favorite

fa·vor·ite:  [fey-ver-it, feyv-rit]

~NOUN:  A PERSON OR THING REGARDED WITH SPECIAL FAVOR OR PREFERENCE~


it has been a hot minute since i've blogged.  i have had a health snafu going on (as it seems most folks have these days), but i am on the mend and feeling lots better!

just in time for another round of friday favorites!

*  my word of the year necklace - my next door neighbor and good friend, tracey, shared the link to this lovely necklace earlier in january.  she thought it would be perfect for me and it is!  my necklace just arrived a week or so ago and i l-o-v-e it!  not only is it dainty and lovely, it is such a good reminder of my word of the year.  i decided to go with the sanskrit word for contentment, santosha, to make it a bit more personalized for me.  while i chose the silver, it also comes in gold. 

loves, loves, loves it!

*  my electric blanket - unless it is in excess of 80 degrees, i am going to be cold.  over thanksgiving, my mom broke out these comfy, cozy electric blankets.  i was in heaven!  then, she told me that we could take them home!  they were supposed to be part of our christmas gifts, but she decided we could have them on the early side.  i question how i ever survived any winter without it.  i was so in love that i actually gave one to my mother-in-law for christmas and who has called me 3 times to talk about how wonderful it is.  i am curled up under right now, while it is 25 degrees and sleeting outside.  speaking of another favorite....

*  snow days  - unfortunately, i no longer get snow days because i, fortunately, am a mobile worker and work from home 99.9% of the time.  i still love a good snow day though.  i love watching those big, fluffy flakes (which are supposedly headed this way around 4 p.m. EST) float through the sky, creating a big white blanket.  i love how quiet and peaceful it gets, at least for a little while.  i love the frequent knock at the door as one of the neighborhood kids ask if they can use our driveway and hill for sledding. (yes, sweetie.  always yes.  just be careful.)  i love that it gives me an excuse to drink one more cup of coffee, a silly amount of hot chocolate, followed by an even sillier amount of hot cider for the sake of keeping warm.  i love putting a pot of homemade soup on the burner, all warm and bubbly, that is sure to take the chill off from snowman building.  i love the fire my husband gets going in the fire pit outside.  i love how bogue tries to figure out "what in the heck is this white stuff."  i love cuddling and getting cozy.  now if this freezing rain and ice we are currently experiencing would turn to snow, well, that would be swell.  (sigh, winter in nc.  lots of ice.  not-so-much snow.)

*  homemade spa water - for probably going on 3 years now, i do not drink soda except on a rare occasion.  we are talking maybe once a year, if even that.  so, i drink a lot of water.  water on its own is okay, but it can get, well, rather boring after a while.  one day i was at the spa with my bestie, melissa, and we were commenting on how yummy and refreshing the water was.  i remember looking at her and asking, "why don't we ever think to do this at home?  it isn't hard.  all they are doing is floating some cucumbers in a pitcher of water."  now, i do this on the regular.  i've branched out as well.  at any given time, you'll find cucumbers, lemons, clementines, oranges, strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries floating in my water.  it is delicious and so refreshing!  i'm rocking the cucumbers today:

just say no to processed "fruit-flavored" water and make your own.  it tastes better and is better for you.  promise.

* gone girl by gillian flynn - i finished this book awhile ago, but i have been slowly convincing my friends to read it.  it is so much fun hearing their reactions!  even though, like many of my friends, some parts of this novel just down right ticked me off (but what good piece of literature doesn't inspire intense emotion), i loved every.single.second of it.  so many mystery/crime novels follow a certain formula these days that by about half-way through i've already got it mostly figured out.  this one?  absolutely not.  do me a favor.  if you like mystery/crime novels, please, please read gone girl.  trust me.  you'll be shaking your head at the end wondering what-in-the-hell just happened.  perfect read on a snow day!

happy friday, friends!  stay warm and have a lovely weekend!

xoxox -