a step toward balance:
January: I created a schedule. This continues to be a work in progress. I think I will have found the right groove for the school year by the time the school year over! I am already planning a new routine for summer. I don't want our kids to be overly schedule, but a rhythm is critical to our (my?) sanity. I am piecing together a simple schedule of social/art/fun activities for Lala without me and I need to make sure Finn doesn't just feel dragged along. The bulk of the time, though, the kids will be with me, enjoying summer, exploring parks, gardening, playing, and helping me with homemaking tasks.
February: I stepped back from the computer during the daytime with my kids. Shortly thereafter, I realized I had bottled up my computer cravings and unleashed them into my evening hours, so I needed to step back more in the evenings as well. It was time to combine January and February goals and schedule my computer time, list, timer and all.
March: I focused on our family's diet and nutrition. This has continued to be rewarding in so many ways. As you can see from last Friday's {this moment}, we have not abandoned sugar completely, but we have reduced it significantly. I am content with where we are on this. I have (temporarily?) returned to cane sugar and honey, after reading several articles stating agave nectar isn't all it's cracked up to be, and will continue to explore other options. I would like to continue increasing plant combinations for protein and reduce (not eliminate) our dairy.
April: My goal was to get back to exercising. I was successful with this (3 weeks of exercising 4 times per week and 1 week of exercising 3 times that week), but I would like to increase my workouts to every weekday. I have also been drinking more water. My failure has been bedtime and sleep.
For May: My single goal is sleep. I was reading back over older posts of mine and realized that I have been averaging 5, sometimes 6 hours of sleep per night for months now. Maybe that is enough for some people, but not for me. Often, my sleep is interrupted by my children and often I don't get to bed early enough. Part of the problem is that for all my lack of sleep, I don't feel that I am any more productive. The lack of sleep has left me grouchy, left me looking (and feeling) older, and I believe it to be part of the reason I have been continuing to battle infections for the past year. This step is going to be surprisingly tough for me, but I need to set a curfew for myself and a list each night, in order of priority. Do the important things first and whatever is not yet done at bedtime will remain undone.
In addition for May, Jessica of Turkey Cookies has invited us to choose a word, write it down, and focus on it often. I am choosing the word calm.
A wonderful group of bloggers have joined me in taking their own steps towards balance. I urge you to click through and see how they are all doing and if you care to join, just let me know so I can link to you, then grab a button so you can link back.
one small change:
January: Our goal was to stop using new produce bags. I made a bunch of cloth ones and get a mini thrill every time I use them. In fact, they are useful for all sorts of things!
February: My goal was to resume a whole host of earth friendly and frugal activities I had let slide. I am so very glad I chose this goal, because I was beginning to feel as though I was not practicing what I was preaching anymore. Being kind to the earth so often equates with frugality, but sometimes it takes a time and energy I had been lacking. I shifted my energies from useless to useful tasks and I feel like I am regaining speed again.
March: Our goal was to reduce our food waste. We've been really successful with this, but I learned that it wasn't only our kids producing food waste.
For April: Our goal was to make a rain barrel. We did not succeed with this, but we didn't fail, either. We collected a bunch of information and decided we really want some larger food grade barrels and want to purchase used if we can. Mike found some for a good price and in large supply, but a 45 minute drive away, so we are waiting until either we find some closer or take a trip in that direction. We weren't idle this month, though. Perhaps our adoption of 6 chicks and making of their play pen can count towards a small change. We hope that chicken parenting will be provide our children with an array of lessons about animals, life, food, earth, and more. We look forward to their providing fresh, natural eggs and sustenance for our garden.
One small change was challenging each of us to make a monthly change up until Earth Day, which was celebrated on April 22 (and 2010 marked the 40th anniversary), but Mike and I have already agreed we plan to continue making changes. Perhaps our rain barrel will happen in May!
And on to my usual monthly tallies:
acquired new:
- The sweet banner above (and the beautiful wrapped package it came in, above that) were made by Camille of Camille Creates. She is always sewing sweet and fun clothes and projects! Thanks, Camille!
- Wire shelving for the kitchen
- Sun tunnel sky light
- Materials for the chicken play yard. We have a lot of wood on hand, but it is all treated and we wanted to use untreated wood given that the chickens will be providing food. Do any chicken owners have any comments on this? (I suppose we could seal the wood we have have.)
- Grannie Annie brought over play dough and finger paints
- The kids received an assortment of toys and books and art supplies from the many Easter bunnies that gifted to them.
acquired used:
- Kettler tricycle for Finnian
- Razor scooter for Lala
- jeans for me
- basket
- DK Rivers & Ponds book
- My mom bought the kids some books
- My mom gifted me a sweet tea serving set
And as a wrap-up to One Small Change, I wanted to list for myself all the ecological and economical activities we have always done, as well as those resumed.
Never stopped:
- Using washable mesh coffee filter
- Using homemade cleaners
- Using cloth (bags, pads, napkins, wipes, rags, diapers (although we do have to alternate in some paper due to rash issues for Finn), etc. We do still use toilet paper, but have a tub of wet cloth wipes available, too.
- Doing it ourselves (preferably with recycled materials) whenever possible.
- Seeking out used items first.
- Washing items when needed, not every single use.
- Collecting dishes and hand wash water in a bucket, to eliminate running dish rinse water.
- Using the library first.
- Trying to grow some of our own food.
- Making most foods from scratch.
- Home haircuts for most of us.
- Combining errands (and trading errands with friends. One of us goes one place for both of us and the other of us goes another place for both of us).
- Recycling. Reducing. Reusing. Re...
- Baking bread.
- Hanging laundry as much as possible. (We have always been line dryers, but we do have a power dryer and when illness hit over the wet winter months, we dropped line drying almost entirely.)
- Bringing drinks/snacks/reusable cups from home.
- Shopping for local, seasonal produce
- Learning how to make more foods from scratch.
How are you doing with all your group and personal goals?
I am stepping into May!
