Brighten Up

It may be chilly and rainy today, but days like these allow gorgeous flowers to brighten our world. I've been loving all the tulips around town. Happy, happy.

Photo by me.

Love Seat

I lamented awhile back about the lack of a cozy corner in our living room and how I was hoping we'd get a chaise to remedy the situation. Well, my husband had the very thoughtful idea of buying such a chair as a Valentine's Day gift to each other. So we poppoed over to Ikea and got a gray Karlstad chaise.

I love it! I already broke it in this morning, lounging in the bright morning sun with a latte and a magazine. And my husband took a turn with it this afternoon doing work on his laptop. And our pup seems to have claimed it as her new observation spot.

Oh, and my husband surprised me white tulips, one of my favorite flowers. All in all, it's been a great, cozy, love-filled weekend.

Photos by me.

A Sure Sign

I saw my first tulips of the year yesterday! I can't tell you how exciting this discovery was.

And I can't help but get a little philosophical about it. Yesterday afternoon I found myself downtown, a good twenty minutes early for an appointment. Instead of patiently waiting for my appointment, I decided to take a little walk. The sun was shining and the air was a bit chilly but it felt so wonderful to be outside and in the midst of things. And then I saw this beautiful row of tulips and was especially glad for my unexpected jaunt. 

I am learning to be more mindful of how I spend my minutes. I don't want to waste or just fill up my time. I want to find experiences and discoveries and joys in the rare minutes that aren't devoted to this or intended for that. I want to be happy and grateful for where I'm at and take time to notice the blessings that are there all around me. 

So when I saw those tulips yesterday, they were a lovely sign of spring. But they were much more than that, too. 

Photo by me.