in just a few days, i'll return home to louisville, in bad financial shape due to not being paid for the three months i've had off.
some friends claim they've gone a year, or even two, without "going out." for me, the hard thing is going to be restaurants; some nights, I just don't want to cook. but although i will likely be getting some good financial aid for school (and everything i just spent all my money on) in a few months, i'd like to see if i can go even a month without eating out somewhere. for me, that's a huge step toward the already very simplified life all of you lead.
anyway, with that (and just living a better, more wholesome, happy life in general, of course!), here are my fall and winter goals:
lots of wood fires (i'm lucky that my small but sweet apartment has a working fireplace!)
baking homemade bread (and sharing it when possible!)
a few nights of wine at home with a couple girlfriends
stockpiling, stockpiling... and lots of experimenting with food and freezing it, etc.
continuing to learn and practice knitting
reading two of Dr. Maria Montessori's books, getting many of my homework assignments done, and reading the entire Anne of Green Gables series
yoga at least once a week
daily walks (unless the weather absolutely, positively forbids it)
saturdays and sundays spent relaxing, babysitting, blogging, volunteering (this is the first year in EVER that i haven't worked a second job on someone else's schedule...despite still sort of "needing" it....hm.), etc.
that's kind of growing, isn't it? i'll leave it there. please send your thoughts along. i need the encouragement and need to slowly fall into this life.
Hi Karen,
ReplyDeleteIt's Bonnie. I started a new blog just for myself to share things I'm making and whatnot. Glad to see a new post, and thank you for the letter. I'm sure I'll send some mail your way when I have a quiet moment to sit down and write. Reading the entire Anne of Green Gables series is a noble goal. I did that one summer and will probably have to do it again at some point because they're so good.
We've been trying to walk more. For a while we were doing it every morning but then it started raining everyday so we have to get ourselves back into it because it really gives you an energy boost and makes you feel better.
Good luck with eating out less. We're kind of forced to eat out less living where we live because there's nothing near by, and the restaurants they do have here aren't really what we like anyway. No Indian food in VT:(... no mexican food... no sushi... Well, maybe there is, but we haven't come across anything good yet that's anywhere near us.
Talk to you soon! Good to hear from you!
That all sounds very much like growing to me! My biggest advice is to take your own advice - "slowly fall into this life." No pressure.
ReplyDeleteSome practical tips -
Put a sign on your refrigerator that says "Breathe." This is frequently the only reminder I need to pause and sink back into the present.
Don't get discouraged. Whatever you do, you're moving forward.
I think your best goal is to walk daily. It's something I ought to be doing too... maybe I can use you as inspiration!
- Maggie at greencouple.com