Warm Gratitude

This is what the yard looked like this afternoon after intermittent snow all through the weekend and throughout today.  It was cold out.

Which meant it was a good time to try out our wood stove.  It has been several years since we had a fire in it, I was nervous about the chimney being clear of bird nests, etc.

Our stove in the basement isn't used as much as we'd like, we aren't down in that family room very often.  I'm grateful that we have this little stove to keep our home snug and warm.

Oddly enough:  our furnace was misbehaving today.  Didn't discover this until after The Husband had built a fire and tended it for awhile.  More gratitude for a husband who has the ability to fix stuff.  And isn't afraid to get dirty doing it.  How weird that we decided to have a fire in the stove at the very same time the furnace wasn't working.

Found out today someone I know and love is sponsoring some soldiers for the holidays.  Good on you!

And finally, managed to get a family's Christmas purchased, wrapped and ready to take to FedEx tomorrow for shipping.  Feeling gratitude for the ability to exhibit (in a small measure) our affection by sending gifts.  Hope they like them.