When you are in the middle of the 100th snow day, an arctic vortex and a general winter malaise, you need to shake things up a bit.

OK, so getting out my spools of thread (which were already reorganized by my daughter) isn’t like creating a Jackson Pollock painting. But it was fun and brightened my day for a bit!

(Don’t worry, daughter. I put them back in the same order I took them out!)

You also probably know that I don’t decorate much for the holidays. So this little photo activity was fun for me and provided a lovely banner for my Facebook page.

But what about Love? I was considering writing a mushy post about love being unconditional and unselfish. Instead, I decided to list some of the things I “love.”

• my husband
• my children
• my extended family and friends
• sewing!!!
• working with my hands
• knitting
• creating
• teaching my crafts to an eager student
• reading a good book
• a good cry
• traditions
• skating under the stars
• cross-country skiing
• downhill skiing
• social media (yes, I admit it)
• a good Malbec
• McDonald’s coffee
• a restaurant with linens on the table and a piano player in the corner
• all six of us around the dinner table
• a good debate around the dinner table
• family trips
• bike rides in the valley
• a drive on a brilliant, fall day
• walking on the beach in search of beach glass
• seeing the city lights at night from a distance
• a morning sail
• crossing the finish line of a 5K
• music, music, music
• musicals
• family parties
• Lake Erie
• the beach in the fall
• chocolate
• neighborhood restaurants
• exploring buildings
• talking to friends
• James MacAvoy
• Becoming Jane
• Jane Austen
• a good survival story
• curling up under the afghan for a good nap
• morning coffee
• a game of chess
• biking with my sons
• shopping with my daughters
• lying about loving shopping. I really don’t. But I do love their attempts and occasional successes at making me fashionable!
• and the pretty things they make and buy for me!
• receiving a handmade gift
• making a handmade gift
• reading an old letter from my dad
• reading about extraordinary lives of ordinary people
• Twitter
• the power of pictures
• photo books
• family slide shows set to music
• a good suspense novel 
• a good suspense movie
• a good haircut
• organization
• color
• minimal stuff and clutter
• a quiet dinner out for two
• when my husband makes dinner
• when anyone cleans up the dishes
• smiling
• our annual family reunion
• walking out on a pier
• riding the waves on the bow of a boat
• roller coasters
• the Giant Ferris Wheel at Cedar Point
• a day of uninterrupted sewing
• sewing something for myself that fits and flatters
• a quiet church
• being with friends
• being alone
• feeling the sun on my face
• sleeping in my bed
• sleeping in
• weekend morning coffee chats with my husband
• when anyone comes to the grocery store with me
• that the folks at the grocery store know my name
• being spoiled

So, not a deep essay on the meaning of love. But, perhaps, a bit of an insight into who I am.