End of....Beginning of....

A brand new year...again...didn't we just celebrate a new year yesterday? Well it seems like it, it all is going so fast the older I get.

I am sitting on our little front porch listening to the birds, we've had a wonderful last day of the year. Though this is posting on the first day I am writing it the last day. Right now as this posts I am getting ready for church, or at church, etc etc. 

Our weather was sunny and in the 70's absolutely lovely, Ashley and I walked the trail, Wyatt stayed home he has finished with his cycling, hubby is working, we cleaned the duck house, put an area together in our other poultry house for our new babies, little ducklings. They are the offspring of our ducks now, a friend hatched some of the eggs in his new incubator and gave us some of the babes for payment instead of paying for the 4 dozen eggs. They are cuties, and were born on Christmas day.

The sun is getting closer and closer to the horizon of the trees and the sun oven was outside all afternoon cooking part of dinner. I refurbished a blouse for Ashley she found at the thrift store this week, her and I had the week to ourselves while Wyatt was at winter camp for scouts, he had fun and so did we. This morning I had oatmeal with fermented cranberry, apple, and orange relish it was yummy and full of good probiotics. I found the recipe on Gnowfglins last week and had to try it since all those items are in season, and that is another goal this year eating in season and more back to the basics of food.

As I think of the coming year I plan on working on many projects and work on things inside and out, me and the house. Hubby and I bought ourselves a new dining room table for Christmas, new to us, it is an antique farm house table that I just love. And with our Christmas money from my dad hubby let me buy a 1940's Hoosier cabinet from a friend it needs TLC and work but it was a steal and I am really happy with it. So this spring while not working in the garden and the many other things we need to do I will be working on refurbishing it and will show you as I do. It has been a treat researching them and learning more about ours.

We are going to put in an outside kitchen on an existing concrete pad, install 2 homes for bees, setup and garden in a new 50x75 foot area this goes along with the one we already have, and the kids and I are looking for goats. Since I have had them before I am looking for a certain kind, breed, etc. And Wyatt wants another horse that is something I doubt we will be doing but ya never know. Oh and the kids and I want to put in a cottage garden for our herbs and some flowers, we want to put in a gold fish pond as well.

I also am going to work on me, I have survived this depression/anxiety/panic attack thing for over a year and have learned so much about myself. I have been reading a wonderful book that has taught me a lot and I am working on the 6 steps it teaches, The Depression Cure; The 6-step Program to Beat Depression without Drugs. 

So much is happening in the world, but I can control what happens within our home and that includes our little paradise in the woods. So that is another goal to work on this year working and keeping the enviroment within our home a paradise and truly loving it.

We can go on and on with what we want and plan on doing this year but in the end it is continuing on way we have been, tweeking where we have faltered, adding or discontinuing, and striving daily to stick to the path we have chosen.

I hope your year is one of mystery and joy as you step through your days, yes they are speeding up it seems, dark clouds seem to be on the horizon, the future in blank, and there are so many what ifs. But I want to see today for today and let tomorrow wait to be dealt with tomorrow, I want to relearn to savor today and let the worries for an unknown future go and trust in the Lord.

"See" you throughout the coming year, hopefully with the fruits of our labors to show you....but that is for tomorrow and I want to savor today.

Love,

Erika