{ Good Things }

Joy is often found in the small nooks and crannies of life, in the details that I so frequently forget to notice, let alone enjoy, in my frenzied daily activities. Here are some happinesses I've found in my home over the past weeks. They may be small in size, but they bring sunshine to my soul. Thank you Jesus for the ability to enjoy Your good gifts to me!

Green smoothies are our new breakfast food: a banana, plain yogurt, spinach, two ice cubes, frozen mixed berries, and frozen blackberries. Our blender is loud...I hope our downstairs neighbors don't hate us!

Mmmmmm......delicious! {I think it takes a whole lot of manliness to drink something pink for breakfast. Thanks for going along with this whole green/pink smoothie idea, baby.}

A lovely rose from my husband, "just because."
{Postscript: He has given me flowers three times this week! This rose, a bouquet for Valentine's Day, and a single red rose with baby's breath this morning, on the seven-month anniversary of our wedding. He is the thoughtfullest husband!}

Cookies are almost gone!

Isn't a yellow stoneware cookie jar as cheerful as it gets?

Rachael Ray's Inside-Out Pizza-dilla Margerita for dinner last week...twice! I heart you, Rachael.

Making sweetie pies for Love Day, and my father-in-law's birthday on February 13 {thank you Fairlight for the link!}.

Light!!!

So the Mister and I have been cave-dwellers since the Dark Season began {a.k.a. winter}. We had a redneck lamp--it was Mike's and that is what HE called it!--as the only source of light for our entire living room. Apparently overhead light fixtures are so not cool these days. I finally had enough of it and went to a lamp shop. Golly gee whiz, light fixtures are expensive! And totally worth the money! We have replaced the redneck lamp with a bright and beautiful torchiere, added this lamp to the desk at the front door, and an identical lamp to the sideboard in the living room. And you know what? I'd never heard the word "torchiere" before and had no idea what it was. Mike started using the term as casually as the word "like" when we were in the lamp shop. I was so shocked that he know a term {a French term!} unbeknownst to me, and for something relating to home decor! I asked him how he knew it was called a torchiere. He grinned and said, "I have a mom."

Way to go, Mandy!

I have a mom, too. But she never used the word torchiere. That I remember.

I'm certain that the hospital gift shop is going to be the undoing of our budget, especially if they continue to have irresistibly cute lovebird figurines such as these. Aren't they perfect? I lusted over them in the shop window for months before buying them a couple weeks ago.





I have just finished listening to Focus on the Family Radio Theatre's production of "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis. This is an amazing full-cast dramatization of the book, and it is flat-out phenomenal. I'm not even saying that just because Lewis is one of my favorite authors. If you've never heard any of FotF Radio Theatre's audio productions, you are missing out. They are so well-done and faithful to the original books they dramatize. Love 'em.




I realize that this post makes it look like we are total gluttons and that all I really care about is food. What makes this so comical is that culinary skill is an area that was almost completely undeveloped till I started dating Mike. It's amazing how an appreciative, hungry man can make a girl venture forth where she's never gone before.