Happy Thanksgiving!

Every year at this time I reflect on how good I really have it. There are so, so many things that I am thankful for, and I'm so incredibly blessed to have the life I do. Of course there are struggles, and life lately has certainly had it's sadness and challenges, but overall I am so lucky to live this life, with this husband and this baby and this family and my lovely home and sweet friends and food on the table and a reliable car to drive. I take for granted so many things that would be such a miracle for others. I truly strive every day to appreciate the good in my life and to recognize how amazing it really is that my family and I are all safe and healthy and happy. And on this day, I'm more aware than usual. That's what I love about the holiday season. Although it may have it's downsides, it seems to bring an awareness to what's important in life.

I hope that you're all having a wonderful Thanksgiving with your loved ones. This time of year can be so stressful and overwhelming, but I hope you're able to sit back today and count your blessings. Happy Thanksgiving to you!!!

We recently had family photos taken by the amazing Fairytale Photography here in the DFW area, and they were phenomenal as usual. I'll be sharing more soon!

Grayson's First Thanksgiving - Part 2

Happy Monday, friends! I hope you all had a positively fabulous weekend. We spent the weekend trapped in our house...literally trapped, by a massive ice storm. The Dallas area doesn't get a lot of snow and ice, so when it happens it tends to shut our entire world down. And that it did. I'm sure I'll have a nice little ice storm post for ya in a day or two :) 

But today, I'm back with the second half of Grayson's first Thanksgiving saga. You can read part one here if you're interested. 

So after the first half of Thanksgiving day spent at Arsen's sister's house, we headed home to pick up Addie Jane, loaded up the car, and we were off to spend the evening at my dad's house in Oklahoma. 

That night we had a small dinner with my mom, my dad, and his girlfriend Monie. My mom fixed us a nice little meal of turkey and dressing, potatoes and gravy, and a few pies. It was all super yummy, and it was fun to sit around chatting for a bit. By the time we got there G was pretty sleepy, so we got him ready for bed, but he got a second wind when he saw the toy Papaw bought for him! My dad got him a bouncy seat like the one we have at our house that G loves so much, and he had a blast bouncing in that thing until it wore him completely out. I'm pretty sure he actually likes the one at Papaw's house better...it's much cooler, if we're being honest. 

We spent Thanksgiving night at my dad's, and then we were off to Norman the next morning to spend the weekend at my uncles place. Friday I really, really, REALLY wanted to go shopping...I've never done any of the Black Friday craziness, and I was super curious about what kind of deals I could get, but I never got the chance. We spent a big part of the day at Lowe's with my dad picking out tile for the house he just bought and is fixing up, and then had dinner at Chuy's. Forever Chuy's was a Texas only thing, but now they've expanded to Oklahoma....so I can get my fix wherever I'm at now. It's sad, really.

Friday night we also got to see some of our very best friends, Katie and Quentin! We haven't seen them in foooorever, so it was a much needed reunion. I spent a large portion of my time trying to get Grayson to sleep, but I finally gave up and let him hang out with everyone until after eleven. Sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. 

Saturday was the day my mom's side of the family had their Thanksgiving get together. It was another day of soooo much food and lots of fun family time. My cousin Amanda was there with her two little girls, one who is just a month older than Grayson. It was so cute to see the two of them together. 

That night I stayed up until almost two talking with my mom, aunt, Grandmother, uncles and Arsen. I never stay up that late anymore because G always wakes up so early and I am not a pleasant person when I don't get much sleep, but I rarely get the chance to see any of them so I went with it. Of course he woke up about 7:30 the next day, but it was worth it for a little quality time.  

Sunday morning we got up and, after a quick stop by my dad's, we made it back home. I absolutely love the holidays, but man, those out of state trips are exhausting! 

All in all, I must say Grayson's first Thanksgiving was a pretty great one. I can't WAIT for his first Christmas...it's only a couple weeks away now!

Grayson's First Thanksgiving - Part 1

Yep, it has come to the point that I'm having to break holiday posts into two separate posts because I take so many pictures. It would just be absurd to have like 50 photos in one....so two posts it is.

On Thanksgiving day, we got up and got ready for our trip to Oklahoma, then we headed to Arsen's sister Lena's house for our first Thanksgiving meal. One thing I will say about Lena is that if she does something, she does it right! Every event she hosts at her house is beautifully done. She invited a couple other Armenian families over, along with our family and Arsen's parents.

Everything was absolutely delicious, as always, and it was great to get together with so many of them. Grayson got passed around from person to person, and luckily he's the type of baby who will go to just about anyone (well, women at least) and be happy about it. Of course everyone went on and on about how cute he is, which I love hearing. Everyone but one person, that is.

Grayson's cousin Haik is decidedly NOT his biggest fan. Haik is three years old, and he wants absolutely nothing to do with G. I'm pretty sure it has a lot to do with the fact that he has been the baby of the family for the past almost three years...then this new baby had to come in and mess everything up for him. It's actually hilarious. He has done everything from repeatedly insist that "Baby wants to go home. Baby wants to leave." to refuse to admit that they are cousins "No, he not my cousin! No!".

He was so upset that Grayson was sitting in his little recliner, so we switched him to his little Mickey Mouse chair...and he was still not happy about it, but he let it happen. Lena also got a picture of the two of them together in Haik's recliner, but I wasn't quick enough to get my camera for that one. Needless to say it didn't last too long.

After a few hours spent with Arsen's family, we went home to pick up Addie and load the car, and then we were off to Oklahoma. Like I said, there's no way I can fit all of those photos in one post, so this will have to be a "to be continued" type of situation. Riveting stuff here, people. I'm sure you're on the edge of your seats waiting for the next installment of "Grayson's First Thanksgiving".

Just try to bear with me through all of the "first holiday" posts...we've only got Christmas, New Year's and Valentine's Day left. I hope you can hang in there ;)

Thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving, friends. I  hope you're all enjoying a wonderful day filled with delicious food, family and friends, and all of the things you are thankful for. We have a fun filled weekend ahead of us seeing A's family and mine, and we'll be heading off to Oklahoma this afternoon after a meal at his sister's house. I know I've said it a million times, but I absolutely love this time of the year. I love spending time with family that I don't get to see that often, and if I'm being honest, I love the excuse to eat a ton of yummy food with no regard to calories or health :)

This year I'm feeling especially thankful, and I wish I could just freeze time for a second and enjoy all of the amazing things I am currently blessed with. Here are just a few of the things I'm oh so grateful for.

My husband. 

A and I have been together for more than five years now, and I'm pretty sure things are getting better and better with time. Of course we have our ups and downs, but we make it a point to work on our relationship and to talk about any issues that may arise. He is my best friend in the world, and I am so incredibly happy that he's the man I get to spend the rest of my days with.

My Grayson.

This little baby has changed my life in more ways than I ever thought possible. I never knew I could love someone so much...it is absolutely indescribable. He makes me laugh every day with his silly little personality, and he smothers me with hugs and kisses all day long. My heart could burst with love for this little guy, and I'm so blessed to be his mama.

My Addie.

This sweet pup taught me what it was like to put someone else's needs above my own. She was my first "baby", and I love her more than any doggie should be loved. I am so attached to her that I panic any time I think about her someday not being with me. She's slightly crazy, but she's my favorite girl in the whole world.

My parents.

The older I get the more appreciative I am for having the parents that I have. They were insanely protective when I was growing up, but now I totally get it. And now that I'm grown, I honestly see them both more as friends than parents.

My home.
I feel so lucky that A and I were able to buy a home so early in our lives together. Over the last couple of years we have truly turned it into a cozy little place that's perfect for our family. I love it here!

My friends.
I have some of the best friends a girl could ask for. They're spread out all over the place and I don't get to see them often, but whenever we get together it's like no time at all has passed. Love those girls!

My "job".
To say that I feel lucky to be a stay at home mom is a huge understatement. I absolutely love spending all of my time with Grayson, teaching him new things and witnessing everything that he does. It was totally unexpected that I would get the chance to stay home with him, so I think I'm all the more grateful to be here.

My Blog Friends!
I seriously am so thankful for each and every one of you. Those of you who consistently comment have come to feel like friends of mine, and I love keeping up with all of you on your blogs as well. It's crazy to me how we all share so much of our lives with perfect strangers, and then that can end up resulting in some really special friendships. I only hope that someday I get the chance to meet some of you in "real" life!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! Have a wonderful day!!!