My Valentine’s Day 2012:
Beautiful tulips from all my siblings, delivered to work.
Semi-scandalous card from my sister, encouraging me to “keep my eyes on the prize.” LOL!!!
Cookies made by Myla and Hillary to celebrate my return to my maiden name. (Seriously – I have the most affirming, thoughtful friends IN THE WORLD.)
Lemony Asparagus Tart and the Valentine episode of Glee.
Two Fuzzy Valentines.
I had a wonderful day and am newly reminded of the abundance of love already in my life. I don’t deserve any of it – it’s a blessing from God. Seems kind of greedy to ever want anything more!
I also made Smitten Kitchen’s reverse hearted brownies for my small group tonight. I haven’t officially tried them yet, but the scraps I ate while cutting the hearts were delicious.
2 Comments + Posted in: celebrate, thankful, winter
In keeping with the season, February’s Playlist of the Month is full of love songs. Specifically, love songs that make cartoon hearts hover over my head. Some are old, some are new.
I could have gone with an anti-Valentine theme, but I always enjoy Valentine’s Day regardless of my status. I see it as an opportunity to tell everyone you love that you love them. And in any case, I love love. I still swoon over romantic things even if there’s no personal swooning going on. I’m a naturally cheesy person. Of course I wish I had some real cartoon hearts in my life, but I can still appreciate Valentine’s without them.
I hope you all have a wonderful day today!
Add a Comment + Posted in: love, music
How about a Friday check-in meme?
Outside my window… it’s gray, drizzly, and COLD! I’ve been a little bummed about the lack of winter, but now I’m not sure I want it after all!
I am thinking… about getting an iPhone. I’ve been eligible for an upgrade for a while, but my old Droid Eris still works, so I’m not in a hurry. I’ve read pros and cons of Droid vs. iPhone, and the Droid is supposedly faster overall. But the iPhone is shinier.
I am thankful… for an excellent lunch with my dad at Buckley’s Lunch Box today. I had the “burger salad” and it really hit the spot. That place is now high on my list of nicer lunch options.
In the kitchen… not much is going on! I keep adding to my stack of new recipes, but haven’t made any of them. I haven’t even baked muffins in weeks (Banana Nut and Peanut Butter Cheerios have me firmly in their grasp at the moment). I’m planning to bake heart brownies next week, though. I also continue to love Balsamic Butternut Squash, with different veggie combinations. My sister says roasted vegetables don’t count as a meal, but I think they do when you devour the entire pan.
I am wearing… a gray sweater over a yellow-and-gray striped shirt, straight leg jeans, and fake Uggs. Not my finest fashion hour, but I’m mainly concerned with warmth today.
I am creating… more ruffle scarves! I started a new adult ballet class this week, which is great but will interfere with my set-aside sewing time. So I’m looking forward to sewing tonight. I need to knock out these scarves, and another Kindle cover, so I can move on to a skirt.
I am going… to visit my brother in the near future!
I am wondering… why it’s so hard to find out how to change your name on an account. Neither the cable company, nor the cell phone company, nor any other company has a FAQ item or instructions about it. Do they not realize that 50% of their customers will probably change their names? Maybe more than once?
I am reading… Must’ve Done Something Good by Cheryl Cory, on my Kindle. It’s been on my to-read list for at least a year. I might also go to the library and pick up Crossed, the sequel to Matched (finally), but I’m not sure I have time to be consumed by it.
I am hoping… for clarity/progress in different situations. The usual.
I am looking forward to… fun Valentine activities next week. And, of course, meeting my niece in about three months!
I am hearing… a lot of air traffic today. The flight pattern must be right overhead.
Around the house… Not much to report. My walk-in linen closet needs reorganization, but I’m not sure what to do with the space (the shelving could be better), so I keep putting it off. Now is the perfect time for indoor projects like that, so I need to take care of it soon.
Plans for the weekend: crafting, relaxing, going to the Tigers/UAB game, and watching the Grammys!
Share a Quote…
2 Comments + Posted in: life lately
Surprised by Oxford, a memoir by Carolyn Weber, is a relatable and inspiring account of a journey to faith. A Canadian academic, Carolyn comes to Oxford for a graduate degree in Romantic-era literature, dragging heavy baggage both literal and metaphorical. She grew up poverty-stricken, with an erratic and usually absent dad, and this scholarship to Oxford is her big break. As soon as she arrives in England, she falls in with a new group of friends, several of whom are Christians. Her old perceptions of Christianity as an antiquated, intellect-killing belief system are shattered by these fun, brilliant, vibrant people – especially a man she refers to as TDH (Tall, Dark, and Handsome). As the year goes on (the memoir is structured around the term calendar), Carolyn’s mind and heart are further opened by discussions with friends and respected teachers. She teeters on the edge of faith, afraid to fully commit. Finally, she becomes a Christian, but of course, that’s not the end of the story. Even as she finds deep joy and fulfillment in her new faith, she continues to struggle with the Big Questions of life and how God fits into her personal past and future.
My favorite thing about this memoir is that it doesn’t pull any punches. It’s raw and honest, deeply thoughtful, asks hard questions, and doesn’t provide easy answers. I appreciated the emphasis that becoming a Christian has consequences and might cost you things, and relationships, that you hold dear. That’s not a message you’ll hear often. At the same time, this is a personal story – I enjoyed Carolyn and her friends, and to be honest, I wasn’t totally hooked until I started wondering where this thing with TDH was going. :) Her descriptions of Oxford are also beautiful. I was already interested in the town and campus because of Lewis and Tolkien, but now I really want to see it for myself!
I felt that this book got bogged down by exposition at a few points. Some of the conversations were so heavy and fact-laden that they seemed made up, and I even got a little bored – I was like, Who talks like this? But if anyone does, I believe these people would. My academic friends can probably back that up.
Overall, I highly recommend this memoir. I stayed up way too late last night to finish it!
This is my first review for BookSneeze! I received this free e-book in exchange for a review. If you like to write about books, join up. They have a lot of interesting new titles available.
4 Comments + Posted in: book reviews, reading
Last weekend, with some help from my mom, I threw my sister her first baby shower at her house in Nashville! Debra’s not due until May, but she’s having FIVE baby showers, so she wanted to start early instead of having a bunch of parties at the end of her pregnancy.
One of Debra’s nicknames as a child was “Busy Bee.” A while back, I think even before she was pregnant, I saw some bee baby shower pictures on Pinterest and noted it as a cute idea for the future. For this party, I tried to convey the bee theme without going totally overboard. :)
I ordered invitations on Etsy and printed them at home! It was much easier (and cheaper) than searching a bunch of stores and having to settle for something so-so and expensive. If I were better at graphic design, I could make my own invitations, but right now I prefer to let the experts handle it!
