Thanksgiving 2019: What Are You Most Grateful For This Year??

Thanksgiving 2019 Thanksgiving 2019Happy Thanksgiving 2019, friends!! I know Thanksgiving is actually still a couple days away, but I wanted to take some time to ask you a very important question: What are you most grateful for in 2019…??

As you can probably tell from those two pictures above, I’m SO INCREDIBLY THANKFUL for my mom and sister! That’s been the case every other year, too, but this year??? It seems especially salient. It’s no secret that I’m pretty frustrated with the state of the world — heck, I’d even go so far as to say that I’m downright angry. Things are a complete mess and it’s so easy to lose hope. I’ve found myself losing hope multiple times this year; I’ll probably lose hope again before 2019 is even over too — I mean, we’ve still got a little over a month left to go in this year. I’m constantly saying, “Now I’ve seen it all,” only to realize that, no, things can — and do — get very, very worse.

The truth is, there’s so much to get upset about, but that’s not what this post is about. I don’t want that to be what this post is about. At least not for today. We can have one day where we don’t dwell on all the bad things that are going on around us. We can have one day where we just enjoy good food and the company of our loved ones (sans politics talk, right?). We can have one day where we…just be.

Perhaps that’s the beauty of Thanksgiving and why I’m so looking forward to some downtime this week. We’ve earned it and we deserve it.

I don’t know who needs to hear this right now, but I see you. I know the holidays are hard for so many people, myself included. Some don’t have families to go home to and others struggle with tense relationships, so please be gentle with yourself. Like I said, you’ve earned it and you deserve it.

Thanksgiving 2019So here’s to a restful and relaxing Thanksgiving 2019. I hope you celebrate in ways that bring you the most joy and love. I’ll be taking the rest of the week off, but I’m looking forward to coming back next week with exciting new posts, including this year’s Holiday Gift Guide!!! Any suggestions for categories?? Feel free to let me know! And follow along on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram since I’ll surely be chronicling my adventures there!

And I’d love to hear about YOUR Thanksgiving adventures, friends! Where are you headed? What delicious food are you craving? Any fun traditions in store? Have a great rest of the week!!! xoxo

[Bottom photo via Unsplash]

Family Photos: Meet Me At the Fair

Fair FairIt never fails: Every year around September, with autumn closing in, I get Fair Fever — a term that I coined just now, actually! Being from the Midwest, you’d think that I would have grown up going to the fair every single year and while I did go to my fair share (pun intended…) of corn festivals in my hometown, I don’t remember going to many big-time fairs.

Nothing as big and grand as a classic Midwest fair in the early fall, at least. And then two years ago, my mom and I ventured to the Sandwich Fair, and, in a word (well, five words): It felt like coming home! It was beautiful and magical and everything that you think of when you picture the Heartland. From that first experience, I was hooked!

So this year, Janelle got to go with us, and we had quite the time, friends!! We decided to go on a weeknight when it wouldn’t be so crowded, so we picked my mom up right after school and made a beeline down the country road to fun. The weather was perfect — warm and sunny — and we could just feel the excitement as we pulled up onto the grassy knoll to park our car.

We had such a fun afternoon!! Here’s the photographic proof because you know I took a TON of photos…

Fair Fair Fair FairWe saw the cutest animals and they really responded to my mom. I think it’s because she has such a calming presence… 🐄🐏🐑🐖

Fair FairDelicious food! Shout-out to my middle school counselor, whose church ran an amazing food stand!! Thanks, Mrs. Curran!! 🍔🍟

And, OMG, I tried elephant ears for the first time!! How have I gone 38 years without tasting this delicious slice of heaven?!?!? 🐘🐘

Vintage farm equipment! How cool are all those colors? 🚜🚜

And of course, I had my two favorite people to share the experience with!! In what has become a family tradition, I made sure to snap a photo of her ankles since she hates being in photos!

I also made sure to wear my festive corn shirt because I’m the most Midwestern person to ever Midwest. After all, I am a down-home Carrie Bradshaw. Yes, the Heartland is my home!! Forever and ever and ever!

How cute was Ms. Bear too?? I’ll be doing a post soon on her pose behind the fern because that’s become her classic pose — she likes to pose behind things!!! Too cute, right?!?!?

As they sang in “Meet Me in St. Louis” (one of my faves!): “Meet me at the fair!” Did you go to any fairs this year?? Do you get wrapped up in all the fanfare of food, fun and merriment?? It’s all overwhelming in the best way possible, if you ask me!! xoxo 🎡🎡🎡

 

My Family Takes Manhattan: Day 3 (The View, CNN and Family Time)

CNNAhhh, here we are, friends!! The last big day of our Manhattan adventure!! If you’ve read the last two posts and looked at all the photos up until this point, you’re aces, so thank you!!! Our last full day was another action-packed one that included a stop at CNN to meet my amazing editors, but more about that in a bit…

First up: Remember when I teased you with talk of making my ABC television debut?? Yes, I admit that perhaps it was sort of clickbait-y, but it’s still mostly true!!

Guess who went to a taping of The View?!?!?

CNN CNNYESSSSSS…I practically couldn’t believe it either!!! I still can’t believe that I got to go to THE VIEW…such a cool experience!!! It was SO surreal to see all my favorite hosts up close…can you believe how close I was to the stage??? Totally fangirled, but guess what?? #SorryNotSorry

CNNAnd look…you can see my front wheel. Does this mean I can check off my bucket list item of being on the show??

CNN CNNAfter working with editors Jane Carr and Yaffa Fredrick on nearly 20 op-eds over the last two years, it was an honor to meet them in person!! They’ve made me a better writer and I can’t thank them enough for the wonderful tour of CNN studios today!!

After our tour, we enjoyed some outdoor time at The High Line…

…and explored the sweet deliciousness that is Dylan’s Candy Bar; as you can imagine, I was in heaven surrounded by all those sweet treats!!!

And, just for fun because I couldn’t resist posting this adorable photo of Ms. Bear.

Allow me to caption this photo as if it were a celebrity candid in the pages of Us Weekly…

NYC, July 26th
Sharon Blake stops for a bite of street food while exploring the city’s Upper West Side.

The very best part of the trip, though, was getting to spend some quality time with family! I don’t get to see my mom’s family nearly enough and it was wonderful to catch up on each other’s lives. They truly are the BEST family in the world and I really wish we all lived closer so we could get together more often!!!

Whew!! We made it!! I have a few other NYC-adjacent posts that I’ll be doing in the coming weeks, but I was so excited to show you all photos of our adventures!! As always, thanks for reading and being so awesome!!!! I love you… xoxo

My Family Takes Manhattan: Day 2 (Central Park, a Beauty Editor and a Broadway Show)

Central Park Central ParkHappy Wednesday, friends!!! Well, if you read yesterday’s post, then you know that we didn’t waste any time getting settled in! As soon as our plane touched down, the fun begin right away. After all, we only had three days to explore the wonderful Big Apple. There was certainly zero time for our (OK, mostly mine…) slow-poke ways! We got right down to business, taking a leisurely stroll around Central Park; it was so nice because Mona’s apartment was within walking distance and the weather was beautifully sunny and warm!!

We’d walked around Central Park AND explored a bit of Columbus Circle…all by 11 a.m. Remember, I’m typically still snoozing at this time, so this was a pretty big deal for me!

Central Park Central ParkI felt hip. I felt chic. I felt like I was part of the in-crowd — you know, those Manhattan movers and shakers who cross those busy NYC streets with a sense of purpose and determination!! Honestly, it sort of felt like my Carrie Bradshaw moment, but more about that in a separate post!!

Confession: I about died during this next part of our trip. It’s not an understatement to say that I became a complete fangirl, even though I tried to hide it well. Are you ready for this?

Really ready?

Because IT’S BIG…

Central Park Central Park Central ParkI entered the hallowed halls of Hearst Tower!!!! Yes, the epicenter of magazines and sacred ground for us writers!!! It was everything I thought it would be — a beautiful building, in-the-know editors going up and down the escalator. The energy was inspiring and palpable.

Central ParkMy favorite part of being a writer is the friendships that I’ve made over the years!! I was honored to meet April Franzino in person. As Good Housekeeping’s Beauty Director, she continues to inspire me!! Thanks so much for the wonderful tour, April…

The afternoon saw another “first” on our trip: SEEING MY FIRST BROADWAY SHOW. As I said on social media…Ain’t too proud to say…I’m seeing my first Broadway show!!! You all know just how obsessed I am with all things The Temptations, so seeing their remarkable, decades-long story come to life on the stage was such a thrilling experience. Plus, all the songs were even more toe-tapping and infectious than they were in the classic made-for-TV movie from the late ’90s. 10/10, I highly recommend spending an afternoon at the theater…wish I would have done it years ago!

After the musical, we walked around Times Square, and, yes, in case you’re wondering, the place was as hopping as ever. So. Many. People. Everywhere.

We walked a total of 6.5 miles that day and traversed some 20 blocks just to get back to Mona’s place from Times Square. But good news: My battery kept its charge all day! Just like me!

Tune in tomorrow for more city fun and I’d love to hear all about your travel adventures too! What places have you visited lately? What’s your favorite vacation of all time? xoxo

My Family Takes Manhattan: Day 1 (Airport Fun, Writer Friends and Lincoln Center)

Lincoln CenterOoooh, friends!!! As I’ve been fond of saying lately, “That was a time!!!” And nowhere is that phrase more appropriate than when talking about our amazing trip to the Big Apple!!! As you can probably imagine (and especially if you were following my adventures in real time on Twitter!), our time in NYC was pure magic and better than anything in my wildest dreams!! Allow me to recount all the tales all this week because this trip of a lifetime deserves more than one post! First up: Day one includes airport fun and Lincoln Center…

We were up bright on early on that first day! If you know my sleep schedule, you know that getting up at 7 a.m. is practically the middle of the night for me. But, we were about to jet set to the big metropolis, so this was no time for snoozing! We made it to the airport and, of course, had plenty of time to spare! Ms. Bear believes in getting to the gate VERY early, which is fine by me because…

Lincoln CenterLook…our gate was right across from the CNN newsstand!! It’s fate!!! I must admit that I felt a surge of pride when I saw the newsstand — I thought, “I’m so proud to be a regular contributor for CNN.”

Two and a half hours later, following a complimentary Diet Coke and trying to read a celebrity weekly without getting nauseous (no success there!)…

Lincoln CenterPost-flight hair, don’t care because…WELCOME TO NEW YORK. “I can’t believe I’m actually here,” I thought as I rolled off the plane and took in the sights and bustle of LaGuardia Airport!! I could feel the pulse of the city already and it was my first time in Queens! My heart started to race at the mere thought of all the excitement that awaited us!

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center Lincoln CenterWhew! Just our first HALF day in NYC had lots and lots of fun firsts. First time taking an Uber. First time at Lincoln Center…complete with a pretty water show!!

But my absolute favorite part of our first day?? Getting to meet a dear writer friend in person for the first time!! Laura and I became fast friends two years ago after she edited my essay in Good Housekeeping, and I’ve admired her ever since!! It was such an honor to go out to dinner (we went to indie food and wine, a really interesting restaurant close to Lincoln Center!

and talk about everything from writing to our fathers — so grateful to know this exceptional writer and kind soul.

I also want to mention just what going on this trip means and how important it is: All three of us are really proud of ourselves for getting to the Big Apple! Special thanks to my mom and Janelle for helping me so much and my cousin Mona for being a wonderful host/tour guide!!

Be sure to check back on Wednesday and Friday for more photo fun from our adventures, including my ABC television debut, my first Broadway show and the thrill of meeting a true beauty guru!! Like I said, friends, IT WAS A TIME… xoxo