a little bit of this. a little bit of that.

So I've been a horribly inconsistent blogger these days...blame it on laziness if you will, but I really did want to share some pics from my mom's birthday, Thanksgiving and a couple other things before Christmas hit and we were too far gone.

Last month, my mother celebrated the 30th anniversary of her 27th birthday. She's not only my mom, she's also the beloved "mimi" of two of the most precious girls in the universe, and no, I'm not the least bit biased. We celebrated her birthday by grilling out, opening presents and eating birthday cake. We kept the festivities going with a girl's brunch to Breadwinner's. It was really nice for the three of us to spend some time together and I think we camped out for almost 3 hours. Happy Birthday, Mom!







The family was a little disjointed this Thanksgiving. I was in Austin and they were kickin' it in McKinney. My day started with the Christmas parade, followed by mimosas and then plenty of cooking. Obviously, you can't have a cooking party without music and dancing, both were in no short supply. Once the turkey was trimmed, the sweet potatoes whipped and the stuffing golden brown, we sat down to an exceptional feast. It was almost disappointing how much variety there was as I felt like I could only manage a few bites per dish. But, all was not lost, they made delicious leftovers the next two days.












The rest of the weekend was so fun and definitely felt like a vacation. There were wine tastings, shopping, movies, strolls through downtown and South Congress...I had such a blessed time with my dear cousin and friend (fousin), Christina.




And, since I just can't get enough of Austin (or my fousins), I headed back down 35 to celebrate China's birthday and Sean's graduation from UT. Our weekend started with China's birthday celebration: sweet and savory crepes at Flip Happy and a wine tasting at Stonehouse Vineyards. It was a gorgeous day, so after our tasting, we headed to the patio and enjoyed the beautiful weather. I think we could have stayed all day, but we had to take a ridiculous amount of pictures before jumping in the car and heading to Sean's graduation. Happy, happy birthday, China!!! I hope I get to celebrate the next 27 with you!



















After a delightful afternoon, we made it to Sean's graduation which was surprisingly painless. Being a December graduation, there wasn't a terribly large amount of grads, so all the candidates were able to walk across the stage. We made sure to cheer loudly for Sean. After the graduation, we all had to get our snapshots with the recent grad. So a huge congrats to Sean. I'm so proud to call you my cousin and apologize for all the torurous years you had to endure (being the only boy) with the Nsync videos, dance parties and the like. I know you are going to be successful whatever it is you do!











So consider yourself updated and ready for Christmas coverage via Abundant Life. Until then, may the peace of Christ surround you and draw you in during the blessed and wondrous season.