Over the weekend we hosted Matt’s family for a pre-Christmas get-together. This gathering has been happening since Matt and I were dating–more than 25 years. Over that time, the family has changed. Four people have died. People have joined. Marriages have begun. Four babies have been born.
Family changes. There are losses and additions. Tragedy and joy. Friction and love. Family can be hard. But it’s worth it.
On Saturday, seeing these people playing, laughing, talking, eating, enjoying together was very special. It is definitely worth it.
Here are some other things from this month that are worth it.
I have a new niece! I knit this hat ages ago, and my Mom had it still, so it went to baby M. It’s such a cute baby girl design.
Another motivation to return to knitting, the Campaign for Wool Canada videos are so beautiful and inspiring.
I made these scones twice this month. They have the flavour of cinnamon buns with a fraction of the effort.
I love so much about this house. The small size. The traditional style. The colours.
A friend of mine posts beautiful thoughts of the day every morning. This one feels appropriate for a post talking about family, whether your family is two or many:
“A good relationship is just two people saying, “Hey life is hard, but I want to do it with you.” That’s it. It’s not a highlight reel… Love isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s just choosing each other again and again.”
I’m grateful my families (all of them) choose each other and value being together. It’s not always easy. But it’s worth it.
Sometimes at night before I fall asleep, I play a little game with myself. I call it “Good Things That Happened.” As I lay in bed, I think back over my day and single out the good moments.
They can be as simple as my breakfast eggs, fresh from our chickens nicely cooked with perfectly runny yolks. They can be a hike with Cigo, a conversation with a friend, a fun adventure with Ellie, a get together with family.
Big and small, these moments are all good things. Taking a moment to celebrate them helps me appreciate my days, the people around me and my life.
October was full of good things that happened. In this month of Thanksgiving, I encourage you to think about the good things in your life and in your day.
Here are some good things from this month.
Dates, bacon, mayo, sour cream and cheese might sound like an odd combination. But they made a tasty dip that was a hit at one of our Thanksgiving celebrations. The recipe came from this fun, funny cookbook.
While I’m on Thanksgiving recipes, this was (kind of) the recipe I used to cook our first homegrown turkey. Smitten Kitchen is my go-to for all things cooking. Her recipes are so well tested and reliable. The way she lays out how to do Thanksgiving makes all the cooking very manageable. (I also made her stuffing and gravy.)
Moving on to a different holiday, Ellie is going to be a skeleton for Halloween. I used these free bones for our pattern and this week will be sewing them on the pink pants and top we already made. (Ellie wanted to recreate a pink skeleton onesie she wore for her very first Halloween.)
Preparing for the worst is still on my mind. This book had some really good tips and thought-provoking stories.
“There’s a joy in being the best you can be… Today’s efforts make tomorrow’s dreams” Another profound, fun song from Jesse Welles. (On the subject of profound, listen to some of his protest songs. His writing is powerful.)
“It is absolutely necessary, for the peace and safety of mankind, that some of earth’s dark, dead corners and unplumbed depths be left alone.”
H.P. Lovecraft, At the Mountains of Madness, 1936, quoted in Alone Against the North by Adam Shoalts
I’m rounding out the month with a visit with a friend I haven’t seen in a dozen years, a return to teaching after our mid-term break last week, and of course Halloween. More good things.
September has kicked my butt. I’m teaching again and loving it again. But I have three classes plus a new course that I’ve never taught before. Setting up the courses, making my lessons, marking assignments feels like it’s taking all my time.
Add in fall and the looming spectre of winter and everything else that I have to do for the farm and it feels like a lot.
I don’t like to come here and complain. I’m grateful to have a job that works with my life and that I enjoy. I’m grateful to have an amazing girl that is so much fun. I’m grateful to have this special place that feels like a sanctuary most of the time. Also a big part of my to-do list, but most of the time a source of peace.
Amongst the busy-ness of the month here are some things that provided some breaks and distractions
I’ve never been into historical sewing, but Bernadette Banner is so engaging, entertaining and educational. All of her projects are super interesting, but Greensleeves is a standout.
Another favourite sewing personality, Emily Hallman, has returned to Instagram, and she’s as full of inspiration and motivation as ever.
Another great sewing resource that helped me figure out the bathroom shower curtain. Jann Newton has tutorials from beginner to advanced.
Despite how full my day is, I try to start with a hike with Cigo. I’ve added a weighted vest to my routine to try and up my fitness a bit more.
I am also still trying to prioritize care. This podcast really helped me adjust my habits, and even though my schedule has been super full, I’ve been doing a bit better on sleep.
This week is about teaching, marking, month-end for some of my client work and a much-needed haircut.
Summer is such a special time. It’s hard to feel it coming to an end.
Ellie and I had a campout on Saturday. Probably our last campout of the year. As I was packing up the tent yesterday, I thought to myself, “I hope Ellie remembers this when she’s older.”
I hope she remembers the things we did and the fun we had. I hope she feels like her Mom put in the effort to make things special for her. I hope she realizes how much I love her and that she’s the most important thing in my life.
The two phrases below came up in one of the books I read this summer. They fit with how I try to live my life and feel especially appropriate now.
Hora pars vitae. Every hour is a part of life. Serius est quam cogitas. It’s later than you think.
Here are some other things I came across this summer
We are in the midst of our summer tradition of raising monarchs. We’ve released two butterflies so far and our last caterpillar changed into its chrysalis this weekend.
Ellie’s fascination with Greek mythology continues, and we’ve been “Greeking Out” with this podcast. The Oracle of Wifi is hilarious.
Another summer read that I’ve been thinking of as I prepare to return to the classroom.
“Every young person has the potential to contribute. When we respect, honor, and support that potential through a combination of high standards and high support, then we motivate and inspire young people from all groups to reach higher, accomplish more, and make our society stronger.”
We are continuing to “do” summer through this last week. There will be a park, possibly a beach, and our annual tradition of a “fancy waffle.” The more ice cream and toppings the better.
How are you feeling about the end of summer holidays? Do you have any favourite summer memories?
I love summer. We’ve had beach days, cottage days, home days, adventure days. We are doing our best to “do” summer, and we’re having so much fun.
This month’s round-up is outdoorsy, cottagey and summer-inspired.
If you’re able to give this video a watch, you’ll be using YouTube to plant a forest. (Please take a minute to watch the video.)
I have cottages on my mind after our annual getaway with my family. I love Sarah Richardson’s designs, and her “Island Rescue” project was fun to follow. I think the living room is my favourite space. Or maybe the kitchen.
My love of summer started at my grandparents’ cottage. This cottage is on the same lake that I grew up on.
This book was a call to keep moving, keep adventuring. Just what we’re going to keep doing this summer.
“I was also being given a continual positive primate about aging… I learned that one’s advancing years can be a time of growth and revelation. You march boldly toward the setting sun, marveling at the golden hour, then the twilight, becoming happier and more confident with each step.”
I feel like May disappeared. When our days are full, time flies, and our days are very full right now.
Turkeys, chickens, cats, birthdays, celebrations, family, friends, a new term of teaching, renovations, mowing the grass… again. There’s a lot going on. I achieved a very high level of productivity this month.
There were also special moments that can only happen here on the farm.
Ellie and I walked out to the trillium grove and took our annual pictures with the flowers. Flipping back over our years of photos brings up so many memories. She launched her kayak on the pond for the first time. I love seeing her confidence and capability–and being able to have such a cool experience at our own property.
On the weekend, I took a moment to look around me as Ellie swung on her swing set. I’m so proud of what we’ve created and grateful that we get to experience this special place.
In between the busy-ness, here are some of the things that caught my attention this month.
“She, an autonomous human being, made a choice. My apology would, in a way, accuse her of making the wrong one. In that moment, I chose to thank her instead.” 11 powerful phrases to stop over apologizing.
The cats are here to help manage rodents in the barn (and they’re fulfilling their end of the deal already). I’d like to protect the swallows and other birds. I’m trying to figure out if one of these bibs or collars would help.
On the topic of cats, anyone have experience with compostable kitty litter? I found some at the pet store but it is expen$ive. I hate adding kitty litter to my garbage every week.
We’re going to end the month as we went through the rest of it–full speed ahead. Temperatures are supposed to warm up, and hopefully this means the birds can move to the coop. This also means coop construction will finally be done. The cats got free range of the barn last week, so we have officially moved them out of the coop (although Maple was missing yesterday and we’re pretty worried). I’m also planning to be back in our bathroom, where the renovation is well underway (I’m so excited to share an update soon).
What special moments has May held for you? Anyone else achieving high productivity levels these days? What places shaped you and how you see the world?
Today is election day in Canada. Please vote. Please do it with kindness and consideration for our planet and for the people who most need help.
This month, I’ve been collecting quotes and links about humanity and the earth. Here are some that touched me the most.
“The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”
Ecological Literacy: Educating Our Children for a Sustainable World by David W. Orr
A couple of these links include powerful examples of humanity’s “temporal range,” the amount of time humans have existed. The Overstory by Richard Powers (one of the best books I’ve read), includes another, which I’ve copied below. I hope you’ll read this passage and think about our place in the world and the impact we have.
“Say the planet is born at midnight and it runs for one day.
First there is nothing. Two hours are lost to lava and meteors. Life doesn’t show up until three or four a.m. Even then, it’s just the barest self-copying bits and pieces. From dawn to late morning–a million million years of branching–nothing more exists than lean simple cells.
Then there is everything. Something wild happens, not long after noon. One kind of simple cell enslaves a couple of others. Nuclei get membrances. Cells evolve organelles. What was once a solo campsite grows into a town.
The day is two-thirds done when animals and plants part ways. And still life is only single cells. Dusk falls before compound life takes hold. Every large living thing is a latecomer, showing up after dark. Nine p.m. brings jellyfish and worms. Later that hour comes the breakout–backbones, cartilage, an explosion of body forms. From one instant to the next, countless new stems and twigs in the spreading crown burst open and run.
Plants make it up on land just before ten. Then insects, who instantly take to the air. Moments later, tetrapods crawl up from the tidal muck, carrying around on their skin and in their guts whole worlds of earlier creatures. By eleven, dinosaurs have shot their bolt, leaving the mammals and birds in charge for an hour.
Somewhere in that last sixty minutes, high up in the phylogenetic canopy, life grows aware. Creatures start to speculate. Animals start teaching their children about the past and the future. Animals learn to hold rituals.
Anatomically modern man shows up four seconds before midnight. The first cave paintings appear three seconds later. And in a thousandth of a click of the second hand, life solves the mystery of DNA and starts to map the tree of life itself.
By midnight, most of the globe is converted to row crops for the care and feeding of one species. And that’s when the tree of life becomes something else again. That’s when the giant trunk starts to teeter.”
March Break was always a highlight for me when I was growing up. A whole week off school. This year, it was a highlight again. Ellie and I didn’t do anything extravagant. We rested, played outside, puttered around and enjoyed the time. Ellie returned to her bike and learned to skip. The power of simple things, being together and enjoying this special place always amazes me. We had such a special week.
The highlight of the week was ordering our birds! Thank goodness the coop is close to being done.
I’ve also made progress on some other projects. The office is nearly finished, and I’ve made most of my selections for the bathroom. I’ll be sharing some updates soon.
I got to visit this special home and reconnect with some special people. Every detail was so carefully considered.
I took my Dad’s air compressor and my chop saw to a “dare to repair” workshop. The services were free, and the volunteers got both tools working again. I’m so glad to be able to reuse rather than replace.
Climate change is happening, and our homes, cities and towns are not built for this.
Canada is in an election campaign. The Conservatives are following Donald Trump in their strategy, philosophies and policies. This is not the direction I want for Canada. I encourage you to vote and vote strategically.
Book of the month is The Overstory. It was devastating and beautiful. The writing is amazing.
“But people have no idea what time is. They think it’s a line, spinning out from three seconds behind them, then vanishing just as fast into the three seconds of fog just ahead. They can’t see that time is one spreading ring wrapped around another, outward and outward until the thinnest skin of Now depends for its being on the enormous mass of everything that has already died.”
With only one day left in March, I’m looking ahead to April. This week has four (!) family birthdays. I’m also meeting with a cabinet maker who will hopefully be a good fit for our bathroom. Then there’s the coop, the office, teaching… life is full.
What was the highlight of March for you? Have you heard of repair clinics like the one I went to? I encourage you to seek them out in your area. Anyone else feeling anxious about this election? Who else is wrapping up projects? Or looking ahead to new arrivals!
Ups: Snow like we haven’t had in years (thank goodness for our farmer and his big tractors). (A little) more project progress. Ellie’s birthday.
Downs: I got sick.
February took my word of the year–care–and gave me a hard reminder that I need to take more care. I was sicker than I’ve been in a long time. Five days of chills, aches, not sleeping, and generally feeling miserable. Projects halted, the couch and I spent a lot of time together, my focus became what was absolutely necessary and going to bed early.
I of course was extremely frustrated to be so unproductive.
But I know I’ve been pushing myself for years and I need to take better care of myself. I’m hoping this illness was the wake up call I need. I’ve been slowly working my way back. I haven’t made any significant progress on the office, bathroom or coop. I’m taking twice as long to mark my students’ latest assignment. I’m going to bed about an hour earlier than usual (sometimes more). I’m still a bit frustrated at what I see as a lack of productivity, but I’m also proud of myself for making smarter choices.
Here are some of the things I’ve been up to this month.
I’m finishing off the month with a surprise adventure day for Ellie’s birthday (celebrations have been epic), lunch with a friend, a consultation for the bathroom renovation, and hopefully a return to the coop.
How has February been for you? Have you had any celebrations? Illnesses? What is your snow situation? Any documentary recommendations?
The year is off to a great start for us. The pond has been frozen this whole month, so we have been skating. It’s so special to be able to walk down the hill and go skating on our own pond. I also took Ellie skiing for the first time, and I’ve gone snowshoeing twice.
I jumped right into a few projects and have been making great progress (updates to come). Progress is always so motivating for me.
We even had a glimpse into what’s ahead for us this spring when we went to a backyard poultry workshop and got to meet some newly hatched ducklings (click through the slideshow above for fuzzy cuteness).
Life is full and fun.
Here are some other things that I noticed this month:
I love this church-inspired home. The antique furniture in the kitchen is an amazing look.
I’ve been using Floorplanner.com to map out some of this year’s home goals. It’s easy to use, free, and is a great tool to visualize my plans.
Mel Robbins is a new-to-me podcaster. Her Best of 2024 episode was full of interesting people and impactful advice. Most of all, it confirmed I’m on the right track with some of my choices.
Of the 37 books I read last year, Eve by Cat Bohannon is a standout. By page 10, I wanted everyone I know to read it. I think everyone (regardless of whether I know you or not) should read at least the introduction.
“If the story of our ancestors is about anything, it’s about survival. Hunger, and migration–the unyielding force of Death, driving us ever forward and out, into the gray line of a long horizon. That is where we came from. It drives us even now.”
How has January been for you? Where are you finding inspiration? Anyone else have a standout book from last year? Who else has been getting outside? What’s motivating you?
Home on 129 Acres 