Out withe old and in with the new

Happy New Year!! My sincerest wish to all of you for a bright, safe, healthy, and JOYOUS 2012.

I do not do well with resolutions. I do like reflecting on where I've been and look ahead to where I'd like to be.

2011 was a year of changes for our family. In January, we were blessed with a healthy, happy third child. In April, the Farmer stopped traveling for work and the company I worked for closed. In went from working part-time to not work to working part-time again in August to full-time plus in September. In October, I found out that I would again be unemployed and in November found out that I could keep my job but would have to travel 54 miles one way. In December, I was offered a job 6 miles from my house with a wonderful lady who set my schedule to work three days because she understands the importance and role of family and the constraints of our farm.

Our farm gave us many blessing this year. We had a freezer full of meat from our beef and chickens that were butchered. Our gardens produced an over abundance of produce that we were able to share with others. We added more bees and were again able to share with others. We had a rough year with animals. We lost all but one turkey (Ol' Red is still with us), to predators. Megan, our mule who joined our family this summer, died this winter. We found a home for our horse Sweet Pea, a young man who will train her and ride her (which is what she needs). We lost two sheep to old age and six young beef cattle to the heat. We added Oscar, an adorably ugly little pug, to our family.

Our children have grown and continue to amaze me. My beautiful daughter talks of God's love and has a sweet and caring heart. My wild middle child fills my days full of laughter, hugs and kisses. My lil' baby, with his constant smile, warms my heart and makes me yearn for more. My children are constant reminders of God's love and work in my life. The Farmer and I continue to be healthy and grow in our relationship and we are a joyous family.

In 2012, we want to continue to grow our farm and to live a healthier, more sustainable, independent lifestyle. We want to continue work towards living a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. We want to continue to explore alternative methods to our lifestyle in all aspects of our life.

I want to eat healthier and exercise more. This was hard in 2011 because we were constantly changing and it was hard to establish a routine. I want to cook more, use more fresh fruits and vegetables and continue to work towards eliminating processed foods. I love to cook and bake and want to find ways to work the kids into the kitchen. I see the joy it brings my children to help cook and bake and want to do more of that.

I want to be more organized and have less clutter! We have a small house and we easily become cluttered with "stuff". I've been working on decluttering this past week and it feels heavenly! I'm also embarressed to say that I took one 30 gallon garbage bag full of "stuff" out of the kitchen and bathroom. This will all come slowly as we settle into a routine now that there is some consistency in our lives.

I want to be more crafty this year and be more serious about my hobbies and crafts. I've become lazy and it shows in my sloppiness in my work. That means slowing down and working through the project. I also wanted to add a new hobby/craft I can do with the kids and the lil' lady choose jewelry. So we've been playing with some new jewelry supplies (cuz you know, sticky glaze and a 3 and 5 year old are perfect together!). :) 
I want to grow my sewing skills and get out of the rut of making simple things because I only have a certain window of time.  And I want to crochet more.

We want this year to be a year of growth on the farm. Of getting things in order and addings to our stock (trees, garden, animals and bees). Just as I strive to be more organized in the household, we're also going to strive to be more organized with the farm. We've talked about milking the goats but we're doing it slowly. Research first, then get prepared, then progress forward (I know! What am I thinking?!?!).

And finally we want to be more as a family. No, I didn't forget a word, we just want to be more. More family time, more laughing, more chasing fireflies and just more. After almost 2 years of working evenings, I'm now working days which will leave us for more family time when we are all together. So we just want more family. More chasing, more giggling, more snuggling, more crafting, more silliness, more games, more books, more popcorn, more hot chocolate, more togetherness!!!

I could really write more but maybe I'll end here and just go get started on that MORE!

Happy New Year!

Lisa