Happy Thanksgiving, 2025.

Good morning and happy Thanksgiving, Magpies! Today I am channeling Patti Smith-style gratitude — apparently, one of her idiosyncrasies is saying thank you to everything she encounters, from her toothbrush to her socks to her digestive system (ha! but really she does mention this in her interview with Julia Louis Dreyfus!). I thought at first this seemed hokey, but the more I thought about the sentiment, and the warm laundry feeling it gave me, the more I found myself adopting it. Honestly, it helps to name what you love. This is something we have been working on with our children the past few weeks. Landon and I put together “an independence tracker” with all of the tiny things we expect them to do on their own, for themselves and for the family, and they keep a running ledger on a little clipboard each time they accomplish each task. These run the gamut from personal care and hygiene (“brush teeth in the morning and evening”) to age-appropriate household chores (“empty the trash once a week”) to practicing strong social skills (they can also place a “tick mark” next to the lines: “make good eye contact with an adult,” “ask a follow up question in a conversation,” etc). Anyhow, one of the items on the independence tracker is making a hyper-specific list of things they are grateful for from the week. We’ve banned generics like “family,” “food,” “friends.” They must think, and crisply, about something narrow that filled their cup during the week. It has been sweet to hear their offerings:

Ice skating with my sister

Playdate with Maddie

Shake Shack lunch

The goal is building a habit of noticing the good stuff in its smallest denominations. Of paying attention to the generous: the saved seat, the sweater that feels like a hug, the sibling interaction that calms the nervous system.

So today, I am being specific about what I love and am grateful for, too, on this particular Thursday in November:

A quiet studio in which to work by myself, wherein everything is organized to my taste

The slippers waiting for my feet at my bedside

The way my son calls out “hi mama!” when he hears my door open in the morning

The sweet lisp he has now that he’s lost two teeth

Soft cotton against winter skin

The plunge of cold air when I step out onto the back patio first thing in the morning

Drinking SEY coffee with a bonus amount of cream just after being outside — contrast therapy!

A specific, soft look my husband gives me when we’re watching our kids do something wonderful

My husband kitted out in his ski gear (I don’t know why this does it for me — competence worship?)

The trees outside my window, and the way I only ever see their middles dancing, reminding me that we are always in the middle of something, and that we might as well be playful while we are

Clothes that barely touch my body (LOL – my new litmus for everyday dressing comfort; this is 40)

The cinnamon rolls that are proofing in the fridge as we speak — I had that feeling, as I made the dough with my children yesterday, that this was a core childhood holiday memory in formation

The realization that Sally Rooney is probably out there writing a new novel

The promise of spending time with my parents and in-laws later today — this is a golden time in life, no doubt, with my children and parents here and healthy; generations overlapping

Good paper

The mysterious forces that guide my pen

The fact that today is a second chance

Post-Scripts.

+A prayer to read at your Thanksgiving table, shared in brief below. So gorgeous in its stirring simplicity:

“For food in a world where many walk in hunger;

For faith in a world where many walk in fear;

For friends in a world where many walk alone;

We give you thanks, O Lord.”

+Golden moments / golden hours.

+On being a bad book girl.

Shopping Break.

+Because I find this sort of like a shortlist for the best bargains live right now, the top items Magpies have bought from Black Friday sales over the trailing few days:

1. LA LIGNE MINI MARINA SWEATER (50% OFF — J. CREW PRICE FOR AN HEIRLOOM PIECE)
2. SARAH CREAL CONCEALER (20% OFF – BEST CONCEALER FOR MATURE SKIN)
3. OUR BEDROOM RUG (SO IMPRESSED WITH THE QUALITY – 30% OFF)
4. THE BEST POINTELLE BASE LAYER (“SOFT COTTON AGAINST WINTER SKIN –!! 30% OFF)
5. SWEATPANT JEANS (15% OFF WITH JEN15 OR SHOPMY15 – QUALIFIES FOR “CLOTHES THAT BARELY TOUCH MY BODY”)
6. LAKE PAJAMAS (25% OFF)
7. RECHARGEABLE HANDWARMERS (40% OFF)

+AYR — 20% off sitewide. We love this brand. Perfect time to snag one of their Early Morning Tees or pair of their perfect Legend jeans.

+30% off my beloved notebooks — I do a lot of hand-drafting and margin-scribbling in here. I used the promo to buy one personalized for one of my writer friends!

+40% off sitewide at J. Crew! Been waiting for this promo. A great time to buy a festive holiday knit (this, this) or pick up some things for your kids’ holiday events! Emory is very picky about dresses (she hates them – we usually do skirts like this and a basic top/sweater at this point) but I think she’ll be into this dress. Will be running it by her today!

+Thanks to a Magpie reader for cluing me into this 20% off sale at Cyklar. I am literally addicted to this neroli cream. Already a good value at $29 but — !! I ordered two tubes of it. It smells completely divine — warm, clean — and I genuinely look forward to slathering it on after my shower.

+Julia Amory is 30% off sitewide, with some exclusions. This black “Betty” dress is such a good buy; $166 with code. It’s in my closet and works for countless occasions — can be dressed up or down and so flattering in silhouette. I still have this velvet coat in my cart. Keep thinking it would be so chic with holiday outfits this winter, but I also love the way Julia dresses them down with everyday denim here and here. Lastly: LOVE her cosmetics sets (certain patterns included in sale).

+Not a big price break but I got a flier in the mail (old school style) letting me know Negative would be offering 15% off sitewide starting today or maybe tomorrow? I am embarrassed to share how much Negative I own. I love their whipped boyshorts (I remember a Magpie wrote: OMG, $45 for underwear?! but it is the best best best, the only kind I want to sleep in; truly second skin, never cuts in anywhere). Awhile ago, we talked about “building a no-skip underwear drawer” and if I only had Negative whipped boyshorts for sleep and Hanky Panky for day, I’d be set for life. I also own and love their bralettes in both whipped and waffle fabrics and of course their whipped trackpants (go up a size in the pants) and henleys. I love that these are insanely soft but also very sexy? You know that line in the Sabrina Carpenter “My Man on Willpower” track? Landon calls these my “sexy pajamas.” Ha!

+30% off any three+ items at Crown Affair! You know I’m a big fan of this haircare brand. I love all of their products, but my top four are: the towel (truly cuts drying time in half), the leave-in conditioner, and the dry shampoo. You also get a free mini at checkout!

+30% off at Ralph Lauren. OMG their holiday collection for kids — this tartan dress; this sweater! And of course for us, too: this is the dress I’m wearing today for Thanksgiving dinner! Will also work for Christmas, so going to get a few wears out of it this season. Also obsessed with this wool-cashmere puffer jacket, also 30% off. And for husband: 30% off their JFK-Jr-coded fleece joggers.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through the links below, I may receive compensation.