Hey there, and welcome to my first ever “Things I’m Loving” post. In this post you’ll find a mix of ten things I love right now, that may or may not be things that you can incorporate into your own life. So, yeah, intro over.
1) My new TREADMILL! So, some background on that. I have been a runner (not a jogger, but don’t get me started on that), since I was 13 years old. In my opinion, running is free therapy. It’s time by yourself to process emotions, think about life, and pray. About a year ago, in the middle of some home renovations, my trusty treadmill suffered some water damage and the screen stopped working. The belt still ran, so I still used it, but I couldn’t see my distance or time. Not ideal. Fast forward to a couple of months ago, when some church friends offered up a treadmill they were getting rid of-I claimed that thing so fast! Due to COVID and life in general, we weren’t able to get the treadmill right away. Then yesterday I went to run on our old treadmill, only to discover that the belt had come off the track. I told my husband and he moved heaven and earth to get me our friends’ treadmill last night. (Okay, maybe not heaven and earth, but ask the guys he recruited to help him move the treadmill, and they’ll tell you it was about as heavy as heaven and earth.) YOU GUYS! Running on it this morning, was AMAZING. I’ve never been so happy to see digital numbers on a screen before. So yeah, I’m loving my treadmill. It’s a PRECOR treadmill, and if you’re shopping for a treadmill, I’d recommend the brand.
2) The game BANANAGRAMS. This is not a new love for me, but over lockdown I rekindled my romance with the game, thanks to zoom games with my sister and toned-down battles
against my seven-and-eight-year-olds. If you haven’t played this game, basically all you do is compete against the other players to make a giant crossword with your letter tiles in the fastest time. It’s been super fun to play with my girls, even though they aren’t quite up to snuff competition-wise. As a writer and reader, word games are my jam, and I may
have been known to sit at the table and try to use all of the letter tiles just on my own.
3) My basement CEILING. Um, yes. You read that right. I know it sounds weird, so let me explain. Even though our basement was technically finished when we moved it to our house five years ago, it wasn’t the most pleasant space to be in. Recently my husband set about trying to rectify that. He’s made a lot of progress in just a few weeks, and one of my favorite changes has been what he did to the ceiling. He took off all of the icky square ceiling tiles, then used a paint sprayer to paint the ceiling black. Plus, he added a bunch of can lights, which really brightened the space. Now sometimes I just sit and stare at the ceiling lovingly. Yikes, I guess this one was as weird as it sounded, even with the explanation. Still, the point is, should you ever want to redo your basement, you now have my recommendation for what to do with your ceiling.
4) The song OVER AND OVER by Riley Clemmons. I heard this song for the first-time last week, when it played on the Amazon music Top Christian station. You know when a song instantly grips your soul, so then you listen to it, well, over and over? That’s what happened with “Over and Over”. Everything from the opening line, “staring at a mountain thought I had already climbed”, to the refrain, “but you keep on showing me I’m loved, over and over again”, resonated so deeply with me. The lyrics remind me that, not only is God’s grace limitless, but his love is actionable, pursuing me endlessly. Listen to the song here, and, you too, will love it.
5) My HAIR. Okay, I don’t mean to sound vain or conceited or anything. It’s just, lately I’ve been focusing WAY too much on the negatives of getting older. Wrinkles-blah! So, this morning, I was trying to be more positive and think of something I typically like about my appearance, and my hair was what I came up with. Sure, my hair and I have had our ups and downs (i.e. when I was nine, got a bob haircut, and then spent a whole day crying because I thought it made me look like a boy), but since I discovered leave-in conditioner and the chi hair straightener we’ve had a pretty harmonious relationship. So, today I’m putting it on the “Things I’m Loving” list. That being said, I reserve the right to edit this list should a rise in humidity have a negative effect on said relationship. I recognize that my hair isn’t something you can replicate (nor do I think you should want to, I'm sure your hair is awesome!), but the recommendation that goes with this one is to spend some time appreciating something about yourself that you like. Perspective is everything.
6) PRIDE AND PREJUDICE by the illustrious Jane Austen. I have read this book SO many times, but this week it called to me from its spot on the bookshelf, so of course I had to start reading it yet again. If you haven't read it, I'm both sorry for the void in your life and jealous that you have yet to experience what is possibly the best literary romance in existence. I’m just a few chapters in, and already I’m mumbling Mr. Bennet quotes out loud to myself and sighing happily as I envision the ending. I love it, and you should read it, either again or for the first time.
7) HOOPLA. Have you used the Hoopla library app? If you haven’t, stop reading this blog post and download it now. It has a huge collection of eBooks and audiobooks, and, although your monthly check-outs may be limited, there is never a wait time to check an item out. I just finished listening to The Happy Camper by Melody Carlson and am in the middle of reading Falling for You by Becky Wade. Hoopla was especially nice when our library was closed during lockdown, but I still love it even now that the library has re-opened.
8) VOUVRAY WINE. My sister introduced me to this white wine, and it is my favorite white wine by far. Sadly, my husband likes it too. Sharing is hard.
9) PREMIER PROTEIN SHAKES. Another beverage. I really like drinks. Sometimes people say not to drink your calories and I just laugh/tut/sigh at them. I buy these at Costco (which could have a whole “Things I Love” edition of its own), and each carton has 30 grams of protein in it! And really, who can argue with drinking your protein?
10) My WORK IN PROGRESS, PREHEAT HEART TO 375. Whoops sorry, somehow this list turned into self-promotion. Whatevs, I’m not asking you to read it…yet. All joking aside, I really am loving the manuscript I’m working on. I’m having so much fun writing it. Plus, yesterday I started making a Pinterest board called “Book Characters’ Fashion”, which is basically a board containing all of the styles I think my main characters would wear, and I was able to justify the time I spent making the board as being writing-related, and therefore work. Some might call that winning. (Wow, what started out feeling WAY too self-promoting ended up feeling not self-promoting enough, so as a helpful afterthought, if you’re interested in learning more about any of my books, click here or visit the “Works in Progress” tab at the top of the page. Thanks! Self-promo over.)
Welp, I'm all done. Thanks for reading and have a great day!
xxxx,
Heather
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