Five Things

There's an Instagram challenge floating around where people are posting a picture with five of their favorite things listed as the caption. I'm taking a temporary insta hiatus (for reasons I might describe in a future post) but I also feel like writing. It's been a few full-speed weeks of hustle and I think it might be healing for me to write a similar caption, only in blog form. I always love looking back on fads I fancied at a certain point in time, so here's another one for the archive:

1. The promise of Spring. Cue Chris Renzema's Springtime on full blast as I drive with windows down and the heat all the way up. It's still not warm enough to really be comfortable outside, but it's warm enough to pretend, and perhaps in so doing we'll will spring into existence. I've also been really drawn to the metaphor of new life dawning; the resurrection of all things that comes after a season of darkness and death. It's no wonder Easter is celebrated in Spring. 

2. Outdoor walks. The moment everything in my life changed was when Jeff Strickland told me that getting outside and looking up can actually be a surefire way to have my perspective realigned. Whether it's alone or with a pal or my baby, I love taking in big breaths of the chilly air and thinking about the bigness of sky. I also love the step-count increase and the Vitamin D. I'm growing to be less fearful of walking alone, which is also an exercise in faith (and a balance with wisdom). I feel thankful for populated parks that allow me to see neighbors and be alone and not afraid.

3. Settlers of Catan. This has been a rollercoaster, as I loved the game at first and then found it to be the lone source of all my inward rage and fury. It feels extreme that a card with wheat or sheep can dictate my mood for an entire month, but sometimes that's just how I feel. This has led to hard-fought battles around the kitchen table with a smattering of friends (that temporarily become enemies) and even though any therapist ever would deem it unfit for my emotional stability, it's been really fun. I've won twice. 

4. Overnight oats. I was reluctant to buy into the Pinterest trend because I like to think I'm not one of them and by them I mean trendy, fit, healthy influencers with perfect neutral-tone outfits that match their living rooms and breakfasts. And by that description, I'm most definitely not one of them. But sometimes I try and overnight oats was one of these desperate attempts. Something about a daily chunky-cold oatmeal mouth bath with bluebs and strawbs just KNOWS how to get a girl outta bed in the mornings.

5. Finally, I'm gonna go with Joe. I really like him lately, and that's notable, because I haven't made marriage easy over the past month. I've been selfish, arrogant, thoughtless, too tired, unromantic, and lazy in love. Joe has been the most gracious husband and a picture of Christ's love for us, but I failed to reciprocate. I'll probably blog about it later, but my husband really does make me belly laugh and feel like the luckiest woman in the world. He's a master of dinner dates, quality time, and even cleaning his beard hairs out of the sink. My favorite thing in the world, Joe House.

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