Last year, “Savor” was my theme word. I wanted to remind myself to live in the moment, to enjoy my surroundings, my people, to not worry too far ahead of myself. Savor also makes me think of eating delicious things, which is a worthy goal anytime as far as I’m concerned.

This year, my theme word is “Room”. Back in November, I resigned from a job that I had loved and poured my energy into for about ten years. So, I have some more room in my life now. Room to grow, room to say yes to new things and things I’d had to lay aside for a time. And the theme has multiple meanings; I’m also working with the physical rooms that are in my care, working to make them child-friendly and exploration-worthy and to set them up as places of peace and hospitality for us and for our loved ones.

I’m still savoring though. That word didn’t expire for me. I just started reading a book called Savor, thematically. It’s a collection of devotions by Shauna Niequest, and it’s awesome and makes me cry. My best friend introduced it to me, and I’m so glad she did. Yesterday over lunch with my regular lunch date, Miss Pippa G, I read a devotion titled “This is It”, and it hit me hard.

“I believe that this way of living, this focus on the present, the daily, the tangible, this intense concentration not on the news headlines but on the flowers growing in your own garden, the children growing in your own home, this way of living has the potential to open up the heavens.”

My days lately can feel very, well, everyday. And most days I am super happy about that. Because, really, this is it. In the best possible way.

I take a lot of walks with this little bug.

And people have been asking if I have more time to make pie now, and…well, yes, of course I do…but it’s during naps and after bedtime most of the time, as my young apprentice very much wants to do whatever I am doing during waking hours and she doesn’t quite have her pie finesse down yet. So sometimes in the interest of a pie actually turning out well, I have to save it from her “help”. Although I’m saying that and today she did help me “touch” a pie crust around the edges and “pushed” on the rolling pin a bit as I was rolling a leftover pastry. So, she’s getting there. Maybe one day we can open a mommy daughter pie shop. Only if she wants to.

These days, when I am going to try a brand new pie recipe, I’m gravitating towards recipes like Ken Haedrich’s 10-Minute Lemon Meringue Icebox Pie, for obvious reasons. Granted, it took me closer to 30 minutes all said and done, because I refuse to buy graham cracker crusts pre-made (you guys HOMEMADE GRAHAM CRACKER CRUSTS ARE SOO GOOD I’VE SAID IT ONCE AND I’LL SAY IT 100 TIMES). But still, a very reasonable amount of time. I have room in my life for scooping a jar of store-bought lemon curd into a crust while keeping my other eye on my baby who’s wandering around the house with twenty small purses (her current fave activity), yes I do.

You can fake a lemon meringue pie filling, but you can’t fake the actual meringue. 100% real deal meringue magic here.

A real treat sharing this pie with our friends Jim and Rachel. I don’t particularly recommend pairing this pie with red wine. The scene was leftover from our pasta dinner. 😉

Thanks for staying on this journey with me!

Wishing you a beautiful everyday sort of day.