Finding the Unexpected

You know how you feel when you put on a coat you haven't worn in a while and reach in the pocket and pull out a $5 bill? I had something very similar happen today! I'm trying to get our house decorated for a business cocktail party we're hosting this weekend, and was unpacking some ornaments today when I came across a handful of beautiful bobbles all wrapped neatly in tissue paper with price tags still on them. At first I was wondering why in the world I would have hung these last year with the tags on them. Very confused! Then, I remembered these were ornaments I had admired and purchased at a terrific discount AFTER Christmas last year, during the fabulous moving sale at our town's gem of a home decor boutique.

Aren't they just so pretty??? Definitely fit in with my rustic glam theme! Oh, and I have a thing for birds, too... I'm such a pushover for a little birdie clipped to the branch of a Christmas tree. Finding these brought me such happiness... I wish you some unexpected joy this season, too!

Shimmer and Shine had a little surprise also to end the day. Before bed, they opened their advent book and finally hit one of the new ones I wrapped up for them. This turned out to be a book that Love and I picked out on a recent date night for Shine.

He's our little nature lover (actually, creating an appreciation for nature and God's wonderful creations is one of the things I am most proud of developing in my children). Anyway, this is a newly and beautifully illustrated renditon of Robert Frost's classic poem, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. We're sure to find Shine studying these pictures for years to come.