Gratitude

TGIF, y'all. This week has been crazy, but today I'm choosing joy and focusing on all the things I'm thankful for on this Friday morning.

For Monday mornings that start like this.

For sweet notes from students & encouragement from coworkers

For friends who I can send selfies to to ask their opinion on my big frames (still unsure).

For picture texts like this while I'm at work.

And for 70 degree weather a few days after an ice storm, cards on the porch and time with Will.

Ragged.

Remember how a week ago I wrote about those dreamy four days off of school? Well, real life has hit me hard this week. I am feeling a little ragged and worn down. I'm day dreaming of those slow mornings where we woke up late and didn't start thinking about plans until about 10 AM. My days have been crazy and crammed full this week, as if we're making up for the lack of productivity last week. Sheesh. I wasn't quite ready for this week. 

I'm spoiling myself with a hot tea from Starbucks and plugging along. 

I've been hit with some truth from one of the books I'm reading (Boundaries) and remembering why I need to say no to some things, even good things. As I've gotten older, I've realized that I am not so good at juggling a million different activities. I can do a few things well and I should really just stick to those. I'm not sure why I agree to more things and then give half of my best because I don't have time for any more. You'd think we'd learn, yet we so often don't and continue to overcommit to things. I made a comment recently that I'd thought I'd gotten better at saying no ... ha! what a joke. 

The weekend is near, friends. Let's push on!

What I'm Reading...

A quick update on what I'm reading right now & suggestions for things to read.

I'm currently reading three books at one time which I rarely do, but its kind of fun. Let me follow that up by saying that two of the books are for group studies and I only have to read a chapter a week, so it's not very overwhelming. 

Currently my small group is reading Boundaries by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend. It was sort of an ongoing joke in my small group because people kept mentioning this book and saying we should read it. I hear it referenced a lot. Anyway, it's awesome so far & I really feel like I'm learning about setting boundaries for myself and my life. Part of the focus is that boundaries are often viewed negatively (I kind of thought that previously), but really boundaries are just a way for us to hold ourselves accountable & own up to our own feelings, actions etc. The people pleaser in me is learning a lot!

Second book I'm reading is One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. I'm only two chapters in but I am loving the way she really digs deep into what it means to live fully and joyfully in our given circumstances. It's a great book to discuss with a friend to help process all that she writes.

Lastly, I'm reading David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell. It is incredibly interesting & I find myself thinking of things differently already. I'm about halfway in & it's a pretty quick read so I will hopefully finish it soon. I highly suggest it! 

I just finished: The Power of Play: Learning What Comes Naturally by David Elkind. Great insight into the way that children learn and good argument against the new fads for babies & children learning devices. I'd like to read this again once we have children. 

Ice Day(s)

Typically I'm not a huge fan of winter or snow, for that matter. I can go for one good snow and then I'm over it, but this year I was praying hard for a big snow (kind of a joke since we live in Wilmington, but hey, a girl can dream!). The forecast a few days before was calling for a BIG snow here ... like 5+ inches, but as it got closer the forecast began to change to more ice and less snow.

I prepared just in case and stocked up on my weeks groceries on Sunday night. Tuesday we waited ALL day for something to happen & not much did until that night. Schools were out on Tuesday because the weathermen had said it would start early Tuesday morning. Will & I walked down to the park near our house and took a few before shots just in case something did happen. By Tuesday evening, it was sleeting and began to accumulate pretty quickly. We had a potluck dinner over at our friends house (they live two houses down) and I made English pasties (a tradition on the Nichols side of my family).  It was such a blast hanging out with them that night and eating dinner together! Living in this neighborhood is so fun & we love that we can just walk over to friends' houses and share food on cold nights.

Wednesday morning everything was covered in about an inch or so of ice. Our neighbors came over for some homemade cinnamon rolls that I made and we sat by the fire. I so enjoyed my day off from school! We mostly just relaxed, read books, walked to the park and watched kids sled etc. One of my favorite parts about the day was watching all the kids in our neighborhood attempt to sled on the tiniest hills ever. None of them had sleds because, well, we live at the beach, so everyone was using boogie boards. It was so great & reminded me of all the great times we had growing up sledding down our street.

Our little house looked so cute with some white stuff on it & the neighborhood looked so peaceful (even if it was just ice). We took Clyde out to experience it & he absolutely hated it. Anytime you pick him up and walk towards a window or door, he now freaks out and scrambles out of your arms. Guess he's a summertime boy.

Schools were out yesterday and are out again today too (4 days off!). The ice is melting quickly, now that the sun is finally out and the temperature has risen. We're starting to go a little stir crazy at this point, but it was fun to stay in and spend time with friends for a few days. Last night, Will and I broke out a deck of cards and played a few games, then watched a movie on the laptop in bed. It's been a dreamy few days and definitely a break from reality. We southerners love a good snow ice so that we can shut things down for a few days and spend some time with our family and friends. Now that I've had my one "snow," I'm looking at you, spring. We're ready for ya!

Spiritual Glaucoma

Ever stepped back for a moment and realized that you've been so focused on your own life, problems and day-to-day occurrences that you've missed so much? Yep, I'm guilty too. Sometimes we get so caught up in what is not going right for us that we miss what IS going right for others. We miss the big picture and forget that we are part of a much larger story; we're just a tiny piece of that story.

At church yesterday, our pastor was talking about spiritual glaucoma. Glaucoma causes damage to the optic nerve due to a buildup of pressure in the eye. Without treatment, people with glaucoma can start to lose their peripheral vision. Look at this example.

See how it narrows the vision? Well, imagine that in your own life. Spiritual glaucoma. I know I've experienced it. Being so focused on myself and my issues that I miss so much. He read Malachi 1:1-5 and talked about the people that Malachi was addressing and how they had begun to experience this glaucoma. They had been told to simply wait for the Lord, but they were sick of waiting and were unable to see the bigger story that the Lord was creating. In their minds, the Lord did not appear to love them because their vision had been so narrowed and they had grown tired of waiting. 

Don't we all grow tired of waiting? I know I definitely do. Waiting on the next big event, waiting on this to change ... and so forth. If we can expand our vision and treat this glaucoma, we can see the larger picture and be reminded that yes, big things are happening all around us and although you personally may be in a period of waiting, you must wait faithfully & joyfully. 

What a great reminder for this Monday morning. A tough and difficult one, but so necessary. 

Five.

Five things on this cold Saturday morning:

ONE:
We visited Cameron Art Museum here in Wilmington for a little midweek date. It's a goal of mine to explore our city and since it was 20 degrees & I was off work, we decided to hit up the local museum. We saw an exhibition called Art Among Friends which featured paintings and artwork from America created between 1880 and 1940. We really enjoyed it! Also, our museum has a cafe that features local food so we stopped in for lunch & had delicious BLT sandwiches. 

TWO:
I made brown butter donuts with chocolate icing & rainbow sprinkles this week for our new neighbors (and Will sampled). They were delicious and the donut part had a little bit of nutmeg in it, which brought out a unique flavor. I found the recipe here on one of my favorite baking blogs. I highly recommend ALL of her recipes!

THREE:

Y'all, it may snow. In Wilmington. Maybe... but let's be honest probably not. I'm praying HARD. The forecast looked like this yesterday for the upcoming week. (although I just looked a minute ago and they've already reduced the accumulation amount). I've become my Dad and am so excited about the potential of snow that I can't handle it. Checking the forecast every few hours for updates has become a normal thing. I just want one snow!!

FOUR:

Our office at the house is starting to come together & I'm loving it! I'm typically not a work-at-a-desk type of person, but it's so bright and inviting that I can't resist. Also, this room seems to get the warmest because it has a lot of sunlight pouring in all day so sometimes I just go sit at my desk for warmth. 

FIVE:

This picture has me aching to travel. Wanna hop on a plane with me tomorrow? 

Little Cottage

I still haven't taken any decent pictures  of the inside of the house, but here's a sneak peak at the front! We are in love with this neighborhood and are so thankful that this house opened up at just the right time.

Please take note of the incredibly cute mailbox. I remember when we looked at the house I noticed the mailbox and thought, "I hope that isn't the current renter's." It makes getting bills so much more exciting. 

Alright, that's all I've got for now. I'll add more soon (hopefully!).