Life right now & acknowledging my need

If I stop and look around right now, on a Tuesday, this is what life looks like:

Puddle-jumping and rain-dodging. It's been rather chilly here. By "chilly" I mean upper twenties to forties, with wind and dampness. I really did have to scrape ice off the windshield a few days in a row in the past week.

With that weather, we've been spending a lot of time at home. Growing up, I was never a homebody, but I think that's changing. I think I can thank my heart for all things home-related, and that I married a man who thrives on time at home.

Knitting and winding yarn. There's something therapeutic about both activities, really. And I'm making progress on my Lila sweater!

Library trips. In this post about simplicity I mentioned filling my reading needs with borrowed books. I've heard countless good things about Seven: An experimental mutiny against excess by Jen Hatmaker, and I had it in my amazon shopping cart, and then I thought to check our local library for it. I'm glad I did; it was just waiting for me on the shelf. And, I'm excited to read about some more local coffee shops.

Coffee drinking. We just really love our coffee. About once a month, I splurge and buy some really nice single-origin coffee in bulk for us to make at home. Our favorite lately is Wild Gift, roasted locally. We've been daily coffee drinkers for a long time, but this weather has me craving a cup more often. Sometimes we make two French presses a day, and sometimes that means we can't fall asleep (whoops). Maybe I need to revisit decaf tea for my hot drink fix after mid-afternoon?

Continuing our meal-planning and grocery shopping routine. With my predicable, but irregular* schedule at work, I plan and shop for two week stretches, making sure to consider a balance of vegetarian meals/quick meals/easily reheat-able meals/crockpot meals, depending on each week's needs. Generally, this is going well for us, and it means we're prepared with already planned meals when I'm busy working a stretch of nights. *Seemingly contradictory, but it's not. I always know ahead of time when I'll be working, but it's never the same days each week.

Wearing lots of knitted things. Since it's been fairly cold outside, I usually grab a shawl as I run out the door. I can wrap it around my neck like a scarf, or wrap it around my shoulders in place of a light jacket. My Mara shawl and Imposter's shawl get the most wear out of anything I've knitted in the last few years. Nicholas wears his fingerless gloves nearly every day, too.

Ticket-buying. We've got our plane tickets to Minnesota for a dear friend's wedding this month. And just yesterday, I got tickets to see Punch Brothers when they have a show here in Austin next month. I've been wanting to see Chris Thile perform live for a long time, and now it's going to happen!

Reading a bit of Charles Spurgeon every day, in Day by Day with the Best of Spurgeon by Dolores Coupland (thanks, Lauren!). This morning, I read and (then immediately underlined) these words:

We ought to bless him for what he has done for us; but still, the best thing about Christ is Christ himself . We prize his , but we worship him ; his gifts are valued, but he is adored .

The biggest danger in provision is forgetting that we are always in need. A full belly, clothed back, and warm home do not diminish my need for Jesus.

We're in this season of blessing. But I want my praise of Him to be ceaseless, whether this season continues or not. May I always see my heart as "unfit" that I may be fit for believing. From Spurgeon:

A person is never so "fit for believing" as when, in himself, he is most unfit. It is unfitness, not fitness, that is really required.