Friday Favorites!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Welcome to Tuesday Tea Time with my friend's God-daughter & friends!

LBG shared this photo after a stressful week of her last semester of seminary & I loved the joy it brought her. It's got some great friends in it too. I mean, how many people often have tea with Barney the purple dinosaur & Snoopy? I think Curious George might be there too!

So in lieu of today being the funeral of my friend TE & the stressful week that LBG was having last week, I share the little things that bring us joy & hope that there will be abundant smiles in our future.

Today I find joy in the puddles from yesterday. While these puddles may be seen as messy, they are a beautiful mess. They are a sign of a long hard Winter. They are a symbol of the variety in creation that God brings us each year. They are a sign of being washed clean for the coming Summer months when we'll think it's too dry & hot.

And of course there's joy in this tea time, remembering the times with TE, & the shared tea time with LBG & her God-daughter.

May tea time bring you a daily dose of joy!

Friday Favorites or Saturday Surprise!

I started Friday Favorites on Friday, but here it is Saturday & that's how life rolls.

Yesterday was a day at home to stay out of the ridiculous cold weather that has been called the Polar Vortex. I'm tired of hearing it. It's cold, it's still Winter for a few more weeks. Yup.

I also was at home taking care of our Michi Gander as she is recovering from being spade on Thursday. So naturally I made a delicious meal for dinner that wasn't much fuss while she was snoozing & snoozing on the couch.

Recently I've been focusing on #makingthemiddlework as Kelly Barton says. Taking in life's little joys like opening the blinds to let the sunshine in & realizing how pretty a clove of garlic is. Creation makes me smile & yearn for good things in life.

And that's where life is rolling on this Saturday Surprise!

Where do you find yourself rolling today?

Friday Photo Reminder

Life is strange & sometimes we feel trapped or stuck, but the incredible sight of life happening around us in other people, animals, & creations such as Ice Castles gives us hope for a free mind & the peace that surpasses all understanding

Photo taken inside the Mall of America Ice Castle

Tuesday Tea Time

It's Tuesday, have you had your tea today?

I don't know that I ever thought I would become such a tea drinker, but I typically start my day with a cup, travel mug, or some sort of container of tea. This time of year I like to drink more stout teas and in the warmer months I enjoy fruity or flowery teas.

So here we are, Tuesday Tea Time.

This morning I left the apartment around 8:30 & trekked the icy paths to get to my friend who I was meeting at a local coffee shop. This friend & I met roughly 10 years ago through youth ministry work & hadn't had the chance to catch up in quite some time. I ordered my tea (organic morning mint...or something like that) & he ordered his latte & we caught up on where the Spirit is working in our lives these days.

What I was reminded about during Tuesday Tea Time is how life giving networking is. If you're an introvert, you might think I'm crazy, but I'm definitely an extrovert. I thrive off of networking & peoples' stories. Networking is important for both introverts & extroverts, not only for human relationship & connectivity, but for sharing the gifts of life with one another through vocation.

We are all part of a large world & called as people in creation with other people & creations, to be with each other where we are, to be networking in relationship, vocation, & humanity.

What's your tea telling you today?