My 15 in 2015

I have been making lists and goals and drafting plans as long as I can remember {see my lists of goals from 2012, 2013, 2014}. I love to check off a task + to plan all the ways I could spend my time, money, energy and other resources. I love to consider options.

This year I'm going to harvest my energy and stick with some plans. Take some real actions. I have decided to continue my goals + habit plans for 2015. I love having open ended goals because it gives me the flexibility to really strive for whatever I deem most important or appropriate to me. 

I write the following 15 goals for 2015 in order to work on passions and spend my time in meaningful ways. I know that my efforts may not always have perfectly posed end results. 

I will live 2015 with the word "do" in mind. 

I will start. I will take action. I will plan and find a way to begin and then take the following steps. 

I will ask myself "what can I do to support my happy + healthy life?"... 

My 15 in 2015

1. Simplify. 

2. Read.

3. Experience.

4. Taste.

5. Create.

6. Rest.

7. Search.

8. Learn.

9. Photograph.

10. Enjoy.

11. Express.

12. Save.

13. Appreciate.

14. Make.

15. Do.

My Goals + Ideas of Growth {From 2012, 2013, 2014}

Love to see my "work in progress"...


My 14 in 2014

First of all, I will live the year with the word "presence" in mind. 

I will also consider the following 14 habits or open-ended goals for the year.

1. Finish {something I've already started}.

2. Read.

3. Experience.

4. Taste.

5. Create.

6. Rest.

7. Travel.

8. Run.

9. Photograph.

10. Enjoy.

11. Write.

12. Save.

13. Appreciate.

14. Start {something new}.

Did you know that I've almost finished my 13 goals of 2013? {I plan to continue my work on this list into the new year}

My 13 in 2013

1. Read 2 books each month {I'm a bit of a book worm these days}

2. Create and follow a financial plan {eliminating debt sounds like a great plan for our future}

3. Continue de-cluttering of our home {I will kick box madness out of our office and garage}

4. Run, bike, hike or hit the gym four days a week

5. Share 10 tips, recipes, or ideas that consider or assist with my lifestyle choice of cutting out processed & non local foods on the blog {this has been a long quest -and I'm still not quite there}

• Real Food Budgeting Ideas
• Juicing
• Kale Loaded Pasta Salad
• Spicy Chicken Sausage & Kale Soup
• Tips for Freezer Meals
• 2013 Garden Reflection
• Popcorn Recipes
• For the Love of Canning
• Packing Real Food for Lunch
• Whole 30 Journey: Half Way + 30 Days Complete + Reintroductions

6. Take the time to travel to a "someday" place or go on a "someday" trip

7. Write {write more, write often and not just on the blog}

8. Garden {goodness knows that our compost pile is ready - 'grow big & grow at home'}

9. Create a desirable working space in our study

10. Run a registered 5k and continue the family 5k tradition.

11. Share about my choices and plans concerning "simple living" {share 5 tips or ideas indicating intentionality of this lifestyle choice on the blog}

12. Complete a photography challenge

13. Be mindful and creative with support given to friends and family {no matter how far apart we live}

Did you know I achieved 12 personal goals during 2012? Click on links below to read more. 

My 12 in 2012

1. Explore my cooking creativity and post about 10 personal recipes on my blog this year
2. Run, hike, bike or hit the gym four days a week

3. Sew an article of clothing that I or someone else will actually wear

4. Make 12 different loaves of bread

5. Paint and decorate our bedroom
6. Register and run a 5K
7. Go on a brew-cation
8. Start and care for a container garden (hopefully not known as a "contained deer buffet")
9. Read and finish one book each month (is it bad that I'm in the middle of 5 books right now? I'm having trouble with reading one at a time)
10. Organize my box madness (this might be my husband's favorite as we have sacrificed a clean "music room" until my boxes are sorted)
11. Draft plans and a working schedule for our "backyard heaven"
12. Host a party at our home

Put Up + Away {Canning for a Winter Day}

I love saving summer's produce for winter. 

Seeing beautiful food in my cupboard gives me great joy. 

The work takes time. But it is good work. Important work.

And we always enjoy eating the jams, salsas, ketchups {and etc!} that much more when the weather turns cold.

I've pulled out a few of my favorite canning resources and have been stealing glances at the pages, willing a bit of summer into my mind... these winter days have me missing berry picking and tomato chopping!

Three of my favorite canning books:

Putting Food By  by Greene, Hertzberg and Vaughan

Put 'em Up by Sherri Brooks Vinton

Homemade Living: Preserving & Canning with Ashley English

Some favorite recipes links:

Chunky Salsa

Apple Butter in the Slow Cooker

Bookworm: Books from 2013

Last year I set the goal to read an average of two books each month. I loved having this goal. I really enjoy reading, and knowing that I made it priority for the year allowed me to feel that sitting down and reading was something I should make time for. 

I find it interesting to look back and see what types of books I enjoyed over the year...

on my bookshelf in 2013

Food Rules - Michael Pollan

The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

Objects of My Affection - Jill Swarloski

7 - Jen Hatmaker

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - Barabara Kingsolver

The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

On the Road - Jack Kerouac

Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

Wheat Belly - William Davis MD

The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

Animal Farm - George Orwell

The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin

Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding

Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

Happier At Home - Gretchen Rubin

The Urban Homestead - Kelly Coyne

It Starts With Food by Dallas & Melissa Hartwig

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

squirrel seeks chipmunk by David Sedaris

2014 {A Year of Presence}

We've said goodbye to a lovely 2013...

Now onto starting a beautiful 2014.

Last year I decided to keep the word "focus" in mind when spending my time each day. Focusing on my list of goals, one special task at a time, and my current mode of social interaction. I believe that 2013 was a great year... full of achievements, but maybe not all the specific goals I laid out in January 2013. It can be difficult to complete goals when new adventures come along and drastically change the day to day life you were expecting to live. However it is wonderful. It is life.

As 2013 began to wrap up, I found myself ready to make a new list of goals and consider what I "should be doing". Something seems so refreshing about it. "New Goals" - so lofty, yet obtainable with a fresh new planner. But then the idea of new lists and goals began to weigh heavy on me. I don't know if making loads of goals should be the way for me to find success every year. But then again, it may depend on the goals. I am not certain. However, I came back to the idea of a specific word to keep in mind. I decided that would be the way to for me to start off the year of 2014.

::Presence::

I want this year to be a year of presence. To find myself fully present in the moment. To enjoy my current surroundings, to enjoy the others I fill my time with - while I am with them. I want to notice how I feel. How my loved ones feel. How my settings feel. Mindful of as much as possible and not just planning my next step. To be grateful of who I'm with and what I'm currently doing. To lose the distractions of extras, such as easily accessed media on my phone. To focus on the interactions of now. To train my thoughts from wandering too far and to steer them back to the present.

I am certain that 2014 will be something I want to take in, experience and remember - as many moments as I can.

sending my thanks to you, 2013...

2013 was a great year. Not what was expected, or planned. But truly wonderful. My family is so grateful for what we had in 2013 and what we have to enjoy in the upcoming year.


And with that... I'll attempt my 13 in 2013 final reflection.


My 13 in 2013

1. Read 2 books each month - success! I've loved having such a focus on reading last year. Knowing that I wanted to read at least two books each month made it easy to check out an extra book at the library or grab a book off my shelf that I had been "saving". 

2. Create and follow a financial plan {eliminating debt is a great plan for our future} - success!

3. Continue de-cluttering of our home {specifically our office and garage} - almost complete. Our office is awesome and I'm continuing to organize more and more usable items into that space; our garage has been simplified, but is currently a workshop space and not organized for storage. However it is better than ever before!

4. Run, bike, hike or hit the gym four days a week - lots of running, biking, hiking this year.

5. Share 10 tips, recipes, or ideas that consider or assist with my lifestyle choice of cutting out processed & non local foods on the blog - unfinished - this goal is still on my mind; but I didn't complete 10 posts this year on this topic. But don't worry, I'm not shying away from these types of posts yet!

6. Take the time to travel to a "someday" place or go on a "someday" trip - completed after our awesome summer road trip!

7. Write {write more, write often and not just on the blog} - complete!

8. Garden {goodness knows that our compost pile is ready - 'grow big & grow at home'} - complete!

9. Create a desirable working space in our study - still putting final touches, but I think this will take a lifetime - considered complete!

10. Run a registered 5k and continue the family 5k tradition. - check and check!

11. Share about my choices and plans concerning "simple living" {share 5 tips or ideas indicating intentionality of this lifestyle choice on the blog} - almost completed - will continue to post on this topic

12. Complete a photography challenge - check!

13. Be mindful and creative with support given to friends and family {no matter how far apart we live} - loved spending time on this over the year - complete!


I fully completed 10 out of the 13 goals this year. I plan to wrap up the final 3 goals that were left unfinished over the next year. I'll keep working on me daily and then writing on here when I can!

Much love and thanks to 2013 and much happiness to you all in 2014!

Tasty Corn - A - Poppin'

Sometimes I just really want some popcorn. But the past few years I had given up on it. I felt like it was too expensive at the movie theater both in calories/general health costs and pocket money {... does anyone say pocket money anymore?} And microwave bagged popcorn is super bad for you. Popcorn isn't my husband's favorite thing and since my cravings for it are so rare I just let it go.


But then... I wanted popcorn so badly. I talked about it for about two weeks. Finally I decided to try the "popcorn trick".


I wanted to use quality {local, if possible} popcorn kernels, coconut oil, and my stove top.

After some research {+ trials} I can honestly say that this is my favorite way to pop popcorn at home {on the stove}:

A Real Food Lover's Coconut Oil Popcorn



Oh and if you are into popping in the microwave instead of on the stove:

100 Days of Real Food Popcorn Trick


Happy poppin'!

Frugal Living & Eliminating Debt {Final Update for 2013}

With yesterday starting off the final month of 2013 my husband and I had a "budget + finances" talk over coffee. We typically drink something warm when discussing finances in order to pretend like we're enjoying the conversation. 

We were so excited to find that we paid off many more debts than we expected to this year... and saved quite a bit of money too {paying off over ten thousand dollars of debt that was not already part of our monthly payments and saving over ten thousand dollars for a rainy day!} 

I suppose there are better ways to do it, but our simple plan of paying off our highest interest rate bills first seemed to work for us. Which means that I'm calling this goal completed... and a total success!

As for the savings, one thing we did about half way through the year was make a savings goal and act on it. We thought about what we could realistically save each month... taking into account what we might spend on monthly bills, but also what we'd have to work hard {or spend less} in order to save. Then we put away that money before we could even spend it. In fact we treated it as a bill that we had to pay to our savings account.

This worked really well for us and we will most likely keep this same plan for next year too. 

Slowly Growing a Green Thumb: Reflections of My First Summer Garden

I've brought up before about how I've always longed for a garden. There's something so lovely to me about the idea of growing your own food, spending a little time in the dirt, enjoying the sweet spring and summer air. I daydreamed about it and pictured all the canning I would do from our own garden growing on this tiny lot of land. Well, summer is over... and I'm not totally disappointed, but growing more vegetables wasn't as easy as I was hoping it would be. 

This past summer was the first time we were able to have a raised bed garden at our home. And you know what, it got a little out of control. And it didn't produce as much as my dreams predicted. What did happen? Well, our plants got tall and leafy. Our tomatoes were later than I expected and I'm just now getting the peppers I was hoping for. 

I think that our road trip timing could have been better - we came back and I never caught up with the work that needed to be done in the beds. I think it is time for me to accept that our lot is a bit too shady for the large raised beds we made. And something needs to be done about it. I also can't "love that the deer walk right into our yard" and not expect them to eat all but three of my blueberries. 

I've had some more experienced gardeners tell me that with all the good compost we put in our beds that it might take a year for everything to really be ready to grow - that things are still decomposing and the nutrients weren't quite ready for the plants. 

The good thing is, now this first year of only "some growing" is on the books. I've learned a lot about preparing the raised beds and how to keep the critters out. I might know when to plan our next vacation as to not miss out on the crucial weeks of tomato plant growth. We also built and filled the beds, so now we can clean up this fall with preparing for the spring. This will give the garden all through the winter to sit and rest and hopefully be ready for planting and growing next season! 

Until then I believe I will just daydream of more blueberry bushes... which will most likely feed next year's local deer population. 

Saving Summer Produce: Tips for Freezer Meals

One task I've been taking on this summer is making meals ahead of time before heading back to work. Lucky for me I'm a teacher and I put in my year's worth of work and hours during about 10 months of the year. Between finishing a year of school, living an academic year, and preparing for a new school year about 10 months of my time is spent working and planning and thinking about some of my favorite people.


One bonus is that there are two months that I do not report daily to work. I can use this time to garden, vacation, and prepare our home for the year ahead. This summer I am attempting to pre-make many {freezer} meals for while school is in session. This will cut out the need of convenience foods to be purchased by our family. I'm sure we'll still buy bags of tortilla chips or the occasional frozen pizza. But I already know that one night a week I will dedicate my evening to meetings at work... this makes me want to try and save us some cooking/prep time and have a few meals ready to go.



Here are some tips I have concerning "freezer meals":

Consider what your family will eat - Often I want to have loads of variety for my family to choose from, but then I end up with prepared dinners that never just "sound good" in the moment to heat up. So if you know that pizza, chicken noodle soup, and lasagna will get eaten then maybe those are good meals to start with when you begin to make a dinner stash.

Consider who will be making these partially prepared meals - I make sure to have some meals that are simple for me to throw in a crock pot on my way out the door in the morning... this will be perfect for those nights that both I and my husband will be coming home just in time for dinner. I also am preparing a few things that will be finished in a way that is easy for my husband to get our dinner ready - such as 30 minutes in the oven or grilling chicken when he gets home from work.

Labeling - Be certain that you have properly labeled all meals. If any food in the freezer seems mysterious it may never be chosen for dinner.

In-depth Labeling - I'm serious about the labeling. I even write the cooking directions directly on my frozen meal packaging. This way if I'm not home my husband will still know what to do with the food he has selected for dinner. In fact this year I've added suggested thaw times and name items that we prefer to serve with those specific meals in case we need to check for  Parmesan cheese or tortillas prior to pulling out a certain dinner from the freezer.

Proper Storage -  Be sure to seal all containers and decrease any risk of freezer burn. Because no one will want to eat that...

Bulk Prepared Main Items - One idea I had was to pre-cook chicken to freeze. I have no other plan for this chicken currently, but knowing that I can pull out one or two chicken breasts from the freezer and have them thaw and be ready to add to any recipe I want will save lots of time when we're scrambling for a late dinner. We don't eat much beef at home but I'm sure if your family prefers a different type of meat you could make it work for you. I also chopped a few bags of peppers, tomatoes, and prepared corn for the freezer that will be easy to just throw in any type of dinner I select.

Consider your ingredients - I love using fresh summer produce in these meals that will be eaten in the fall and winter. There is just something special about taking a bite and enjoying that little taste of summer when it is cool and breezy outside. It also allows me to "use up" produce that we might not eat quickly enough if I didn't make it and save it for a different day.

Do you have any tips on making meals ahead of time?

How I Started to Simplify My Life

Are you feeling overwhelmed with your day to day life? Do you think you need to simplify your life? Simplifying your life is something that can happen. You just have to believe it and try to find something you are more comfortable with.

Sometimes the scariest step is the first one. The step that begins the roller-coaster of commitment. That first step is what made me take a few years of just thinking of ways I needed and wanted to change my life for the better. Maybe the speed of your life is perfect for you. And that is wonderful. I applaud you for already finding where you want to be. I hope we all can take steps to find health and happiness in our day to day.

I've thought lots about how to simplify my life to make it better (for me). It wasn't just about making the holidays more simple. It wasn't just about organizing my linen closet. Of course those things help... but they weren't the root of what I needed to change. I felt scattered and I felt everywhere all at once and not always in a good way. This is where I began to slow down, strip away the extras so that they would no longer complicate my lifestyle.

A Few Things I did to Simplify my Everyday Life...

Purging the Stuff
-I began by cleaning out boxes, drawers, shelves. I'm still cleaning out drawers, shelves, rooms and spaces. But it is important to me to know what I had and decide if I needed it. Of course then I donated (and am still donating) items that we do not need. I'm finding that the less I have the more I use the items I love.

Setting the Home
-I am slowly creating spaces we want to spend time in. Spaces that are more productive because there is less distraction. There is more room for thoughts, creativity, and the belongings that are important to us. I set spaces with specific feelings in mind. I consider how I want to spend time in those spaces and it is easy to know where to start.

Figuring Out the Finances
- I begun to make sound choices which simplified my spending and streamlined paying off our debt. Our family is aware of the money coming in and going out and how to pay off our current debt while trying not to make loads of new debt.

Losing the Drive
- I was in the car a lot. Now I work in walking distance of my home. I can bike to the library. We garden and our CSA program delivers to our home. We also find local places to fulfill our needs of services and where to buy our goods.

Learning to Say No
- I feel less overwhelmed when I identify only a few important tasks to do each day or evening. I say "no" or "wait" to everything else on my to-do list. And then I don't feel badly that I didn't accomplish more each day. I have found that this also provides me with some time to get to other tasks that I just simply enjoy.

Our Green Adventure in Acadia National Park

Our favorite part of this summer's awesome {and laid back} road trip was our time spent in Acadia National Park in Maine.

It was fun to camp and hike the park. There were so many different areas to explore.

Every landscape was beautiful - completely and in its own way. Oh my and the colors we found in the park were gorgeous- grass, trees, moss... so much green! So many shades of green. 

It was a most lovely adventure.

I'm linking up with Rebecca of Bumbles & Light and Kristi of Live and Love Out Loud for a summer photo challenge. Check out the photos of so many others thinking about this week's topic "Green/Adventure" {here}.

2013 Summer Road Trip

A mid-summer trip to just get out of town. Away from responsibility. To just do what we do. 

That was all my husband and I wanted out of our vacation this year: go somewhere, eat good food, see some sights, and laugh.

A few weeks ago we took a road trip with loads of stops and hours of being together in the car. We had minimal planned activities, and mostly just went where Lady Luck took us. And it was just perfect.


We planned a stop in Niagara Falls, NY. Just for camping and visiting the Falls {once at night, and once in the day light}.

We happened upon an art walk featuring community member art pieces, drinks and appetizers on a cute little patio, and a coffee roaster in Utica, NY.

We drove through the Adirondack Mountains and had a lovely day visiting Lake George. 

There was a great time had while camping in Burlington, VT. So much good food, shopping, sight seeing, beer tasting at the Magic Hat Brewery Tour. And a stop at The Vermont Pub & Brewery.

A tour and some ice cream eating was very much on the schedule from day one of planning this vacation. Who could pass up visiting the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory in Vermont?

Let's see, we hiked around the Quechee Gorge, ate mussels at the Portsmouth Brew Pub, and hit up bar for a late night bite in Bangor, Maine.

We loved camping in Acadia National Park and spending time in Bar Harbor and Portland.

We rounded out the trip by heading to Boston for Independence Day. An afternoon baseball game in "America's Most Beloved Ballpark", beers and dinner on the set bar of Cheers, then fireworks on the Charles River. Pretty American I'd say :)

It was a wonderful get away. Full of so much fun... with these photos serving tribute to the major highlights.  So happy we were able to spend a little time away from home just enjoying ourselves.

Frugal Living: An Update {Summer 2013}

We started out this year putting ourselves in the driver's seat of our financial life. Things were going smoothly, but totally disorganized. By just looking at our bills and actual debts {and their interest rates} we've been able to focus and pay down some major {to us} debt.

Since January 2013 we've paid off over $7,000 dollars of debt! {these payments were not already scheduled in our payment plans} We're talking done with minimal credit card debt, car payments, and part way through student loans.

And to be honest, we really owe it all to becoming aware of what we were spending. We weren't spending a lot but by finding a few corners to cut we were able to pay down debt.

My take away: It is easy to start planning ways to pay off debt. Just take a look at what you spend in a week or a month. Tracking out going bills and random purchases can be so informative. You may have no idea how much money leaves your pocket - whether as interest fees or impulse purchases.

Needing some inspiration on tracking your spending?
One family's 2012 spending with Mr. Money Mustache