A Random List of Things I Love

This post was inspired by this picture. We were at the lake one day and Tig found some rocks she thought were pretty and she wanted a picture of them. The way she held them made them look just like a heart and although I thought it was really neat looking, I couldn't think of anything to do with a random picture like this. Except...make a random blog post like this one! So here goes...* My hardworking, generous, forgiving, loving, cute hubby

* My love-teaching, soul-saving, peace-bringing religion

* My 4 wonderful, adorable, helpful, loving, brilliant, funny, devoted children

* family hikes along any obscure place that strikes our fancy

* the smells of freshly mowed grass, wet asphalt, cut lumber, breastfed babies (yes, they smell different than formula babies!), clean laundry, newly mopped floors, homemade bread, sharpened pencils, pine scented candles

* the sound of people laughing, especially kids

* smiling

* having curled hair - it can make you feel pretty - even if you're in pj with no make-up on and aren't looking the part.

*organizing cupboards, straightening clothes drawers, alphabetizing movies, and color coding my hang up clothes (hey, no judging! I like order in my life and know exactly where to go to get what I am looking for!)

* knowing that I get to spend 24 hours a day with my kids for the few short years while they are young

* going to sleep in a clean home and not having to wake up to dirty dishes or loads of laundry (it doesn't always happen, but it is wonderful when it does!)

* knowing my mom and my sister are always there for me whenever I need them - always just a phone call away

* pulling weeds and planting flowers and veggies

* finding lots of worms in our gardens and knowing that most of them are alive because Owen likes to "rescue" worms on the days when it rains and they all leave the soaked soil. He collects them in a tupperware so they don't dry out on the road and sidewalk and when the ground is dry again he puts them in my gardens because he knows I love having them help my dirt.

* seeing my kids addicted to a good book

*picnics at a park, sitting and watching my kids play on a playground, feeling the sun on my back

* wearing socks 24 hours a day, and shoes for most of the day

* salad bars - spinach, lettuce, cheese, olives, eggs, carrots, peas, cottage cheese, cranberries, strawberries, dill, whatever toppings you want....mmmmm!

* Christmas trees with white lights

* the range of colors in the sky right before sunset

* cuddling with my babies, no matter how old they might be.

* making my kids laugh and laughing with them

* hearing love in someone's voice or seeing it in their actions - I don't necessarily believe the words "I love you" as much as I believe the feelings that come with it

* sleeping with my socks on, a warm pair of pants and a long-sleeve shirt on, with lots of heavy blankets pulled all the way up on my ear

* pictures - not of me, but of everything else

* that feeling you get right after you take that first swallow of hot chocolate or warm soup as it drips down your throat and into your stomach and you feel the warmth sliding down your insides and warming you up from the inside out.

* playing games - board games, card games, sports games, almost anything!

* wrapping up in a blanket that was just pulled out of the dryer

* listening to my hubs reading the scriptures out loud to us while the kids do puzzles or color and while I work on a project of mine

* drinking cold water with root beer flavored stevia through a straw

*being pregnant, labor and deliver, and those first early days of getting to know your newest family member (no, this isn't an announcement of any kind, so don't even ask!)

* crawling into bed at night, after I've kissed all my sleeping babies and whispered love into their ears, knowing that today has been a worthwhile day, that I tried my hardest to be good, and that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet and that I get to start it all again.