As I sit here writing this, I happily grasp my warm cup of cocoa, fuzzy socks on my feet, glasses on my face, John Mayer’s soothing voice serenading through my computer speakers, securing a heart full of joy. I personally can’t think of a better conclusion to an incredibly stressful week. The air is crisp outside, my my mind is at peace and internal reward from some of the busiest weeks I have ever lived through- 3 am bedtimes, 10 hour library trips, petty stress, black eye bags as my most prominent accessory. Super cute, I know.

It’s one of those nights that I just smile, feeling completely content and beyond grateful because I recognize that life will always come back to being soft and sweet when you need it to. I guess this intro was quite a tangent from where I am going with this, but that’s awesome, because I love to ramble.

The holiday’s are right around the corner and this ignites every inch of joy in my body. More than this quiet Friday night ever could. I’ve been thinking a lot about family and the holidays tonight (my fuzzy socks and coco must be making me nostalgic of Christmastime), because really, I

think I just get as joyous about the holiday spirit as I did when I was 5 years old. (Not all the dogma and crap that becomes a facade of what the holidays are about, but the GENUINE spirit of the holidays). Fifteen years later, I hope that’s something that never changes.

The holidays are a magical story to me. And it’s no secret that I love stories and story telling,  especially telling the stories of the aura that is my fun-loving, affectionate, all-kinds-of-wonderful family. Family and the holiday season is an inseparable pair. For some people, this means begrudgingly seeing those people that you’re forced to see (and in some cases pretend to enjoy) at least once a year. For some of you it might mean burnt food, and a boring night of playing bingo (er something boring like that). For me, it’s the most exciting, amazing thing to know a family gathering is coming up. Family is everything to me. Everyone that knows me knows this. I always talk about my family with a sense of pride, as though I had some choice in bearing such a wonderful one.

And the thing is, I have a pretty huge family. Maybe you’re thinking, ‘oh yeah, I know what it’s like to have a crazy, dysfunctional loud family.’ Nice try folks, but I’m sure you can’t compete with a dad who has 14 siblings, a mom who has 3, and 50 cousins and counting. Yeah… it’s insane. And it’s also the greatest form of boisterous, dysfunctional insanity you could ever imagine.

It’s difficult for most people to comprehend the magnitude of such a large family. It’s hard to explain it to anyone else, it’s just all I’ve ever known. But to an ‘outsider’ it probably looks a little bit like this: thunderous decibel levels of hundreds of distinct voices engaged in passionate conversations, lots of arguing over stupid things, pounds and pounds of the most delicious Italian food you could possibly imagine, board games infused with screams of triumphant celebration (and profanities of loss), no filters, more dysfunction than you thought was humanly possible, someone probably broke a wine glass by this point, there are little kids learning how to walk, slightly older kids playing hide and seek, people running into each other, loudness that competes with a Rolling Stones concert, and people being complete and utter silly goofballs. It’s a combination of stories, milestones, and unforgettable moments

Most of all, you would see and feel endless hugs, endless smiles, endless embraces, and feel the endless love.

It’s a time that I get to come together with my favorite people and we get to celebrate each other, celebrate love, celebrate our blessings, celebrate our company, good health, good times. I know, without a doubt, that this love has shaped me into who I am more than anything. This story has become some of the most pertinent chapters to me personal storybook. I realize, without a doubt, that I am beyond blessed with the family that I have. And I also realize that not everybody is as lucky. Which is why I always hope to be to other people, what my family is to me. Because I wouldn’t be able to get through this thing we call life without them. And I am eternally grateful for such an unbelievable blessing. Our door is always open. There’s always room for more 🙂

I am blessed from learning from such a melting pot of individuals who have all experienced unique journeys from one another; I am blessed to have mentors, and to be a role model; I am blessed to feel such safety and warmth; I am blessed to know what real love looks like; I am blessed to

have the opportunity to go through this journey called life alongside the most incredible combination of individuals imaginable- individuals full of so much kindness, love, compassion, fun, spirit, joy, spunk, humor, selflessness, and companionship as I have gotten lucky enough to experience throughout my life. Counting down the days until the storybook continues….

Happy holidays! Be safe, be smart, welcome someone into your family, and never forget what the holidays are truly about!

Keep Smiling,

Jenna