Winter has been feeling a little long lately. The children have been ill so much, the air has been chilly, the sky fog filled. This week though, we moved from darkness to light in so many ways. The moon hung in the sky and that sky stayed blue all night long. I curled my body into its beam in the night and when morning arrived I sat with book in sun rays on my bed again. It felt GOOD. Even littles are a bit ‘cabin fevered’ and both donned their swimwear to swim around in the sun patches.

Join me in seeking bright spots in other parts of life won’t you?

500) Faint hope for spring

501) An absolutely phenomenal church family that pulls  together every year to put on this youth conference.So much of our volunteer team have been with us since the beginning of this thing. Amazing folks.

502) My husband. Oh I love him. I’m so happy he is home and tucked into bed after he worked so hard to put on the above event!

503) This…

We had phenomenal artists again this year. New and amazing (!!!!!!), with us from the start and always our favorites, a fantastic worship team (also old friends of our youth ministry). My friend Jennifer played main stage too and rocked the house!!!

504) Winter walks in the sun.

505) The moon nestled in a nest of clouds and littles as overwhelmed with the beauty as I.

506) Little girl holding face in the night and whispering “we best fwiends”. Little boy eating bowl after bowl of squash soup and saying “this soup is the best I ever had. It is so delicious. Thank you for making this for me!”. Be still my heart.

507) New babysitters in the ‘hood.

508) Tea with a dear one

509) Those prayer warriors holding us up like puppeteers.

510) Finding little girl bathed in her bed too

511) A day off to talk about bright spots of the weekend past…

Joining others here:

The kids are still sleeping. The coffee is made. The snow is falling like thick blankets and the air is dense with fog. I just read we’ve nearly broken snow fall records. I’ve already made the decision to stay mountain bound this morning and so we nestle in for the day.

My brain has been stuck on random lately. One thousand different directions. I can’t write a full-page without wandering off. I can’t articulate a complete prayer. I can’t finish cleaning my kitchen…or my bedroom. I can’t even let my husband complete a full sentence without interrupting him. Today I am taking a refocus day.

Quiet. Peaceful. Slow.

Some days you just need to be stop. To let your brain rest on the most important things. To breathe in gratitude instead of ‘should’. To sit quiet book in hand instead of racing off. To finally make peace with the foe of the master closet…order there might translate to order in my head? Lets all hope so. I’m driving my husband wild.

475) Snow day

476) Skype dates with TWO of my favorite women

477) A two-year old that responds to every question in one of four ways: 1) No Way 2) You Bet! 3) 5 mints (when she is stalling to go to bed. Holding her hand up to me ‘talk to the hand style’) 4) Meow

478) Registering for a fun spring course

479) Girl time

480) Snow plows

481) Watching my kids rock out to the African children’s choir.

482) Patches of sun light

483) Seeing my closet floor

484) Unpacking my last. moving. box.

485) Too good dinner

486) Watching life spring up where I didn’t know there was deadness

487) Little buddies

488) An interesting read.

489) Those 15 minutes when all my laundry was clean and put away…

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The pipe organ reaches up high to rafters. Light filters through stained glass and makes jeweled light sparkle. The decorations are simple highlighting beauty of craftsmanship of old church. Candles twinkle in hurricane glass, next to vases filled to overflowing with white roses and lilies, bunches of tulle flow beneath. The benches are bare wood being warmed by family and friends as they collect and the an excited buzz starts to form as long unseen guests find each other again. The groom steps up to the front and he is all nerves and excitement. I’ve never seen him before, but he has the air of humble and humour and I like him already.

Bride arrives on arm of father not with trembling lips but with a face full of joy and confidence stretched across; she wears it well. She is lucky bride who walks down aisle to friends that obviously adore her. To parents that love her. We all enjoy her confidence, and we easily bless union like this…we easily worship maker of community like this. We sense His joy, His capacity for blessing, the privelledge of God chasing passed from one generation to next.

Pastor talks of covenants and what a ring can mean and I take the hand of the one who bears my covenant ring and I remember what that means. Again and again we remember what that means and I silently pledge my faithfulness, my devotion. Not only a pledge to stay beside but to stay faithfully with. In my heart, in my head and in every capacity. To not just tolerate marriage, but to enjoy it. To co-create the worlds safest place for our children. To co-create the worlds most joyful place for both of us.

I’ve no time to waste on a mediocre love story.

466) Two nights away in a swanky hotel never hurt any marriage I know

467) An awesome sister who takes the kids and supplies the time of their lives.

468) Collision insurance

469) SUPER fun second family who I am starting to think of as dear friends

470) Air miles

471) Little people running to greet me in an airport. Mamma joy defined.

472) A husband I adore…

473) Remembering how much fun we have together

474) Remembering 1000 other things we love about each other!

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And a writing challenge where you describe your surroundings etc here:

I look down a lot. My husband just called me on it for the 47 ooo time. I tend to ALWAYS see the negatives, the terrifying, the ‘one in a million’ risks, before I can see any good. Its how I role. And I hate it.

Yesterday we went out on a nordic ski and I am a novice so I tended to keep my face down…nose to the grindstone. Every so often though, I looked up and was astounded by the beauty I found myself in. The trees heavily snow laden, the air scented gentle pine, the breeze whispering heavens secrets. I wonder how often that happens?  What am I missing when I spend all my time looking down at what I might trip over, instead of looking up at all that I could be experiencing?

Join me in looking up will you?

Thankful today for:

456) Family brunch

457) Fun friends

458) Sledding with my boy

459) A job I enjoy

460) A warm home on this chilly Monday morning

461)  A graceful husband

462) Completion of an exciting first step on a journey

463) Lots of feet under my table, or in my living room or under my roof somehow, or in my yard.

464) Little boys who think they are cats 87% of the time.

465) Little girls who think they are snakes 32% of the time

And suddenly, when we look up the world is expansive and beautiful and when we stop looking down somehow we stop tripping.

I hear the screen door slam as I hit publish last night and before I even see him his voice finds me half-way down the stairs,

“Hey, I was just thinking. You know that dream of yours…”. The one I don’t talk about. The quiet one I dare breath to only the precious few. He goes on about putting feet on it and making it true and how life is short and how the last thing he ever wants, is for me to have regrets. My breath catches in my throat…As if skywriting weren’t enough. My eyes immediately fill and spill over and he looks at me half stunned by the magnitude of my response. I’m overwhelmed. I start counting the generosities of this my fine husband and the One who gave even him.

444) Fireworks and astonished little people

445) Incredibly LAZY week off

446) Little eyes that are no longer stuck shut upon waking

447) Tracking down this book and being THRILLED by it.

448) A new year to dream…or better…to chase

449) Tree down and seeing my home for the first time without decorations.

450)  That tomorrow things get busier…as lovely and craved two weeks of nothing is…we’ve had enough. Time to get this stir crazy boy OUT!

451) Little cousins reading to ‘little-er’ cousins

452) Sleepover and snowman pancakes

453) Last day of holidays bubble bath and book.

454) Freedom to ‘chase’ from the One who has been asking me to ‘be still’

455) Feels like HOME

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I’ve been thinking about home lately. We’ve been busy moving house this last month and I have had trouble finding time for making home. Lately though, as Christmas season came and people started to collect around the new place, the house has taken on a distinct flavour of home. Baking mincemeat tarts with my mother, reading Christmas books with my kids, gathered round campfire with family, friends collected for sledding and skiing…the sights, the sounds, the feelings that make home. As life progresses, and relationships become more complicated, those that love you unconditionally, with uncomplicated motives, with simple intent to love you well and to always think the best of you…these become home. I’m so thankful for those whose hearts I find my home in. And this season, so thankful for hundreds of other things…

429) Christmas dinners and the chefs who make it

430) Clean up crews

431) Cousins

432) Kleenex

433) Incredibly beautiful friends who create lovely Christmas brunches

434) Friends who give cross country skiis and take you to new beautiful places

435) Coming home to groups of young people making campfires in my yard, tobbagan hills on my hills, and who still, when invited for breakfast, respond “but are you sure you don’t need family time?”.This is EXACTLY what we dreamed about.

436) Scarves made by nieces, cards made by nephews and other little nephews who say (after spending the afternoon here) “Can I come again tomorrow?”.

437) Proud tears for gorgeous girls in singing concerts

438) Cards from husband that make heart mushy

439) Gathering with family (biological and ‘church-ical’)

440) As  weird as Christmas morning by ourselves was, watching the sunrise while sipping my latte and reading my books was a pretty extraordinary way to start the day.

441) Super fun uncles and super sweet aunties for my kids.

442) Clear blue sky this morning.

443) Another week of holidays to look forward to