I am thankful: 20

Today I'm thankful for growth.

I'm sitting here doing a mini-reflection on the past year and realizing how thankful I am for the person I've grown into. Now, my real 2011 reflection will be much bigger, longer, and way more drawn out than my little thankful blurbs and there will probably be many tears involved, so I'll save the heavy stuff for that post (because y'all KNOW it's coming). But as far as the mini reflection goes, I do realize how thankful I am for all the experiences I've had this year because I've grown a LOT, learned a LOT, changed a LOT (in a good way) and have overall been much happier than I have been in a long time. I started the year pretty darn hopeful with some really personal new years resolutions that I thought were probably a stretch for me, but I've done a pretty freaking awesome job of keeping them in mind. It's now November and I'm STILL keeping track of those goals from 11 months ago. I knew this year would be full of changes, but the one I'm most thankful for are the changes that have caused me to grow up a little and start becoming the adult version of Chelsea that's been trying to surface. But don't get too carried away, I mean, I'm only 22. I still have a lot of kid left in me :)

I am thankful: 19

Today I'm thankful for my sister, Ashley.

(Otherwise known as Volcanic Ash of the Fabulous Sin City Roller Girls)

Tonight I had the honor of watching her skate in a roller derby bout for the first time! (My first time, not hers.) Watching her do something she's so passionate about inspires me to find and pursue something I'm passionate about. I've always looked up to Ashley for being my big sister, but now I look to her for more: friendship, support, advice, and of course whenever I need to vent about things only a sister would understand. I'm thankful for her everyday and for the enormous growth in our relationship over the past year.

I am thankful: 18

Today I'm thankful for the feeling of home.

It's still weird to me that Vegas is supposed to be "home" now, but I'm getting used to it. The house my parents bought is turning into more of a home everyday & it's taken a 180 turn since we bought it - new floors, new paint, new everything. And with the addition of all our pictures hung, it feels much more homey. It's been quite some time since I've experienced this feeling because the last time I was in my real home was in April. It feels nice to have my family settled in & really having a place of their own again. We even have our first official visitor this weekend! Even though the move was pretty tough at first, Vegas is a destination place & I know that no matter what people will always be coming here (hopefully more than once). This place might not technically be MY home, but I'm thankful that it's turning into more of a home & a central that we can all lean on.

I am thankful: 17

Today I'm thankful for the start of Thanksgiving break! 

I just realized this is my last official Fall Break... sad! But, it couldn't have come sooner. I am so happy to be done with midterm tests and projects and ready to start relaxing and hanging out with my family. Things I'm looking forward to most:

 

BABY MOONEY!

-Dirty Mex lunch date tomorrow with my dad

-Visiting my favorite UFC peeps including DEUCES

-Driving to California for the holiday

-Watching my sister play Roller Derby

-Making egg nog cupcakes with my mom

-Sleeping in every single day, and

- <-- Cuddlin with mah kitties

In one hour I will be heading to the airport and making my way back to Vegas and I'm so thankful that this day is finally here!

I am thankful: 16

Today I'm thankful for patience.

Let's be honest here for a sec, I have no patience. None at all. Pretty much not a single ounce of it. I hate waiting for things and I get frustrated REALLY easily. It's a character flaw, what can I say. So for a short little story, my phone recently decided it didn't want to charge anymore. Guy at Sprint store says "it's a software issue, try charging it while it's off," of course that doesn't work, take it back in, he says there's nothing he can do and I need to order a new one which could take a few days to arrive. All on the day before I'm set to go out of town for Thanksgiving. And me being the most impatient person in the world gives the guy a little attitude before storming out of the store.

My first instinct in a situation like this is to call my dad and complain - but HAHAH jokes on me because turns out I don't have a phone to call him with now! So instead, I calmly go home and IM a friend to complain and he kindly offered to help me sort the whole thing out. Instead of getting seriously worked up (which I'm prone to), I somehow was granted a very minimal amount of patience that is allowing me to see this as an opportunity instead of a problem (granted, it's still a problem, I mean how am I going to wake up in the morning without my phone as an alarm clock?!). And the opportunity is to distance myself from this constant need to be connected through my phone. He and I are attached at the hip - I'm constantly checking it even when I know there's no messages, playing WordFeud, checking twitter, checking facebook, reading articles, not paying attention in class, and texting. It's bad. And I always try to find ways to justify it.

But the truth is, I probably need a couple days away from it so I can practice this patience and realize that there are more important things in my life than my smart phone, and there are other ways for people to communicate with me. Of course I can't (and won't) be giving up technology all together (what are you, crazy?!) and I haven't been off my computer since this went down, but... baby steps, people. Today I'm thankful for this small lesson in patience and for the break from my all-too-serious relationship with that phone.

I am thankful: 15

Today I'm thankful for music.

Ah yes, if music be the food of love, play on! A little Shakespeare for your Tuesday afternoon, but I dare you to find a truer statement. As a kid I grew up taking singing lessons, participating in multiple choirs, and singing with my very musically talented family at every possible get together. For some reason I never pursued anything in music throughout college, until now - my final semester. I decided to take both piano lessons and music composition and it has been great getting back into it. I'm lucky to start out each day learning about music, playing music, and listening to different kinds of music. It's truly been inspiring and I'm regretting not doing this sooner!

Loving music is something the majority of people have in common, but to say I love it is not satisfying enough for me. I can't think of anything else in the world that can effect me the way music does. It has the ability to get me through any situation - good or bad, stimulates my brain, makes me want to dance, laugh, sing, cry, recalls memories, and can drastically change my mood at any given second. And while my taste in music ranges from classic oldies to techno, I have a new favorite song every day. I'm thankful that music has had such an impact on my life since I was a child. And because I could NEVER pick just ONE favorite song, here's one from one of my favorite artists that just genuinely makes me happy every time I hear it, and I hope will make you happy too.

I am thankful: 14

Adventures in Pittsburgh

Where we met, lived, learned, and loved

 Today I'm thankful for one of my very best friends and soulmate, Chelsea.

Meeting her this summer was the best possible thing that could have happened to me, and the timing could not have been more perfect. She came into my life at a make-it or break-it moment, where it was crucial for my sanity to be surrounded by the right people. From day one I selfishly leaned on her so much, and she willingly listened, offered advice, and helped me grow every single day. Together we had some of the most incredible experiences of our lives, and by the end of the summer were wondering how we would ever make it apart from each other. I can't express how thankful I am to her for showing me how I am worthy of fireworks, and to the universe for bringing us together. I do not know where I would be today without her. <3