1. I'm so grateful to have been able to go to the National Council of Teachers of English conference in Orlando last weekend, where I hung out with authors, met lots of teachers and other educators, and had the opportunity to speak on two panels. I'm also hugely grateful that it gave me the opportunity to visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

    

The park was smaller than I was expecting, but very very cool. I do recommend going if you have the chance. Fellow author Erin Dionne and I went on the dragon roller coaster twice, which was so fun. But even better was the ride in Hogwarts. I would have loved to do that one again, but the line was too long. I was surprised to find that there were even lines to get into the stores! But we had lunch at the Three Broomsticks and got to drink butterbeer, which was super sweet!

2. I'm also so grateful to be home! Traveling is fun and all, but I missed my family, my flights home were delayed, and it was just such a relief to come home!

3. More and more as I get older my gratitude for my extended family increases -- not that I didn't always appreciate them -- just that the appreciation gets richer somehow. I love seeing my siblings and cousin, celebrating holidays at my mom's, seeing the younger generation of cousins continue to grow. It makes me feel very blessed.

4. Following a dream, having bits and pieces of it come true is like riding a rainbow, the world lit up in beautiful colors with the pot of gold not too far off in the distance. I'm incredibly grateful for the freedom and support necessary to pursue my dreams, and so filled with gratitude for the dreams come true!

5. My husband and kids are the ones on this ride with me every day. How do I express the gratitude I feel for these three people? I'm not always a patient person. I get irritable and stressed sometimes. But I hope I always make it abundantly clear to them that I am incredibly grateful for their companionship on this journey. And I hope I support and nurture them just as they do me. Because really, that's what family is all about -- helping each other along the roads we choose.

So today, with a full belly and a full heart, I'm feeling extremely grateful and am really seeing the full side of the cup. I don't always tend to be a cup half full kind of girl, so I'll plan to stop back by here on the days when the gray skies and the early darkness has me feeling gloomy. Hope your Thanksgiving has left you feeling grateful too <3