Getting There

Another birthday come and gone.

My birthday came and went recently. I'm 33 years old now! I distinctly remember when my own mother turned 33. I thought she was rather ancient, of course. And I suspected that the world would probably come to an end before I managed to make it to that advanced age.

I was wrong, of course. A few blinks of an eye, and here I am. :)

My birthday was quite lovely this year. In the morning I went out shopping with my girls, and bought some new pajamas for myself (my old ones were so threadbare that you wouldn't even believe me if I told you about them). Then Chris took me out to lunch, and to our local piano store, which was having a sale! With much glee I picked out one of these:

My parents owned a Yamaha Clavinova (digital piano) when I was younger, and I used to love playing on it. For a few years now I have longed to have the ability to play music back in my life. I almost couldn't believe my own words when I told the saleslady I hadn't played for 15 years--it's been far too long. (My brief stint with our second-hand keyboard last year doesn't count--some of the keys didn't even produce a sound!)

Usually I prefer old fashioned ways over new technology--but this is one exception. I can't wait to be able to plug in some headphones and play some Chopin while the children are asleep. I certainly couldn't do that with an acoustic piano--especially when we live in such a small house.

Apparently one of the Yamaha plants was affected by the earthquake, so this model is not going to be available until December.  I suppose then it will be more of a Christmas present than a birthday present. Which is just fine, because it gives us time to save up the full purchase price.

I'm so excited! Once I brush up my own skills, I plan to teach my children to play, as well--if they want to learn.

The rest of my birthday was just as enjoyable. For supper we had the kind of simple food I love--gigantic salads with boiled eggs, and fresh baguette smothered in butter. Yum! Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies for dessert (I considered making a cake but decided against it), and we were just about to go for a family walk when a heavy downpour commenced. So we sat in our livingroom in the dark and watched the storm, and once it was over, the children put on their rubber boots and we went for our walk. The air was so fresh and cool, and the kids had so much fun splashing in the puddles. (Too bad I forgot my camera.)

It was the perfect ending to the day!

The joy of a simple holiday.

I really didn't mean to take such a long break from the blog...I've just been busy. Our Etsy shop has continued to enjoy steady sales, and I've been having a great time sewing gifts and baking Christmas cookies. I have to say, sitting at my cozy sewing nook and making a gift is a lot more fun than fighting my way through crowds at the mall!

This little birdie keeps me company at my sewing corner. Please ignore the dirt on the window. I do. ;)

I hear a lot of people, blogging folks specifically, expressing their desire to simplify their holidays. I can certainly understand this sentiment. Over the past few decades, it seems that the Christmas season has turned from a special time shared with loved ones, to a rather sickening frenzy of commercialism. The flyers that frequently arrive at our doorstep exhorting us to purchase high-definition wide screen tvs and diamond earrings for our loved ones; the displays of festive greenery that go up at the mall the very day after Halloween; the advertisements and sales pitches everywhere we turn, all telling us to BUY BUY BUY...it all gets to be a bit much. No wonder more than a few of us are taking a step back and saying enough is enough. Christmas is not about buying the latest, coolest technology or the biggest diamond or the most gorgeous dress or the most fashionable decorations. At least, it shouldn't be.

Although we're pretty much making all our gifts this year, I know that the kids will receive a lot of generous gifts from other sources, and I feel an urgent need to cleanse the house of excess possessions before the big day. Our house is small and we can't be lax about getting rid of stuff. I feel this way every time the cold winds of December arrive. This is when I enjoy cleaning, even more than in spring time. I have been honestly having a good time the past few days, organizing cupboards and closets, and determining what things will go to Value Village and which will be freecycled. Doing this is not only a practical need, but it helps to bring into focus for me what is really important in our lives and what is not, which seems appropriate at this time of year.

I've been having fun tinkering on our keyboard, playing some old-fashioned Christmas carols.

It's so easy to get carried away at Christmas-time, but I'm really trying hard to make sure we don't make our family Christmas about fancy things and presents, or even about lots of activities. Rather, I want our holidays to be about simple fun, good food, and the love we share. And so far this year, with crafting, baking, music, and not shopping, I'm definitely taking more joy out of the holidays than in previous years.

What simple holiday joy are you enjoying right now?

Skills I would like to learn.

I posted last week about the progress Chris and I feel we've made on the road to self-sufficiency. We are always learning, and yet there are so many skills we both still want to learn. We've only just begun our journey along this particular path, to be sure.

When Everett at Living a Simple Life posted the other day a list of things he wished he could do, and then tagged me as one of the bloggers he invited to do the same, I thought why not? It would be fun to make my own list of skills I'd like to learn or improve upon, either now or some time in the future.

To begin, I really need to improve my skills in gardening. My vegetable garden was mostly a failure this year, so I guess I could say I have no skill at all in this area yet. Next year though, I'm going to try something slightly easier and try growing herbs in our small backyard--for both medicinal and culinary use.

Which brings me to my next point--I want to learn a lot more about herbs and their uses. I've been fascinated by herbs since I was a girl and always wanted a pungently scented herb garden of my own, but for some reason I never got around to it. I would even like to learn how to create my own herbal salves, teas and tinctures.

Although I have done some simple canning this year, I know very little about food preservation and I would love to learn more and do more. Someday, I want to learn how to create a real root cellar.

I do have basic breakmaking skills, but I have yet to try my hand at sourdough and I've been meaning to for so long.

I want to learn how to raise chickens and goats, but these are things I can't try for now, being in the city.

I believe that a family being able to create their own entertainment is a valuable self-sufficiency skill. With this in mind, I really want to brush up my musical skills. I used to be proficient at the piano many years ago, but no more. And I have a violin in my upstairs closet that has been gathering dust for years too.

My sewing skills are still fairly weak, I need to learn so much more. Particularly, I am very interested in quilting and I hope to start my first project very soon (just gathering the scraps needed!).

I see so many bloggers posting pictures of knitted hats or mittens they apparently whipped up in no time...I don't know how they do it because I am all thumbs when it comes to knitting and the patterns look like ancient Greek to me. I'm sure if I stick at it though I'll figure it out eventually.

I used to draw constantly--in fact, my husband and I met in highschool art class. I'd love to get back into sketching and perhaps even improve on my previous skills. What would really thrill me, is to make my own gardening journals and draw in my own illustrations of the different herbs I've grown. Yes, I know, I'm geeky. :)

I have also been interested in soap making and candle making for some time. I'm not sure if I'll ever get around to those or not! There just aren't enough hours in a day...

One last thing--I'd love to be able to identify more wild plants, and especially to identify edible plants. In general, I'd like to learn some basic wilderness survival skills since I know virtually nothing along those lines at the moment, and hey, you never know...   I think this upcoming winter will be a good one for me to do a lot of reading, and work on what skills I may. Looking over the list, I have so much still to learn...it makes me happy to think about it, because I know that whatever happens in my life, I will never be bored.

Dear readers, please leave a comment telling me what skills you would like to learn, or better yet, post a list on your blog. :)