Mmm. Today's one of those rare days when I'm actually happy to be up in the early morning. Maya woke me up by trying to climb into bed at 6:20 (sigh) and I finally gave in and got up just before 7. We took a walk outside, where it was still dark, cold and crisp, and by the end of the walk, I was wide awake and actually enjoying it. When we came inside. I did a load of dishes, then made myself a latte. I've spent the last twenty minutes drinking my latte, eating one of the huge apple muffins we cooked last night (from Karina Sumner-Smith's wonderful recipe!) and watching the sun rise through the window.

Outside there's still a white layer of frost across the sidewalks, looking teasingly like snow...

Maya's napping on a rolled-up comforter in the corner of the kitchen, and one of my favorite CDs (Nordic Roots) is playing on my laptop.

It's a lovely way to start the day.

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And just for fun - when I went to the North Side Records website just now to find the Nordic roots link, I found the link to a wonderfully quirky little video of an anime girl swinging a leek (!) to the soundtrack of "Ieva's Polka", by the Finnish band Loituma. Odd and yet strangely hypnotic...check it out!