Allow me to explain.

Since I'm going to be talking "Hot Chocolate" quite a bit over the next few months, I thought I would take a moment to clarify what I actually mean by that. Because when I say I'm going to have a cup of hot chocolate, I don't actually mean that I'm just going to wander into the kitchen, grab a mug and pour in some cocoa and some milk. No, no.

"Hot chocolate" means something bigger.

To me, hot chocolate stands for one of my FAVORITE traditions with Levi.

Here's a little glimpse.

[PS: We're going to proceed as if the name on my cup really does, by some miracle, read "Amalie". Deal?]

Hot chocolate from Starbucks. "Hold the lid, extra whip, a swirl of cocoa syrup? Oh yes. And don't you dare forget the gentle dusting of cinnamon my dear." If they nail all that, you can bet I'm letting the name-spelling-mishap slide.

More than that tongue binding bitter chocolate flavor though, it's detox.

It's laughing with Levi. It's smelling Seattle. It's the cold outside. It's watching people. It's remembering the space needle and it's imagining the future. It's the reality that everyone is fighting their own battle and yet it seems to also remind me that we're all in this together. It's those sweet parts of life that you can know without a doubt you'll be missing when summer temperatures come around again. It's the pictures that you can't help but smile at when you see. It's everything I love.

To sum up? I adore these date nights with my man. Sitting. Laughing. Planning. Chatting. Sipping on a little taste of love wrapped up in a cardboard cozy, because honestly that is what it tastes like to me. Now that I have these memories floating along in every red grande cup.

Anyway, so now you know. This is what "hot chocolate" means to me.

Long day.

Like, really long day. It was a roasted tomato soup and french bread grilled cheese night. And now I'm wondering if that is even going to cut it! This girl needs a serious detox. Luckily the boy is here to cheer me up. Earlier he found a spider on our kitchen floor. We stared at him for a few minutes before Levi started speaking FOR the spider himself!

"Well. It's not lookin' too good for me."

I died a little bit. I've never heard anyone speak from the spiders point of view before. Won't lie, made it a little harder to squish the [poor] fella.

Anyway.

Bring on the hot chocolate. With EXTRA marshmallows. That's right people, she's hittin' it hard tonight.

Also, I've been putting this off but I can no longer WAIT to share just a couple of these. Isn't their little growing family so precious?? Sigh. Love these three. I am so excited to meet number four.

Honey do. Please and thank you.

Waking up to good mannered Honey-Do requests taped to the door?

Quite possibly one of my favorite things of all time!

So far today I've gotten to spend some much adored girl time with the lovely ladies in my family, who were sweet enough to sing me an early birthday song and let me blow out a little candle stuck in the middle of a big scoop of ice cream topping a delicioussss pizza cookie, I got to hold my practically brand new [6 weeks already??] little niece, I came home to a sleepy boy and got to listen to his rather interesting [very longggg] dream of family football, log boat rides, and a haunting ghost, now I'm enjoying some of the MILLION left-overs we have in our fridge and I'm looking forward to a hot chocolate run at some point in the next hour or two. Because it's like 50 degrees outside. And because boy and I could use a little date me thinks. And because, well, when is it ever NOT a good time to sit and chat over a warm cup of cocoa?

Details.

I love the sun so much more on days like this! It's too cold to sit in the shade, but settling yourself right smack dab in the middle of its rays keeps you just warm enough to thoroughly enjoy the occasional chill or rush of goosebumps.

Zooming in, today. Zooming in on strands of hair and pretty patterned scarves and argyle tights. Kind of like this morning when Levi solidified his position as my #1 favorite person in this world by gently setting his hand on the back of my arm as I climbed into the truck - a tiny gesture that may not have meant anything, but it made me feel safe. Later in the afternoon he somehow came to the conclusion that my new nickname was bumbum and he proceeded to call me by it out loud while in public - at least I know that I never need to worry about being an embarrassment. Then this evening. He let me warm up my fingers in between his arms and his chest while we watched some football - something he always does but something that I don't think should ever go unmentioned because it's those kinds of things that make me feel like just maybe this boy loves me or something.

See what I mean?

It's really pretty easy to enjoy the sunshine, once your focus is on the details. All the tiny little details. They're the ones that make this life, so great.

In the shape of a heart.

As Pinterest would say:

"That Awkward Moment:
...when you haven't blogged in months and have no good excuse."

Well here I am again, ready and willing to get back to this baby.

Partly because Boy is starting to lay on the guilt. ["Checked the blog again today...nothin' new." Said as if I'm supposed to be as shocked as he is that no one has updated yet. Being the author...I'd be a whole lot more surprised if someone had but thank you dear, for the informal nudge.]

Partly because it's been so long that the thoughts in my head are starting to compete for attention again. Time to release some of them into the great wide world of cyberspace and see what they can do for themselves out there.

But mostly, because when I got out of my truck today I looked down and this little guy was staring me in the face.

Just what I needed. A gentle but also kind of slap-you-in-the-face little reminder of the love out there.

I do this in my journal from time to time but I thought it would be a good way to catch you up. There are ten of them but I'm' narrowing this down to my five favorites because nobody wants to read a  one hundred page long blog post, right? Here's lately.

1. EATING: Good. Really good actually. For example. Two nights ago we ordered Oregano's Pizza. Our favorite 18" thin crust of artichoke hearts, black olives, pepperoni, and gorgonzola. Usually, that pizza feeds us both for the next week! Unfortunately however, I already had a lovely round steak thawing in the fridge so the next night, despite the perfectly fine left-over pizza, I started some Swiss Steak roasting in the ol' crock pot. However, do you know what Swiss steak smells like while it's cooking? Apparently to the boy it smelled like beef stew because that is exactly what he came downstairs craving. And considering that the steak still had a few hours of cooking, and considering that even Oregano's pizza doesn't really cut it when you're craving something as hearty as beef stew... Well. Let's just say that by the end of the night last night we could've fed a small army. With options. And with homemade hot fudge to wash it all down with but who's keeping track, really?

2. WEARING: Thermals and jeans. No seriously, I think we've both worn that combination for about a week straight now. We're never real sure what to do when the temps drop below 70 in Arizona. I'll put "Figure Out Other Warm Clothing Combinations That Don't Involve Thermal" on my to-do list for this week. The jeans are staying though. There's just no getting around that one.

3. FEELING: Let's see, let's make that 45% contentedly happy, 45% unbelievably grateful, 6% anxious, and 4% ready. Life is treating us really well in our little household of two. We have such great people so close in our lives and Levi's sister and her family just moved down from WA adding to that list! We feel really blessed in that area and we feel really blessed just to get to be together. [That boy LIGHTS up my life.] There have been a few things lately...[A disgruntling HOA and a forgetful and rather flippant neighbor for example...] that have left us just a little new-adventure-hungry. We've been researching housing in green areas like Edmonds, WA. Levi wants his own space and being that close to the energy of a city like Seattle would be pretty unreal to me. We're patiently enjoying our life here, but we're also open to the idea that a change just might be brewing underneath the surface!

4. WANTING: Each other. No question. Will you indulge me while I brag on my man for a minute? One day a couple weeks ago as we were laying down to bed, I turned over and started to get comfortable and watched Levi do the same. For some reason he looked really, I don't know, foreign to me. As I took in what shirt he was wearing and the way his hair was sticking up in the back I realized how little I had taken note of him that day. I thought through it and realized we had both been so busy with things that we hadn't hugged or kissed one single time. That really doesn't happen very often but I brought it up to him. We laughed about it, he kissed my face a couple times and we made a little half-asleep goal to never let it happen again. You know what? He hasn't. He takes time every single day to just hold me. To wrap me up and look me in the eye and give that simple little reassurance that he knows I'm there and that he's glad. At this point in my life more than ever I'm realizing how important it is to make that move. To let people know, that you recognize them in your life. Everyone should feel wanted.

5. ENJOYING: Sleeping in and cloudy days. Blockbusters 4 for $20 deals. Dove dark chocolate. Belting The Carpenters Christmas songs together, knowing and forgetting all the same parts. Cuddling to stay warm. The comforting whiiirrrrrr sound that Holmes, our little space heater makes. The opportunity to wear beanies. Fantasy Football [OH how we enjoy Fantasy Football!]. Going to get the mail in the middle of the night, in shorts and a T shirt just to be able to rush inside and dive under every blanket we own. Dance parties in the kitchen [This is pretty much ALWAYS on my list though, yes?]. Nicknames. Out of town family visits. Quiet evenings, all to ourselves.

Sorry if I bored you. If I was trying to get back into the habit of writing - I'd say I accomplished it! I'll pop back in with more picturesque fun filled posts soon. Promise! Happy Sunday!