winter vibes, orange julius, and my superwoman SIL

Fantastic Friday

If you know me, you’re not even surprised by the confetti.

It’s Fantastic Friday and you only had to wait a few hours since my last post. (This is a life record for me and let’s not expect it to ever happen again.)

If you have no idea what this is or why, »read this post first«. Or just roll with it and leave a comment to join in.

So how Fantastic Friday works is we need a few volunteers for karaoke. You don’t need a special track sans vocals—just whatever we can plug into the sound system.

I’ll go first.

My song choice to have on repeat, for obvious reasons of nostalgia and opportunities for dramatic arm motions and everyone singing along is:

Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls

But it MUST be this version so we can feel every feeling while singing with great gusto.

However if a friend is willing to do a duet with me, we would have to sing:

In the Bleak Midwinter (Snow on Snow) by Rue Royale

» Bandcamp Link Here!« A mentor in college (I love you, Lori Lee) told me about this duo because I thiiiink they stayed at her house while passing through Chicagoland. This is my favorite of their songs and it’s obviously perfect because all of our Northern folk are in the middle of snow days and Houston is preparing for our world to end because we get a freeze or maybe snow or something generally cold this coming week.

While we’re chatting about cold weather, I simply have to tell you about my sister-in-law running in the upcoming Houston Marathon!

Allison is the kind of incredible person who takes hard moments and instead of curling up in the fetal position and wallowing like a normal human, she decides to run marathons. She recently found out that a loved one, her hero, has an aggressive cancer and what was her response? While also caring for a toddler, working an important job, cheering on her husband’s still-new business, and preparing for a move, she signed up to run a marathon in the middle of “winter” (air quotes, because Texas).

And she’s doing it all to raise funds for the American Cancer Society.

Can you chip in a little bit and support her efforts? »Here is the link to donate cheer her on!« She is recovering from an energy-draining cold and the marathon is THIS Sunday, so please help me hype her up!

Speaking of Allison and winter…She posted this hilarious video of a weatherman having the most fantastic snow day. Please watch and make it your goal to enjoy your vocation as much as Troy Lynch.

If we had a snack together for Fantastic Friday, it would have to be from my husband’s perfectly random kick of making no-sugar Orange Julius almost every day. I just got back from driving the kids tall over kingdom come and I walked in the door to discover he already made another pitcher of this liquid sunshine. He’s fantastic. Not sure if it’s allowed in the choir room, but here is the recipe anyway:

Jon’s Orange Julius

• 1 can frozen orange juice concentrate (best without added sugar)

• 2 cups milk (sometimes he does 1 cup whipping cream+1 cup water)

• 1 cup water

• 4 tsp vanilla

• 3 cups ice

Combine all in a blender and blend until it seems drinkable.

Okay, I’m done with my turn. Now it’s your turn!

Comment with your karaoke song or anything else you want to celebrate the week with.

What are you baking this weekend in the cold weather? What Scripture is speaking to you right now? What did you win at this week? Did everyone in your house have mostly clean clothing and generally healthy-ish food to eat? Celebrate a thing or two in the comments!