Thanksgiving is truly one of my favorite times of year. I love baking four different pies, setting the Thanksgiving table, spending time with my family, and laughing over way too much turkey, stuffing, and candied sweet potatoes. Controversial opinion here, I know, but I also really love cheesy corn casserole, which we generally only make at Thanksgiving and sometimes Easter.
It’s also a great time for some reflection. As I think about the past year, I realize just how quickly it flew by.
On a personal level, we experienced some major changes at home. In January, my parents moved in with my almost-seven-year-old and I, and we spent the first half of the year transforming my basement into a home for my parents. We’ve had our ups-and-downs as we adjusted to our new living situation, but looking back over the past 10+ months, I am so grateful to be able to share my home with my parents. We take care of each other. And my son has been able to grow an already amazing relationship with his Boda and Papa to a level of closeness he’d never have gotten to without them living with us. One of my favorite habits we’ve developed since my parents moving in is sitting down to dinner together. We are so blessed that my mom is not only an amazing cook, but enjoys cooking. I am endlessly grateful for my mother’s daily nourishment of not just our bodies, but our hearts. The woman cooks with love. And at that dinner table, my son’s favorite way to start the meal is by going around the table and requiring everyone to share their favorite part of the day. There’s nothing better than a daily reflection to recognize at least one positive thing that happened each day.
On a professional level, we also experienced some major changes at Mid-States. In January, International Concrete Products and Mid-States Concrete Industries joined forces through an acquisition of the former. And in April, Mid-States acquired Architectural Precast, Inc. of Browntown, Wis. This growth brought so much excitement as we got to welcome new team members into the Mid-States Concrete Industries family, team members who offer an incredible amount of expertise, dedication, and love for precast concrete and thrive on helping customers’ projects succeed. With these acquisitions came expanded opportunities for precast building solutions for our customers. We are so grateful to all of our customers for trusting us to be part of such amazing projects making a difference in the communities in which we live, work, learn, and play. There’s nothing like driving by projects we’ve been a part of and pointing them out to our passengers… every time we drive by (haha). I’ll never forget being part of the Wright & Wagner Lofts Riverfront Building project. Located right in the heart of downtown Beloit, my son would request at least weekly drive-bys of the project while on our way home from work and daycare. He was so excited to watch the project progress from nothing but an empty lot to the beautiful building that overlooks the river today and provides 83 units that individuals and families now call home.
We all have so much to be grateful for. I encourage you to take a page from the book of a six-year-old and take a moment every day to name the best part of your day. Even when things seem dark, you can almost always find at least a flicker of light. Reach for it and encourage it to burn brighter. With gratitude this Thanksgiving, we can’t wait to see what the next year brings.
Cheers!
Stephanie Kohl
Customer Experience Manager
