It’s been a COLDDDDD week here. Every time the temps dip down I am so thankful to have a warm home to live in and the appropriate clothes and blankets to keep us all warm. Those are easy things to take for granted, but I think it is critical to help our children realize that these things that may seem basic and unremarkable, are actually considered luxuries in many other parts of the world.

Anyway… here are the three things that I’ve been enjoying this week:

1. “The Language of Flowers” by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. This is her first novel and it’s amazing. I can’t believe how well-crafted it is for a first book. The novel details a girl in the foster-care system and her life experiences that shape her choices after she gets out. She is extremely knowledgable about what messages flowers communicate and she ends up reaching a lot of people in that way. It’s beautifully written and very thought provoking.

2. Does this picture totally gross you out? I hate handling raw chicken, so I came up with a way to lessen the number of times I have to do so. When I go to the store and chicken breasts are on sale, I buy a large package or two. Then once I’m home, I get out several ziploc bags (gallon or quart size) and use a sharpie to label them “bite-sized chicken pieces”, “butterfly chicken”, “chicken tenders.” Then I get to work cutting away on a large cutting board. It’s not fun at the time (it can be made a little more fun if you put on a podcast… maybe the Extraordinary Moms Podcast?), but I can’t even tell you the sense of satisfaction I get after I’m done cutting up all the chicken and doing the final swipe to close those bags. Then I put them in the freezer and they are ready for use any time I need them in the next few weeks. And I don’t have to cut up any more raw chicken!

3. Yoga. I just love it lately. I got in a bad habit of multitasking during my at-home yoga practice, and watching a show or listening to a podcast while I worked out. While the workout was there, the calming, meditation aspect was not. I got a Groupon to go to a yoga studio (great way to find a deal on a normally expensive activity), and I’ve been prioritizing going in twice a week for the last few weeks. That hour is heaven. No one interrupting me, I’m taking care of my body, my mind is clear. Heaven I tell you. While my pass has now expired, I do plan to continue my practices at home, but I won’t be Netflix-ing while I do so. I love that yoga provides a good workout, but you don’t feel like it’s strenuous at the time. I like incorporating it with my cardio and weights during the week. There are lots of 5-20 min yoga videos on YouTube that are great for a light practice.

Hope you enjoyed the favorites. Tune in on Tuesday for another awesome episode on the Extraordinary Moms Podcast.

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