Rainy morning...

I love the rain in the morning. I had checeked the weather and was not expecting this storm to show up until later in the afternoon, so I was thrilled. We are all tucked inside...the dogs braided together in their little bed keeping each other warm, two cats downstairs, and Max sleeping under the big tree by the fireplace. I stepped into the pantry to listen to the rain.



I know that sounds funny, but in our old house we have passive vents everywhere: silly little windows in closets that go nowhere, and holes in the ceiling to let heat out of the house in the hot summer months. There is one directly above the big range in the kitchen, and one in the pantry a few feet away. The one in the pantry is capped with a little tin "hat," and it makes the most delightful amplification of the rain pattering down on our roof. I always step in there when it starts raining to hear it...

I am lighting candles that send out friendly little beacons of warm light in darker corners, something I love to do on winter mornings, and especially when it rains. I love walking into a room to see a flame flicker in response to my passage, almost as though it is acknowledging that I am there. A simple pleasure, and one that costs little a an indulgence. I am always snatching up loads of candles this time of year, and one of my favorite places in the house is the stairwell, where two tall footed holders have glass cylinders with tall pillars flickering in them.