January Lull

This time of year always seems so quiet to me: post-holidays, in between sport seasons, no big trips or productions. I used to hate this time of year; it was hibernation-o-rama for me and the ultimate manifestation of seasonal affective disorder...but - praising God! - not the last two years!

Dear Texas, I love you so much! Thank you for making my ideal January a reality. (And for being much sunnier today than this forecast admits! ;-))

I will never, never forget how panic-attack-inducing those northern winters were for me! But even though we have been delivered back South, somehow January life still seems quieter...even out of hibernation. Even with exquisite school vacay holidays like Monday:

The kids came with & had a blast playing while I taught Zumba, we got macaroons & bubble tea at Sweet and lounged (in this pic) in the gorgeous 70°F+ sunshine, we hit up beloveds Costco & the newest Trader Joe's, and we enjoyed free pizza (yay, coupons!) for dinner. "To God Be The Glory" indeed!!! (Read the inscription on the park stones :-))

Hmmm...what else has been happening in this January lull?

I went to the dreaded new dentist. The Good: I actually love this guy & his practice! He's the first dentist (& with all of our moves, he's my #6 since 2005!!!) that hasn't instantly tried to upsell me on whitening or pressure me into cosmetic treatments. The Bad: My back teeth are a horrific mess...but I have known that. The work I need is extensive and terrifying, but it's really what I thought I would need - no shocking surprises. This guy has definitely established some major trust with me right off the bat = invaluable, esp. when I have had some extremely negative dental experiences that have left me beyond gun-shy. D Day #1 [of 3 :-(] is February 7th. Mark it on your prayer calendars! :-D

I sang in church on Sunday - so lovely, so fulfilling... [but is it blog-worthy w/o a pic or video clip to share? (I always wonder that; pics truly are worth more than I could ever type!)] I got to sing a song - Charlie Hall's Mystery - from one of our past churches that has meant a great deal to me. "Sweet Jesus Christ, my sanity. Sweet Jesus Christ, my clarity," was like a meditative mantra for me for quite a while. Another one of the five we did was completely new to me - and from my googling, appears to be very obscure, since there is only *one* YouTube version! - but it really touched me: God Be Praised. [Our version was a little different: I sang an awesome harmony with the lead on the first two verses, and then we had gorgeous tubular bells come in at the repeated chorus (2:34) instead of the clapping :-P]

I'm working on a new Zumba routine to Taylor Swift's I Knew You Were Trouble. The choreography has a boxing vibe - punch & kick out any frustration! :-D

...Which is amusing, b/c I'm probably the least frustrated I've ever been about anything before in my life. :-P I truly mean that. I'm glad I don't believe in jinxing, b/c I'd be terrified to type this, but I just don't have enough words to shout about what an awesome place I'm in - not just physically, but contentment-wise, with great new friendships, full of positive hope and a feeling of stability here and security I've never felt in my adult life. God bless Texas.