Lucky:
My sweet boy. I sure love him. He will give me lovies and cuddles whenever I want them. And for as long as I want them. Some of his expressions crack me up! Yes, I realize that he is a dog, but I've had him since right after he was born and I'm his mommy. Therefore, I can tell when his little expression changes. He isn't the smartest, nor the most obedient, but he sure is the loviest.
Lists:
Gosh, I sure love lists. They keep me on track and help to keep me from forgetting things. In fact, I have a love of lists so much that I have a list I make each day and sometimes, there are more than one list, so I must make lists of my lists! Maren and I each have a book that is one of those "Write Your Own Biography" types and it's completely in list form. ie. "List All the Habits You've Successfully Kicked" or "List All The Memories You'd Like To Forget". It's great and totally up our alley! Lists keep me calm and sane in a world of chaos and confusion. There is nothing quite like getting to make that check beside or cross off items when you've accomplished them. Seriously, when I've completed every task on one of my lists, I feel very much like Wonder Woman or Hercules. Like I could crush diamonds in my hands, run faster than a speeding train, or lift large vehicles off babies. You know... crazy, awesome mind boggling amounts of coolness. Yea... lists are pretty much amazing.
Laura:
My Sissy Sue. Oh how I love my Laura Loo. She makes me laugh so hard. She's one of the greatest people in my life. I don't know where I'd be without her in my life. If you want to read more, I wrote a whole blog post on her and you can read HERE.
Laughing REALLY, REALLY Hard:
Who doesn't love to laugh so hard your sides hurt? So hard that you end up giving yourself a headache? So hard you can't seem to stop because the very fact that you are laughing is making you laugh harder? So hard that a little bit of pee comes out? Yea... everyone does. Don't deny it. Laughing has actually been proven to lighten your mood, increase the serotonin levels in your brain, and make you feel better about people and the world around you. Did you know that studies have shown that if you laugh really hard for 20 seconds, it gives your heart the same workout as for 3 minutes of jogging?! Isn't that amazing?! Let's come up with a diet and exercise plan with THAT in mind! Whoo!!
Leather (Mostly just the smell):
I have a Grandpa Henrie, even though he's now on the other side of the veil, who used to own a leather shop in Driggs, ID. Whenever we would go to visit him when I was a little girl, we would walk into the house and there Grandma would be in the kitchen making a fruit salad (I kid you not, every single time! That woman must have thought we really liked fruit salad or something! Anyway, I digress....) and Grandpa would be in the shop. So, after our hellos to Grandma, out to the shop I'd go to give Grandpa a love hello. You could smell the leather from 10 steps away and it was overpowering once you hit the little front porch. And there he'd be, whittling away at the most wonderful works of art that you'd ever seen. Bridles, saddles, belts, bags, you name it. If it could be made with leather, he could do it and it would turn out incredible. He was an amazing craftsman. The best part though, was that even when he left the shop, he still smelled of leather. So, now, even though Grandma and Grandpa have been gone for 23 and 16 years respectively, the smell of leather takes me back to the good old days of Grandma and Grandpa's place and how loved I felt there. And how well fed on fruit salad I was. Mmm. :)
Letters:
I LOVE to get letters in the mail. In the world of today, it is so much easier, quicker and cheaper to send off a quick text or email or ecard. Isn't it sad though that because our society has created a simpler way to do something, that we hardly ever get to experience what it's like to get a good old fashioned letter in the mail? I love them. I loved writing to missionaries when I was in my early twenties because I loved to go down to the mailbox at my apartment and find little crisp notes addressed to me from all over the world. They always came stamped from some far off place in envelopes foreign to anything I'd ever seen before. I couldn't wait to rush up to my bedroom, flop onto the bed and rip into those puppies. And maybe that's just me being all nostalgic and sentimental, but I don't care. Now, there are times when I just want to send a letter for the heck of it. So... I'm grateful that Alan has a brother in England on a mission. Yes, we email each week, but I am going to send him letters through "post" anyway, just because.
Lighthouses:
This is one of those symbolic things where I look at a lighthouse and see something else entirely in my mind. To me, lighthouses represent Christ. So, in times of trouble, in times where the waves are crashing, you can't see where to go, you could be dangerously close to peril; that is when you look for a guide, that light through the storm that can guide you safely through.
Lightening:
I really love a good thunder and lightening storm. I think they are beautiful and exciting. It was one of my favorite things to do as a child to sit out on the front porch with my dad and momma when I was little, wrapped up in a fuzzy blanket and watch a thunder and lightening storm. I never had to be scared of them because my parents were there to protect me. I plan on doing the same with my kids.
Lilacs:
My Grandma Street loved lilacs and every time I smell them, my thoughts turn to her. Each summer when the lilac bushes in my mom's front yard bloom, my thoughts instantly jump to the act of running a handful down to Shelley to her grave. She would love that. And each time I smell them, my thoughts turn to her and I instantly remember how much she loved me. What a good feeling, to be loved!
Literature/Libraries:
I have a sick obsession with books. I'll admit it. And I'm ok with it. There are worse things. I love classic literature. Don't get me wrong, I love reading a quick easy reading book too, but there are times when I really feel like I need to push myself when it comes to reading and that is when I bust out a classic novel. Something like Bronte, Austen, Dickens, etc would write. My most recent foray into classic literature was Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and I LOVED it! One of my absolute favorites (other than pretty much every Austen novel written) is Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Love it. And libraries... well, they are houses to books. They are temples TO books! What more needs to be said?!
