{ a letter to April }

Oh, April: You always enchant me. I'd like to think it's not just because you're my birthday month. Though I'm sure the presence of gifts around April 18 does enhance your allure.

You are so full of promise. You come bearing a little more sunshine, a little less rain, temperatures a few degrees higher than your predecessor, March. Sure, stiff breezes may skip through those sunny days; these golden sun-filled hours may be chillier than I expect; but I smell spring on your breezes. Cherry and apple trees literally burst into blossom, spilling their delicate, breathtaking extravagance into the air and onto the ground. You may not be full-blown spring here in the Pacific Northwest, but you bear the promise. You bring the first glorious lungfuls of fresh grass...rain-splattered warm air...cherry blossoms...apple blossoms...daffodils and tulips and that indescribable scent that whispers Spring is coming!

With your advent comes longer days. Oh sweet bliss of springtime sunsets, of waking with the sun instead of hours before its arrival. This, of course, also means that it's broad daylight when it's time for Lainie to go to bed. Which in turn means that her nursery is now decorated with the most unfashionable dark brown blanket clothespinned to the curtain rod. If anyone reading knows where I can find blackout curtains that aren't hideously ugly and prohibitively expensive, please do share. The fact that I prefer a fuzzy brown blanket over her window to the blackout drapes I've found speaks volumes to how ugly and expensive they are!

You also bring with you asparagus, and strawberries that don't cost a small fortune, and make me want to wear dresses and gallivant about with a crown of flowers in my hair. {The dresses bit the world can handle, the flower crown I think not so much.} Lainie and I have gone to the beach a couple of times in the past week, and if you continue to provide such lovely weather, I hope to haul us down there every day that I possibly can. Probably not on grocery day, because that task pretty much uses up all my schlepping abilities by itself.

Birthday cards are still rimming countertops. Gerber daisies are still perking up the dining table. Windows are opened as frequently as possible to let the fresh air come in and play. Oh April, you are good to us. I'm going to miss you, come May.

{ Laundry }

I love laundry day.

The scent of fresh, clean linens.

The crisp whiteness of newly-laundered sheets and towels.

Yesterday I spent some time at the park with a friend. A hint of a breeze made the cherry blossoms dance in the sunshine, and I fell in love with springtime all over again.

Somehow cherry blossoms remind me of clean laundry. Maybe it's the rembrance of hanging laundry outside on the line to dry in the backyard as a child. Maybe it's the way the blossoms dance on the branches, like clean clothes flapping in the wind on the clothesline. Maybe it's just the clean newness that spring evokes everywhere you look.

Springtime, I love you. Stay as long as you like!



{ Keepin' It Real }

Today:

My heart is heavy. This week has been intense, in sad and unexpected ways. Mike's grandma is hospitalized and not doing well. Mike and his sister Amaryah are her primary decision-makers, due to lots of extenuating circumstances. All the complications, medical information, decisions that must be made...it's a heavy load. Will you pray for them?

And then, one of Mike's good friends died on Wednesday. Details aren't known yet, but it's a heavy blow for this group of guys--some have been friends since middle school. I feel like Mike is carrying so much right now, and there's not much I can do to help him. Except pray. I know that the privilege of talking to God is a big deal, but sometimes it seems so insignificant in the face of death. So intangible. I want to do something to help: Make a meal, take on tasks, do something.

It's not all black and dismal around here, though. It's kinda busy, kinda normal, kinda just life:

Got up at what felt like an unholy hour, but was actually 7ish.

Ate grapenuts for breakfast, felt nauseous. Not sure if this new-but-old trend of upset tummy in the morning means I need to a) eat more before bed, b) snack during one of my many nighttime bathroom breaks, or c) get up and eat earlier...or if it just means Miss Peanut likes to stretch when I eat and my tummy doesn't approve.

Wore one of Mike's plaid shirts as a jacket all morning. I don't know if this is a guy thing, or specific to my husband, but most of his nice button-down shirts get downgraded because he wears a hole in one elbow. One. Just one. I don't know what he does with that elbow all day at work, but it must be rough. 

Cleaned out bathroom cabinets and laundry closet shelves while talking on the phone with a friend in Pennsylvania. Why on earth have I kept this foot lotion for...let's see...at least five years...when I have never once used it? Yep, major purging going on in these parts!

Ate lunch at, like, 11:00.

Thought of a lovely first and middle name combo for Miss Peanut, but we have to see what Daddy-o thinks!

Nope, I'm not gonna tell you what it is. No need to ask.

Somehow managed to fit all my Goodwill/women's shelter donations in my car, including a large-ish two-part wooden shelf.

Errand list:

~ Home Depot {paint samples for the nursery}

~ Bed Bath & Beyond {look for a new pump for a broken soap dispenser}

~ Local women's shelter to drop off donations

~ Pay a bill

~ Post office

~ Library

All that took me 2.5 hours, and it is soooooo delicious and springy outside, and I had to wear sunglasses, and I didn't need my coat, and I had to use a public bathroom at my first stop, and I got hungry, and I still need a new soap dispenser. :-( And I wanted an iced latte, but I didn't get one cuz I already had my cup of coffee for the day.

It's only 4:00, but I feel like dinner. Better go see what I can rustle up!

{ this weekend: 27 }

Happy Birthday to me!

I hope you all have a perfectly beautiful weekend. Sunshine and laughter and flowers and time with the people you love, that's what I wish for you.

I expect I'll be pretty busy, with the "Day of Relaxation" Mike has planned for me tomorrow and a birthday party on Sunday, but I can't resist posting this lovely image. I wish I could claim it as my own...ranunculus, I love thee!

{image from Design*Sponge}

{ i am blessed. }

last night we were going to have another couple over for dinner.

the mrs. is 8 months, three-and-a-half weeks pregnant with their first child. she had a rough day yesterday and they had to cancel.

i stopped at the farmer's market near work on my way home. they just re-opened after the winter and i was pleased as punch to find all sorts of fresh, local goodies for much less money than i would have paid in the grocery store. i was seduced by giant stalks of rhubarb and jolly pee-wee avocados, four for $1.00.

as i drove home, husband called me to suggest we invite two of my former roommates {who are still roommates themselves} for dinner instead. i had been thinking exactly the same thing. with so much good food ready to be cooked, it was a shame to waste the evening. i called, they were delighted, and we had a new plan.

husband ended up missing dinner because a client had an emergency, so it was just the three of us girls. we had a lovely time. the cinnamon-paprika lamb {i'd never made lamb before} was delicious--thanks to the recipe in real simple's april issue--and we sipped strawberry lemonade and marveled at what dried apricots and an onion can do to dress up couscous and chatted about our lives and hearts. husband got home in time for dessert, individual molten lava cakes, and we ended up having a sweet, mellow evening all around.

i love having people in our home. having a dining table, and chairs, and good lighting, makes such a difference in my ability to express hospitality and enjoy the act {which is really a kind of work} of expressing it.

{awesome recipes from real simple help, too.}

i'm so glad that i'm married to a man who enjoys being hospitable even more than i do. a man who also wants to open our home and work with me to make it a warm, inviting place of fellowship and safety and dialogue. A place where Jesus is Lord and King, loved and honored and a friend. i'm glad i'm your wife, mister mike!


this morning i was awakened at 6:34 a.m. by husband kissing me goodbye, heading to a pastoral training conference. at 7:08 a.m. i was awakened again by the sound of dishes being washed and the smell of coffee brewing. groggy and somewhat confused, i stumbled out to find pastries on the table, fresh coffee, and husband cleaning up the last of the enormous mess left from the night before. the training had been canceled. he fried bacon and eggs while i showered, and we had a sweet little saturday morning breakfast, joined by our friend sunshine who streamed through the windows with all his might.

when our tummies were nice and full, husband pulled me to the couch and we analyzed paint chips taped on the walls and narrowed down our choices by a good bit. we both laughed at the number of colors we described as "too poopy"--i've changed too many diapers and husband, well, he's a guy, and i guess that makes him an expert!


we laid on our bed, heads at the foot, me in the crook of his arm, pointing with our toes to the chips we liked or disliked. we fell asleep to the sound of michelle's blog playlist, my favorite background music. {picking paint colors is exhausting.} when we woke up, i called work and discovered that i probably won't have to work today--o happy day!

being married lovers in springtime is so much better than being engaged lovers, or dating lovers. you can do things like decorate our home together, and wake up together, and make breakfast together in your pajammers, and even laugh at poopy jokes that you would be way too cool to make until that man has promised to love you 'til death do you part. it means catnaps in the morning together to recover from breakfast he made for you, and meal planning for the two of us, and having friends over to our house, and being host and hostess together, and making all those little daily memories together, day in and day out.

yes, springtime is for lovers. i'm still one of them.

ranunculus from the plants i bought when i was looking for a new thermostat...i never thought i'd be so easily tempted in lowe's, of all places!

{ Cheeries }

Recently found increasing the smileage of my days:

Teeny-tiny desserts from one of our favorite restaurants. They have a wide and delectable assortment of miniature desserts, which I would love for their tiny-ness alone--but they are scrumptious to boot!

A few weeks ago, I walked into the living room relatively late in the evening and found Mike with an entire afghan draped around his neck. Only his neck. He said his neck was cold.

He makes me laugh so often and so hard! Do you think this could be the infancy of a new trend in men's neckwear?? See, I promised you a funny picture!

Daffodils! $5 for 30 stems at Safeway!

Need I say more?

I love love lovelovelovelovelove daffodils. Always and forever.

I wish their season lasted longer.

Forgive the crappy lighting, please? I wanted to show you my countertop corner of sunshine, even if the flourescent lighting makes it look like our kitchen is in prison. It's actually a very happy place.

I've repurposed some of the jars from our lolly bar at Seabrook and filled them with Easter goodies. Left to right: Cadbury's mini chocolate eggs {it seems Mike and I both have a terrible weakness for these}, Crunch bar chocolate eggs, coconute creme-filled Hershey kisses {divine!!}, and peppermint sticks. Left over from Christmas, but they look cute in the jar. I smile every time I see these on my kitchen ledge: such sweet memories of planning and decorating and filling them with Dawna and Katie...

New love: Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Basil Countertop Spray. The Mrs. Meyers products were on sale awhile back, and I've been curious about them...I won't lie, the packaging is what snagged me...and ohmygoodness, the basil-scented countertop spray is sooooooo lovely! My heart hurts a little bit every time I use it, because I love it so much but really don't want to pay that much for clean counters. This whole anecdote probably tells you more about the carnal state of my soul than what cleaning products you ought to try out next, eh?

The Mr. and I spent over an hour at the paint store yesterday, eyeing all sorts of delicious chips of color. I'm busy taping on walls and cupboard doors and imagining all sorts of color combinations, come warm-weather-time.

{ Today }

Today I had a dental appointment. I chipped a tooth last week, just a little bit; a few seconds of grinding and it looks {and feels} good as new! The really exciting part is that our dentist is mere minutes from home, so by the time I was done there was no point in driving back to work for 15 minutes...so I got home early! It's a brightly sunny afternoon with a nippy breeze, and I went on a walk. We've lived here eight months {today is our eight-month wedding anniversary! O happy day!}, and I've never once gone on a walk. Well, Mike and I went on a walk that one time, but it doesn't count. It was a date. Point is, I'm a lazy bum and I finally pushed all my other priorities aside and took off on a jaunt.

This is the water feature behind the community building. You can see the golf course on the other side. We've learned that walking on the golf path isn't exactly kosher. But we're not Jewish, so it's okay for us to do it, right? The sign in front of the lagoon cracks me up:

This photo is for you, Mom. Be kind to our ducks. Especially your Duck. For the good of wildlife everywhere, but especially in the protected wetland next door to your eldest child's home, be kind to your Duck!

The golf course is on both sides of a fairly major street, so the golf path winds its way under the street. I wound my way under the street, too, and was completely delighted with how secret and hidden this tunnel seems. I think I'm going to start calling it The Rabbit Hole, as in "Alice in Wonderland." I like the book and the old cartoon--the new version looks scary.

Look what I found on the other side of The Rabbit Hole!

Immaculate streets lined by immaculate yards situated around plush mansions with views of the Puget Sound, Whidbey Island, and the Olympic mountain range.

Gaw-juss!

'Cept I didn't technically find these neighborhoods, 'cuz I know they are there--Mike and I have even taken the occasional Sunday afternoon prowl to pick out homes we like and grab fliers for houses that are for sale {the latter is always followed almost immediately by gasps and shrieks of horror, followed by a discussion of whether or not we ought to buy lottery tickets}. Sometimes I forget, in my rut of work-housework-church-etc., that we live across the street from a lot of really posh digs. They are too McMansiony and cookie-cutter for my taste, but the ones that have views of the water--oh my! I'd take one in a heartbeat, even if it's not quite my dream home.

Mmmmmm, sexy!!!

I didn't realize how cold the wind was, and even with my hood up, my ears were so cold they ached. Note to self: The world on the other side of The Rabbit Hole is still stuck in winter. Wear totally unflattering headband/earcover thingy next time you go on a walk, even if it dents your forehead semi-permanently and wreaks havoc with your curlies.

I saw lots of interesting people along the way, too: A pack of high school boys jogging. An older-ish lady wearing a shirt about marathons, running like the dickens. Two standard-issue Mormon boys in suits and wearing backpacks. Dogs of every shape and size. {I really felt rather naked without a dog. It seems that exercise or dog-walking are the only legitimate reasons to be afoot in these parts.} I even learned that we're almost smack-dab across the street from a middle school. Imagine that! It is the direction I don't normally drive, but still! I didn't know!

Stay tuned for the next installment of Nikki Nikki Timbo's life. I have some funny photos you will want to see. But I may post something else next. I have to keep us on our toes, you know.

P.S. For those of you who are confused about the whole duck thing, my Mom has called my Dad "Ducky" for as long as I can remember. So much so, that a number of people actually refer to him as Ducky, instead of Steve. Which is all fine and good until your younger cousin calls your Dad "Ducky" instead of "Uncle Steve." That is a little funny. I wonder what Dad thinks of all this?