Sarah M. Wells

Little Joys—Home

After a full weekend staying with family and enjoying the pleasures of being together with those I grew up with, it was also so good to come home. I didn’t used to be such a homebody. Early on in our marriage, we would spend nearly every weekend staying over at one parents’ house or theContinue reading “Little Joys—Home”

Little Joys—The Woods

Until we lived on a property with pine trees, I never appreciated the seasonality of evergreens. Our pines, rhododendrons, arborvitae, and spruce have growing seasons and seasons of dormancy, times when they are more aromatic and times when they drop their needles. We planted some trees in the last few years, and when I seeContinue reading “Little Joys—The Woods”

Little Joys—Mugs

If you are like the vast majority of Americans, at some point during the day, you consume a hot beverage… why not drink it out of a meaningful mug? We have a mug problem in our house. We have not one, not two, but three locations in our kitchen where you can find mugs. BrandonContinue reading “Little Joys—Mugs”

Little Joys—Music

I challenge you to find anything as magical as making music. You can gather a hundred high school musicians on a stage and, even though they resist cooperation in every other setting by their very nature of being teenagers, they will let down their need for individuality in order to lend their voice or instrumentContinue reading “Little Joys—Music”

Little Joys—Walkability

When we bought our home, we didn’t consider what has become one of its many highlights: walkability. If you draw a circle with a 1-mile radius around our house, everything I need on a regular basis lands within that mile. Our kids’ schools. Two parks. The entire Ashland downtown. Three coffee shops. Our church. TheContinue reading “Little Joys—Walkability”

Little Joys—Synchronicity

You hear a sermon on Sunday morning. Unbeknownst to the pastor, you’ve been reading that exact same passage of Scripture; you even journaled about it earlier in the week. Then, a book you pick up that seems to have absolutely nothing to do with the sermon or the Scripture resonates, and your husband says, “IContinue reading “Little Joys—Synchronicity”

Little Joys—Blankets

I begin my day on a recliner in our office with a blue throw blanket my daughter, Lydia, bought me. Its tassels are slowly being gnawed off by our puppy, Ruby, who also chewed up not one but two blue pens while lying on it, so now there are a few indigo splotches here andContinue reading “Little Joys—Blankets”

Little Joys—Waffle Cones

We went with friends to Carolina Beach for spring break this year, and one of the stops we made (twice? maybe three times?) was at a little ice cream shop called Boombalatti’s. Not only was the ice cream so good we went back twice or maybe three times, but they make waffle cones in-house. YouContinue reading “Little Joys—Waffle Cones”

Little Joys—Izzy and Ruby

Izzy came to us the week we learned my mom’s cancer had come back as stage IV kidney cancer, and in the seven years since, she has been the default therapy dog in the house. Ruby joined the crew last Christmas, marking the beginning of the year that we learned Mom’s cancer is gone… NEDContinue reading “Little Joys—Izzy and Ruby”

Little Joys—Neural Intimacy

“The answer is always yes.” This is the latest rule of life in the Wells marriage. And yes, the first marriage thing you thought of is on the list, along with hot tea, nachos, and bourbon. There is no reason to ask whether the other of us wants tea, or nachos, or bourbon, or sex,Continue reading “Little Joys—Neural Intimacy”