Thankful Thursday

For the last few years, I've talked about getting back into my "blogging groove". I'm not going to lie, I've missed it. The motivation was seriously lacking though (hello laziness). It's felt good to have people tell me that they miss my posts, so I am going to try my hardest to update this as regularly as possible, and not just when I travel, like I have the last couple of years. Although I will still recap my travel adventures, don't you worry.

I thought today I would start the new year off with a Thankful Thursday post. Some of you only keep up with me through this blog, so you might have missed a few of the things that have happened over the last few weeks months years.

I'm thankful...

...that I was able to attend the Winter Classic hockey game on New Year's Day. Shout-out to my friend Monica 2.0 for the ticket. (I have two good friends named Monica so I call them 1.0 and 2.0. I met 1.0 first, hence why she is 1.0. I love that pretty much everyone who knows both of them now uses the 1.0 and 2.0 nicknames as well). :) The Winter Classic was a once in a lifetime experience to not only attend an OUTDOOR professional hockey game, but an outdoor hockey game IN TEXAS. The weather gods were good to us. It was cold (well, cold for Texas-low 50s), overcast, and not rainy. The atmosphere at the game was amazing. There were over 85,000 fans there. The NHL grossly underestimated how many fans would show up to a hockey game in Texas, so I'm not going to lie-how they handled the crowd lacked a lot (blame the NHL, not Dallas, the NHL hosted the whole event). BUT that doesn't take away from the wonderful experience. Even though the lines were long and we stood for a long time NOT moving because there were so many people, it wasn't too unbearable (I can say that now that I'm at home sitting down). Even the fans from Nashville were nice, I didn't see or hear any ugly trash talking- everyone was there to experience a great hockey game. And it was fantastic. Mainly because the Stars won, but even if they hadn't, it still would be a day to remember.

Monica 2.0, Monica 1.0, and me

A fun day with my hockey homegirls (and Tim, with the photobomb). 

See what I mean about the crowds

The second largest crowd in Winter Classic history

The Stars came back to win the game 4-2.

...that I was able to spend a week with my family during the holidays. I rarely get to spend a whole week at my folks house, so that was nice. I was spoiled because I was the only one staying at their house, so I got them all to myself. It was nice just to relax and be able to sit and talk or watch movies with them. Also I got to meet my new great-niece (grand-niece? I still don't know the proper term). She's the daughter of my nephew James. They were in Texas visiting, so I finally got to meet Baby J (she was born in November).

L: Me in 1990 holding my nephew James-rocking a NKOTB shirt. R: Me at Christmas holding his daughter, rocking a NKOTB shirt. :) What's funny is that they were the same ages when these photos were taken (just about a month old). James was an 11 pound baby, his daughter was just over 6 pounds. :)

My nephew James today- he's a little taller now. :)

Christmas with my folks

My great-nephew C- he's a big fan of Snapchat (so is his brother).

My great-nephew E, he's a mess. Lol. 

C, E, and K all came over to my folks early Christmas morning

My sister Martha and I thought it was a good idea to go to Hobby Lobby two days before Christmas. Lol. We were so tempted to buy 66% off Christmas decorations, but thankfully we got out of there before causing too much damage to our checking accounts. 

My great-niece K- we thought we would try out a new look

My niece Alice, the mother of C, E, and K. We always tell people we are like sisters since we are only six years apart.

...that I'm trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle by participating in races. I completed my first 5K in December 2017. Then in 2018 I finished two 5Ks. This year I ran (okay, mainly walked/jogged) seven 5Ks and one 10K. I didn't break any records by any means, but this newly discovered passion for races has surprised a lot of people, including me. Lol. I used to think people who did these races were crazy. Guess I'm crazy. I signed up for my first half-marathon (that's 13.1 miles, for those not familiar with races). It's going to be in March in San Antonio- I'm very excited/nervous about it.

...that I have fully recovered from my shoulder surgery. As you might remember, in January 2018 I had that horrible accident where I burned my leg (if you want that recap, you can click here.) I had hoped to get through 2019 without any accidents or hospital visits. Unfortunately, I had to have shoulder surgery Feb. 1 for a torn tendon and to remove some cysts caused by bursitis. The surgery went well-it was my first surgery, so I was super nervous because I had to be put under anesthesia, but I had no complications (and I didn't propose to my orthopedic surgeon or call him Dr. McHottie. Lol.) I was on bed rest for two weeks and had to do physical therapy for five months, but I visited my doctor last month, and I'm completely healed. He's very pleased with the range of motion in my shoulder and that the pain is gone. So, if the Rangers need me in the bullpen, I'm good to go! : )

With Dr. Ghattas before my surgery in February

You lose all sense of modesty when you have to call one of your homegirls to come over and help you take off your shirt so you can shower. Lol. Nothing like not having the use of one arm to make you feel totally helpless.

These were my awesome physical therapists at ATI. They based my pain level from a 1 to a "I want to punch you in the face". (because I possibly said that a lot when I first started going). Lol.

Last month when I got the all clear from my doctor!

Thank you to the faithful who keep up with me, I appreciate y'all! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and I hope your 2020 is amazing and the best ever! Much love!

XOXO!