Joining Susanne today to share five of my favorite things from this past week.

1. My tween’s cat-sitting job. Our neighbors asked C.(12) a while ago if he’d be interested in checking on their cats while they are on vacation this week. He quickly agreed. First of all, he really likes cats, and we have been cat-less for over a year now. Second of all, there was the potential for income. He’s been doing a great job — faithfully feeding, watering, and hanging out with the cats (Lacey, Hazel, and Pumpkin), AND scooping their litter. Now that I know how good he is at that last job, I might just consider getting another cat someday. As along as he agrees to be the scooper.

2. An enjoyable morning with my boys. Yesterday was designated as a day for running errands, but we managed to add in some “errands” purely for enjoyment as well. Breakfast at Panera, a stop at the church to do some VBS prep work, a trip to Half-Price Books to sell two boxes of books, browsing at Barnes & Noble, getting gas, running to the recycling drop-off. Busy, but not a hassle, because I was with two of my favorite people.

3. Working with a friend. Speaking of VBS, this is my first year on the “leadership team” for our church’s VBS program. Technically though, I’m an assistant leader so I’m not sure if it even counts. But I have to say that the person I’m working with/for is fantastic. She’s organized, diligent, manages to juggle all the details, and is just plain fun to work with. Working with her makes my job incredibly do-able and enjoyable. Thanks, Debbie!

4. A husband who understands me. I had a bit of an emotional melt-down earlier this week. I won’t bore you with all the details, but the bottom line is that I let myself get to a point where even the tiniest thing was bound to push me over the edge. And indeed, I went over. At times like those, I’m especially thankful for Chad. He understands my personality and temperament, gives me wise advice, and does everything he can to help me get back to an acceptable level of sanity. He’s the best!

5. Peter Furler’s new album, On Fire. I was very sad a couple years ago when Peter Furler announced that he would be leaving the Newsboys. I’ve been a Newsboys fan for many, many years, and in my mind, Furler *was* the Newsboys. Imagine my delight when I found out he’d be releasing a solo album this month. Needless to say, I downloaded it first thing Tuesday morning and the kids and I have been listening to it ever since. I’m so glad he’s back!

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Oh, and I can’t close out this post without wishing a very Happy Birthday to my sweet niece, A. Happy 7th Birthday!

I’m joining Susanne and the gang today, to talk about five of our favorite things from the past week. This week presented some personal struggles, so I’m thankful to Susanne for the encouragement to pick out a few bright spots — they’re always there if we just look for them!

1. No jury duty. I received my first jury duty summons shortly before Christmas — I was to report Monday, January 10. Though I dutifully filled out the enclosed questionnaires and started lining up childcare, I soon realized it was going to be exceedingly difficult to find childcare for the full two weeks the summons told me to be available. So I wrote a letter requesting an excusal, fully prepared to attempt to serve if my request was denied. But it was granted — hooray! And with the snow we’ve had this week, along with school delays and multiple needed trips to the school, I am so thankful that I did not have to worry about jury duty this time around. (Though I do think that at some future time, it might be interesting to be part of the whole legal process.)

2. Knitting again. I have already completed one small project with my new stash of yarn. It didn’t take long at all for my fingers to remember the feel of knitting, and there’s something so soothing about making something tangible and cute. Unfortunately, I can’t show you what I made just yet, because it’s going to be a gift and the recipient(s) occasionally read my blog. So for now, it’s still a secret. Sorry!

3. Playing in the snow with L. This week brought our first “significant” snow of the season and our yard is covered in several inches of powdery white stuff. L (4) and I spent time outside Wednesday, shoveling and sledding and marching around. L was not impressed with the saucer-type sled (too unpredictable), but enjoyed the traditional plastic sled — especially when I helped him get it up the hill and into position. And just for fun, I took a turn zipping down the hill on the saucer. After that, I was wet and ready to go in the house. But I enjoyed celebrating the winter wonderland with my four-year-old.

4. Being the best mom ever. C (12) had to share some “sensitive news” with us this week. Now I’m not sure why, but he was pretty sure that Chad and I were going to respond in a dramatically negative manner. Even though I think we’ve done a pretty good job at being reasonable parents (or at least, appearing to be reasonable parents even when we’re completely losing it inside), C was still convinced that we would freak out. When he gave me the news and I didn’t freak out, he was beyond relieved. Some time later, I found this note in my bedroom:

What better compliment could I ask for?

5. An evening with a good friend. Last Sunday, I spent a few hours with one of my dearest friends. It just so happened that on that night, we were both feeling the weight of the world. We were struggling with some disillusionment, disappointment, parenting struggles, and the very clear realization that this world is broken. What a blessing it was to be able to pour our hearts out to each other. Though we didn’t solve all the world’s problems, we had a good talk about God and pride and our need for prayer and surrender. Good stuff. Sharing a delectable chocolate dessert was an added bonus.

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I hope you had a week filled with bright spots! Visit Susanne to see other Friday’s Fave Five participants.