we bonded.

hank & annie went hunting.

so georgia, lilly & i took advantage of some quality bonding time at the park.

this silly girl and silly dog of mine really do bring me such happiness.

bliss.

my favorite part about thanksgiving?

the extended holiday.

having the actual holiday on thursday meant that hank worked from home on wednesday and has been around since.

hence my title, bliss.

cheesy? maybe, but holidays are meant for sentimental blabbering. 

i give you full privilege to stop reading here if that is not your cup of tea.

 we hiked.

 and hiked.

 hank took lilly on a date to the park while i cooked.

 we walked the neighborhood. there was lots of walking, but not enough to counter act all the eating i am afraid.

 and we both got to laugh when lilly woke up from her nap looking like this.

classic. 

and mostly? we just snugged the heck out of our crazy, giggly and altogether amazing daughter.

is this hat not awesome? needless to say it was purchased.

. . .

i really can't get enough family time. i am totally one of those moms who is going to kiss their kids even when it embarrasses them. i am also going to be one of those moms who kisses daddy even when it embarrasses them. i love to be together, to be close and to share everything together. i love that lilly and hank bonded this week, really, i felt it. i feel like these holidays really are here for the healing purpose of putting everything else on pause. all those things we "have" to do to stop for just a moment. and in that moment there is such clarity on what is real, what actually matters and how amazing life truly is.

i needed this more than anyone and i am so thankful. God has blessed me with so much and there are lots of times i take them for granted, that i get greedy for what is not.

this week was pure. it was each moment savored and enjoyed. it was healing to say the least. 

first thanksgiving.

this years thanksgiving was full of firsts.

first thanksgiving as a mom. 

and i couldn't be prouder. this little nugget enjoyed all the holiday had to offer. well, no pecan pie. but she did try some bread pudding! this girl loves her food, from veggies to taters to desert she licked her fingers at the end and slept well with her full belly.

so thankful for my little family and sleeping babies :)

it was my first thanksgiving cooking and i would like to think i did a good job. actually, i am impressed with myself. i will admit it!

mom, thanks for the amazing recipes and teaching me all your thanksgiving tricks. the food filled up lots of happy bellies, mine included. 

and the best part? we are stilling enjoying it :)

amidst all the cooking i forgot to take a picture of the spread. sad face.

this was also hank & my first thanksgiving staying put. but thankfully that didn't mean it wasn't full of family.

there was football, a fire, laughs and fully bellies.

a perfect first thanksgiving :)

pups.

lillian has really taken to the dogs even more so lately. 

so i felt the need to show them off today too :)

georgia.

annie.

i can't sign off without a picture of this face.

thursday loves- happy thanksgiving!

how fitting is this? thanksgiving + thursday loves. ideal!

this year i have so so much to be thankful for. most especially, my amazing family.

i wouldn't dare try and express all the things i am thankful for this year, for my blog might just explode for over use of characters and i would certainly need to brew another pot of coffee just to get it all down...

so here are a few things that have really been present as of late.

coffee. oh so thankful for coffee after those sleepless nights.

warm southern falls. 70 degrees + changing leaves. yes please.

my clogs.

new haircuts.

lipstick.

target. what would i do without you?

instagram and my iphone. enough said.

lunch dates with hank & lillian.

snickers ice cream bars.

pandora.

tv-less days and nights.

slippers.

lillian's giggle.

proof i have SO much to be thankful for? check out hank chasing lillian. if there was sound to this flip book it would sound like the cutest baby giggle you have ever heard.

and go.

what are you most thankful for this year? 

north carolina.

cue rap song.

north carolina? anyone? 

this trip was the culmination of two weeks of lillian sleeping for two hours max a night. i am not sure if it was the travel (we have been three places in three weeks) or teething or her cold. probably a mix of all of the above. but now you know why i have been on a bit of a blog hiatus. when lillian slept, i did too. and man, did we both have a lot of catching up to do.

thankfully we are home, settled in and sleeping through the night again. although, now that i have said something she will inevitably stop. who knows. lets be honest here, i am a new mom, so my knowledge of what is happening day to day is none :)

back to north carolina...

 bella the basset & my mom having too much fun feeding lillian :)

 abby & bella. what a pair.

 you wouldn't know it but this is me on 2 hours of sleep!

thankfully there are no pictures of me on two hours of sleep because i can promise you one thing- i don't look cute!

 thanks for everything mary & ted. love you guys.

john- congratulations. you are truly an inspiration.

*side note: i realized the video i posted didn't originally work but have updated it here.

thursday loves.

here a  few things that have been making me feel the love...

 these nail strips are amazing. inspired from a pinterest post, i only did my ring finger on each hand and love the little sparkle it brings to my life each day.

my new haircut. love, love, love.

and lucky for me, so does the hubs :)

i am also really enjoying rockin' lipstick. i am not a big make-up girl, love to get dressed up and dance the night away, but on a day to day, rarely wear much. however, have been finding that a little moisturizer and some violet lips really makes me smile!

don't have a photo but will work on that...

here are some inspiration photos though...here, here and here.

still on the hunt for that perfect red shade for my skin tone. if anyone has one they love, please do share!!

whats making you feel the love this week?

she walks!

rough start, and end, but amazing nonetheless!

things are about to get hectic around here and i can't wait!

*video should work now, sorry for not realizing it didn't until now!

all things family.

i love my in-laws.

really i do. i am in one of those can't-believe-this-is-really-the-family-i-married type of marriages. in the best of ways.

and to really put the cherry on top, those already married into the family before i came along, yeah, they are pretty awesome too. 

in the five years since hank and i have been together his side of the family has grown.

by six.

yup, six kids 5 & under.

six kids + three sets of parents + grandma & grandpa +  one uncle  = 15 people.

and this weekend, we all slept under one roof.

well, lilly didn't sleep at all, but thats another story.

we celebrated the wedding of hank's best friend scott and his now wife, adrienne. scott and hank's families have been friends forever and so it really was such a special event.

i was and am so proud of my hubs for his speech, and just because. he is amazing.

the wedding was fantastic, there was lots of dancing and laughing and some crying. all of which make for a perfect wedding!

there was also lots of family time to be had, which, frankly was just good for the soul.

no lack of steeler fans in this household!!

thursday love.

one of my favorite things about starting this blog has been getting connected to other bloggers doing amazing things out there on the crazy world called the internet.

and, inspiration has hit.

celebrating the things that make you happy is an amazing reminder to take a deep breathe and cherish the small things.

some of my favorites to read?

thursday latelies, thursday things, oh, and chuck taylor tuesdays. 

just fun ways to say, i love this, share it with others who might too and then go about your merry way :)

so, here is to thursday love!

fall. i love sweaters, clogs & scarves.

 exploration. this week lillian and i hit up the library and i watched her eyes bug out of her head at the sight of all those books!

 daylight savings. because you can see the moon while it is still bright.

 warm sun + cool breeze makes for a perfect stop in the grass at the park.

 i love that lillian & georgia have become best friends. it warms my heart seeing them together, she even gives georgia kisses! and of course, that means lillian gets sloppy ones right back :)