Happy Wednesday! Happy Thanksgiving Eve! Just happy, happy, happy!
Thansksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. I love the food, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the fact that it’s the kick off to the Holiday season. I just love it all. But, most of all, I just love the end of the year Holiday mentality. Yes, it can be stressful, but overall I feel like everyone is in a better mood. I love that it’s a time to take a step back, reflect and think about the year with a grateful heart.
So, today, I just wanted to share a few people/moments/things that I am grateful for this year.
My Mom
I mean that’s a given. But, she is truly my rock, my number one champion, my motivator and my best friend. I’ve always been close with my mom growing up, especially since she’s a single mother, but as I’ve gotten older and as the years go by we continue to get closer. She pushes me to be my best and do my best, encourages me to live life, but also brings me back to earth when I need it. She can sometimes drive me up a wall, but she also makes me laugh like no one else can. She is so selfless and strong and I’m so grateful she’s my mom. But, I’m also grateful that now that I’m older and working, I can take care of her now and take her on vacation and spoil her and that’s all I’ve ever wanted in life is to take care of my mom and I’m really happy that I’m able to do so.
My Boyfriend, Eddie
Again, a given, but this guy amazes me everyday at how gentle and kind and patient he is. Eddie once took his last ten dollars to buy a homeless man a warm meal and that’s just one example of what a saint he is. He is the polar opposite of me and balances me out in every way. Whereas I can be a hot head, he’s as cool as a cucumber. Where I can stress over every situation and be afraid of my shadow, he is fearless. A few weeks ago there was a big makeup launch that happened and I had an important meeting at the exact same time that the sale went live so Eddie went on the site for me. Then when the site crashed, he trekked all the way to the mall to see if he can get it in store. And that’s just the kind of person he is, he’s always willing to do everything and anything for anyone and go above and beyond for everyone.
My Best Friend, Kyle
If you’ve been a long time reader, you know that Kyle was my boss at Teen Vogue and became my best friend during that time. We used to have weekly dinners and talk all the time. Throughout the years though, we’ve gotten busier and a lot in our lives have changed. And while we don’t talk every single day, we still make time for each other and each time we get together it feels like we’re just picking up where we left off. This year has been so great in one sense, but also challenging in other ways. We had dinner a few weeks ago and sat down and just talked for what felt like hours. I opened up to him about a few insecurities I’ve been struggling with lately and he built me up like no one else can. We’ve seen each other through a lot of ups and downs and I admire and respect him so much and think he is such an amazing person. Plus he’s my favorite person to go out with and I know I’m going to have so much fun and laugh till I cry when I do.
My Best Friend, Anna
Some of you may remember Anna from my Halloween Instagram post from last year. We worked together at Victoria’s Secret and grew such a strong friendship over time. There is truly no one like her and I feel so blessed everyday to call her my best friend. I don’t have a great “best friends track record” and I’ve been burned before so it’s really hard for me to open up. But, with Anna I can truly be myself and not feel insecure around her. She’s seen me at my best and at my worst, I’ve even had moments where I’ve tried to push her away and she just won’t stand for it and keeps coming back being an amazing best friend. Our friendship is truly about hyping each other up and I wouldn’t change it for the world. A few months ago I went through a hard time and just felt like everything was piling on me at once. I sent her this long text with everything I was feeling and thinking, even things I was afraid to say out loud. And instantly my phone started ringing with a Facetime. I’ve never really had a friend listen to me in that way and take everything I say seriously and just allow me to cry over Facetime and I was blown away. She’s an incredible person and I’m so lucky to have her in my life. She also wrote a post for the blog which I’m excited to share soon!
My New Job
Earlier this year, I started a new job at Gap in a new part of the industry that I wasn’t used to. It was such a big change for me and something I struggled with making in the first place. But, I’m so happy I took the leap and tried something new. In this past year, I’ve been forced out of my comfort zone and have taken on more responsibilities than I thought I could handle. While this past year hasn’t always been easy and there have been challenging moments, I feel like it’s challenged me to be a better and stronger person. I feel like there’s value in what I do, I feel like I matter and I’m just really happy to work for a great company that inspires me. At Cosmo, I feel like I was stripped down everyday, being told I wasn’t good enough, smart enough, cool enough, just not enough. My team at Victoria’s Secret built me back up, but I still struggled to find value in what I was doing. And I finally feel like I’m being built up, encouraged to look forward and be better and that what I do matters.
My Boss & Best Friend, Liz
And speaking of Gap, I could not recap what I was grateful for and not include this one. Liz and I became friends at Victoria’s Secret and you may remember her from my Valentine’s Day post from earlier this year. When she left VS, we still continued to stay in touch. Again, I don’t have a great “best friends track record” but I love that she always pushed to keep in touch and never held it against me if I didn’t text back or if I was weird. While she was my biggest champion on taking the jump to trying something new at Gap, she never pushed me too much and let me really make the decision for myself. It’s been interesting and sometimes challenging really taking our relationship from just friends to manager & assistant while still being friends, but I couldn’t ask for a better person to tackle this challenge with. Liz is everything I aspire to be. She is strong, she is independent, she is smart, she has an amazing work ethic and everyone loves her and I’m proud to call her my best friend. She challenges me and pushes me to be a better version of myself. She keeps it real with me while also building me up. My first presentation at work, I was so nervous about but she built me up every step of the way and even surprised me with a Starbucks gift card after it. She’s such a thoughtful friend and I’m happy we spend about 97% of our day together.
Thank you so much for stopping by & reading.
I’m thankful for you, for always coming by and supporting me and accepting me and my crazy posting schedule and allowing me a platform where I can come and ramble and vent and just talk. Thank you.
Wishing all of you & your families a very Happy and Hearty Thanksgiving!
