Cheers to the Week: Hello, Thanksgiving! Edition

Hello friends! Popping in for a pre-Thanksgiving check-in to share a little of what we've been up to as we dive headfirst into the holiday season! Kicking things off with...

Grandparent weekend at Rocky Knob Retreat! (I know, I know. I still haven't written an actual post about our new mountain home, but I swear I will, soon). ANYWHO. Our vacation rental home continues to be one of our favorite places on the planet, and we love reserving a weekend here or there to share it with those we love. The last said trip happened a couple weeks ago, when we took both sets of our parents up there, along with my Lu Crew, for a weekend of family fun, and we had such a special, such a fun time! We cozied in and cooked, we hiked and shopped, we enjoyed the views and each other. We loved it. <3

Meanwhile, back at home, we've been making some fun interior updates! We had several rooms painted last week, including the master bedroom and the girls' room, and I changed out some furniture and finally (i.e., 8 years later) added some art to our walls in our dining room (I specifally chose a triptych world map because I wanted to be able to see both China and the USA on our walls #bringinghomeBella). I love a good before/after; so...here are some before/afters: 

Before:

After:

Before: 

After: 

Before: 

After: 

Amidst the Thanksgiving prep (see: hosting Thanksgiving for the first time this year!), we have gotten in plenty of great friend time, including: 

A cooking class with fun friends at The Foodie School: 

Happy Hours for the adults and movie snuggles for the kids with friends of all ages:

Charcuterie-board-making-class with gal pals: 

Plenty of friend time for my little Lus, who I see less and less of these days (tear for my momma heart; joy for their happy, social hearts) : 

Gatherings with my hub's LifeGroup and their families at the Greenway: 

Clemson game watching poolside, thanks to dear friends/hosts who also throw the most fun shindigs:

And of course, some lovely family time: 

And a little goodness if you are looking for beautiful, personal holiday gifts: First, my super talented friend, Molly, created these special tea towels for my mom and mom "in law" for their birthdays, each showcasing handwritten recipes in their mom's handwriting. There were tears over the sentimentality, and I loved how they turned out. She can create just about anything! Check her out: 

Another special gift idea? My incredibly talented artist friend, Melissa, created this custom art for us that I love, love, love and have proudly hanging in our family room. She has all kinds of beautiful pieces on her website, too, if that is your preference over creating a customized piece. Check her out, too! 

Let's see: a little more randomness? I got into the crafting spirit the other night and created this custom book stack similar to one I've been ogling for some time on etsy. The cost = the price of the white wrapping paper I bought from HomeGoods. Then, just wrap three books already on hand, print out our name on vinyl using my Silhouette, and tie them together with twine for a simple, but pretty, piece of decor: 

Annnnnd throw in a My Favorite Things party; a near broken arm by yours truly; tennis lessons and matches; Barre3; doctor appointments; and the aforementioned Thanksgiving prep, and things have been joyfully crazy and joyfully fun this month! 

I am so thankful for so many things, one of which being this little space of mine. Thank you for reading and following along as we Lus make our way through this little life of ours. Wishing you and yours the grateful-est of Thanksgivings during this crazy, unpredictable year. Happy Thanksgiving, y'all! Back soon!

So Long, October!

And just like that, another month has come and gone in the craziness that is 2020. A look at a few of my favorite moments from October: 

Trick-or-treating. I mean, come on. Is there anything better?! This year, we had a scary clown; Alice in Wonderland; a Power Ranger; and a cat. A random group but a cute one, nonetheless. ;) 

We had so much fun on Halloween (it should be on a Saturday every year!!!)! We let Banks hit the 'hood with his friends this year while Raleigh, Harrison, and Bella joined us parents for a pre-trick-or-treat cookout with friends. After that, it was time to hit the houses and see all the adorable kiddos in costume before concluding the night back in front of the fire with friends. It truly was such a fun night!

Pre-Halloween fun. Before Halloween arrived, though, there was plenty of fun to be had! We ended up having a random day off from school thanks to dangerous, high winds #HurricaneZeta; so, we made the most of it with some cookie decorating and pumpkin carving. And of course, we squeezed in our annual Halloween Scavenger Hunt around the 'hood. 

Additionally, our neighborhood hosted a fun Fall social event where there was a dog show followed by games and prizes (this was the weekend of Banks' birthday party in the mountains, so our two big guys missed this event).

My girls and I were also able to sneak across the street another weekend for the cutest Pumpkin Party put on by our awesome neighbor. 

The night before Halloween, Banks attended the most fun Halloween party with his buddies that involved a neighborhood scavenger hunt, football, manhunt, pizza, and movies. They had a BLAST thanks to a dear friend who is always the hostess with the mostess for these boys. <3

The same night, the rest of my Lu Crew headed to our sweet friends' beautiful new home for a kid-friendly + adult-friendly night of festive fun. We had a blast! And then we loved waking up and knowing it was Halloween!

Spirit Week. The week before Halloween, Bella's school had spirit day. Two of my favorite days were the "Superhero Day" and the "Workout Wear Day." Have I mentioned a time or two that this girl LOVES school?! 

The week before that, my Big 3's school put on their annual Booster-thon to raise money for the school. Only this year, instead of running laps, they did a school-wide dance party, in each classroom. The best part? The theme was 80s; so, we got more use out of the workout wear I wore to our 80s party during Lutonpalooza (seeing how Banks is almost as tall as me, it fit like a charm) and then, I wore it again during my Barre3's Halloween costume class. ;) 

End of Fall sports. Well, our football and baseball seasons came to an end over the last few weeks, with both of my boys having awesome seasons. While I am sad to miss watching them do their thang, it will be nice to have a few free weeknights, especially with the holiday season upon us. Meanwhile, my girls continue with their weekly dance and aerial arts classes. 

Family fun. For the first time since we moved to our sweet town eight years ago, we weren't able to attend the annual Fall Frolic...because it was cancelled this year. Boo!!!!! So, we decided to have some fun on our own, enjoying dinner downtown as a family and then checking out all the Pumpkin People/Scarecrows our local businesses created. 

And so, October came to a close! We had a full, fun month and are excited for the holiday seasonal fun in the months ahead. Onward through 2020 we march...