I love mornings. There is something so sacred and special about the earth and the quietness and the beauty of mornings. There is something so new…

I totally realize that at my stage of life I’m able to enjoy a uninterrupted, quiet morning, and I will soak it up…one day, all those little feet and voices will surround me and it will be a different kind of morning. Not a bad different by any means, but just different.

Maybe this will change once I actually do have children, but I think that I will love mornings the most with them. Sometimes I’ll be sitting and reading or eating breakfast and I just imagine this little junior walking up to me in cozy pajamas, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, and crawling on my lap for a snuggle. Gah. My maternal instincts just go mush thinking about that.

But for now, I do have the luxury of quiet mornings…and I hope one day I have the luxury of busy mornings with my little ones.

I’m pretty ritualistic about my mornings. I am usually awake by six thirty, or sometimes earlier, but most times I don’t get up until seven. Sometimes I’ll wake up and drift in and out for a while, but more often then not, once I’m awake, I’m just awake. One of my favorite things to do when I’m still waking up is to play the Bible audio on the Bible app I have on my phone. I don’t do very well reading the Bible first thing, which some may argue is really a discipline you form. Probably true, but I find that I soak up the most when I read later in the morning or day, once I’m fully awake. But I do love to listen to it when I’m waking up.

I really don’t like being in bed past seven, although some days it will stretch to seven thirty. But when that happens, I just feel behind…I don’t know why, since I don’t usually have a strict schedule to keep. It’s just mental, I suppose.

First thing once I get up….coffee. I’ve become a ritualistic coffee consumer since I’ve been married and have time in the morning for a leisure breakfast. Not sure if that’s good or bad, but in any case, I really like my morning coffee. I’m usually too lazy to make the really good stuff in a French press or Chemex (though I definitely agree you get better flavor and quality with those methods), so its usually just the good old coffee maker kind for me. We were gifted a coffee grinder and maker for our wedding, and it’s been one of our most appreciated appliances!

So coffee brewing…and onto breakfast. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, and I think I could honestly eat breakfast foods at almost every meal if I let myself. I’m definitely a sweet carb kind of breakfast person, and rarely feel hungry for eggs or something savory. Oatmeal, pancakes, french toast…those are what get me!

I know they say it’s not a good idea to do anything else when you are eating, because it supposedly takes away a level of concentration on your food and thus takes away a level of satisfaction. Maybe true, but more often than not, I’m doing something while I’m eating. Reading a book, reading blogs, reading news…maybe it’s a bad habit and I should be more “french” and just watch the morning scenery…probably true, but for now, it’s a habit I’m not trying to break.

So I pour my coffee (into a preheated mug…this is an essential ritual because there’s nothing worse than lukewarm coffee halfway through your breakfast. i always fill my mug with water and pop it into the microwave for one minute to get it steaming hot) and plate my breakfast and enjoy the morning with all its quietness and newness and wonderfulness.

What about you: do you enjoy mornings? What are your morning rituals and habits?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

It’s been a great week for us here in the Finger Lakes. And while fall is definitely in the air, the days are still very pleasant and I’ve been soaking up the warmth and sunshine while I can! The hubs and I both pulled out our moccasin shoes (ok, more like slippers really) the other night, and it does feel fun to wear those cool weather things again. Bring on the scarves, boots, and sweaters! I’ve brought up my winter clothes from the basement and getting my sweaters and boots cleaned up and ready to wear. I’m honestly pretty excited for the first snowfall and actually having a real winter for the first time in my life. And when it’s cold outside, love will keep me warm on the inside. *grin*

– It’s pumpkin time again, and like everyone else, I’m obsessed with using it anyway that I possibly can. I have a few cans of it in the pantry and a few bags of home roasted and pureed pumpkin in the freezer. One of my favorite ways to use pumpkin is to mix it with yogurt and use as a topping for pancakes…sprinkle with some cinnamon and sliced almonds and you’ve got breakfast (or lunch or dinner, if you’re like me and could eat pancakes at every single meal). Years ago I had a really yummy pumpkin soup at a restaurant that would be fun to try to recreate, but I don’t feel brave enough to tackle that this year…maybe next!

– I am pretty pleased with myself that I actually completed a little DIY project this week…! I’m really not the crafty, project-y, do-it-yourself kind of person…I’ve learned long ago that I can buy something with the greatest intentions to redo or repurpose it, but it usually just sits in a closet somewhere until I get tired of it and throw it out or sell it. I’ve been wanting a desk/table for our entryway for a while now, but I’m not willing to spend money on something new right now. I found a desk at a local yard sale a month or so ago, and while I wasn’t super in love with it (and was actually not going to get it, just because I knew it would take some work to get it to what I was looking for), the lady said she would give it to me for one dollar…how could I refuse such an offer? So I took it, and it’s been sitting in the garage until today when I finally moved it to it’s new home in the entry. I gave it a few coats of paint, the hubs fixed the one leg that was shorter, and it turned out beautifully.

– I’m not the type that gets really homesick when I’m on a trip or even when I move away, but this week I’ve really been missing my old friends and family in the south. There is just something about those friends who’ve literally known you forever. I love making new friends and I’ve got some super-awesome ones here in the north that I would never trade, but somehow I think there is a spot in my soul that only the oldie goldie gal pals can touch. Cheers to friends both old and new!

– My sister-in-law has a beautiful blog and wrote a really great post last week on marriage. Read it.

– And another good one from my brother-in-law! (We’re a writer family, we are)

– If you’re a women and you didn’t watch this video via my Facebook feed, watch it! So so so good. So so so true.

– This article really challenged me this week….wow, conviction!

– I’m still obsessed with The Digital Age band and this song has now topped the favorites chart. Play it, and play it loud.

Cheers to a great weekend, ya’ll!