Hello Reader,

Monday signaled the official start of spring, and I guess I've got spring fever pretty bad, because I'm not accomplishing much of anything I set out to do this week. The time change really messed with me -- or maybe it was the cold front that blew in over the weekend -- because all I feel like doing is snuggling under a pile of quilts and napping! 🛌

Nevertheless, I am thrilled to think those sporadic cold spells will soon be behind us. I've been enjoying all the dogwoods and redbuds and daffodils in our area. There's so much to love about this time of year, which is why I chose springtime as the theme of this week's link list. Enjoy!

Free resources for you this week:

• ​Springtime Conversation Starters - a set of seasonal dinnertime discussion prompts
• ​Spring Cleaning Checklist - this room-by-room checklist will help keep you on task
• ​Picture Books that Celebrate Spring - some of our favorite children's books of the season
• ​50 Fun Things to Do in the Spring - Here's a whole bucket list of seasonal memory makers
• ​5 Things to Make Spring Better - a pared down list, in case the lengthy ones stress you out
• ​Springtime Word Scramble - how fast can you decipher these garden-themed words?.
• ​Fragrant Aroma Coloring Page - this pretty printable features Ephesians 5:2
• ​Birds of the Air Coloring Page - one of my favorite signs of spring: cheerful nesting birds

What I'm reading this week:

I finished reading Range by David Epstein and found it both fascinating and inspiring.

Epstein paints a compelling case for widening rather than narrowing our focus in academic, athletic, and artistic pursuits as a way to cultivate innovation and breakthrough thinking.

Reading this book made me especially thankful for homeschooling. (Here's why.)

What we're watching this week:

My husband took me and my oldest daughter to see 65 in theaters last Thursday, and several of our younger kids are going to watch it today.

This sci-fi film follows the story of an intergalactic pilot who crash landed on earth 65 million years ago. Aside from the obvious evolutionary assumptions undergirding the movie's premise, I really enjoyed this action-packed thriller. The protagonist, played by Adam Driver, was manly in all the best ways: fiercely devoted, courageous, protective, clear-thinking, and determined, despite being trapped in a near-hopeless situation.

I should probably take this opportunity to publicly apologize to anybody who shared the packed theater with me while viewing 65. My daughter later teased me for watching movies the same way I sing in church: with total abandon. She claims everyone in the room could hear my reactions at all the most intense parts as I gasped, jumped, cried, shrieked, and with my entire being urged the characters to run faster, fight harder, climb higher, and put as much distance as they possibly could between themselves and the dinosaurs who were after them!

Progress on last week's goals:

I ✅ memorized 1 Corinthians 13... and that's it. I barely gave a second thought to any of my other stated goals, which I'm carrying over to this week (again). Even the scripture memory probably wouldn't have happened had I not already been so familiar with the passage that I was basically just memorizing the reference for each verse.

Personal goals for next week:

• paint 2 more panels of mural (you can see my slow progress so far here)
• memorize Psalm 33
• work on talk for upcoming THRIVE conference​
• sew pillows x 6
• store away our latest costumes​

Another poll for you:

A HUGE thanks to all who responded with input on my conference talk last week -- your answers were immensely helpful in convincing me to stick with my original plans to speak on God's incredible design for marital oneness. You're right: Lots of folks feel comfortable addressing communication issues. Not so for this topic, and it's one that deserves much more attention than it normally gets, especially from a perspective that is both biblically grounded and backed by science! ❤️

This week's question: Are you able to A) view movies like a detached spectator, or do you B) find yourself gripping the edge of your seat as if you were in the thick of the action yourself? Or perhaps you do what my own dear mother does and C) promptly fall asleep anytime you sit down in front of a screen? 😂 Hit reply and let me know.