Living The Quiet Life

Today I am sitting at my desk dreaming. Dreaming of a quiet life out in the country someplace where I can devote my time to writing and crafting and making our house a home. Is this a possibility right now? No. I can't have a home out in the country, not right now anyways, but that doesn't mean I can't bring that simple life to me and you can't do the same.

I have been thinking a lot lately and I have been trying to make my life as simple as possible. This past summer I planted  a small flower garden in the plot of land right next to my apartment. Now most of the flowers are starting to wilt and I need to do more work in it to make it ready for winter but I am looking forward to that work. To get everything ready for a beautiful spring I know I will enjoy this coming year. I have included a picture below of the little herb garden I had but now has been cut down for fall.

It really helped me feel more connected to the earth again, something I found I had been missing quiet badly since moving to the city and struggling with apartment life. However, this isn't the only step I have done to get that homesteading feel inside the city. I have started to buy little things to make our apartment move of a home. I brought in warm neutrals instead of the blue couches (slip covers at Target are a wonderful thing and much cheaper than most places) knitted some pillow covers and started clearing out the clutter. Our living room used to be a catch all for all my crafts and still is but I am getting better at making sure to store the projects I am not working on so that it keeps the space feeling more open and less hectic.

I have also been really trying to throw out a bunch of items that Michael and I really just don't need. I will admit it. I am a recovering Pack Rat. I will be the first to say but once you start liberating yourself from stuff you realize how much it was weighing you down. Now I am not saying you have to go completely minimalist because for most of us that is not possible but cut down on the stuff you haven't even touched in a year, or more. I know I was/still am guilty of having snippets of fabric and bits of cheap yarn from years ago that I finally threw away. If I need it, I can buy it again. No point in keeping it for the potential use I might have for it five years down the road. I faced the facts, I haven't used it in the three years that I moved out of my parents house, I am not going to need it five years from now. And if I do, then I will face that ship when it comes into dock.

Why am I sharing this? Because I know how hard it can be to see such a task in front of you. I want to live on a homestead out in the country but I can't because I can't afford land or a house, let alone to quit my job and move away. You probably can't either. However there are little things you can do to find time to adapt it into your life. To get small steps closer to your dream.

I, personally, have started doing more home projects and re-found my love for cooking. My next step is to spend a day a month making homemade bread and freezing the extras. This isn't possible for all people but think of other ways you can change your life in the small ways to find your dreams. Do you want to have a garden but live in an apartment? Buy some pots and have herbs for the winter in the kitchen. And trust me if you have never gardened before most likely they are all going to die (I have killed many a plant over my years and still do). Don't get discouraged, keep trying and do different things until you find what works for you.

Do you want to save money on food to help you save for the future? Try something which I am trying to do by making things from scratch. Not only does it help you save money but it also keeps all the gross chemicals and preservatives out of your food. It is a large grocery bill at first but you will notice how long those things last and how much money you are saving in the long run.

I love to knit. I have been trying to knit as many things for the house as possible. I have knitted tons of dishcloths and 90% of all the scarves I own. Knitting for me adds character to my home and also helps me keep busy instead of just sitting on my butt. Well okay, I sit on my butt when I knit but I think you know what I mean. It keeps me busy even on down time. It helps me relax and it makes beautiful things in the mean time.

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These are only a few things you can do. Try picking up sewing, or quilting or even painting. Try making some of your own jewelry. Try your hand at homemade bread, or trying to eat out less and make more at home.

I would love to hear about your progress and what you do to make your life filled with that quiet joy of simple living.

Sometimes Days Just Get Away From You

Do you ever have that happen? Where the day just seems to fly on past you and yet you got nothing accomplished? It is one of those kind of days for me. At least I got a few errands done. And by a few I mean I waited at Joann's for nearly 90 minutes just waiting for one cut of fabric. Wedding planning! Yay (insert sarcastic smile).

I am glad to be getting some of this stuff done early but it ate up such a huge chunk of my day. But looking back I have done things today I haven't done in a very long time. I ran this morning. Boy, am I out of shape, but I did it. I made it 90% of the way without walking and I didn't stop once.  Ronnie (my wonderful Basenji mix, yes that is a dog breed) loved it. She has been dreaming of more exercise too. Both of us are getting sedentary in our old age. Oh wait, neither of us are old. Gosh darn it.

I read a lot of one of the most lovely blogs I have read in a long time. The Sitting Tree. It isn't like it is the most magical blog in the world but it really speaks to my heart and the way I want to live my life. Not saying her life is perfect because lets face it no one's is but it is something Michael and I have been talking about lately.

Last night we had a fire in the fireplace and had candles lit all around. We just spent time together. I reheated up left overs and we cuddled on the couch as I knit. It was a nice quiet night and something I greatly enjoyed. I am a home body through and through and on days where the rain is in the air and the clouds dampen the sunlight makes me want to stay inside, cuddle up on the couch with a good cup of tea and knit. Of course then real life steps in and reminds me I have an appointment I have to leave for in 30 minutes and my dreams get whisked away for another day.

Enjoy life everyone and sometimes those days just do slip away before you can appreciate how great they are.

A Lot Going On

It is that time of the year again. People always say summer is their busiest season, mine is when the weather starts cooling down and the leaves start changing colors. To top it off, this year I am also planning a wedding, mine. It is taking up a lot more time than I could have imagined. I hope it settles down soon but if it doesn't I will learn to adapt. Anyways, where was I? That is right, Autumn. Autumn for me is a time of great change. It too has been my favorite season since I was a little girl. You can smell it in the air, the ground smells damp and the leaves and ground cover starts to decay into new life for spring. Everything is going dormant, and you think I would be too? No, now is when I start to prepare for the cold months, the frigid months and the busiest time of year. The holidays.

Autumn for me is a time to start to cozy up on the couch and make all those knitting projects I have been putting off for way too long. It is for me to start making all my Yule time gifts, aka, Christmas. It is a time I think of redecorating and reorganizing.  It is a time of great progress for me.

This past weekend I went back to Wisconsin to visit my family and to do more planning for my wedding. I will sum it up that I didn't get as much done as I wanted to. Not enough time and way too much to catch up on. However, one really great thing about my trip was I found a great little yarn shop. I bought some great yarn and have already been putting it to good use. I finished a tan scarf

I am also working on the red scarf now. With the little bit of extra I had left over from the tan scarf I made a coffee cozy that I am planning on giving away for Yule. I am going to try to make everyone all homemade gifts this year with things that mean something. Frozen cookie dough, home made breads, coffee cozy's, just a gift basket full of goodies.

Back to crafting and cleaning I go. The house is a mess from being away for 5 days and having two guys living in it thinking "It's clean." Mhmmm, sure honey. I love you but it isn't.

Until next time and our next adventure.