thankful thoughts

This week I'm thankful for...

Mad Libs at Barnes and Noble with friends, twenty minutes till closing, and the laughter from it
Tall Peppermint Mochas + Gingerbread Lattes at Starbucks
Starbucks' Red Cups (yay! I admit it...the fact that they're back made my day)
Playing Mancala with my sisters and mom
Orange juice and tonic water at the Table
My Grandparents over for dinner
The sun breaking out from the clouds
friends and photos that are so inspiring
Rereading Food Network Magazines
the arrival of Kinfolk Mag
a brisk chill in the air that speaks of snow
pictures of my family
silly Eli playing with his sword
portraits taken at 11:11 AM on 11/11/11 (yes, I did.)
early morning movies + chats with close friends
meeting people in the most random places who are gluten free, and hearing their stories
Samuel's cute face
Caleb talking to my dad, asking if, "his folks," were coming over. (he makes me laugh)
yummy gluten-free chocolate cake
laughing with my mom
the fact that the Halloween has been replaced by Christmas at Target
Journaling (is that even a word?)
finding so many recipes that I want to make
socks, scarves, and sweaters
this video and these photos
change and business with a dash of craziness
sunsets and golden hour and light in general
and
my family (so very thankful)

what are you thankful for?

padawan no longer.

He turned eight and built legos at the worn table. Hot cocoa, an obi-wan kenobi costume, and a lego game were his favorite presents. In fact, we went outside and he showed me his jedi moves. Did I mention this boy is going to take martial arts soon? He was twisting, kicking, jumping, and whirling, while jabbing his blue lightsaber and using his force powers. And he stood just a bit taller than the day before.

The wind whipped his hair and chapped my fingers and face and we laughed. Winter is coming and we ran around the backyard with leaves crunching underfoot and trees shooting limbs bare and tall to the sky as the wind stole our breath. I laughed and took photos and couldn't stop thinking how blessed I am to be his sister. I'm so proud of him.

Love you, Brennan. You'll always be my favorite jedi.
ps. and yes, heis air-borne in the photo third from the bottom. he's the real deal.

happy birthday, Brennan-man.

Brennan turns eight today. We've celebrated with a birthday breakfast of gluten-free pancakes and bacon. He's opened his presents and the boys are sitting at the table, building all his new lego sets. Soon, he's off to Target with my mom to get a coffee (a special birthday treat) and to buy something using his birthday money from family. I'm sitting in the rocking chair writing this, listening to my family talking. Birthdays are a special thing at our house. I'm so proud of this boy. He's brave, funny, sweet, tough, smart, and such a good brother. I love him very much.

today I feel...

Apprehensive.
If you follow me on twitter, you might have seen something about my ankle. I injured my left foot last year and it's been significantly weak since then. For the past year, it's been bugging me off and on and progressively getting worse through the summer. The pain has intensified since September, and in mid-October, I took a couple weeks off.

Last Tuesday I went into an orthopedic center and got an x-ray of my foot, then an MRI later that night. The deal is this...I have an extra little bone on the back of my ankle (like a spur). When I dance (or run), that bone gets impinged between other bones and causes intense pressure and pain. On top of that, my bone is really swollen (funky weird), which is similar to a stress fracture. The cartilage in my foot is wearing very thin and is rumpled, causing little cushioning. It's not arthritic yet, but unless it heals it will lead to that.

I'm at the point where it's painful to walk around too much. I'm meeting with a surgeon this morning, and will most likely be having surgery within the next few weeks. I'm very apprehensive and nervous about it, but am at the point where I'm ready to have the surgery so I can deal with the pain and heal. If you all could be praying for me, I would be so grateful!

thankful thoughts

This week, I am thankful for...

$2.50 striped socks from Target that I'm currently rocking
The chill in the air and frequent frosty mornings
Ben Rector's music (thank you Camila!)
storytime with mom and Sam
cut-out turkeys decorating our house
our Thanksgiving chain
orange ramekins
friends, old and new
November (as much as I love October, I love November even more)
this post and this post
random dance parties with my sisters when our favorite song comes on pandora
my grey boots from kohls
(store-bought) gluten-free cupcakes that actually taste good
The start of our Lord of the Rings watching marathon with my sister and dad
the fact that Thanksgiving is so close
candles that smell oh so good
emails and messages that bless my heart
sunsets that burn the sky purple and pink
boppy and gramma's apple sauce with cinnamon for breakfast
my family
Things to do in November chalkboard (it was so fun to make!)
opportunities, dreams and hopes
the last of the autumn leaves, yellow and bright
a Savior who loves me and is always GOOD
singing Christmas music
homemade hot cocoa with chocolate, cinnamon, and whipcream and/or marshmallows
salty foods to eat after drinking the above
Eli laughing
planning Christmas presents (shh!)
and...
lunch at panera with my mom

what are you thankful for?
a weekly little series that I'm doing this month in celebration of Thanksgiving

our nerdy, silly, gun-slinging, sword-fighting, pumpkin family.

We had a nerd, clown, cowboy, warrior/ninja, and pooh bear pumpkin trick-or-treating at my boppy and gramma's house. Sam wanted to be a pirate, so we called him the pumpkin PIErate. My favorite was Caleb. He walked around proudly, ringing the doorbell and crying, "I'm a NERD!" instead of "trick or treat!" People ate it up, as evident by the bags of candy on top of our cupboards. Even Sam took home a big candy haul (and seventy percent of his candy was gluten free!) He also kept asking for more "canny." Overall, it was a fun, candy-filled, pumpkin carving night, where everyone came home exhausted and sugared out. How was your Monday?

(sidenote...isn't Caleb's face the best?!)