Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

5 on Friday

First Friday Five {January edition}

It’s a new year, so I have some new favorites, and most of them are Christmas-related because for all of December, I was immersed in Christmas!

  1. Christmas movies. In addition to the once-a-year tradition of watching White Christmas, this year I also watched a ton of sappy Hallmark/Lifetime Christmas movies on Netflix and Amazon. Some were good, others were okay, and others were a waste of time. But I needed a little (or a lot) of Christmas in December and movies were one way to do that.
  2. Christmas music. Especially new and different Christmas music. We finally bought the Christmas album of our favorite artist, Jason Gray, and we listened to that in the car on repeat. I also heard for the first time a carol called Bring A Torch, Jeanette, Isabella and I loved it instantly. Other non-traditional favorites included Sufjan Stevens, JJ Heller, Josh Garrels and the tiny bit of the Behold the Lamb of God tour by Andrew Peterson that we got to watch online.
  3. Smoothies. We had some fresh spinach left over from a recipe, so I began experimenting with smoothie recipes. Then I bought some almond milk. I’ve tried half a dozen different combinations, probably, and there are a few I’ve really liked. Others I’ve tolerated. (If you’ve got a surefire smoothie recipe, send it along! Also, how do you get kale and spinach to blend smoothly?)
  4. Go Noodle. I don’t know how I ever lived without this app/video series before. Think inside exercise/recess activities. The songs aren’t overly annoying and the kids love them. When I need to get them moving this winter, this is my first stop.
  5. Family time. With Christmas and New Year’s Day falling on Sundays this year, our foursome got a lot of special together time in recent weeks. We played board games, cooked together, did craft projects. On Fridays between Thanksgiving and Christmas, my husband worked late so the kids and I watched movies and ate popcorn (on the weeks when we didn’t have family in town, which was two in a row). I’m not always eager for the togetherness because it can quickly turn to fighting and impatience and exasperation, but sometimes that’s just my attitude. I love the time our family has gotten to spend together.

What have you loved about life in the past month?

 

 

First Friday Five {December}

It’s that time again. On the first Friday of each month, I share with you five things I’m loving or obsessing about. Here’s the December edition!

december-five

  1. Local coffee shops. I spent a lot of time writing in November and on a few Wednesdays, a friend and I tried a couple of new-to-us coffee shops. Here’s something fun about the area in which I live: We are not overrun with Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts. Yes, we have some of those, but there’s a greater number of local coffee shops, and I have yet to find one I don’t like at all. This one to the right is a new favorite with a mint mocha to die for. wp-1480611504952.jpg
  2. The Duolingo app. As I continue working with refugees, I’ve wanted to improve my language skills but right now, I speak fluent English and that’s it. My husband told me about this app, and now we’re dueling on Duolingo, him with Spanish and me with French. I love the refresher and the chance to learn a new language at my fingertips.
  3. Not having Facebook on my phone. After Election Day, I couldn’t handle social media, or not well. So, I took the Facebook app off of my phone and seriously, I’m a different person. It’s not that I want to avoid news or totally check out from other people’s lives, but now I have to sit down with my computer and open Facebook, and I’m less likely to use it as a distraction because it’s not so accessible. Sure, I’m missing things that people post, but I’m also forced to connect with people more intentionally and *gasp* face-to-face.
  4. Cupcake Wars. The kids and I are working our way through a Cupcake Wars collection on Netflix, and even though I don’t bake much anymore, I still love to see the creativity that goes in to these cupcakes and the themes. Downside, my son drew me a picture of what he wants his birthday cake to look like, and he wants to help!
  5. The Moth Radio Hour. While I waited in the parking lot for my husband to get off work one night, I turned on NPR and discovered this gem of a show that also is a podcast. Real people tell true stories in front of a live audience, and it does not seem to matter what they are talking about, but I am interested. It’s a good tool for learning storytelling, too. I’m noticing the details people include in their stories and how that enriches the whole thing. Can’t stop listening. Warning: Many of the stories are gritty and have content that isn’t suitable for children.

What are you raving about these days?