46. Unexpected gifts

47. Temp jobs for Nathan

48. PRN work for me

49. An easy pregnancy

50. Misty having Baby #2!!!

51. PR & Molly coming into town this weekend

52. $4 movie tickets on Tuesdays

53. Max (my cat) cuddling with me

54. Dinner with the in-laws

55. Seeing my parents in a few weeks

38.  Babysteals.com - Amazing website for those really cute splurges for your baby at 50-90% off MRSP

39. Church baby shower tomorrow

40. Work baby shower last week

41. People who care and love me enough to throw/come to my babyshowers

42. Finding out that Jeannie and Gray are having a boy!

43. Time off work Tuesday – Friday!

44. An occasional Saturday morning to sleep in

45. Clint and Ally buying a house

33. Having a mild (almost cool) summer

34. Having a 4 1/2 day work schedule

35. Pay Day!

36. Rain so I don’t have to water my plants

37. Being given a $10 movie theatre gift card

28. Having cute maternity clothes given to you by friends and coworkers so you don’t have to buy them

29. Being in a profession that is still able to find a job in the recession

30. Having a job period

31. Free chocolates!

32. The Internet

23. Being inside during a thunderstorm

24. Air Conditioning!

25. Having a car that still runs after 11 years

26. Having my husband do something around the house without being asked

27. Eating leftovers (it means I don’t have to cook!)

18. Afternoon naps

19. Looking out my window and seeing the Smokey Mountains

20. The look on a client’s face when it finally “clicks”

21. Owning our house

22. Discovering a new recipe

12. Girls’ Night!

13. Family meals at Chop House

14. A clean and organized pantry

15. When a client picks you a flower

16. Scarlet’s “Please-Give-Me-Food” look

17. (BONUS!) Seeing a mother mallard duck and her ducklings on my way home from grocery shopping

6. The birth of Eden and Ean

7. Freshly washed sheets  on a bed

8. Max’s (my cat) purr

9. Fresh flowers on the dining room table

10. Cancellations when you have back to back clients all day

11. Having July 6th off for 4th of July

Although I am guilty of not blogging in FOREVER and giving grief to others for not updating theirs (hehe), I have been still regularly reading blogs. One that I like to follow is a friend and sorority sister of mine Keith Ann. One thing she is doing on her blog has been very inspiring to me. Every other day or so, she is blogging five things she is grateful for. Her inspiration for doing so comes from here and what a wonderful (and so true) post. The past month or so has been stressful with pregnancy, balancing work/home, and finding time to spend with my husband who is currently doing work and school full-time. It’s enough for me sometimes to want to shut down, wallow, and complain. However, when I read Keith Ann’s initial gratitude post, I jotted down a couple of things I was thankful for in my mind and began to think about those when I became frustrated or wanted to complain. It has definitely kept me more upbeat, more motivated, and more peaceful about circumstances in my life. Because my perspective on a lot of things has shifted since mediating on what I was thankful for, it has challenged me to rise this blog from the ashes and start my own 1,000 gifts. Every day (or at least every other day), I’m going to challenge myself to post 5 things I am grateful for starting with the five things I often think about when I want to complain:

1. The gift and blessing of meeting my son in August

2. My crockpot

3. Cookie dough Frostys from Wendy’s

4. Nathan’s foot rubs

5. Happy hour at Sonic (I’m pregnant. I think about food A LOT)

We were very lucky to see Nathan’s cousin Jeannie, her husband Gray, and their adorable daughter Lucy last night. They are up from Mississippi for a visit.

Loveable Lucy

Jeannie and Jack-Attack

Like every girl, Lucy knows how to use a phone

My adorable nephew Jack

After some catching up, we all (i.e., Nathan, me, Jeannie, Gray, Lucy, Seth, Misty, AND Jack) piled into the Blevins’ old van and went to the Bristol Motor Speedway for their annual Speedway in Lights. Here’s a glimpse of all the amazing displays they had:

If you are ever in the Tri-Cities area, no Christmas is complete without a visit to the Speedway in Lights. Between steadily moving and foggy windows, I was unable to do all the displays justice. It’s just something you have to experience for yourself.