It's just three weeks away, and I've been thinking a lot about being more conscious about the shifting seasons with my two littles. I've also been thinking about how to make my own seasonal goals, with wellness and making in mind. So I've decided to make myself a little checklist, and we'll see, come December 21, how I have done:
1. In the kitchen, I hope I will have continued to keep the following at bay: caffeine, alcohol, fried foods, red meat. I hope I will have also transitioned to keeping white sugar at bay as well too, with the reminder to myself and all that this doesn't mean I will never have any of these things, but that having these things will be very rare. For instance, we'll see what gets made, but there just might be sugar in that birthday cake of mine! I also want to see my vegetable consumption continue to rise and to have a bit of a ritual going with making sure I get all the servings I need. By December 21, I hope I will start to spread that ritual to my children more as well. (Must start with self before I can start with others, I know. Both at once might be a bit too teetery.) Water, too. More water. More cleansing.
2. In my hands, I have a few handmade projects I want to make sure are done, though I can't say what those things are, as they will be gifts: a something for Kelly, a quilt for Maya, a quintet of creatures made from Jim's old shirts for the grandkids, I have a plan for my mother's birthday (which is the same day as my own), and myriad presents for the holidays. I also would like to have a hand in Maya's Halloween costume, and maybe Finn's (though I think my mother has a plan), and I do have the fabric and pattern ready for the solstice.
3. I'm learning how to dye yarn, and I have a class in October, but if I want to use bits from nature, I have to harvest now, and I have to do it wisely. I hope to have dyed with walnut, goldenrod, and sumac, and anything that comes up in the class, I'll add to that growing list.
4. I hope to add daily exercise to my routine. I'm thinking about trying yoga before everyone gets up. I made the mistake of trying yoga while my kids were awake, but Maya just ended up doing the same poses as me, just underneath my body, or twisted around me, which is fine, but if I'm trying to get some serious movement in, this isn't the way to do it. Perhaps something quiet in the morning solo and something sparked in the afternoon with my two littles.
5. My friend Emily is involved in essential oils and using them therapeutically. I'd like to learn more about that, and she's talked to me about some of the basics of selling them too. I just might join her in becoming a spokesperson for this particular company; I want to test them out for myself, though I trust her experiences, and they have been good. I'm really looking forward to replacing a lot of what's in my medicine cabinet with something more natural.
Autumn is going to be a little harder than any other season this year, I think. I'll be stepping in for maternity leave for a woman who teaches two composition courses online, Tinderbox will publish on the equinox and the solstice, and I'm looking at applying to Ph.D programs. Maya is in her first full year of preschool and she starts dance as well. Finn is in that toddler stage that involves few words but lots of energy.
The wonderful thing: I'm getting energy back now. I'm eating so much better.
And right now, I'm watching my son as he picks apart an apple he somehow manages to pull from the fruit bowl on the table. He's saying to me, "six, seven, go!" (After "giving five" a dozen times in a row.) My daughter is tired and cranky, and there are apple bits all over the carpet. I'm knitting my way through a cotton cone and reading A Constellation of Vital Phenomena when I find the time. I'm going to get myself back into the sticky fray and enjoy collecting walnuts with the kiddos.
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