I'm so happy for her. She really deserves it.

...If we were having coffee, I'd probably mention that I need to quit drinking coffee since I put way too much creamer in mine. I can feel the scale slowly starting to creep back up. Either I need to put down the coffee cup, or I need to put on my running shoes more than once a week. Probably both. But coffee is just so good. So hello, running shoes. Do you want to help me stay on track?

...If we were having coffee, I'd tell you that I have shamelessly been watching the Geronimo video (by Sheppard) on repeat. I heard this song for the first time back in October. I'm obsessed. Yes, I love the Taylor Swift stuff too. (#noShame). But this song is so dang catchy! I'm a sharer:





...If we were having coffee, I'd hope by this point you would've shared something in the conversation too because by this point I feel like it's a bit one sided. I'd probably also have to pee after having so much coffee.

...If we were having coffee, we'd talk about how Zander isn't in the after-school program anymore. We took him out earlier this week. Now the neighbor across the street picks him up from school and we pay her to watch him the last 2 hours after school before I get home. The school raised their rates way too much, and we said "nope".

...If we were having coffee, I'd ask if you wanted to go find some moonshine. I saw this video on buzzfeed where people tasted different kinds of moonshine, including cherries soaked in it. I want to try moonshine soaked cherries. My step mom also told me about cherries soaked in Fireball. I want to try those too. Lets get drunk on alcohol infused cherries!

What would you share if we were on a coffee date? Who wants to have a coffee date with me? C'mon over! :)

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Monthly Musings Round 1 - November

Monthly Musings... What is that exactly you may be wondering? Well, a "musing" is a period of reflection or thought. Lora and I created this linkup as a way to sit back and think about the finer things in life that we have going on right now. Life can get stressful, and painful, and difficult at times. And sure- you don't want to hide those feelings or keep them bottled up, but Monthly Musings is not a time for those feelings. Here, we want you to reflect on what's good in your life. What do you love about this month? What's something good that happened this month? Is this your favorite month? Why? All of that and more can be answered here!

It's November! We're a week away from THANKSGIVING! Thanksgiving is definitely my second favorite holiday. (Christmas is my first, but not because of presents for me!... that's for another post though).
This month I'm looking forward to seeing family that I haven't seen in almost a year. I have an Aunt and Uncle in Wisconsin. This Aunt is the "favorite Aunt"... even though some people think you're not supposed to say it. I said it, so there. With her and my uncle living so far away, it's difficult to see them as often as we get to see everyone else. This year for Thanksgiving, they'll be flying down and staying with my mom (her sister) for a few days. I'm thankful to be able to spend some much needed time with them and to let my kids get to know them better. I'm thankful that my family is so close and that we all enjoy each others' company.

Whenever my mom's side of the family gets together for Thanksgiving, it's like a big comedy club. We all joke around with each other. There's always tons of laughing. It's just so full of light and fun and happiness. I love it. I love spending time with this family. One of my uncles always cooks the turkey and everyone else brings a side dish. (I bring green bean casserole- YUM!!) If you saw my vlog last week, then you'll remember that I promised to share the recipe. Don't worry, I don't break promises.
This year will be strange because it'll be the first big holiday without my grandma there. I'm still anxious about that. We used to always have Thanksgiving and Christmas at Grandma's tiny little apartment with everyone crammed into the living room and dining room. It was small, but we made it work.
This year we'll be at my mom's new house. I'm not as sad about Grandma not being with us as I thought I would be. I know she's smiling down on us from Heaven. I know she'll be watching the whole thing. I'm also Thankful for blogging friends like Lora. Friends that reach out to you and say "hey, let's do a link up!" I'm Thankful for friends that do actually link up with our crazy idea! haha. This year has been a crazy one, but as it draws to an end, I love looking back and seeing I have so much to be Thankful for.

This month is the start of "family" holidays to me. It warms my heart to know that in a week from tomorrow I'll be sitting around the table full of family and full of smiles. I have a lot to be thankful for this month. For starters, I have a loving husband and two beautiful children. I'm blessed to have family all over the place. After dinner at my mom's we'll be having desert on the dad's side of my family. My mother in law will be joining us at both locations.
I'm blessed to have in laws that get along so well with my families.

As it hits me that November is halfway over, and I sit back and reflect on what this month means to me, I realize more and more about how blessed I really am. And how blessed my children are to be surrounded by so much love and happiness. As my kids grow, it is becoming more and more apparent that I have so much to be thankful for. Josh and I both come from large families. Our kids are surrounded by love, and that is all I could ever ask for them.

What are you thankful for this month?
Next Month: We're musing on CHRISTMAS!!! My Favorite holiday!!

The Rambling Llama

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Tell Me About Your Town

The place we call "home" tends to hold a special place in everyone's hearts. It could also be a very different place to everyone. It could be where they're living now, or the place they were born. Wherever that place may be, it's clear everyone is Thankful to have a place to call home.

A few weeks ago, Amanda announced this awesome new monthly linkup to take place the third Tuesday every month. I'm happy to join Amanda and Rebecca in linking up for the kickoff this month, and to talk about My Town.

I'm thankful to live in a small town. Josh and I have moved around quite a bit, and there's plenty of places we call "home". I'm one of the few that are actually born and raised in Georgia. I've lived in many different corners of this beautiful state, but where we live now has really started to hold a special place in my heart.

Josh and I live in a small town called Monroe. Population: 13,466, and it covers approximately 10.5 square miles. It's not a very big town at all.
Why I'm thankful to live in Monroe

  • The kids can play outside with no one bugging them
  • We run into people we know at Wal-Mart, the library, CVS (everywhere) and it will usually turn into an impromptu coffee date
  • There's always a festival, farmers market, or event going on in the downtown square
  • I know ALL of my neighbors. 
  • Our utility bills are all on one bill that we pay to the city. What we pay for everything is equivalent to what most people pay for just their electric bills. 
  • We can walk to the park and not risk getting run over by the crazy Georgia drivers!
The best part about our town is we're very close to a few of the major highways, so when we want to go see family it's no trouble to navigate. We're about 30 minutes away from my mom and about 45 minutes away from my mother in law. My sister is only 20 minutes from us. We're surrounded by family so we don't feel stuck in a small town. 
If we ever want to venture into the city, it's only an hour drive. Of course, with Atlanta traffic sometimes that hour turns into an hour and ten minutes or more, but it's still not a bad drive all the time

I seriously think everyone needs to experience the small town life at least once in their lives. The festivals they have here is what I really love the most. They recently put up the Christmas lights that will line the streets of downtown until the new year. It's SO PRETTY! 
I'm also thankful that my town is used in major films. Anyone remember "American Reunion"? The square and downtown scenes in the town in the movie is Monroe! How cool is that? /
Mike Cash Store // Source

Why are you Thankful for your town? Are you thankful for the town you grew up in or the town you're living in now? Link up with Amanda and Rebecca to share! 
The Rambling Llama