Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

favorite things

A few of my favorite things

I rarely do these monthly round-ups of things I’m reading or listening to, mostly because I don’t think my tastes are all that interesting or unusual. But because it’s December and I’ve got “These Are a Few of My Favorite Things” on a loop in my head, I thought I’d share. For whatever it’s worth to you. And share yours with me, too! What are the things you recommend to everyone or that are just plain fun additions to your life right now?

Here are mine:

  • Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. This series on Netflix was a recommendation from a friend when I was sick. I didn’t get a chance to start watching until after I was already feeling better, but now it’s my go-to lunch show or what I do while I’m folding laundry in the afternoon. It’s set in 1920s Australia and focuses on Phryne Fisher, who has returned from abroad. She stumbles into detective work. Really enjoyable stories, and they’re based on books, so I’ll be checking those out as well.
  • Amazon Prime Music channels. I’ve been jamming to a variety of stations while I clean lately. Two of my favorites are classic hits and classical Christmas. Also if you’re looking for the *perfect* gift for a reader/TV watcher/music lover or a family with all of the above, consider gifting an Amazon Prime membership. We got ours last year at a discounted price and we love it. (Disclaimer: This is an affiliate link, which costs you nothing but means I earn a small percentage of your purchase.)
  • Square One coffee. Small-batch roasted, local, fair trade. I started drinking this regularly after we returned from Kenya, and I discovered that I can drink this stuff black because it tastes so good. No cream required. wpid-20151019_164422.jpg
  • Global + local=interesting. We introduced the kids to Nepalese and Indian food recently. Before that, Phil and I ate at a buffet that serves African dishes. Our Thanksgiving meal included locally raised pork tenderloin, bread from a local bakery, vegetables we bought at two separate markets in the area (and one of those was a squash native to Japan). We are so grateful to live in a community that offers a wide variety of both global tastes and locally made items.
  • And speaking of homemade (sort of), we whipped heavy cream to top or Thanksgiving pie. This is the second time ever we’ve done this, and people, I cannot go back to store bought whipped cream. It takes almost no time and it is so tasty you can eat it with a spoon.

TV, music, food, drink. The only thing missing is books! But I write enough about books on this blog, so  if you’re a regular reader, you probably already know some of my favorites.

What are you raving about these days?

5 on Friday: A few of my favorite things

Every once in a while, I find myself enjoying life so much I want to share with you some of the things that are making it enjoyable.

Here are five of my current favorite things:

1. Doctor Who. I know, I know. What took me so long? I was seriously resistant to this but found myself unable to keep resisting. The stories, characters, plots, actions, all of it is entertaining and thought-provoking. I wish I could binge watch but then I’d just have to go back and watch them all again. (No spoilers! We’re not caught up yet!)

fern2. Plants. If you know me, you know I have more of a black thumb than a green one, but it’s slowly turning more brown. This fern was one of my birthday presents, and it makes me happy just looking at it. (Plus, I’m convinced it’s grown inches in a day and I’ve barely touched it. Low-maintenance plants are my sweet spot. I also have a cactus I haven’t managed to kill.) We have the opportunity to plant flowers and/or vegetables at this house and I’m considering a little of both just so we can try it and because it adds so much beauty to our daily lives.

3. MOPS. Another late-to-the-party activity for me. For years I heard so many good things about MOPS but we didn’t have one close to where we lived before. Here, there’s one right down the street, and it’s been a fun year for my son and me. Next year, we’re unlikely to participate because he’ll be in preschool and I’ll have a few hours a week to myself. But I wish I’d had more time with MOPS. If you’re a mom of a baby/toddler/preschooler, I wholeheartedly recommend MOPS for your sanity. Check the website to see if there’s one near you.

4. Home improvement. Okay, so we don’t own a home, but this place we’re renting has given us a lot of opportunity to pretend we do. In the past few weeks, we’ve done some serious cleaning and made some small improvements. The result is feeling like we live in a whole new place. Taking care of a home, even when it’s not yours, is satisfying work.

5. Friends. We have yet to live here a full year and we have some rich and rewarding friendships already. Add those to the many we’ve developed along the way, and our friendship cups are overflowing. I say this not to brag but to praise God. We love our families dearly and miss them like crazy, but it would be a thousand times worse if we didn’t have some amazing friends. We are moving into a phase where we have entire families we can hang out with, couples in similar parenting stages, younger couples, singles and older couples who’ve “been there.” Friends are a treasure I don’t often consider, and we are thankful to call so many wonderful people “friends.”

I’m sure I could list more, but these are the standouts right now.

How about you? What are some of your favorite things lately?