I Choose to Be Thankful

It seems lately (especially over the past few days) social media and the news has been full of hate, ugliness, name-calling, and just plain rudeness. It's so easy to get caught up in that and lash out at your hurt, anger, and disappointment. Instead of doing that, I choose to focus on positive things right now. If other people want to vent, that is their right and I will let them, but for me, focusing on things that make me happy is helping me get through these tough times right now. I know the world is full of awful things, but right now I want to focus on what is good, not evil. So today I give you things I'm thankful for (no matter how big or small they may seem to you). Please feel free to comment on things you are thankful for as well! It's time to be thankful for what we have instead of upset over what we don't.

I'm thankful for...

My friends. I love that my friends make time to see me, whether it's for a sporting event, movie night, lunch, dinner, or just meeting up to say "hi". I couldn't ask for better people to be in my life.

Recent meet-ups with friends

My church family. I've been a member almost a year (I've been attending for 18 months). My Sunday School class is wonderful and I'm excited to get involved with different church activities. The ladies in my Sunday School class recently did a Secret Sister exchange and a few weeks ago I was in charge of the decorations for my class' "trunk" for our annual Trunk or Treat event (act surprised that I picked a baseball theme).

Some ladies from my Sunday School class

My pastor

My wonderful Sunday School class!

Text from friends just to say hi. Sometimes I'm having a rough day and I'll get a text from a friend that just says they were thinking about me.

Baby snuggles. Snuggles from a baby always seem to make a bad day better, don't they? My friend's son came up to the office to visit her this week, and she let me steal some snuggles. It was just what I needed! I hope by the time he's grown, we've left the world in better shape for him.

Thanks to my friend for permission to use her son's picture on my blog! :)

Norma's Cafe. Hey- when you find good food, you have to be thankful, right? I've built a friendship with Norma's Cafe through social media and recently I was asked to be part of their National Chicken Fried Steak Day tour. I got to spend the day with awesome people and we basically traveled around the area eating chicken fried steak all day. I got to meet actor Burton Gilliam (best known for the movie Blazing Saddles), as well as Ed Murph, the owner of Norma's Cafe. And it's always good to see Bill Ziegler, director of operations. It was a great day. I made a new friend (who is a fellow blogger) and it turns out we live in the same apartment complex- small world!

My new car! I mentioned a few weeks ago I was in a wreck. Unfortunately my car was totaled, but that means I got a new car (I'm trying to look on the bright side of things). From the outside it looks a lot like my old car (I love Mazda), but it's a lot fancier inside. I now have Bluetooth and a back-up camera. It's the little things that make me happy. :)

I've named it Silver 2.0

My awesome salesman 

My niece made me this angel when she was five (she's now 18). It's been in every car I've own since then- I call it my guardian angel

Early Christmas gifts. A friend of mine told me last week that my Christmas gift from him was a ticket to the Billy Joel concert in San Antonio next month. I'm SUPER excited! **squeal**

Having the movie theater practically to myself. I guess when you go see a bad "B" horror movie, there aren't a lot of people. But who cares, it's still fun. And I love the recliner seats!

For the record, this was taken before the previews started. I keep my phone put up during a movie

This reminder whenever I'm feeling anxious and stressed.

Dr Pepper. A friend gave me a case of pure sugar cane Dr Pepper. I will not confirm how much of this is already gone. :)

That in 2 weeks, I'll be home with my family for Thanksgiving. I haven't been "home" since August. I'm looking forward to much needed family time!

Tell me, what are YOU thankful for?

XOXO!

Thursday 13: 13 Things I Wish I Were Doing

I wish I were...

1. Reading a book. It's BEAUTIFUL outside, the perfect weather to be on my balcony reading, but alas, I'm stuck inside.

2. Working on my novel. I haven't written anything in a while, I need to find something to snap me out of my writer's block. 

3. Watching the Rangers play baseball. Sadly our postseason run ended earlier than I wanted it to, but hey, at least the Blue Jays are now out of it (suck it Jose Bautista). 

4. Having a Supernatural marathon with my bestie Mandy. She lives in Austin and sadly we don't get to see each other as often as we would like. BUT, we do text daily (in fact she just sent me a text as soon as I started writing this- it's like she knew I was talking about her!) :) We love the show Supernatural and we sometimes watch episodes over the phone together (don't judge us). But it would be nice to have a marathon with her in person. 

Me and Mandy with the stars of Supernatural, Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki (yes, I'll use any excuse to post this picture again). :)

5. Going to my great-nephew E's birthday party this weekend. Sadly I am unable to get out of town to celebrate his 7th birthday. :(

Aunt Rachel's sweet boy

6. In better shape so my High Intensity Interval Training workouts weren't kicking my butt. I'm determined to stick with them though, my goal is to be in shape for my cruise in January. 

7. Better at updating my blog. I seem to update on average once a week, sometimes twice if you are I am lucky. I need motivation and a purpose to keep up with it. I did change my header last night though (did you notice??)

8. Better at expressing my emotions. Sometimes I just keep things bottled up because it's easier than talking about them (I know, that's not healthy). My therapist would not be pleased hearing me say that.

9. Going to the Billy Joel concert in San Antonio in December. I saw him last year in Dallas and it was one of the best concerts I've ever been to. I would love to see him again. I just would want him to sing SOMETHING from his An Innocent Man album (it's my favorite). Last time he didn't sing one song from it. :(

10. Having a girls night out with my bestie Brandy (I CAN HAVE MORE THAN ONE BESTIE- STOP JUDGING ME). We had one last month and it was a lot of fun. We have plans to get together next month, but it's literally a month away. Sigh.

11. A better cook. I'm trying, I really am. My spiritual gift is not cooking though. But if you want some form of chicken or pasta or cauliflower rice, I got those recipes down pat. Lol.

12. Out of debt (I know, everyone wishes that). One day I will be, one day!

13. Going on vacation. I need a vacation. Even if it's just a stay-cation. I just need time for me. I've been so busy lately.

XOXO!

Check out other's Thursday 13 posts here!

What I'm Loving!

Despite being in a wreck yesterday, I'm still gonna do a What I'm Loving post! I gotta stay positive! :)

I'm loving...

The State Fair of Texas. After moving to Dallas in 2004, I've tried to go every year to the Fair (although I've missed a few years here and there). Last Friday my friends Monica and Branson joined me for what has become our yearly trip together (the past few years the three of us have met up there). It's always a lot of fun. This year they had Dr Pepper ice cream, which is probably by far the greatest food to ever be invented!

This was the first time I've ridden the Texas Star (the Ferris Wheel) at night. I look past my fear of heights and just try and enjoy the view. :)

I'm loving...

That I was able to go to the Dallas Stars home opener last week. A friend of mine had a hook up and we got a behind the scenes tour at the AAC. We were able to see the control room (where they monitor all the cameras) as well as the light booth (where they control the fog and lights). They even let us go down by the ice. :)

I'm loving...

The gifts that my Boo Buddy has given me so far. The ladies in my Sunday School class are participating in a Secret Sister thing this month, it's a lot of fun! :)

I'm loving...

That I'm slowly working on the decorations for my church's Trunk or Treat event (that is NEXT weekend). I'm in charge of the decorations for my class's "trunk". Three guesses what our theme is going to be. :)

I'm loving...

That my friend and I are okay after our wreck yesterday. We were physically unharmed (thank God). My car on the other hand is not so lucky. I'm currently waiting to hear the verdict on what is going to happen with it. Fingers crossed it can be repaired! The vehicle responsible for causing the wreck drove off without stopping. So far we haven't had any luck finding them, but we are still checking local area cameras in hopes that there is footage of them. Regardless, cars can be replaced, my friend and I cannot be. Thankful for all my sweet friends who have sent well wishes and words of encouragement. Love you all! XOXO!

What are YOU loving today?

XOXO!

It's OK Thursday....

It's OK...

...that the Rangers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Okay, it's NOT okay, but I'm trying to be okay with it. I still had fun this season going out to the Ballpark and meeting up with my Rangers family. Through wins and losses, I will never EVER quit being a Rangers fan.

... that I feel like saying this to all the people who have frustrated me this week: (but I won't, because I'm a nice person)

... that I'm SO FAR behind on my book challenge this year. I guess I could read 23 books before December 31 if I put my mind to it. We shall see. 

... that I'm too lazy to make a new fall wreath, so I'm using one from three years ago.

I saw my neighbor on Monday and she was like, I assume since you changed from your baseball wreath, that means the Rangers are out of the playoffs? **SOBBING**

... that I'm missing the season premiere of Supernatural tonight because I will be at a hockey game. I will not confirm or deny that I will go online when I get home to see if I can find it (I no longer have a DVR since I got rid of cable).

Yes, I just wanted to use a Jensen Ackles gif on my page, don't judge me

What's OK with you?

What I'm Loving Wednesday

I almost didn't do this post today because I was struggling to find anything I was loving- it's just been one of those weeks where life is kicking my butt. But I decided to not let myself stay in a funk and looked for even the littlest things that make me happy.

I'm loving...

That I actually made it to church BEFORE services started last week. Usually I'm sneaking in during the first (or second) song. I even took a picture to prove I was there on time!

54 seconds to spare!

I'm loving...

That it was finally cold enough for me to wear my Rangers winter hat that my friend Lisa gave me for my birthday (back in May). And when I say "cold enough", I mean it was below 60. I didn't get to wear it long because it warmed up to about 80 later in the day. But for 30 glorious minutes, I was able to wear it. :)

I'm loving...

That I finally bought bar stools for my counter. I've been talking about it for a while now. I found some pretty inexpensive ones. I even put them together all by myself without losing my religion. Lol.

I only took a picture of one of them but I have two. Now I can sit and eat at the counter instead of on my couch (I don't have a dining table). 

I'm loving...

These pictures of my great-nephews and great-niece. Their sweet faces make any bad day better!

I'm loving...

That I'm going to the Stars home opener tomorrow night with some friends. Seeing that I don't have Rangers baseball to watch any longer (I'm not ready to talk about it), I will have hockey to distract me. Go Stars go!

What are YOU loving today?

XOXO!

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Welcome to the new bloggers we had join us last week! I enjoyed reading your posts. Don't forget to link up below!! :)

I'm loving...

That my folks finally made it to a Rangers game this season (they weren't able to make it last year due to health issues). They wore the shirts that I made them a few years ago and they were quite a hit. Fox Sports Southwest even interviewed them for their Facebook Live segment! :)

With my folks and sister Mary

My folks and their shirts

Being interviewed by Jim Knox of Fox Sports Southwest

They also made the FSS Instagram page!

I'm loving...

Text conversations with my BFF Mandy. We pretty much text everyday. I love our conversations, some of them make me laugh so hard. We are hilarious- we need our own show. :)

I'm loving...

Bobbleheads. I got a Colby Lewis bobblehead at the Rangers game last Saturday night. Unfortunately the pitcher Colby did not have a great game (although most of the runs that scored were unearned). 

Bobblehead Colby watching his namesake pitch

I'm loving...

When I get to see friends at Rangers games. Sometimes we plan to meet up and sometimes we just run into each other. I love my Rangers family!

I'm loving...

That Norma's Cafe notices I'm at a location before I even check in. I'm possibly a regular there! :)

I'm loving...

Taco Tuesday! Yesterday was National Taco Day- I usually make fun of these random "national days", but this one I could support. Taco Cabana was giving out free tacos from 5pm-8pm yesterday. I had to stop by!  

What are YOU loving today?