It’s the simple things…

I’m a sucker for old farm trucks and spotted this on a family friend’s property; I sometimes forget how lush and green New England can be!

Okay, I’m doing my posts in reverse, but this is something I half wrote in Connecticut during my recent trip to visit family and I just finished editing the photos to accompany this post.

Every time I return to New England and I get out of my own head, schedule, daily routine…I am reminded of simple pleasures (many of which I took for granted when I lived there; funny how you sometimes have to leave a place to recognize its virtues).

While there I took absolute joy in things like:

A picnic on a beautiful day…

My sis, older niece and I at Lyman Orchard’s pond

Watching a high school sport from the sidelines and cheering for the home team…

That’s my younger niece getting ready to sprint off 2nd base

Witnessing the younger generation in my family reach milestones…

My younger niece again, this time all prettied up with her handsome date for the prom

Enjoying an iced coffee (from Dunkin Donuts which we don’t have in Colorado!) and deep conversations (as well as silly ones) with my sister…

My sis and I…she’s going through a major transition right now, so there were lots of tears and laughter shared…we had a great time together

Spending time with my older niece who is going away to college in Boston this summer…

Rolling around in the soft, lush grass with my “nephew” Buddy…

And trying to squeeze myself into my younger niece’s very busy social calendar…

Visiting my favorite orchard and country store…

“Would you like to try one of our fabulous marmalades?”

And driving along favorite routes…

Near Roger’s Orchards

Then finding a new farm/homestead/nursey/gift shop (and now favorite place to revisit each time I go back)…

Karabin Farms

Watching little families grow…

And many other things for which I didn’t capture photos of, like:

• Seeing the sugar shack operation of family friends who make their own maple syrup (and then going home with a couple pints stowed in my suitcase, yum!)
• Sharing the bed with my sister again, something we haven’t done in decades and like a grown up sleepover
• My mom’s cooking and special treats like her famous chocolate pie
• Nightly card games and lots of laughter with the family
• Hearing crickets at night (we just don’t have them at our high altitude)
• Doing simple tasks, like going to the grocery store, helping my sister run errands, escorting my niece to all her pre-prom activities, playing “hair-do” with my other niece…all because of the time spent together, the experience, the laughter and the chats that come with those activities

Oh, how the simplest things in life can bring such joy…

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Falling back into old patterns

When I first dreamed about what life would be like when I “took the leap” and left the working world, I had bucolic dreams about daily hikes, meditation, lots of reading and making a good portion of our food from scratch.  I was excited to launch a new business and envisioned work/life balance that I’d never have before.  For a short while it was all that…until I started my business.  Now I find myself slipping back into all-too familiar habits of working long hours, eating more convenience foods, finding shortcuts and forgetting what the outdoors looks like.  And it’s a bit ridiculous as I determine my own schedule, can stop/start when I want and live in the mountains!

Turning off the ambition and tempering my desires to dream up the next best idea is not easy for me and even though I’m so lucky to be living a life I love, I’ve noticed recently that I’ve stopped making weekly bread, I no longer take the time to hang the clothes on the line and days off that I promised to my husband have turned into full-scale operations of crafting, conversing with customers, packaging up orders and multiple post-office runs.

This is, by NO means, a complaint.  I am so excited about my business and artwork and LOVE being able to work from home.  I actually did this piece over the holiday weekend to express the utter gratitude I was feeling:

This is more of a public admission that I’ve slipped back to my old ways and I need to be true to the values I espouse here.  Simply put, I need to get back to a simpler existence.  More of the back to basics, less of the TV, scaling back some of my planning/dreaming time and focusing on more of the now (because my business spending is really getting out of hand and I’ve made the decision that I can’t buy anymore items that expand my shops, but only the things I actually need to run it).  More drawing the line in the sand, setting boundaries between home life and work life (not easy when it’s all in the same space).

I don’t know about you, but there’s something about the start of the school year (event though we don’t have kids) that causes a change in gears.  Perhaps it’s the end of summer and the start of fall (which I LOVE) that causes me to stop and reflect on the current state of affairs in my life.  Kinda like New Years.

And so I resolve…to refocus, reset goals and make time for homemade bread again.

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