Much Love Monday

(via Lucy Grossmith, a talented local artist)

How is it possible that we are already half way through the first month of the year? Well, here at the start of another fresh week I have quite a few reasons for loving this Monday morning and thought a 'Much Love Monday' post an appropriate way to share them with you. Please pop over to Anna if you either choose to join in or want to have a look at what others all over the world are loving right now too.

Today I am grateful that I was able to go out and walk Max yesterday in between rain showers. Although it was very wet and muddy he was still being particularly soppy and wanted lots of fuss and cuddles - nothing like trying to hug a soggy, wet dog!

I am still sitting here wishing for winter (hence the wonderful illustration above) when so many are wishing for Spring. Particularly the wonderful Helena from The Swenglish Home who is ushering Spring into her house with flowers and bulbs galore, go over an take a peek as her home is full of wonderful inspiration. However, the weather forecast informs me we are set to have the cold back by the end of the week though - hurray!

I have a little pile of magazines to work my way through on my office desk. Some from here in England and a few from abroad; thanks to finding the website Newsstand which can supply magazines from other countries as well as the UK. Oh dear my husband is already starting to wish I had never found it as I have quite a few of Martha Stewart's holiday issues and a January copy of Better Homes and Gardens as well as the Country Living USA he bought me for my birthday to admire, read and fawn over!

As it stands I have a quieter work week on the horizon so that I can enjoy these January days which seem to be flying by so very quickly. And finally at the weekend I came across the most wonderful and amazing quote which really sums up my yearly goal of enjoying the little things in life. "Dear Barbara, Yes, it takes living to find out what value life has. I think, when we are very young, we dream of everything on such an immense scale. Most of us, as we grow older, gentle the wild ponies of our heart. Then you find, on the lower pastures, the small flowers that are there, and you know the richness of small busy tasks and ordinary living."- Gladys Taber, Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge

So today I am enjoying my life in the lower pastures; finishing up some work, ironing a few piles of clothes whilst listening to the audio book of Harry Potter and catching up with blogs whilst watching last nights Golden Globes. Wishing you all a happy and fabulous week ahead whatever it may hold.