A Sunday

Today has been fully awesome.

First off, I woke up after 8am, and didn’t get up until 9:15.  Any day that starts with me staying in bed until 9:15, intentionally, is bound to be awesome.

I had tea, Steve made breakfast, the children played happily.  Midmorning, Corbie and I bundled up and went for a wander down the road to a friends house to go hunting for skates for Corbie, in their too-small-skates collection.  Corbie decided we were going to stay for a bit (seriously, he had his gear off before I even said hello) and a lovely chat over coffee ensued.  

After we wandered home and had some lunch, we bundled up again and headed over to the neighbours pond with our skates.  Freshly cleared ice and a perfectly sunny day led to a delight of an afternoon full of skating and walking in the snow, sledding down the hill, and sitting in Adirondack chairs and soaking it all in.

Now we’re home.  Griffin is building lego with a friend.  Corben is crashed out to the extreme on my lap.  Steve is surfing his geek sites, and I am blogging.  The world is a happy place.

There is Roadkill Stew in the crockpot for dinner (how the roadkill ended up in my freezer is a story for another day, but it’s not like it’s a racoon or anything, its some fine venison) and a roaring (propane) fire at my feet.  There will be one more walk before the day is done, maybe a small gathering to put together a seed order for our spring gardens (which we have been dreaming about with vigor.)  The day will end with me crawling into bed with my love, and watching an episode or two of the tv show of the month (we work our way though seasons of stuff online, which allows us to watch the stuff that’s good, all while keeping our house without a tv in it.) 

I am a lucky lady, and I am grateful for it all.  I feel like I’ve been given an incredible gift with this little life I’ve landed in, and I’m trying my best to take good care of it. My family, our home, this community, it’s all pretty special, and I look forward to seeing what each new day, week, season, year will bring.

Here's to Sundays, and all the other days too.

Poof January

Oh January, where have you gone? 

A few minutes ago it was the first day back at school after Christmas.  And since then...oh my, so much!

First, my baby turned three.  THREE!  How is that even possible. 

And then, so much other stuff.

We've been so busy LIVING.  There's been playing in the snow, and skating on the pond, and walking walking walking.  To tell you the truth, I have no idea what we've been doing all month except for living life to the fullest as much as we can.  That stuff takes time, my friends.

But I miss THIS.

I miss this blog, and pouring my thoughts out onto the screen, and talking to you guys.  So I'm going to try to come back. 

I keep having to remind myself that every time I sit down at the computer to write, I don't need to pour out the next great Canadian novel.  I just need to write, something, anything,

See, like that!

On the New Year. And walking.

Well, a week into 2013, and I'd have to say that things are going along swimmingly.  Our goals for the year (though not written down yet) are in full swing.

We have been eating like champs.  Healthy champs!  We've said so long to the gluten (for the adults, at least.  I'm working on the kids, but they're already eating way less.)  There have been veggies galore, and smoothies, and lots of homemade soups.  Lots of tea, hardly any coffee, lots of water, hardly any booze.  There have still been sweet treats kicking around, maybe even more than usual, but they've all been gluten free and 80% healthy. (There's the occasional bit of sugar and lots of butter everywhere...butter makes gluten-free breads totally edible, even when they're not perfect on their own.)

And, I've been walking.  Every day except one.  Not for too long, about 40 minutes total, but it's a damn sight better than doing nothing at all. The walking has actually been my favourite part...it's been so nice to get outside, and breathe in the fresh air, talk with a friend, and just get outside in the winter. 

Speaking of being outside in the winter, I want you to know that I can count on one hand how many windy night we've had down here.  Three.  The night that hurricane Sandy hit the east coast, the night of the Winter Solstice, and tonight.  When we have these windy days, I thank the earth for small blessings that brought us here, out of the wind.  Because on nights that it's windy down here, I know EXACTLY what it's like up there. On the Roof.  It's shake-the-rafters kinda windy.  Hang-onto-your-play-structure kind of windy.

And frankly, I'm over that shit.

That's all I have to say about the wind.  Thankful for small things, like the lack there-of.

Next topic - lets talk quick about 2013 and some goals:  Our big goals this year are to eat better, exercise more, and be generally more awesome.   We're already on it, and all the more awesome for it.

Now...one of my little goals has always been to do a project 365.  I think between trying to walk every day, and remembering to bring my phone to take a picture while I walk (which, really, that thing rarely leaves my pocket) and then posting a bunch of pictures at the end of the week, I have a decent shot of, like 80% success at a project 365 goal. 

So here it is: Week 1.  I hope you enjoy.  I sure am!

  

January 1st, westbound into the setting sun. 

 

January 2nd.  Homeward bound, in the dark.

 January 3rd.  Boys Club.  (Or rather, Jon and Marcy's garage!)

 

January 5th, close to home.

 January 6th, heading UP the hill...leaving me embarrassingly out of breath!

 

Today, January 7th, with my walking buddy.

This very random post is brought to you by the insanity of the first day back at school, and a very tired Mama.  Please excuse the mess!

The older he gets...

...the more precious these moments are.

A New Year

So I was going to do this tomorow, but I know tomorrow is going to be a crazy day, and I know it'll get lost in the crazy day shuffle.  So here it is: the 2012 recap and plans for 2013.  Quick fast like, because it's waaay past my bedtime.

2012 kind of rocked.  We started out the year dreaming of a new home, but one that we were going to build with our own hands.  We spent weeks designing a house, which even though we're not going to build it (right now) was a wonderful learning process that taught us so much about ourselves and how we want to live.

Sometime in early March, when our plans to build were halted by a realistic driveway digger guy (who basically told us that the driveway into the land, which would have to be long, fairly steep, and cross a NEC protected river) could be the most expensive and most pain-in-the-assive* part of the project.  He also, for the record, said it could be easier, but it wasn't likely.  (*is TOO a word.)

We decided not to take the chance.

Especially when someone dangled something shiny in front of us.

It was another house.  Already built.  With a perfectly functional driveway.

In a community, a really good community.

And it was pritty!

So on May28th we moved into it, waiving adios to the Blue House, and started life anew in the Valley.

And since then, time has flown.  We've been here for 7 months.  It feels like we've been here forever.  I know more about some of these people here than I do about people I've known for 10 times as long. 

And they are our people.

To say that we're happy here would be an understatement.

Our lives have become so much richer in the past 7 months, that it feels like it would be tough to beat right now.

But gosh darnit if we aren't going to try.

So that's 2013 in a nutshell - beat 2012.  We're going to get out an enjoy the rest of the winter, something we never did at the old house.  We're going to eat better (we're going gluten free in the New Year.  I already have, I'm just taking the rest of the family with me!) We are going to be more active, take better care of ourselves and eachother; we will love more, laugh more, smile more, and do more to make our lives and our corner of the world a better place.  And then we'll work to send that joy out into other corners of the world and make them better places too.

If you are a part of our lives (which, you know, you probably are since you're HERE and all) then we thank you for being a part of all that's gone on in the past year.  From family to old friends to new friends, to friends across the country and on this crazy ol' internet, we've been so blessed to have so much support from so many wonderful people in our lives this year.  (That was sooo too many sos in one sentence.)

But seriously, for reals.  We love you guys.  And maybe I don't tell you that enough!

So thanks, all.  Thanks for being a part.  Thanks for reading.  And thanks for the love.  Right back at'cha. May wonderful things come your way in the following year (and forever more, for that matter.) You all deserve every last drop of it!

From us to you, the love!

xoxo

Christmas in Photos

We had a lovely holiday.  Just lovely.  I worked right up until the 23rd in the store in Creemore, so chilling out as of the 24th felt good.  OK, honestly, it was late afternoon on the 24th when we finally sat down and relaxed, but as of then it was solid!  We drove to London yesterday to hang with my brother and Mom and the neice and nephews, and we'll head home tomorrow to see just how much snow needs to be shovelled! I have another week off with the kids, which I am very much looking forward to.

So here is our Christmas (so far) in photos.  Hope yours was as lovely as ours!

An early Christmas present from Kelly.


Christmas Lasagne
 

Tracking Santa on Norad


Silent Night, indeed (Corbie crashes at 5:30 on Christmas Eve!)
  

Bright and shiney on Christmas Morning.

Christmas Dinner in the sunroom! (We love our sunroom!)  

Lego Mania at my Brother's house. (One of 4 sets being built at the table!)
 

 Happy Holidays to you all, my friends!

 

 

 

I'm back.

Hello long lost friends.

(Or was it me that was long lost?  Whatever.  Details.)

The Christmas shopping/soaping rush is over, with my last show being this morning.  Let the official relaxing commence!

We rung in the Solstice last night with some fantastic folks, a snow storm, a big-assed bonfire (despite the snow storm and crazy winds) and some most excellent food, including a large venison roast cooked on the bonfire.

Some brave people braved the crazy weather.  It was windy, and cold, and snowy, and yet we hung out by the fire all. night.

It was awesome, full stop.

I don't have enough words to describe how in love with life I am at this moment.  (Yes, we're back to me gushing about how wonderful things are, I hope you've missed it.)

Every single day I'm amazed at the amount of awesome that is hanging out all in one place here. 

(Sidebar: The last month wasn't totally filled with awesome.  There has been some rotating illness, including "the ITCH" which plagued me for nearly three weeks.  Going gluten and alcohol free, and doing a liver detox has mostly resolved said itch...however it's a shitty time of year to do both those things.  However, realizing that the only person who can take charge of what goes in my body is ME, its time to make some changes.  I've been told that a Paleo diet would make me feel the best I've ever felt, so I'm considering it.)

There are some exciting things afoot for this coming year, and I am looking forward to having some time to think about them all.  Sitting still, drinking tea before it goes cold in the cup, reading books, watching movies, knitting, hanging out with my most favourite people in the world, in the best place I've ever know.  Those are my plans for the next two weeks.  

Hope you are all safe and warm, and doing very much of the same things.

Happy Holidays from all of us!

Hardcore Valley Peeps, and a few folks "from away" brave the snowstorm. 

Chestnuts Venison roasting on an open fire.

So much in love with this family photo!