He always finds his way around my feet no matter where I am. He even follows me to the laundry room where the floor is cold and he lays down on some unsuspecting pile of sorted laundry that may be on the floor. If he can't find one, a basket does just fine to prop his head on to watch me go about my day.
The other little fellow is curled up in a blanket somewhere staying warm. 'Tis the season to stay warm. This morning my beloved went out to look for good areas to take our oldest son hunting. He came back and shivered as he came in the door telling me that it was 22*F outside. Brrrrrr!
I turn around right now at 10:30AM to look out my dining room window to see the sun shining on the back porch roof and the steam is rising off of it from the very heavy frost we had last night. There are still patches of frost in the front yard where my Suburban shades the grass. We've had snow the past couple of days, but nothing stayed, just the grass was heavily frosted this morning. Waking up to such crispness is breathtaking. The sun rises far to the right of my bay window now, so I don't have to hide my eyes in the morning when the sun rises to greet me.
This morning my rising time was 5:30. I don't willingly get up at 5:30, but my body decides it doesn't need any more sleep and I'm awake amidst brain fogginess and desires for a few more moments of sleep that my body doesn't want to give me. Stiffness and soreness this morning wasn't as bad as it has been in days past. My body is working against me some days.
The dawn chorus looks a little different these days. The cackling of blue jays replace all the variety of spring birds that grace our trees. They've gone south already, thankfully for them. The crispness in the air isn't fit for them. The blue jays, though, are so hearty that they overwinter here. They drink the drips of water off the overhang during the winter when the sun shines on the snow. We've enjoyed watching these incredible creatures. Such beauty amidst such cold is such a blessing.
It was chilly this morning when I came downstairs. I grabbed 2 of my blankets and curled up with a pillow on my lap to hold up my husband's Bible so I can see the words. I feel the warmth coming over me from the inside and the outside. The Lord so graciously warming my spirit with His love, and the blessing of snuggle blankets warming my cold frame from the outside. As I sit and enjoy the glowing warmth the Lord has blessed me with, my beloved stirs and stifly makes his way down the steps. I can tell before I see him that his back is hurting from his fall last week. I say a quick prayer for him to make an appointment with the chiropractor. The other petitions need to wait until I'm alone with my Father.
He heads to the kitchen and from there asks which cup is his and which is mine. I've already put the creamer and sugar in his as well as mine, but we each use different sweetners. Mine he doesn't like. As he comes in to the living room, he puts a cup down next to me and says, "This one is your's, right?" amidst his sleepiness. I thank him and confirm that it is indeed my intended cup. He shuffles his tall manly frame to select a special quilt to cover himself while he checks his email, reads the news and enjoys his cup of warm coffee.
After a bit, he rises and lets me know that he's going out to check good hunting sites. While he's gone, I wake the children. They're chilled too. JL asks if we're going anywhere today. I asked him why, knowing full well that he wants to built a fire in the fireplace to get warm by. The elation on his face was priceless to behold when I asked him to build a fire. He went out to cut kindling and get firewood with the utmost of diligence.
This late morning, the two younger ones have moved firewood for my husband and now they're outside with their older brother, tending to the fire where last year's pallates are burning. They need to be replaced, which won't be too hard with the place around the corner putting them out for free.
