I didn’t realize it until I sat down to write this, but November was jam-packed. The one weekend I did stay in Cleveland, William came to town. The down-side of all the fun is how run down I get, and I spent the week before Thanksgiving and most of the holiday weekend downing cough syrup and trying to not let the sickness get to me too bad. I hung in there, but that’s a definite sign that I need to start really slowing down on weekends and take a couple here and there to rest up to be my optimal self.

Early November I was off to St. Louis to visit my friend Megan. She spent so many weekends visiting me down in Savannah, and I really needed to make a point and visit her is St. Louis now that the tropical location wasn’t an option. We had the best weather when we were there. Really, I couldn’t get over it. It was in the sixties in the day and the fifties at night and perfect for walking around outside and enjoying that slightly crisp air and those fresh fall leaves. It wasn’t intentional, but this month really did turn into a month of gratitude. There were so many points during this month that I just had to say out loud to those around me how happy and thankful I was for the small things going right. Taking time to acknowledge these moments really did pump up my mood — like when the plants at Home Depot were 75% off and we did a little happy sing/dance in the car on the way to the parking lot after seeing that sign. This is how St. Louis went: I was around college friends, there was perfect weather, we didn’t plan one darn thing after getting there, and we just had a really great time making things happen in a time that could have been pretty stressful. If you’re in a situation where you’re especially happy or thankful, try talking out your feelings to those around you. It sounds pretty silly, but you’ll be surprised how these talks pep other people up and it makes the happy moments spread.

Also, Snow! This month there were two snowfalls, one of which had me heading to Erie to visit friends from high school. I was the one with four-wheel drive, so I braved the storm to get three of us together who haven’t hung out as a group in over three years. We spent the weekend at my parents house, and just had a nice night catching up with some Christmas ale in-hand. I’m in love with all the weather that this month has brought — I haven’t been around all these changes in a couple years, and this time is really pretty magical.

Lastly I was off to South Dakota to see my parents new house for the first time. They’ll be living in South Dakota for the majority of the year have already took up residency there, so it was really nice to see what there new life has been like. Extended family came out, and twelve of us spent the holiday weekend bundled up, watching football, drinking beer, and generally getting one with the wild. One pretty exciting moment: After over a decade of being a vegetarian I started to eat meat about two years ago. This trip marked a new time in my life, and was something that my dad probably never thought he’d live to see. He taught me how to shoot a rifle, and I went out pheasant hunting with him this weekend (!!).  I’m at the point where I’m wanting to try new things and I want to indulge in experiences I’m lucky enough to be around. I eat poultry, so why not hunt it off the land and really experience the whole process? After being out for about two hours, I hadn’t even taken a shot. There is so much to think about — not falling over, making sure you’re not aiming at anyone, having the safety on, not shooting the female pheasants — it was just a lot to think about on top of three hyper dogs running around at your feet. After finally taking my first shot, I felt comfortable to really aim and get into it after seeing birds. On my second shot, I got my first bird. Is it weird talking about hunting on a design blog? hah. I had a great time, and I’m glad that I was able to have a really neat father/daughter moment this weekend.

Now, we’re all probably off to a whirlwind of a December! Needing something festive for your desktop?

As always, you can follow along with my monthly adventures here. Cheers to staying healthy and getting all that holiday prep in!