Dia de gracias

[Random pre-post note: I hate when people call Thanksgiving "turkey day". That's dumb. That's not the point of the holiday. It's especially annoying for non meat eaters I think too :P]

Ah yes... Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. Mine was quite hectic this year, but as always, it was totally worth it. I baked and cooked on Wednesday, then went out for some tasty Mexican food for girls night with my aunts, Grandma, [one] sister, and my mama, and finished the night perfectly with the arrival of Andrew who I hadn't seen in a month <3! Thursday was filled with absolute chaos while we scrambled to clean the house up, bake pumpkin pie, two loaves of banana bread, sweet potato casserole, and potatoes. There were apparently about ~31 people at our house that day/ night... It was hot, crowded, loud, and most of all- amazing! Family from out of town came and we had family photo shoots with Great Grandma D. We played corn hole (with the bean bags and wood boards) outside in the dark, with the help of my dad's genius flashlight-in-a-cup-under-the-corn-hole-board idea! I totally dominated at it, too. No big deal. ;) We finished the night off with cousins, some wine, Charlie Brown, and a board game. Oh and Team Weber (my aunt and uncle), Mom, and I dancing to/ blasting tunes while cleaning up the after-party mess and dishes.

Friday Andrew and I went out to lunch at Pizza Luce, got me [another] new phone (that I still hate), and went on down to his hometown. It was a fairly laid back weekend there, along with hearing live music at one of the local bars. Our friend and his brothers played, which was the main reason we went to see it, and they were awesome. Totally unbiased opinion ;) Hehe. Then today we went out to lunch with our friend and Andrew's cousins, then had to say our goodbyes.

I'm now back in Winona and I would really love to just sleep for 12+ hours. But I need to unpack and study for my finals and the GRE. Boooo.

With that, I shall leave you with a list of [most of] the things I'm thankful for in my life. Since it just seems like the right thing to do after such a great break.

* My beautiful sisters. Despite the fact that we're all totally different personalities, we somehow find common grounds and get along. Very well. They've been my best friends since the beginning.

* My freaking wonderful parents. Words can't describe how much I love my parents. They're so great, have helped my sisters and I so much, and taught us good life values that I can treasure forever.

* The rest of my family. Cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, great grandparents, etc. Family always has been, and always will be my number one in life!

* Andrew. He's a genius, philosophical, handsome, caring, hilarious, goofy, sweetheart of a boyfriend and my life could not be complete without him!

* Andrew's family. Even though I haven't known them that long, they've been so welcoming and caring towards me. It's so nice to have that. I really love his cousins too (at least the one's I've met so far!) because we get along well.

* Friends. I love them. From Winona, Spain, the cities. Wherever. I love them.

* Having a job! Well, technically two jobs for now. Even though they're not super high paying, it helps pay my rent, bills, and groceries. And so many people are not lucky enough to have a job. I'm glad I do, and that I like it.

* The ability to speak English and Spanish.

* Knowing how to cook and what to eat. I'm glad I've been able to learn how to take care of myself and live a healthier lifestyle.

* A place to lay my head at night.

* The ability to walk, talk, see, hear, taste, feel.

Mostly I'm thankful to be alive. Even though life seems like it sucks sometimes, and even though I cry or yell or don't know how to handle a situation- I know I'll get through it. I'm young still and have so much life to live! I'm lucky to be here and where I am today. :)

Awaiting the arrival of Thanksgiving

I am so excited for Thanksgiving this year.

Absence really does make the heart fonder. Or whatever that quote is, it's true!

My aunt and uncle have been living in Belize, my boyfriend has a big boy job in Kansas City, MO so he's been gone living there, and my other aunt and cousin are coming home from Chicago... So I get to see them all, plus [most of] the rest of the fam! (And in case you don't already know this, my family is my life!) Oh it's going to be so grand. :D

I have lots of other things to do like... finish my major (and minor) change essay, apply for a scholarship, apply to take the GRE, prepare for lesson plans, figure out paperwork for grad schools, etc... It's been super overwhelming lately, and it really doesn't help that WSU sucks at preparing us for grad school. So I've been having to do research on my own/ asking people who have been through all this to help me out! At least Thanksgiving is my "thing to look forward to", right?

I've been eating super bad lately... But I bought several squashes today, so I'm going to start experimenting with those to prepare for winter produce and eating! It's better to eat foods that are in season. AAAND my mama and I are gonna cook/ bake up a storm when I go home! The lovely lady over at Oh She Glows posted all her last minute vegan Thanksgiving ideas- so I bookmarked that and am pumped to try out some of the recipes on it! (Now I know you're curious, so here's the link! Last Minute Vegan Thanksgiving Ideas) Yum, yum, yum :)

I love fall and winter... They're my favorite seasons, so I'm going to try my best to stay positive and focus on the simple things in life. Hopefully start doing yoga more, etc.

So here's to a refreshing season!!!

[All photos credit of Oh She Glows... From her Thanksgiving post!]