Hope's ChestLifestyle

While we were grabbing gas for the ride home; I saw a small empty field surrounded by tall trees covered in festive leaves, grabbed a few pieces of clothing I had picked up from a thrift store the night before, and handed my least mouthy photographer the camera. (aka my mother.) 😂 Honestly though, I always have fun taking pictures with my mom. The movie quotes run wild and so do the inappropriate “that’s what she said” jokes.

Happy Thanksgiving Eve Everyone!! Or as I like to call it “Yummy pie day!!” Just kidding I’ve never called it that, but I should definitely start! What are some of your Thanksgiving plans and traditions? Do you do a traditional ham and turkey kind of feast or get a little crazy and order take out? I’ll be honest, I am definitely more of a take-out kind of girl, but because this is Nathaniels favorite holiday. I already know that messy kitchens and crowded houses are forever in my future. It’s a good thing he’s cute. amiright?.. Tomorrow morning I will be spending some quality time with my family enjoying pumpkin pancakes and crispy bacon. Then later on in the day, I’ll head over to Nathaniel’s aunts for some button popping turkey. Also, do you guys get all dressed up for Thanksgiving? Because I think stretchy sweatpants and a pullover sweater are in my not so distant future.

If you are new to my blog, A 13 Things post is where I share 13 random things currently going on in my life. Mostly to give you guys a little life update, but also because sharing things helps me sleep better. (Fun Fact.)

1. Right after we had gotten back from Utah, Nathaniel surprised me with tickets to Magic mountain so I zipped back up my suitcase, got back into the car, and headed to California the very next weekend. I love surprises, but the amount of laundry I came home to gave me almost as much anxiety as all of the pictures I now have to go through! 😆 Not that I’m complaining!

2. Right after our Cali. trip I had to go to the emergency room for an acute bladder infection 😳 Never will I ever skip a bathroom break again!!

3. Christmas has me SO excited!! I have already boughten and wrapped all of my presents! AHHH I literally cannot wait to see everyone’s faces when they open their presents! It’s my favorite part!!!!!! 😍

4. All of this holiday food has me craving a gym! Don’t get me wrong the extra calories are working with me in all the right ways (At least that’s what I tell myself.), but I’m starting to feel very sluggish and I absolutely cannot stand that feeling.

5. I am currently obsessed with fuzzy jackets! Gimme all the teddy bear skins pleeeaasseee!!! Some of my go-to fuzzy jackets this fall are from H&M, Billabong, and Tjmaxx! All at a great price!!

6. January will be one year since I had started Hopes Chest! Woot! Woot!! And as much as I have loved the SquareSpace layout. I think I am going to go in a different direction and find another website to go through for my blogging. Have any recommendations?

7. Ooo… So, while Nathaniel and I were in California we stayed with his aunt for a few days. On the very last day I picked up a book titled Live To Make A Difference by Max Lucado and asked to borrow it for the ride home. OH MY GOSHES ma peeps! Probably THE most inspiring and welp… honestly the most religious book I have ever read! (Other than the Bible of course…) I’m not really one to be a church goer, so I kind of took what I wanted from the book and left anything I couldn’t relate with. Even after doing that it was still incredible and a book I would highly recommend to anybody!

8. While I was Pintresting a quote rolled across my screen by Loubis that read, “A secret to happiness is letting every situation be what it is, instead of what you think it should be.” This quote has honestly been my saving grace all month. Every time I start to get anxious or frustrated because something isn’t going as I think it should. I take a deep breath and reread this quote to myself. It has done a world of difference!

9. I have been trying to look more put together which means actually putting effort into my makeup and pretending to know what I’m doing. Let’s just say, that as pretty as Cat eye, eyeliner looks. It is SO not worth the headache! I did have a friend quote the whole “Practice makes perfect.”, but after three times of almost poking my eye out, I think I’ll survive without it.

10. My family has been on a Melissa and Joey kick lately and I am not mad about it. The show is truly hilarious and so light hearted!

11. Last week I had decided to bite the bullet and invest in the Smile Direct club. My two front teeth over lap and my Botton ones are a little crowded. It’s just been something that has always bugged me. So, I'm actually really excited to get it fixed and give you guys a play by play on what I think of the whole things. So stayed tuned!!

12. If you follow me on Instagram, then you already know that I got a new face wash called SkinFix and I absolutely love it! It comes in a cute turquoise bottle and was created for all skin types as well as it levels out the PH on your face! Which is muy importante when it comes to face wash.

13. Thank you for reading and have a happy holiday! 💛