Last evening, my husband, daughter, and I decided to get in our hot tub. Honestly, I was not feeling it after I mentioned it that morning. I was all showered and ready for bed. I was lying on the couch with my favorite fall fleece blanket while my husband laid his head on my lap. Kenzy kept coming into the living room, asking if it was time to go out yet. As my fingers ran through my hubby’s hair, I am sure he wasn’t one hundred percent feeling it as well. But, the clock was getting closer to 7:45, and bedtime for her was 8:30, so we figured it was time.

The evening just felt like a fall night. For the first time walking out, I said, “Brrrrrrr” out loud. I haven’t felt that since last March/April. It was refreshing, though. The tree branches looked Halloweenie as they outlined in the night sky. The crickets were still out singing their tune, and an owl off in the distance hooted at the half-moon. As I climbed in and sat down, the hot water felt amazing. I then looked up and said, “Oh my word! Look at all the stars! It’s magnificent tonight!”

There was not a cloud in the sky. The stars were so vivid; I felt like we were up high on a mountain and could see every star known to man. It was breathtaking. Saturn was brighter than ever and reminded me of the Christmas star. We had relaxing music playing in the background as we watched the night sky. Planes were flying by, and even a few satellites ran across the sky. We didn’t want to get out.

My seven-year-old daughter was even taking all the stars in and saw the moving stars, which were satellites. She was full of questions. How do the satellites get up there? What are they made of? Why is that group of stars there? My husband said about some app we could download and would tell us which star is which. I had my phone that was playing the music, so I downloaded it. This app is awesome! It’s called SkyView. You point it at the sky, and it tells you all about what you are seeing and even constellations.

Evenings are just so peaceful. As we sat there gazing at the sky, I couldn’t help but think if we all just quit watching the news and just live our lives, how much better the world would be. We really do live in a beautiful world but are corrupted by the news media who want us to think otherwise. The sky that night made me forget about everything else going on in our world at that moment and truly just take in how God created this world so perfectly.

This Sunday, November 7, is daylight savings time. We turn those clocks back, and it will get darker and darker throughout Christmas time. Ever since I was a little girl, I loved when it got dark early. My dad was always on it when it came time to turn the clocks back or ahead. The day beforehand, Dad had the car’s clocks changed, microwave, bedroom clocks, oven, watches, and anything that had a time. He always reminded me, saying, “Hey Wissy, don’t forget, we will lose an hour of sleep next weekend!” I swear my dad lives for daylight savings time. He is so darn organized. (Wonder where I get that from?)

Still to this day, I’d rather fall back than spring forward. I know, I know. I am crazy, but I love evenings. I love that I can be in my jammies at 6 p.m. and not feel guilty. I love going out on my front porch during a snowfall, Christmas lights on, and my hands wrapped around a mug of hot tea after dinner. I love early nights in the hot tub and admiring the night sky. Listen, that’s not the same in the summer at 9 p.m., and it is still daylight. Plus, the bugs drive you nuts—no bugs in the winter. Plus, our kids don’t fight us on 8:30 bedtimes, which means early bedtimes for moms and dads. See!? Is turning clocks back REALLY that bad? I love spring ahead for daylight during my early morning workouts, though. I am not going to lie. There are pros and cons to both. But we need to find the good in everything! Happiness comes from simple things. Happiness is what YOU make it.

So this Sunday, get those clocks ready because nights are about to get longer. Grab a mug of something hot, and go out and soak up some of what the evening has to offer. Starry nights are just one of the many, many things that the good Lord gave us to enjoy.

We need all the joy and happiness we can get these days, and a night sky is one of those things.

I like to think that the stars are the holes in the floors of heaven.

What are your thoughts when you look up?

Dreamy Nighttime Drink

Ingredients:
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tsp. Honey
• 2 drops of vanilla
• 1 dash of ground cinnamon

Directions:

Pour milk into a microwave-safe mug and place it into the microwave.

Cook on High until the milk is very hot and begins to foam, about 3 minutes.

Stir in honey and vanilla, then sprinkle with cinnamon before serving.