It’s Thursday, which means it’s time once again to reflect back on three beautiful things from my past week:

1. A return of cold weather means that my birthday eve sundae doesn’t melt as I eat it on my walk home.

2. Rudi and I won’t get to spend much of my birthday together, so we went out to supper to celebrate at our favorite D.C. pizzeria two days early instead. We’ll do Valentine’s Day next week.

3. In Connecticut, where I grew up, “April showers bring May flowers.” But here in D.C., apparently February showers bring February flowers.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Cherry chocolate bread from the baker at the farmers market.

2. I spent Friday evening with a dear friend from college who lives on the other side of the country. We took a walk and celebrated our birthday early, I got to see both his daughters and his wife, and he drove me to the airport.

3. I was feeling a little sorry for myself after my Monday volleyball game, when no one wanted to go out afterwards. I stopped by the local fancy grocery store/bar on my walk home, not because I needed anything, but mostly as something to do before going home, and my friend (and teammate) came running in to invite me to join her, her husband, and her dog on the patio for a drink. (The volleyball bar doesn’t allow dogs, and it was an especially mild evening.)

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. My work event went really well today, and everyone involved was nice and helpful.

2. Where I’m staying turns out to have felt further from San Francisco than I’d expected, so I opted not to head back into the city for their restaurant week. Instead, I explored the Walnut Creek restaurant scene and enjoyed Peruvian and Burmese food, as well as a local ice cream shop.

3. The commute to where my event was being held today was just shy of a mile’s walk along a canal pathway. I passed joggers and walkers with baby carriages and toddlers, backyards with citrus trees, and a snowy egret perched on a fence, which a dog walker said was its usual spot.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. I scored respectably well (a 91) in my first bowling match of the season — high enough to be helpful to the team, but not so high that it seems out of reach to bowl it again. The group was organized by one of my volleyball teammates and includes women who play volleyball or kickball with her. We’re such a large group there was concern that we might not be able to fit in the one game necessary to avoid forfeit, but we squeaked through with two minutes to go. The kickball folks seem nice, and it was fun to have a destination on a Sunday afternoon.

2. Our building’s heat has been on the fritz this week, and this afternoon our handyman and his brother installed the part that had broken.

3. After four and a half months at my new job, I finally managed to schedule a work-at-home day — for tomorrow. Lugging my work laptop and reference materials home this evening wasn’t fun (mostly because I detoured via the library and the grocery store, which meant a mile of walking with three bags, rather than the two blocks from the bus stop carrying just the one, all while wearing heels), but I know that not having to race out of bed, out of my pj’s, and out of the door in the morning is going to seem ultra luxurious. Plus, it may warm up enough and get sunny for a bit before the evening rain moves in, letting me work some from the park.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. We managed to get our skeletal Christmas tree out of the house with a minimum of fuss.

2. I left the office this evening and it was still light enough out to bike home before dark.

3. We have had some good luck shopping Christmas sales in the last week, picking up inexpensive candy, stationery, lights, and extension cords.

How about you? What’s been beautiful lately in your world?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. We had early dismissal due to a winter storm on Tuesday afternoon. Those of you who live in snowy places will be amused, but in part such caution has to do with the long distances people commute here and the prevalence for icy highways. At least two major roads shut down due to jack-knifed tractor trailers. I, on the other hand, spent the end of my workday napping after walking home in the rain via the bagel shop.

2. Rudi and I celebrated “Little,” or Orthodox, Christmas this week. (His mom was born in Russia.) Rudi made borscht and we exchanged a few last gifts.

3. I used up the last of my use-it-or-lose-it healthcare savings account fund just before year’s end and today the box arrived. Opening it felt like a very practical Christmas present, in part because the money was deducted from my paycheck before I ever saw it and it felt free. We are set for contact solution, sunscreen, and bandages for a while.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world this week?