Christmas movies: Love it or Leave it

Hello there fellow winterlings! Apparently winter is coming AND here simultaneously. There’s still technically two more days of pumpkin spice everything, colorful leaves, and other fall things UNLESS you live somewhere that’s already gotten snow, rainy days, and temps below 40 degrees. I think Mother Nature caught a cold early this year just like I did. I lost my voice two days ago and have been nursing it back through a self-prescribed order of rest, Christmas movies, and tea…

Tea of the day: Lemon Zinger
Brand: Celestial Seasonings
Color: For a lemon tea, this is a medium brownish color. Probably from the rosehips. My surprise comes from knowing other Celestial Zingers are very brightly colored in accordance with their fruit flavor.
Taste: The lemon is not overpowering, which I like. It’s almost like I squeezed some lemon juice into a cup of English Breakfast. Perfectly balanced in my opinion.
Ideas for next time I have this: Well, more how have I been drinking this for the last few days. I’ve added some honey and Apple Cider Vinegar to help ease my sore throat and bring my voice back. The ACV brings so tartness but the lemon and honey soften that so the bite isn’t too strong. Two days in and my throat is almost pain free!

Between it being cold outside and not feeling the greatest, I’ve taken the time to watch quite a few Christmas movies on Netflix.

1. A Wish for Christmas – If you’re really bored, it’s sweet

This movie brought to you by Hallmark! Who would have guessed!? It stars Lacey Chabert (the girl that didn’t make fetch happen) in the lead role of Sara. Santa grants her a wish so she asks for more confidence to stand up for herself. Once her wish is granted, she gets the opportunity to pitch her marketing proposal for a company… and find love?

This movie is your classic Hallmark cliché movie where the main character finds love around Christmas time in an unexpected way. For general enjoyment, I’d watch this movie again. It definitely has a good lesson in confidence and how it can be beneficial. That’s the biggest takeaway for me from this movie. #spoileralert Can we please get away from the boss-employee romances though? The lesson here is that those should be avoided.

2. Christmas Inheritance – just… don’t

When the party heiress to a multi-million dollar company acts irresponsibly, what can save her? Oh, delivering a family Christmas card to her father’s friend with only $100 in hand and being restricted from letting anyone in Snow Falls know who she really is. Ellen leaves to deliver said Christmas card to small town Snow Falls but the recipient Zeke is off and away with no known return in sight. Frustrated, Ellen sticks around and gets into the Christmas spirit by lying to her host about who she is, because she’s supposed to. One townee knows the truth because Ellen resembles her mother, but doesn’t spoil the secret publicly. THAT would have been interesting. Does she deliver the card?! You’ll have to drink a lot of coffee before watching this to stay awake to find the answer.

Netflix is trying to cash in on Hallmark’s Christmas romance monopoly with this flick. Christmas Inheritance loses points for being ridiculously annoying and incredibly unrealistic to its target audience. Yes, I understand these Christmas romances aren’t realistic ever, but this is just beyond me. She can’t make it back to her boyfriend’s work Christmas party because 1) Zeke is still who knows where and 2) a storm is rolling in. So said boyfriends magically gets a flight to Snow Falls to surprise her. If she can’t get out, how does he get in!? Also, the attempt at flirty banter between Ellen and her taxi-driving host had my eyes rolling the entire time. Save yourself, skip this movie, and mail your Christmas cards next time.

3. El Camino Christmas – maybe it just wasn’t my taste

This movie destroyed my hopes and dreams of what it could be! To me, it has an all-star cast. Tim Allen, Dax Shepard, Jessica Alba, and Kurtwood Smith. I’ll tell you what… Red from That 70s Show would have told this movie to stick itself up its own ass. Then I realized, “Oh, none of those people have been in much recently.” Granted, maybe it’s just not my style movie but I just could not get into it. And the Christmas element that I desire in a movie that has Christmas in the title was largely lacking. This is one of those movies that someone wrote and they said, “It’s missing something. Let’s have it set at Christmas!” NO!!!!!!!

Eric, the protagonist but not really, is searching for his father and manages to hold up a liquor store in the middle of nowhere. Deputy and Sheriff are outside trying to neutralize the situation outside. Eventually, there’s shots fired everywhere, a kid in danger (why didn’t Deputy Dumbass and Sheriff Stupidhead work harder to get him out first?), and deaths that have no meaning EXCEPT #spoileralert the long last father sacrifices himself! Give it a watch and tell me what you think.

4. A Christmas Prince – I hope they make a sequel!

 Yes!! Netflix scored with this one! I was SO pleasantly surprised, and I see what you did there Netflix, leaving that ending wide open for a sequel. You better deliver! I won’t be the only disappointed person if you don’t.

Amber, played by Rose McIver (if you haven’t, check her out in iZombie), is an aspiring journalist sent to cover a press conference regarding the throne ascension of the Aldovian royal family. The press conference is canceled and she somehow becomes the tutor to the young princess to attempt to uncover some scandal lurking amongst the family regarding Prince Richard. #spoileralert A few plot twists later, Amber gets what would have been a GREAT story, saves the throne for Prince Richard, and gets him as a fiancé.

Alright, I gave some grief before about lack of realism, but this is too good to pass up. It’s like The Princess Diaries, but Mia is split into two people, Amber and Prince Richard. Prince Richard is the royal part, and Amber gets the makeover. I enjoyed seeing Amber actually getting close to the royal family while providing legitimate help (I hope since she didn’t get fired as a tutor) instead of just skeezing around offering excuses for why she wasn’t tutoring on some given day.

The acting was cheesy but not as cheesy as Christmas Inheritance, so in the battle for which Netflix holiday movie is best, the winner is… A Christmas Prince.

5. The Spirit of Christmas – Totally watching again!

Kate is a lawyer sent to oversee the appraisal and selling of an inn just before the holidays. She begrudgingly goes and has to deal with a slew of appraisers and townsfolk claiming the inn is haunted. Despite the inn closing the day she arrives, she stays as the current executor. The first night, a man enters the inn in the middle of the night and knows the security code! Gasp! When the innkeeper returns, he informs Kate that the man, Daniel, is the ghost who materializes for a few times each year right before Christmas. Kate sticks around and attempts to uncover the reason behind Daniel’s lack of “moving on.” Does she find love in the meantime?

Alright, another highly unrealistic Christmas romance BUT it is the most original storyline that I’ve watched in a long time. It tickles my paranormal romance bone so nicely. Daniel struts around in a very Darcy-esque way (any Pride and Prejudice lovers out there?) to keep Kate off his love-stricken scent, but the audience knows better. Kate catches on and you see their romance start to develop despite the odds that Daniel IS a ghost.

I’m not going to spoil this one. You MUST watch it! I know I will be a few more times.

What Christmas movies do you like? Leave your own reviews in the comments!

*SOME LINKS ARE AMAZON AFFILIATES LINKS AND I MIGHT MAKE A LITTLE BIT IF YOU PURCHASE SOMETHING.

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Favorite wineries in Italy – Ranked

Happy Tuesday once again family and friends, and random people who may stumble their way onto this post. 😉 As I sit here in a slight bit of agony from going to the gym after weeks of Netflix binge-watching, I figured that I would tell you all about my different experiences at wineries that I’ve visited in the last few months. I’ll start by saying, the wine in Italy is superb! I feel like I’m just now being introduced to what wine really is AND I’ll probably still get a bottle of Barefoot back in the states for old nostalgia’s sake.

DON’T BE FOOLED! I will be taking more about my experiences and these wineries, not so much about the wines. I’m not a sommelier. However, I grabbed the tea that to me most resembled wine for this week’s review…

Tea of the day: Black Cherry Berry
Brand: Celestial Seasonings
Color: It started off a very light brown color, then when I swirled the water, a very beautiful auburn color came out of the tea bag. It’s super pretty! This is what I imagine Fall in a mug looks like.
Taste: There’s definitely cherry in there! Similar to the Country Peach Passion (read the review here!), the fruit flavor really overpowers any of the herbal flavors. I feel like I’m drinking heated Kool-Aid a bit, but with a more refined flavor. Probably the black cherry vs cherry.
Ideas for next time I have this: I really enjoy more herbal and earthy flavors when drinking tea, so I may add a lighter black tea (like Irish Breakfast) or my Matcha Lemon (review here!) tea to bring out some of those other flavors. Also, another tea to try cold when it warms up.

5. Bianchini

Bianchini has been around since 1880, as you’ll see on their label. The family was very nice and took us on a tour of their grounds where the vineyard is. The grounds are beautiful! Roses sprouted at the end of some rows of grapes and I saw the first bit of fall here. The even showed us a cellar that had hundreds and hundreds of bottles aging as part of their winemaking process.

As lovely as our hosts were, I felt their wine was mediocre compared to others on this list. We had lunch with wine tasting in a large room. The lunch was very traditional and typical of the visits. Bread, olive oil, bufala mozzarella, prosciutto, salame piccante, potato pizza, and broccolini. All of these was taken in while a somewhat creepy little puppet watched over us.

Oh, and before you think you’re going crazy… if you think you see a phallic symbol in their 1880 logo, it’s there on purpose and they told us about it. 😉

4. Pagano

This was a very small experience and had some additions that weren’t included in the other tours I’ve been on. Ever tasted wine before it was wine? And it was from the barrel! If grape juice were bottled with a refined taste for adults, this is it! There was a slight hint of the alcohol starting to come out but was mostly sweet. How about trying wine straight out of one of those big steel silos? Not as good as from the barrel. The aftertaste will surely get you because it’s probably the same as if you liked the silo.

They have a smaller production at Pagano than Bianchini and other wineries, but their pride and personality makes up for it in a big way. My husband was the only male in our group of women, and the old man at Pagano who made our lunch LOVED him. I was glad Matt had a good time and was able to share the experience with me.

Our lunch included the same items as mentioned above and some pasta that went perfectly with all the different wines we tried. Our hosts were very sweet and made a run to the store to get an ice cream cake for a birthday we were celebrating that day. Photo creds to Laura and Eboni for these.

3. Porto di Mola

This is the first winery I went to in the region where we live. This is the most complete experience of how wine is made that I’ve been through. For fun, there was an opportunity to stomp the grapes with your feet. Rest assured, that is not a part of the process! It’s more for show. We did get to throws grapes into machines that removed the stems from the grapes picked and even went into the vineyards and clipped grapes from the vine since it was harvesting time.

Again, a typical lunch with pasta included, no broccolini. For some reason, this one is much yummier from than others for some reason in my memory. Probably because I drank a LOT of wine that day. And I ate quite a bit of bread with their in house extra virgin olive oil.

I’m more of a red wine lady and one of there reds did not disappoint. Peppi was my favorite, so bottle had to be purchased. Also, I’m not much for whites, but this was the first time I had Falanghina and you’ll find the empty bottle in my house.

2. Volpara

Ever wanted a good walk before wine tasting? Then this is the winery tour for you! Our host is very knowledgable of the area where his winery is, so he took us on a walking tour that included their vineyard, very old church of their town, the first water source for the town, and other areas of Sessa Aurunca. It was a beautiful, sunny day that was perfect for that kind of walk.

The setting for our lunch was in the wineries cellar. We sat amongst very large wine barrels. The tables were wine barrels. And there were wine bottles lined in wall cutouts as the aged, like at Bianchini. The bufala mozzarella here was smaller than other places, so I ate twice as many.

This winery had the most wines I liked (except for #1) INCLUDING a rosé. I think this was the first rosé I’ve liked ever. Normally, it’s too sweet or too light. This one was a little heavier, therefore palatable. My favorite red is Sassi, which definitely described our group if you’re going by the English definition of how this word is pronounced. Their whites also went down easily, so I had seconds. Who I am kidding? I had seconds of all their wines, even the rosé.

1. Tenuta Torciano

Maybe it’s because this is winery is in the Tuscan region, but… oh, my, goodness! This is the first winery in Italy I went to and it set the bar very high! The only thing that would have made it better is we had a tour of their production facility, but that is off-site because this family owned and operated winery is humungous!

We visited Tenuta Torciano as part of a wine tasting tour when Matt and I visited Florence. It was our first stop and was offered as a wine tasting school for the participants to start the day off. We learned the perfect dimensions of a glass for tasting/drinking wine, how to swirl and smell the wine, and how to hold the glass a certain way. We tried 7-8 wines there, and my favorite of all time was introduced to me. Brunello di Montelcino. Just… wow! The Chianti Classico they create is quite fantastic also.

We did not have a lunch at this location, but we did eat some saltines paired with the best olive oils and balsamic vinegar ever. The pulled out their classic extra virgin olive oil, a peperoncini oil, and truffle oil. Definitely got a bottle of the truffle oil! The balsamic we tried is 30 years aged, thick, and so sweet.

The whole show was incredible. The host was perfect and very personable. He had everyone engaged and certainly entertained. Highly recommend going on this tour if you ever find yourself in the Florence.

 

As I visit more wineries, I’ll post more about my favorites. Look forward to a restaurant ranking as I go to more restaurants.

If you have any questions about my experience living abroad, leave a comment or send an email!

*SOME LINKS ARE AMAZON AFFILIATES LINKS AND I MIGHT MAKE A LITTLE BIT IF YOU PURCHASE SOMETHING.

Top 5 Technology Things I’m Getting Used To

Welcome to a special Thursday edition of Tuesday Tea. There will not be a tea review for this post because I’m trapped on the couch surrounded by the cold and if I leave this spot I might die of frostbite. I’m also experiencing some mild Feline Paralysis.

While living in Italy isn’t entirely different than living in the US when it comes to technology, there are certain adjustments that I have had to make in getting used to how things are here. I’m not talking about a lack of WiFi or kerosene lamps or anything like that, but everything on this list is technically technology. So here goes!!

1. 220v outlets

If you didn’t know, the majority of appliances in the US can be plugged in to 110v outlets. In Italy, all of the outlets in our home are 220v. Luckily, the Navy offers appliances that are this voltage so we don’t have to get too crafty. Also, being in Italy, those appliances are available anyway.

One of the best decisions I’ve made is getting a hair dryer that is 220v instead of the risk of sacrificing my beloved hair dryer.

But it’s not always THAT easy. Some plugs have two prongs and others have three, just like in the US. And some two-pronged plugs only fit in certain outlets so we STILL need to use an adapter to plug it in. Or we need to convert a two-pronged plug to fit a three-pronged outlet, like below.

2. Transformers to Convert Electricity

As Americans, we are used to certain items in our homes and have already acquired them. Most of these are small kitchen appliances and gaming consoles.

Who really wants to purchase everything again though? That’s a lot of money!

Bring in the transformer! This delightful piece of technology converts electricity so my 110v Kuerig doesn’t die a painful death when it’s plugged into a 220v outlet.

These puppies weigh about 20 lbs and have two plugs. You can buy them in a variety of voltages to plug in more/larger appliances. There is a small fuse that can blow if it’s overloaded but they are relatively inexpensive to replace.

The one in the picture is our “kitchen transformer.” Imagine only being able to have two things plugged in at a time. Let’s just say I spend a lot more time cooking on the stove or in the crockpot now, and plan cooking more since everything can’t be plugged in at once.

Our “living room transformer” can handle a higher voltage and it’s quite the elaborate set up that includes a power strip. So yeah… welcome to Italy!

The best part is doing what I like to call the Fuse Box Dance. That’s when the transformer gets plugged in, trips the fuse in the house so you get up to flip it on, the fuse in the transformer gets tripped so then you reset the box which causes he house fuse to trip… and back and forth and back and forth. I think the record for the Fuse Box Dance is somewhere in the 20s.

3. Doing Laundry… in different rooms

Most Italians opt to hang their laundry outside or on drying racks rather than purchasing a dryer like we have in the US. However, this is another appliance we can opt in for from the Navy to make life a little more convenient. Or is it?

In our first home, the washer and dryer were in the same room but only one could be plugged in at a time because there was only one outlet.

Where we are now, we have the washer in the bathroom, which I believe is fairly appropriate…

And the dryer is in the…. wait for it… kitchen. Because there is minimal counter space, it also plays home to the microwave.

The positive side of having the dryer in the kitchen is it warms that room quite a bit when it’s running, which leads me to my next point.

4. Radiators and heating

Italian homes are heated by radiators, and it takes forever! We choose to not use them because they use a lot of gas to heat the water the runs through the pipes to heat a room.

A quick google search taught me that radiators increase the room temperature one degree per 45 minutes. Well, when it’s 40-something degrees Fahrenheit, that’s a looooong time and you really start to miss central heating and timed thermostats.

My new best friend, and I think Maya’s and Ariel’s too, is this little space heater that I’ve been literally dragging around from room to room with me when blankets just aren’t cutting it.

5. Gas Oven

Baking here can require a tad bit more effort and time than back in the states.

For one, the oven is gas so it can take longer to heat up to the desired cooking or baking temperature.

Secondly, our oven doesn’t have any indicator that it has reached said desired cooking or baking temperature, so we usually just wait 20-30 minutes and hope for the best.

Thirdly, make sure it’s actually lit. The last thing you want is for the gas to be going without the flame so you have a stinky kitchen, fire hazard, and a cold oven on your hands.

I will say, this oven is about twice the size of the one in our first home here and was large enough to comfortably fit a 25 lb. turkey.

Overall, it’s really not that bad. Just takes some getting used to. It is nice to have a lot of the conveniences of home with the transformers and it’s not like we have dirty clothes all the time. It certainly is putting things into perspective when it comes to how homes are built back in America.

What are some other questions you have about the differences of living in Italy?

30 Days of Gratitude – Days 29-30

Less than a month until 2018 and the ideas are already rolling around in my head of what the new year will bring. I’m going to finish out my days of gratitude here, and then stay tuned for a special edition of #ThursdayTeaBlog in a couple days.

THURSDAY! Top 5 Things I’m getting used to living in Italy!

Tea of the day: Peppermint Bark
Brand: RC Bigelow
Color: This holiday flavored tea has a typical brown color.
Taste: I took a sip of the tea and then had to check the ingredients because something unexpected was in there. The peppermint flavor is very present and so is the… licorice! Not a whole lot of the cocoa flavor came through in my opinion. I ended up adding my Peppermint Mocha Creamer to get more of a chocolaty flavor going.
Ideas for next time I have this: I’ll continue to drink this with the creamer. I’m not a huge fan of licorice flavor and it masks that while enhancing the chocolate taste.

29. What friend/family member are you grateful for today?

I’m grateful for my dad. We’ve come a long way the last few years, as I think many father/daughter relationships might. He’s always been there to support me and to push me, even when the last thing I wanted was to be pushed. I don’t think I’d be nearly half the woman I am today without him. He gave me a great example of what being a good husband (and sometimes a bad husband if I’m being honest) looks like so I could go find the person that makes me complete. When I think of having my own children some day, I can definitely see using some of his parenting strategies.

 

I love you Dad!

30. What talent or skill do you have that you are grateful for?

I’m grateful for my skill to be organized when I need to be, haha. I’m not always the most organized, and when the time calls for it, I can make organization happen! I think that’s the only way I was able to get through the entire wedding planning process. I make sure to write down details and ask lots of questions so I understand what to expect.

Recently, I’ve started a bullet journal. I’m using this to track ideas for blogs, an idea for a YouTube channel I have, and what episode I’m on for TV shows I watch.

I still use a traditional planner for long term planning and can probably fill out 2018 quite a bit right now. I can organize and plan THAT far ahead.

November is now over.

I’m still grateful for so many things that I didn’t include in the last few posts. Just because November is over doesn’t mean that gratitude goes away. Be grateful everyday. 🙂

If you’d like to do your own 30 days of gratitude, here’s where I found the prompts I’m using. And catch up! You’re late!

What are you grateful for? Leave me a comment!

*SOME LINKS ARE AMAZON AFFILIATES LINKS AND I MIGHT MAKE A LITTLE BIT IF YOU PURCHASE SOMETHING.

30 Days of Gratitude – Days 8-14

And just like that, the first week of the 11th month has passed and we are that much closer to 2018. A lot of time this week was spent talking about Thanksgiving plans and preparations. Definitely looking forward to that… and continuing to think about everything I’m grateful for. This week, I’m going to focus on what I’m thankful for regarding the prompts and what married life has brought me.

Also, please forgive any weird formatting. I’m writing this on my phone because I blew the fuses in our transformers and haven’t been able to charge my laptop. 😦 And the tea…

Tea of the day: Matcha Lemon

Brand: Yogi Tea. I’ve included a link below to a variety pack offered by Amazon also.

Color: GREEN! This is the greenest tea I’ve made myself. It’s not totally green, but more like a yellow-green.

Taste: It’s definitely has an herbal flavor and the lemon is totally there without being overpowering. It’s a great sipping tea, but probably not something I’d choose to drink everyday except for health reasons.

Ideas for next time I have this: I did add some honey for my second cup which add a pleasant sweetness, about a teaspoon to not overtake the lemon and natural herbal flavor. That’s probably how I’ll continue drinking it, and I’m open to suggestions!

Day 8 – What book are grateful for?

So, I haven’t actually read a book since I got to Italy but I do have a series that I’m very grateful for. If you know me in real life, you probably know what I’m about to write.

Harry Potter

I was two years behind in getting started with reading these books. It was 5th grade when I finally decided to pick one up and it was the first book that I didn’t mind continuing to turn the pages. I was quickly infatuated and intrigued! That same year, I had gotten in trouble because I had flat out not done a book report because I really wasn’t much of a reader. Those books probably saved me from a difficult time in English class for the years to come because I didn’t mind reading after that. To this day, it practically impossible to go into a bookstore and not find at least one thing that I want to pick up.

I have favorite authors (Meg Cabot and Nicholas Sparks to name two) so I keep up with them. And I’ll read just about any romantic young adult novel out there, haha.

Day 9 – What place are you grateful for?

In Italy, I’m grateful for pretty much this whole entire place. It’s absolutely incredible! One advantage of being affiliated with the military is being able to still have access to some of the pleasantries of home through the commissary and NEX.

The commissary has really been a blessing because we are having our second Thanksgiving in Italy with all the proper American side dishes. Who would have thought we’d be able to get a turkey in Italy!? Well, if not for the commissary, I don’t believe we would have.

And also, peanut butter. Peanut Butter isn’t really a thing here in Italy. They love Nutella, and their Nutella is better! But this girl needs peanut butter in her life and the commissary is the place to get it.

Day 10 – What taste are you grateful for?

Wine!! And Italy does it well. 😉

I’ve had the opportunity to visit a few wineries so far (and two more later this week!) and I’ve had some great vino.

My favorite, by far, is Tenuto Torciano. This winery was part of a wine tour we went on and it included a “wine tasting school.” The experience and staff was superb, and the wine is glorious. And don’t forget the truffle oil! A-MAZ-ING!

Day 11 – What holiday are you grateful for?

Before last year, I probably would have said Christmas. Who doesn’t enjoy waking up to Belgian Waffles and presents? And later on, Bloody Marys and mimosas? 😉

Now, I have to say Thanksgiving, and there’s a few reasons. Growing up, I liked your normal sides. Mashed Potatoes. Stuffing. Rolls. And that’s it.

A few years ago, Mom added sweet potatoes to her repertoire and oh… my… god! So amazing!

Also, Matt’s favorite holiday is Thanksgiving, and it’s not just that. He proposed to me on Thanksgiving 2016. That’s pretty special! And it’s the first REAL holiday we got to spend together. So yeah, it’s kind of our thing.

Day 12 – What texture are you grateful for?

WARNING! I may sound like a crazy cat lady in a moment. I have Ariel in my lap right now.

The texture I’m grateful for is Maya’s and Ariel’s fur. It’s so soft. And obviously if I can feel it that means they are close to me. It makes me so happy to feel something weighing down the blanket on the couch or comforter on the bed and then to reach out to feel them. I can’t read a cat’s mind, but I’m taking them being so close as their way of saying, “I love you. I am comfortable around you. You make a good pillow.”

Day 13 – What abilities are you grateful for?

This is another hard one. I’m going to go with the ability to cook. Especially now.

In Italy, we don’t have many fast food places and there’s pretty much no delivery. So you have to drive to get food and wait for it if you want to take it to go. And the concept of being too lazy to get food AND too lazy to make food doesn’t exist. You’re forced to do one or the other.

Between having a set of pots and pans, a crockpot, and this ability, we’ve had some really delicious dinners. And being married, there’s something really nice to having dinner with just my husband that we or one of us made.

Day 14 – What sight are you grateful for?

Recently, the sun. It’s been raining the better part of the week here, so when the sun is out, it’s a sight for sore eyes. Not literally, but you know what I mean.

Aside from that, I really love being able to wake up with the sight of my husband next to me each morning. We did long distance for so long, and it’s a welcome change. And I know how fortunate I am that his job in the Navy allows him to come home each night (well, morning right now) so this is possible.

If you’d like to do your own 30 days of gratitude, here’s where I found the prompts I’m using. And catch up! You’re late!What are you grateful for? Leave me a comment!

30 Days of Gratitude – Days 1-7

Happy November!

I was scrolling through Pinterest trying to figure out how to make this blog stand out and what options I have for blogging. I stumbled upon some 30 Days of Gratitude posts and it hit me! Rather than blog each and every day (because do you really want to read what I’m writing that often? If you do, let me know!), I’ll do them one week at a time. And include some pictures. Aren’t you feeling lucky? But first…

Tea of the day: Mint Medley
Brand: RC Bigelow (again, another part of a variety box I bought)
Color: Pretty light. It’s practically clear.
Taste: This tea tastes exactly like what I imagined mint-infused water to taste like. It’s very nice and not overpowering. The smell was a little strong but the strength of the taste is much more calming.
Ideas for next time I have this: I really can’t think of how else I would drink this. Maybe combined with another tea. Perhaps something with lemon or strawberry.

1. What smell are you grateful for?

Really?! Right off the bat? This is such a weird question! Haha, if I’m being honest it’s probably the smell of bacon at home. WAIT! Before you start shaming me for either meat-loving or having an “easy” answer, listen… or read.

Every Christmas since I can remember my family has had a Christmas brunch. When I was younger, that meant waking up to the smell of bacon and knowing other delicious goodies were downstairs, like homemade Belgian waffles. The bacon smell is the most overpowering of everything being prepared. Then, my husband was visiting me after A School. He was my boyfriend at the time. He decided to make dinner… grilled cheese with bacon. The first thing I smelled was the bacon!

So I’m grateful for the smell of bacon at home (NOT in a restaurant) because it means that someone has spent time and love into making me a delicious meal. Bacon is not a mandatory part of these love meals, but when I walk in and smell it, I know without a doubt that someone loves me. It’s not that I LOVE bacon (I mean, I do, let’s not get crazy here). I love the thought and time someone puts into making a meal for me when it happens… and happens to include bacon.

2. What technology are you grateful for?

Again, probably another cliché. I never thought I’d be so grateful for FaceTime. Matt and I met at a point in our lives where we did not live close to one another. And we wouldn’t live close to one another for over a year! I 100% contribute our relationship’s success in the beginning stages to FaceTime. Everyday until we met in person, we would FaceTime before Matt went to bed and for hours on the weekends.

After he left for Italy, we would FaceTime so I could see where he lives, meet some of his friends, see our fur babies, and “be” together in the closest way possible to actually physically being together. Being able to see someone’s facial expressions, their laughter, and that they aren’t crafting the perfect text message back built more trust in our relationship than I ever thought it would.

For all that, I’m thankful for FaceTime. And the ability to screenshot some pretty goofy pics!

3. What color are you grateful for?

This is a simple one… PURPLE! No particular rhyme or reason here. I just love the color. It’s gorgeous. The color of royalty. And I didn’t like pink like girls are “supposed to.”

4. What food are you most grateful for?

This is a HARD one! If I have to choose one, I might have to choose pizza because of the variety! There’s your classics: cheese and pepperoni. Endless toppings you can mix and match. And now, different sauces! BBQ Chicken Pizza was my FAVORITE for a long time. Lately, I’ve been really into Hot Wing Pizza. And the pizzas with salads on them aren’t bad! And dessert pizza?! Get out of town! You could probably go your entire life and have a pizza for whatever mood you’re in and never duplicate exactly what you have had before if you don’t want to. Now I want a pizza…

5. What sound are you grateful for?

The sound I’m grateful for is the sound of the front door being unlocked. These days, I spend a lot of time at home… drinking tea… no joke. I’ve had like 5 cups of tea today already. So when I hear the door unlock that means Matt is home. And unlocking the front door is LOUD haha. I can hear it from upstairs.

I’m taking a second sound for this one. The sound of a text on my phone. Again, I’m home a lot and the majority of my friends are living in a world 8 or 9 hours behind me. So around 3:00 PM is when it’s finally a normal hour that we can chat. Similar to my answer for #2, I’m so grateful for technology that I can still maintain my friendships from thousands of miles away and that little *ding* is what let’s me know I’m not completely out of touch and just a message away.

6. What in nature are you grateful for?

When it comes to nature, I’m grateful for water! It’s so beautiful. As a kid and teenager, I loved going to the beach. I’m totally looking forward to beach season next summer! And it adds so much to different landscapes whether it’s a canal, lake, shoreline, or waterfall. Even rain is beautiful.

Ponte Vecchio, Florence, Italy

West Point Lake, West Point, NY

7. What memory are you grateful for?

WARNING! I’m gonna get sappy. I’ve told a few people about the first time that Matt and I met, and to be honest, it’s a moment that could have gone totally wrong and went so right.

Matt and I met online and didn’t have an opportunity to meet for a month. He was in San Antonio, TX and I was in Gilbert, AZ. Referencing #2 again (Yay for FaceTime), we built a relationship that I was incredible. We really got to know each other because we could actually talk without the distraction of physicality. So a month later, I decided to rent a car and drive from New Orleans to San Antonio to meet him for the first time.

A lot of people thought I was crazy. What if he didn’t turn out to be who I thought he was? Yeah, I’ve seen Catfish. I know that was possible and it ran through my head constantly while we were getting to know each other to the point where we said “I love you.”

I get to San Antonio, check into the hotel down the street, then drive to the Visitor Center at Lackland Air Force Base to wait for Matt to sponsor me on base. The ten seconds between seeing him in the sideview mirror to getting out of the car was the most nerve wrecking ten seconds I’ve EVER experienced. Everything I had built up in my head and heart was about to be confirmed or come crashing down with all the disappointment possible in the entire world. I was pretty sure if things went right that I had met the person I wanted to be with the rest of my life. And if he wasn’t, I’d give up. The stakes were high people!!

Finally, I got the courage to step out of the car and smile at him. “Hi.” That’s all he said. I don’t even remember what lame greeting came out of my mouth. Then he smiled, kissed me, and hugged me… and the whole world made sense. I’ve never felt so immediately comfortable with someone and like I had known them for so much longer. I felt like we had actually spent time together and were meeting again.

That memory is what I’m most grateful for. Knowing that the most genuine person I’d ever crossed paths with was real and that he was mine.

Our first picture together. March 19, 2016

If you’d like to do your own 30 days of gratitude, here’s where I found the prompts I’m using. And catch up! You’re late!

What are you grateful for? Leave me a comment!