There is a sweetness that can only be found within the months of Winter. Winter may not be as colorful and warm as other seasons, but what it has to offer can be beautiful and special. It can feel like a difficult season to be motivated or even find the sense of warmth and joy that the spring ,summer, or fall months seem to bring. If you can find them, there are many reasons to hold on to the winter warmth created right within your home. It is a season for goals, reflections, and hope and it is a time for rest, stillness and surrounding yourself with the comfort of what matters most.

Winter is a time for making memories. They may not be memories of a warm, sunny vacation, or new, exciting adventures (although those can happen in winter occasionally too)a but a time for making true core memories.

When I think of winter, I think of family and comfort. I think of snuggling on the couch eating popcorn and watching a movie under a cozy warm blanket with my favorite people and pets. I think of the fireplace glow as the sun fades away and the house turns quiet. I smell soups and homemade bread. I feel the fullness each meal brings to my stomach as it warms me from the inside out. I hear little feet running around and voices giggling (or arguing ha!) as they play with all the new toys given to them during the holiday season. I hear music and feel love as we dance around the kitchen. I feel closeness and connection as we play family games and learn life lessons about winning and losing. It is waking up early to the brisk, cold air with a warm cup of coffee that wraps you up like a warm hug in a mug. During the winter we love to bake warm cookies and make some of our favorite crockpot recipes that are hearty and filling. We love to take family naps and lean into the urge to rest because the busyness of fall and the month of December has finally slowed. Just like nature quiets and many animals sneak away into hibernation, we need to remember to grant ourselves permission to rest when our bodies are telling us it’s time to slow down. We recover from illnesses and ailments that may have followed us home from school, work, or extracurricular activities and allow ourselves time to gain our strength for the months to come. Winter is a time to cherish the mundane because those are the memories that find their home in the core of our brain.

There are also winter activities that one can only find within this special season. Very rarely do we see snow past February, so I hold that special time and weather in my winter category. Playing in the snow as a child is a favorite pastime of mine, building snowmen, sledding, and having snowball fights. Watching the tiny white flakes fall from the sky like confetti as they surround everything as far as you can see and begin to create the white winter wonderland you have waited for the whole year. Not to mention the best feeling of waking up to snow on the ground and the news announcing it is a snow day and school is canceled. It is such a sweet time to remember from your childhood memories and one that you hope to recreate with your own children as they grow. These are the special moments that only winter can bring. We look forward to them each year and miss them when they are gone.

Winter….although dreary, cold, and usually dark and quiet, can be one of the warmest seasons of all in the heart. In my mind, it is the season of comfort and the season that really allows you to go back to the foundation of what truly matters. The people who live within the walls of your home are what you will find to be the most cherished parts of the coldest season. I hope you are filled with all the warmth of the love you have for each other and find the sweetness that only your family can create this Winter.

See you next season as we look for all the sweetness of Spring!

Many Blessings,

Lauren

Lauren is a Fit4Mom Client, Teacher, Mom of 2 Boys, and Published Children’s Book author. Learn more about her at www.laurenbrownriggbooks.com and follow her at @laurenbrownriggbooks