While I don't celebrate New Years Day, I always find myself drawn to the writing of resolutions, the making of lists and the reviewing of the previous year. Perhaps it has something to do with the shortening of days and long evenings curled up on the sofa. Maybe the early nights to bed and the extra time spent trying to stay warmly cocooned in the morning. Perhaps it is even the realization that Rosh HaShannah resolutions haven't taken off as desired and Pesah is right around the corner. Whatever the reasons, this year is no different and I've found myself thinking of the things I'd like to change in my life.
I've made my knitting list up, but I'm thinking I need to thin that out a bit to make room for other crafts. In my excitement I've overbooked all of my free time with knitting while I still have things I'd like to sew and scrapbooks to complete. Plus the blossoming urge to create, photograph and bake.
The girls and I have fallen a bit out of our schooling and activity habit. Let's be truthful here. I've fallen out of the habit and the girls are suffering. I've rearranged the toys and work which has breathed new life into it, it seems. As I write this, they are busily sorting change. I've also made a list of activities for the weeks heading to Pesah. Some will be Sunday adventures with Aba and others will be weekday outings with friends or just the girls.
The traditional foods and my healing has stalled out. It has been over two months since my first cold of the year and I'm still fighting it off and dealing with breathing issues. We've fallen back to using a lot of processed foods and take-out which no doubt adds to the general un-well being. In 2010 I'm going to work on mastering the making of those often-used items. Jam, ketchup, mayonnaise, and barbecue sauce. I'm also going to work on mastering those foods the girls really enjoy like waffles and macaroni and cheese.
Something I've found that really weighs me down is the collection of stuff we have. I've been working on decluttering these last two months and have gotten a lot done. The obvious *junk* is gone, but we still have quite a bit. As we look at moving we find that so many places that would otherwise be perfect are just too small for all of our stuff. I've always been intrigued by the idea of compacting so this year I'm going to work hard at it. And each month I will focus on one area of the house to see where we can compact more. Clothing to be donated, toys to be given away, craft supplies to use or share, dishes to part with.
Finally, I find that my organization has decreased. I believe this is interconnected with the general malaise and weakness of the past couple months, but I don't like it. Hanukkah seemed to spring up on me and there was never a chance for any crafts since the week was full of outings. Soon Tu b'Shevat, Purim and Pesah will be here and I don't want them to pass us by. I need to settle on one day a week where I can carve out an hour to make preparations.
Not much of a list, but still a full list with such potential. We'll see how it goes. I actually have high hopes for 2010 because I know that this stagnation can't continue and I don't want to fall further away from my vision of how our family can work.
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