š Lil Treasures #158: Phone Books and Yuzu Hot Baths
Plus dusting David and sautƩ therapy
Happy Christmas, friends!
Iām writing to you today from the comfort of a mountain of blankets, wrapped up like a comfy burrito and trying to generate as much heat as possible š„¶. There is a startlingly low wind chill outside right now in Alabama (!) and Iām not sure how to move forward with this day. Are you in the same frigid situation? What are you doing to stay warm?
Cold aside, itās Christmas week, and Iāve been feeling a bit out of sorts about the holidays this year. Iāve been giving it my best effort, watching videos of families reuniting at Christmas and basking in the glow of my tree on a daily basis, but I just canāt get the holiday magic and nostalgia to affect me like it usually does. These days just feel darker than before. I am trying to remember that the darkness doesnāt last.
The Winter Solstice was this past week (proof that the darkness truly doesnāt last) and these cutie capybaras celebrated in the best way. Hereās to hot baths and longer and brighter days ahead!
Are you feeling the magic this year? Let me know how youāre creating it for yourself or the people around you in the comments! And also if youāve ever had a yuzu hot bath, give me the deets. I think I need oneā¦.
Some Holiday Treasures:
āSome of us were born to shine in the school Christmas program.
š§¹Iām still on that Relics and Ravioli high so of course this article in The New York Times about Restoring Michelangeloās David with a duster is so fascinating to me! (Note: this oneās behind the NYT paywall, but it was too good not to share).
š«¶š½Like most, I have been pretty torn up by the loss of Twitch last week. He made such an impact of joy that I think we will all remember with admiration, which is one reason his sudden death can be confusing. Andy Lassner wrote this beautiful tribute to his life if you want to take some time to celebrate his legacy.
āWe are so close to the Advent finish line, so close to embracing the miracle of the hope we celebrate each year. This post by Laura Jean Truman is a lovely reminder to hold to on this Christmas Eve Eve.
šAmy Grant, beloved CCM icon for all of us elder millennials, is hosting her nieceās same-sex wedding at her home in TN. This decision has caused quite a silly ruckus in the evangelical world, as you can imagine. I liked what Tyler Huckabee had to say about it all here.
š I couldnāt agree with this video more.
š¹I have stumbled upon a new book about The Tudors and this is the extent of what I have planned for the rest of my Christmas break. Itās called Tudor: The Family Story by Leanda de Isle and you can listen to the audio version here.
š Highly recommend ruminating on this reflection from Morgan Harper Nichols as you close out 2022.
Tweet Yo Self
I get absolutely unhinged
Hope your holiday week is enchanting! Let me know how youāre surviving the cold and what festivities you have planned to keep you warm and happy this week. See you in the comments!
Happy Christmas Eve Eve!
(We decided to do Christmas a day early, since we're flying on actual Christmas day, so this is actually our Christmas Eve)
December has been ROUGH: Zach has been sick off and on for a month now (including a bout of what might have been pinkeye? But who knows?), I'm still not fully recovered from my foot surgery (and apparently it's infected now, so I'm on antibiotics), and we are both exhausted even before flying across the country to WA, where it was 9 (!) degrees yesterday.
But tonight I'm going to bake cookies and prep monkey bread and drive around our neighborhood (since I can't walk!) to look at the lights.
I hope your Christmases are filled with your favorite people and your favorite foods!
We did it, yāall! We are here at the almost finish line. Last night was a marathon of putting together Santaās gifts and hiding them in our closet until tomorrow night. š My oldest is getting a drum set (electric w/ headphones as God intended) and my youngest is getting a keyboard (also with headphones). Are we starting a band? š¤·š»āāļø Anyway, we are hosting Christmas Eve dinner this year, and while we are not responsible for the meal, we have to prep the house for company. And this, dear reader, is how I ended up with a new couch and coffee table for Christmas. So, we are excited to have our family over tomorrow night for a simple meal and to christen our new home. I hope and pray you all have a wonderful holiday and you get everything you want whether that be sleep, a new book, wine, etc. see ya next year! š