It’s that time of year when you give extra thought to all those things you’re thankful for. Among the main three – family, friends, health – we’re also thankful for a cornucopia of little quirks and details that make our lives in Downtown Waco a little better.

We crowd-sourced things to be grateful for downtown and these are a few of our favorite responses:

The Olive Branch being open on Monday. Not everything is open on Monday but TOB always open for lunch, offering comfy fare like sandwiches and soup and, let’s face it, sometimes on Monday you need a little comfort.

Club Sandwich’s siloteria crowd report. The Club Sandwich food truck lives at the Magnolia Market Silos but they still love their local patrons. So they created the designator SFL (Safe For Locals). On slow days, when crowds are small and locals could get in and out on their lunch break, they let everyone know by posting on social media that it’s “SFL.” We’ve found their SFL indicator is also good for knowing when the cupcake line is shorter and when you can run in the market to grab that Magnolia souvenir your aunt has been pining for.

Speaking of the Silos … Cheddar Box’s Wacotown Wednesday deal is something to be thankful for if you love grilled cheese as much as we do. On Wednesdays, their gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches are $5 each for locals.

Balcones is open and accessible! Raise your hand if you remember the days when we all hovered over our laptops, waiting for Balcones Distillery tour tickets to go on sale. And getting in on a tour/tasting meant a chance to buy exactly two bottles of whatever they were selling at the time. But now, in their new and bigger space, Balcones regularly hosts fun public events. They have regular tasting room hours AND have started offering tasty Balcones cocktails.  We are oh-so-thankful for this new development.

As we gazed down from the top of the ALICO building a few months ago, we realized how lucky we are to have such a green downtown. But a friend pointed out to us that the giant oak trees by the Helen Marie Taylor Museum, on the edge of downtown, are especially something to appreciate. And he’s right. That property is so quiet and lovely. Make a detour to peep the trees we speak of on your next walk around downtown.

Are there any little details that you’re grateful for enriching your experience downtown?