Fun Finds from January

 

            This month has been rich in many things, and today I want to tell you about some of the finds I encountered here and there throughout the month. There is no particular rhyme or reason to this list. It’s simply a list of things I want to share in case you want to try something new, too!

            Are you familiar with Keith and Kristyn Getty? For many years, they’ve had a music ministry and are well known as modern hymn writers. If you know the song In Christ Alone, then you know their music! Somewhere along the way, I landed on their mailing list, and as January began, they sent out a list of seven hymns for a new year. Now, if you’re a hymn-lover like I am, I do want you to know that these are not songs you’ll find in hymnals of old. These are their newer songs. But I downloaded the sheet music and listened to the playlist throughout January, and it brought such joy to my heart to hear and begin to learn these new songs. They’re upbeat with a message of truth, and if you’re looking to learn some new worship music with some depth and meat to it – I recommend these songs!

            If you’ve been reading here for a while, you know I’m enamored by this Ultimate World Cruise sailing right now. I follow some Instagram accounts of people on the ship, but this month I found this YouTube channel done by a couple of retirees who now travel the world. Their videos are almost exclusively of the ports they visit, and not as much about life on the ship, and though the videos are edited and well-done, there isn’t anything flashy about their style. But I am thoroughly enjoying my chance to watch along and feel like I’m visiting all these places in the world – for free! Their videos average about 15-25 minutes per video, so you could watch these while you cook or get ready. It’s so fun! BZ Travel is the name of the channel, and though they have lots of videos from their travel to other places, here is the link to the World Cruise playlist specifically. The video from Antarctica is my favorite so far.

            I know a lot of my friends really love using the Bible Recap yearly Bible-reading plan. I have heard such great things about the plan and the commentary that goes along with it. But I saw on Facebook this year a recommendation to follow Kenoe Gibson, a Bible student who does a podcast (audio and video versions available) to read through the Bible in a year. She follows the same reading plan as the Bible Recap, but she also shares her study notes (you can download them) and reads each day’s passage aloud and shares her thoughts and findings. I have not had time to watch her full videos, but I am absolutely downloading her notes each day to have as a resource, and I find her both easy to listen to and teachable. (I have heard her correct things that she felt she misspoke on, and I appreciate that.) So if you’re looking for someone to study with and don’t have a person who has time for it, study along with Kenoe! She has a Facebook group and some other platforms, but here is the link to her YouTube channel. (She did this last year as well, so there’s already a complete set of 365 study videos out there. She’s starting over this year.)

            When Ryan worked in therapy, he used Palmer’s Cocoa Butter when he treated patients with manual therapy. He always smelled like the beach when he came home from work! We have always kept some at home, too, but recently he found that you can also purchase a cocoa butter STICK! It’s like a glue stick (bigger than lip balm), but it’s cocoa butter. He bought some for us, and I’ve actually been using it as lip balm this winter to help with my winter-dry-lips. But you could apply it anywhere you have dry skin. (And I like it better in the stick format because then it doesn’t get all over my hands.) Since the season of winter-skin is upon us for a while, I thought I’d share this!

            Do you like saltines? I don’t. They feel like sick-food for me, because growing up, they were one of the “test the food waters” foods I would eat after being sick. Now if you turn saltines into this toffee cracker recipe, I can get on board with it. But just eating saltines? No thanks. But Ryan loves them, and he recently found these whole grain saltines at Walmart. We always have these in the house now so he can snack on them when he needs something quick in between meals! He likes the flavor better than the regular ones, he says. So even though saltines are not my love, I’m passing this along in case you want to try!

            I do not own this, but I sure think it’s pretty! Earlier this month, while at the gym, I was talking to one of the other girls about how cold it is, and we got on the topics of blankets at our work desks. I ended up pulling out my electric throw blanket that Ryan’s mom gave me for Christmas one of the first years we were married. (I LOVE THAT THING!) But I stumbled on this regular fleece/sherpa throw blanket when visiting a blog this month, and I think it looks so cozy. Sometimes good, thick warm blankets can be awfully pricey, and this one seems like a good value for its thickness and warmth. So if you’re looking for something to keep you warm in the remainder of winter, check it out. Even comes in different sizes! Meanwhile, I’ll be under my beautiful electric blanket.

            This past weekend, Ryan and I went to the Meltdown Winter Ice Festival in Richmond, and I can’t wait to tell you more about the fun we had (and the ridiculousness of the weather). I had mentioned a few posts ago that we hadn’t really explored festivals since moving to this area, and after I wrote about that, I made a point to find one! I thought I remembered finding a website that showed all the festivals in the state, and I found it again! (Even if you don’t live in Indiana, this site has links to similar sites in other states.) Check it out! You never know when you might find something new to try!