So we took down the Christmas tree today. We had intended to do this yesterday, but we chose to nap instead. In these past few sleep-deprived months, I have to say that it was the best nap ever and I made the right choice to sleep instead of put the Christmas decorations away. Typically, we'd leave the Christmas tree up a few days after New Year's until Epiphany, but the past couple of years, I've recognized a need to get back to normal a little sooner. There's something comforting about packing away all the holiday decorations. They're all tucked away for another year. Don't get me wrong. I love getting the Advent calendar out for the kids and the Fisher Price Nativity play set, but I also love putting these things away too. I did leave out the beautiful red candles we bought this year. They look so cozy on the mantel. My husband loves candles, but I never really put them out, but I discovered that warm glow this season and well, the candles stay. With the new year comes a return to normal life. Again, I'm drawn to simplicity-- everything in its place, winter coziness and slower rhythms. I'm ready to turn out the Christmas lights and settle into Winter.
This time last year, I was so motivated with plans for the new year. Looking back at my blog for January last year, I had so much energy and so much excitement for the new year. Then, we found out we were expecting! I don't mean to sound like I wasn't excited. I was, but that pregnancy knocked me flat early on and we soon discovered the reason--identical twins! Although I was excited about the twins, I felt like I was in some type of fog for the remainder of my pregnancy and thus, I just didn't feel like myself during most of 2010. I hardly blogged at all and when I did, I mostly posted pictures. Without much energy, I let so much go (not willingly nor happily), but I'm happy to say that I'm back! Every day, I feel a little more ready to tackle so many more projects around my house. Each day, I feel my creative juices flowing again and I'm ready for the new year.
I don't typically make New Year's resolutions, but I start making plans--lots and lots of plans (reading plans, homeschool plans, knitting plans, cooking plans, etc). I'm pondering all that planning going on inside my head and I realize that this new year is the year that I should slow down a bit (not like I did when I was pregnant with Liam and James), but slow down in a different way.
I realize that I need to focus on fewer things not more (even if I can). I need to de-clutter my brain as well as the space around me. Simplicity. I need to apply this to our daily meals, to homeschooling, to knitting, to housecleaning, to reading...all of it. I set big goals for myself, but I need to relax and calm down. I don't need to set reading goals. It's not like I'm going to stop reading. I sometimes wake up feeling like life is a race to get everything done, but it doesn't have to feel like a race against the clock. Does it? I want to be a gentle calming presence for my family. I want to discover joy in the calm. So, my word of the new year is....
Calm.
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