Week One Recap (Or I'm trying to find the bright side of snow in April)

It has been one week since I've been more conscious about looking for the lovely. Mother Nature certainly tried to put a damper on my plans. In fact she threw a whole snow storm at it. But there were some definite high points. Here are my lovely highlights:

On Monday, I came into work and decided to tidy things up. Although I don't mind working in this semi-disaster, I recognize that a bit more order is helpful and dirty dishes are never lovely.

 

On Tuesday, I got a run in—the last one I've had outdoors. I really prefer to run outdoors. 

On Wednesday, I enjoyed this great book with Isla. And then I enjoyed the only waking hour of my week that is just for me. Nashville is a show that my husband hates, but I refuse to give it up. It is just too delicious for words. 

Oh my gosh, there has never been a couple I want together more...

On Thursday, we woke up to six inches of snow and worked from home. I much prefer to work from the office were my chair is comfy and my co-workers are fabulous. But I did get to watch this scene from my window:

Fridays are just automatically lovely, for obvious reasons.

Saturday had me bringing some intentional lovely into my life, and I think it is safe to say that my family is really enjoying the benefits of this blog. 

First there were these:

Taking after my mother, I cheated with frozen bread dough. Don't judge. 

...which turned into these...sigh.

I learned the hard way that you should really take your rolls out of the pan as soon as you take them out. Fortunately Sky preferred this "crunchy" batch, and for the rest of us, there were these:

You can find this recipe here. It is the exact same as they one my mom makes.
My kids are so excited that I can make rolls like Grandma!

After the rolls were baked, I made a batch of homemade granola, loaded with nuts. One of my work pals used to run a great cooking blog. The photos no longer load for me, but I can access all the recipes still. And this granola recipe is beyond good. Beyond. Here is what it looks like when you are mixing it up:

Today was spent brainstorming and writing for future posts, reading magazines (this article in bon appetit is fascinating), and getting down to my local community center for a run. There was also some Barbie time, and I baked a loaf of bread that ended up really heavy. (My bread baking is still far from lovely, but it is good to have goals.) It was a day of good balance, and that is my ultimate goal every day. 

ANOTHER LOVELY MOMENT FROM TODAY: We made oven-fried chicken, yukon mashed potatoes, and corn roasted with olive oil for dinner. (Click on the links for recipes.) The food tasted lovely, but the best part is EVERYONE ate well!