My theme for 2020 is Savor.  While journaling last November, it dawned on me that I don’t fully enjoy anything.  I’m a foodie but I inhale my food.  I love hot showers and warm baths but I use an abrasive wash cloth (not just for the rough spots of my feet and elbows but all over). I am generally not fully present to enjoy anything (and I do mean anything) that happens to me.  This has always been the case.  Last year, I did make gains in this area but I want it to be a focus this year-thus my theme.

Here on the blog, this theme will translate into a recurring blog post that I have entitled Savoring. Here I will feature curated content that I have enjoyed recently and I think that you will enjoy also. I am really excited about these posts.  I have wanted to share things from other writers, articles that caused me to pause, pics that made me laugh, etc.  Plus, this will help me slow down and notice these things – savor them, to see if I want to share them with you guys.  Here goes.

Savoring…

• Anne Bogel gets to preview a lot of books coming out in advance of their release. She reads them and then tells us about them and that, in turn, lets me know whether I might be interested, as well.  In this post she discusses nine titles, releasing in the next few months, that she really enjoyed: four of which I can’t wait to get my hands on.  Can you guess what they are?
• This photo Mindy Kaling posted on Instagram. I don’t have a chair but I have an ottoman. At least, I fold them – most of the time.

• This ad about offline shopping from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. It’s very old but it made me LOL.
• It appears to me, from my friends and the people that I follow on social media, that no ones’ January is starting off exactly as we envisioned. That being said, I really enjoyed this post from Cori.  If you are like the rest of us, read it and “give yourself grace”.

Until next time,

enjoy life…

Today, it’s time for my annual grateful list of 2018. I have made a habit of writing down the things that I am grateful for each year – as many as I am old.  I won’t share my entire list here but I want to share some of them with you to encourage you to think about what you may be grateful for also. Take some time and write them down.

1. Of course, I must start with my family: the Hubby, the Buddy Man, my sister and her family, my parents, my in-laws, GG, aunts, uncles, you get the idea!
2. My friends
3. The Florida sun
4. My Writing Peeps and Supporters: my mom (my biggest writing fan), Taralyn, Stephenie, Angela, Toya, Lucas, Eva, Ms. Harpe, Dr. Hyman, Kem, the Dream Plan Create fam,…
5. Books, books, and more books
6. Playing Dominos with my brother-in-law
7. Tuesday Morning Play Dates for the Buddy Man and me. Mostly for me.
8. Clean sheets
9. Lower blood pressure measurements
10. Barnes & Noble, Bridgstreet, Huntsville
11. GG’s 80^th Birthday Surprise
12. #write31days: This Bookman: Meditations & Miscellany. I didn’t think that I could write for 31 days straight on the blog but I did it!
13. My home
14. The 15^th Annual Liz Hurley Ribbon Run. I am so glad that I didn’t skip it this year
15. Dental cleanings
16. Katie & Travis
17. Jigsaw puzzles
18. The whispers of my soul, “the voice of God”
19. Sister, Sister phone calls
20. Trips to Daytona Beach, Miami, and Las Vegas
21. The power of a story
22. Meeting Modern Mrs. Darcy’s Anne Bogel, in person!!!
23. Rocket City Mom Book Club
24. Time and space to breathe

I’m grateful for this creative journey – writing through the fear. I’m grateful for the lessons that I have learned and the progress toward living the life that I feel called to live this year.  I am grateful for all of you, my readers. And I leave you with my favorite quote for this time of year.

Given the amount of unjust suffering and unhappiness in the world, I am deeply grateful for, sometimes even perplexed by, how much misery I have been spared.” -Dennis Prager

Happy Thanksgiving!