Fall / Gratefulness / Holidays

Giving Thanks

I realize that I’m way behind on posting about Thanksgiving, but we had family visiting us in Amsterdam last week, so I didn’t get around to writing anything around the actual holiday. And honestly, I’ve had all sorts of ideas for blog posts lately and around zero motivation to sit down and get the words out, so… that’s where we are.

December is always a whirlwind, isn’t it? Not to mention that we’re headed to Berlin, Zagreb (Croatia) and Rome this month, and my family is all coming to Amsterdam for Christmas, so our schedule is pretty packed. But I do think it will be a nice, crazy few weeks before we jump into the monotony of January/February and KC’s busy season at work. But hey! We have a February birthday to celebrate this year, so that’s certainly something to look forward to.

Getting back to the point of this post, I always like to reflect on the things I’m really thankful for at the start of the holiday season. This year I’m so thankful for:

  • This amazing little family of mine. Our house is loud, silly, and seems to always have crumbs on the floor (even though I’m ALWAYS sweeping), but I wouldn’t have it any other way. (Well, maybe I would get rid of the crumbs.)
  • This adventure we’re having living in Europe. I filled out a preschool application for Prim recently and had to share a little bit about our family, Prim’s personality, and also explain our situation — not currently living in California, but returning to the Bay Area mid-next year. After counting up all the trips we’ve taken and those that we’ve planned and already bought tickets for, I realized that Prim will have visited at least 12 countries by the time we move back, which is sort of crazy given that she will be newly 3 when we come back to California. (And really it will probably be more than 12, since we’re looking at booking trips to at least two more countries while we’re here.)
  • How sweet these sisters are with each other. Prim and Lark have been completely smitten with each other since day one, and I feel so lucky that they get the chance to have the amazing sister relationship I have with my own sister.
  • Moving back to California next year. While I do have mixed feelings about moving back to the Bay Area (and the US in general), I am really excited to embark on a new chapter which will finally give us some permanence (and hopefully a place to live near my sister!)
  • Our home exchanges. Without having stumbled onto this site and taking the plunge and joining, we wouldn’t be traveling nearly as much as we are. The site has been such a great resource for us and our current situation, and I feel so lucky that we get to take advantage of every inch of Europe while we’re over here. And I’m especially thankful that we get to bring these little ladies with us on these adventures. Even though they won’t remember these trips, the memories KC and I are making during these early years with them are just amazing.

Well I’m off to pack for Berlin. I hope you have some fun weekend plans!