spring can take your breath away (#457-473 of 1000 gifts)

I must be sounding awfully redundant as I recite the past seven days' worth of spring's slow creep and the odd social and family event, I thought, as I again contemplated posting this week's gratitude list.  And so a few days ago I went back into the archives and read a half dozen or so weeks of 1000 gifts posts. Surprise! instead of feeling bored, I felt blessed! I hope they strike you the same.

My little review made me realize that this is becoming a log of photos and memories I would not have the discipline to list and blog each week if I weren't for this 1000 gifts challenge — so thank you, Ann. And I carry on!

457. The pink dogwoods are in bloom! (These are just across the street from our house.)

458. Wonderful spring smells

459. This little mailbox vignette along our walking route.

460. A spring-flower arrangement.

461. A yellow bird visited the pine tree in our backyard for about 5 seconds. I was sure he'd be easy to identify, but not so much. Come back yellow bird!

462. Elder blossoms.

463. A gorgeous heart pendant necklace from hubby (for my recent birthday).

464. A coffee evening with friends we met way back in singles in Saskatoon. Love getting together with old friends.

465. Pastels. These rhodos start with tinted blossoms that open to the palest shades of off-white. I think they're actually prettier when they are partly closed.

466. The Buddy Greene special on the Gaither Hour (talk about a man who oozes music!).

467. Saturday we spent the afternoon with friends in West Vancouver. It was gorgeous! (Those West Vancouverites sure are partial to palms!)

468. Love the pink tulips and blue forget-me-notes.

469. Love the orange and blue.

470. Love the green (Bells of Ireland). Notice the two different centres.

471. Our friends took us to this little tended garden along the railway track right-of-way. They formerly lived in the building just behind this and know the woman who tends this garden. She's an octogenarian! Can you believe the clematis (the thickly flowering plant that has taken over the fence)?

472. Grebes. The water was full of them.

473. Beach peas! Bright, wild, and beautiful.

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If you'd like to join me and many others collecting One Thousand Gifts, please do. Some members of this gratefulness community post their gifts on blogs, while others list them in private journals. Instructions on how to join are here.

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love those lists, lunches, letters & lights (#199-211 of 1000 gifts)

Woven straw ornaments on the North Shore Polish Association tree 

(Dundarave Village Festival of Lights)

As Christmas nears, my calendar can breathe again. It is most crowded at the beginning of the month — not so much any more. I love it that way.

Now for the gifts collected during the week just past:

199. Lists, which make Christmas shopping ... not so hard — actually fun.

200. A little timing miracle. I needed to be somewhere but the clerk was taking extra long to explain things. so I was late. But it didn't matter (not that it ever does, I'm just so obsessive about being on time) because everyone else was delayed too.

201. Christmas lunch with girlfriends.

202. Reconnecting with friends who moved back into town.

203. Christmas cards and letters; we're all thinking of each other!

204. A magic evening with Michael W. Smith (and thousands of others). Love his humble attitude: "It's all a gift." Yes, but what a gift!


205. Gift bags.

206. My local dollar store (how do they afford to sell those sturdy giant bags for $1.00?!)


207. Spending time with friends at the Dundarave Village Festival of Lights.

208. The sight of some old friends...well, they feel like old friends. We saw these Barrow's ducks from the West Vancouver seawall. We used to see a big variety of ducks and waterfowl on our Elgin Park, Serpentine River, and Mud Bay Park walks. Where we walk now we see mostly mallards.

209. Tree whimsy.

210. A creche on public display.

211. Charles Price, whose Living Truth talk on "The Doctrine of Christmas" put the whole season in grand perspective.

Now I'm off to make some more lists, of odds-and-ends to round out the shopping, and food for the feast!

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If you'd like to join me and many others collecting One Thousand Gifts, please do. Some members of this gratefulness community post their gifts on blogs, while others list them in private journals. Instructions on how to join are here.

Ann's book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are is releasing in January. But you can get the Kindle version -- even give it along with a gift card from Ann --  now!