5 Friday Favorites: March 7, 2025

   

It's time for my Friday link up with  A Little Bit of Everything and Momfessionals. 

On Fridays I share things that made me happy from the week - a photo, a song, a quote, a beauty product, a recipe, a pair of cute shoes, etc. If it's a product, sometimes it's something I actually own and sometimes something I just saw online that gave me a smile. Sometimes it's serious and sometimes it's silly. I suppose I believe that God is in the simple details of life and yes, I can even find Him in a tube of lipstick.

Hello, Friday! Well, we are into the first week of March and this is pretty much what we've been dealing with around here:

Honestly, the weather has really been bumming me out. Apparently. next week we're supposed to be in the upper 60s, so we're going to keep running this race with perseverance. Lord help us. Last week Steve and I went to watch Drew play baseball near Lexington, Virginia which is an adorable, historic town so we decided to stay the night there. We stayed in The Gin Hotel which used to be called the Robert E Lee, but ain't nobody allowed to do that anymore so his name is gone. It was a lovely hotel and we had a great time in Lexington. Lots of my favorites for this week were discovered there. Here we go:   

1. Nest Sicilian Tangerine Diffuser

The lobby of The Gin smelled so good. I asked the woman at the desk what the scent was and she said she had no idea, so I had to do my own investigating. Eventually I found a diffuser on one of the tables and it turns out it was this Nest Sicilian Tangerine scent. I'm basically Nancy Drew.

2. Joy Susan Faux Leather Tote Bag

There was a shop directly across from the hotel where I saw this adorable tote bag in the best green color. Green is my favorite color and with St. Patrick's Day on the horizon, I was starting to feel like this bag was made for such a time as this. Immediately, I  had to high tail it out of there because there is nothing I need less than another tote bag. I was super proud of my will power and restraint . . .but then I found it on Amazon. I'm having to double up on the will power and restraint because gosh, this is cute.

3. The Perfect Cosmo

I know it is so basic, but my favorite cocktail is a Cosmopolitan. The problem is that every restaurant or bar seems to make them differently and finding one I like is like trying to find a pair of jeans that doesn't have a rise that puts the waistband under my bra strap. (Can you tell I went shopping for jeans this week? It's worse than swimsuit shopping.) Anyway, Saturday night we went to The Palms in Lexington and they made a really good Cosmo, so the waitress got the bartender to write down the exact recipe for me. 

If you're basic too, you're welcome. It was great. 

4. Devotionals for Lent (or whenever)

My husband got this devotional by Tim Tebow for himself and for all the boys for Christmas. They are really liking it. 

Have a Beautiful Terrible Day is a book that I've mentioned before. Kate Bowler is so smart and so funny. I love her writing and her perspective. She has a specific section for Lent that I'm using for my Lent devotional. 

5. Speaking of Lent

As I've mentioned infinity times, the past few months have been significantly difficult in the whole "I MISS MY MOMMY" area of my life. Ash Wednesday was particularly hard because we always sent each other photos of our ashes after we had participated in the Ash Wednesday service - me at my Methodist church and her at her Episcopal one. Ash Wednesday is solemn anyway, but this one seemed even moreso. The weather frankly just plain sucked. It was gloomy and cold and windy and the wind was getting on my last nerve.

This week brought some disappointments - prayers that have been unanswered or firmly answered with "Nope." And the brutal truth that life does not always line up the way I want it to for me or for my people was glaringly obvious. Shall we change the name of this blog to "The Debbie Downer Diaries"?  The Lent vibes are really vibing around here. 

Anyway, I took my selfie and imagined she could see me and was saying, "Honey, I love you so much. Y'all are all going to be okay. Now, go put on some lipstick." 

Also she might remind me of the truth of 1 Peter 6:11: "And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."

Without the darkness, how would we recognize the light? Without the defeat, how would we recognize the victory? Without the suffering, how would we recognize the healing?

Hang on tight, Friends. The Alleluia is coming.

Speaking of Lent, if you're interested I delivered a message on Lent a few years ago at Aldie Methodist Church. You can view it below. It starts around minute 24:00.

Have a beautiful weekend.

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