January love, part deux

The hits just keep coming! Again, in no particular order:

- The little Main Street of our little town, twinkly and bright from gold lights strung along awnings and wrapped around light poles
- A re-introduction to Spin at the gym. I cannot tell you how exhilirating it is to feel my heart, almost pounding out of my chest, and to see ponytails flying to the speed of and old Haddaway remix, and to hear the instructor screaming, "Attack it!" and "Finish it!!" It is absolutely worth the sore bottom I have had since the 18th.
- A last minute over-night visit from our older bro, which included a walk to the park for tossing around the football and swinging on the swings:
- A fun Friday night with two very fun friends, including Snickerdoodles and Chai Tea lattes, a fierce game of Taboo and a serious Rock Band jam session
- A Saturday morning date with the precious Miss E, who picked out her own pair of polka-dotted 'cozy pants' to wear, chose "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" because it's her Papa's favorite book, blew bubbles in her milk and allowed her auntie to bundle her to the hilt in order to take a walk down the street to see chickens and roosters
- Being surrounded by this:
- Living under this:
- January 28th, which marked our 17th year of becoming lovebirds. Words can't do this one justice, so I'll quit while I'm ahead, and end with an oldie-but-goodie, circa 1994 :)

My friend January

Poor January. It really is at a disadvantage, following Thanksgiving and Christmas, with just one day at the very beginning of the month that causes a stir. It's usually gray, and most often raining; nothing is blooming, and the only things the produce department at Safeway has to offer in January are boring, old apples and oranges.

In the past, I've behaved badly toward January, wishing it would just hurry up and go away already. But then last year I made a New Year's resolution - which, as it turns out, is a life-long resolution - to love January. I decided to love it for what it is, and to find the things in it that make me thankful and glad for what is happening right now, instead of stomping around all month in a temper because the sun sets early and I'm not able to wear flip-flops. A stupid waste of time, really, to refuse to see the wonderful things in the present, because there are always wonderful things.

And so, in no particular order, the things I've been enjoying this January:
- Tea. Lots and lots of tea. Earl Gray, raspberry, Mint Medley, strawberry, Orange Spice, and on and on and on..
- A big, beautiful collage made from the the Christmas pictures that came sailing through the mail last month
- The quiet and rest that comes with a calendar that is not packed to the hilt with holiday hooplas
- Reading old Donald Duck comics in bed with you-know-who:
- Time enough for working lazily on Valentines
- The first weeks of a reading schedule which is guiding me through the whole Bible in a year
- The hope of sparkly, new life to old picture frames, with sand paper and metallic spray paint and a little bit of elbow grease
- Our valley, always lovely no matter the month or season
- My snow boots, which I kick around in all the month long, even when there isn't a snowflake in sight
- Skies like this:

Earn. Everything.

Last minute (free!!) surprise tickets from very thoughtful friends + racing to Qwest in layers and layers + the 12th man bringing it + total strangers leaping around, giving high-5s and hugs + Marshawn Lynch in crazy beast mode + an amazing Seattle sunset + a final score of 41 to 36 = one super fun, super memorable Saturday. Not a bad beginning to 2011, not bad at all :)

Christmas

Before January gets too far away from me, just a few (!) glimpses into the Christmas I'm holding dear to my heart -

Ringing it in!

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
~Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850

We've waved goodbye and said hello to many an old and new year with these precious friends. I hope we're still doing it when we're 75.


I can hardly think of a sweeter way to welcome New Year's Day than in jammies with our oldest and dearests, and with our favorite little 2-year old miss.





We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day. ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce