What Happens Next?

Since coming home from my vacation at the cottage, I've been in a bit of a funk.  Things there were so simple.   Get up, start the stove for food and hot water, eat, clean, straighten up the six chairs in the living room, sweep the bark from the floor, get the stove ready for lunch....

Then I come home and am bombarded by all these things that I have surrounded myself with.  Kids, animals, craft projects, books.... It is overwhelming and kind of depressing.  I go on and on about how I would like to simplify but I never do it.  But simple makes me feel good, so I really don't have a choice now do I?

Now, I cannot just pick up and move my family to the woods...(most of them wouldn't come anyway), I have to figure something else out.  I need to PRIORITIZE.  I am wincing here, that's a swear word if I ever heard one.  And in the spirit of my new endeavor...I will keep my priorities simple.

1.  Family
2.  Home
3.  Creativity
4.  Finances

I'm thinking of going with a Less Is More theme.  So I'm getting rid of a few kids.  KIDDING.  They all can stay...well except for the one going to college next month.

Opening her graduation present- an IPOD all sparkling and new.  

So here is my SIMPLIFY BOX, yes it's a cardboard Huggies box.  It may be like trying to save the Titanic with a tea cup, but I am going to fill this box every day for a month and donate it to Goodwill.  I am not going to think about value or how much I could sell the item for on eBay.  There is more worth in my goal then in my potential Paypal account.

When I am done, I would like to be left with the things that I truly love.  And then I will start on my shop.  Remember this?

Ok, so maybe two months and a bigger box.  Anyone have one of those freight containers I could borrow?

Wish me luck,
Lisa

Home From the Sea

We started out with eight brave souls.  By the third day we were down five.   All boys...they were bored and went home.  So we girls did things like recreate the Victorian photos found on the wall of the cottage.  You know...normal stuff.

I cooked a half of a turkey in the Star Kineo cook stove and while it was cooking (five hours!) I made cake donuts.

And Jake tried to herd fishing boats and seals.  They were about as cooperative as the goats.

We played a rousing game of The Flintstones Game.  Highly recommended.

Just in case you thought their mirth was due to good wholesome fun...they were laughing at the game pieces...which they oh-so-sensitively called "The Hitler Youth".  Horrible children.

We dug some clams...and ate them and ate them and ate them...

But mostly we just disconnected, read books, walked along the shore and tried to appreciate the quiet and beauty of this kind of raw place.  There was no electricity or running water.  There was limited cell service and no 3G, but so much more than all of that.  When you wake to ocean waves your day can not be bad.

Here's the website for the cottage.  Ross Cottage

Smiles,
Lisa

Little Bud Lobster Pants

Here are Little Bud's shorts that he would have worn if our picnic had not been cancelled due to rain.  Yes, they are made from tablecloth fabric.  But, I mean, really, how cute.

I made them from this pattern with some changes.  I did not put in the fly or button closure and opted for a faux fly and an elastic back for comfort and ease of changing.

Now we need to find another social event for which lobster pants are required.

Have a safe and happy Fourth!

Smiles,
Lisa

This Little Guy Could Use Some Help...

The first thing I thought of when I read this article was that this could have been my youngest daughter.  She was is always doing stuff like this.  And even though she's 15, I remember what her little hands looked like at 5.  if you can help with just a dollar or two, I'm sure it would mean the world to this family.

Summer Orange

Orange, it's not just for Fall anymore....

1.  New handmade skirt with purchased orange T-shirt
2.  Orange Cat
3.  Orange bowl with garlic
4.  Tiger Lily bouquet 
5.  Orange Chicken
6.  New goat hoof trimmers
7.  100 feet of orange garden hose
8.  Orange spools
9.  Two orange marbles