10 Things Thursday

Back by popular demand....well, not really. I just miss it, so here it is....10 things to like about my January right now since we're all kind of in a post-holiday season coma.

1. Life can go back to normal...we're not booked every weekend, traveling all over, hosting, or fixing grand feasts. I know, I know, I like those things too, but usually after Christmas, I'm ready for them to be over so that our schedule can resume.
2. Getting to use our Christmas gifts. There is nothing greater than using something new that came from someone else's thought, love and generosity. Adam and I got to pick out some new bedroom furniture using a gift card my parents bought us, and it was so much fun. Thanks, Mom and Dad!
3. Re-adjusting my sleep schedule. I don't really like this about January, but I know it will pay off in a couple weeks. Oh, and if you're one of the girls doing the 5 o'clock club with me, I am so proud of you! I had no idea that me posting about that idea would start up a wave of early rising women in our body. God is truly glorious! Keep it up!
4. The fact that it is almost February.
5. Adam's and my 6 year anniversary is this month on the 15th. Do you ever look back on your anniversary and think, wow, we are such different people than we were when we got married...we really had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, but God surely did. God definitely knew how Adam and I would fight against and grow in our roles over the years, and He ordained that we would grow together as well over the past six years. Oh, you know there's a mushy anniversary post headed your way. :)
6. The snow, and not just because I'm a teacher ;). When we lived in Bowling Green, OH, I loved going outside at night when it was snowing. I tell my students this sometimes...I loved how the clouds in the sky and the snow on the ground absorbed all of the sound in the world, so that it was never really more silent than it was on a snowy night. Snow is so refreshing and clearing....especially here in VA because it doesn't last as long as it did in OH.
7. On a significantly less contemplative note, I really like after-Christmas sales (which, I know are technically December). Usually by then, all I can afford is some wrapping paper and a bag of bows, but I love bargain hunting and being in one last crazy shopping crowd for a while. It's also, as in #2, fun and sometimes challenging to spend gift cards.
8. This year, I have had a great time playing with Charlotte and her Christmas gifts. She got a play kitchen this year, but she doesn't call it a kitchen. She says, "Cook it, Mommy. Cook it." Haha. It's hilarious to watch her tuck the phone into her shoulder and stir a pot with the other hand. Adam said she's just doing what she sees me do - cook dinner and bug Daddy about when he's coming home from school. :)
9. Video-chatting with my in-laws, especially with Charlotte. That is a very fun thing to do that we just kind of figured out how to do.
10. And last, but not least, Brit's birthday on this coming Monday. She won't tell me what to get her, but she said I'll figure it out. She's probably right. :)

During my quiet time this morning (which was a struggle after Wednesday night church and no caffeine for three days), the verse that stuck out to me that we need to be constantly reminded of was: "...sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it." Gen. 4: 7b God spoke these words directly, to Cain. How true they are, and how they should spur us on to obedience and faith, discipline and repentance.

Have a blessed day. Soli Deo Gloria.