Resolution.

Two years ago I made some resolutions to get me started on a more self-sustaining lifestyle. I did pretty well; learned to bake bread, plant a garden, harvest seeds. I learned a lot of sewing tricks and how to cook almost anything from scratch. Picked wild fruit and did some canning and freezing along side two great friends. I stopped using paper towels (for the most part, there is still a random roll bouncing around the house) and bartered for as much as I could get away with. I hung a clothes line and used it all summer.

But then this past year I got pregnant. All summer I dreamed of a garden while I lounged on my couch in the heat. I burned a few loaves of bread because I fell asleep before they were ready. I thought briefly of doing some canning and then remembered it meant standing over a hot stove for many hours. I wasn't even about to hike up into the woods to pick apples. Cooking smells made me nauseous and nobody wanted to eat what I was craving anyway. Carrying heavy wet laundry up and down the stairs was out of the question most of the summer.

Yes, I realize how wussy and lazy I sound.

This year my resolution is to actually USE the skills I've picked up these past few years. Already the cooking is going very well, in part thanks to a great slow cooker book my sister gifted to me. I'm having a hard time finding the time to sew, but I have very recently taught myself to crochet and that's really easy to do while nursing my half pint. I just remembered I still have saved a PDF pattern book I bought years ago for a friend and so will be making my annual hat from now on as winter sets in. I think there will be something very satisfying about getting ready for a new season, using or saving up what's left of the past season and moving on to a new focus.


The will be a garden in the works once the ground thaws out, and I may even start the seeds in the house since that's not something I've done before. I don't have outrageous expectations with the baby hanging around, but I think that I'll definitely be more on top of things with him outside of my belly! At least in the latter part of the year he can simply tag along :)