Swinging on Birches

I hate February. I really do. Every other month of the year has something to offer.  Lovely scenery or holidays or wonderful occasions. The change of seasons.  Campfire to fireplace, garden to harvest. Except for February.   Nothing happens in February.  No anticipation, no holidays of note, no new beginnings.  February just marks the continuation of a winter that isn't likely to abate for another solid month, at least in my part of the world. It's the month of sameness.  Where January is the tired, happy sigh after the holiday meal, February is the leftovers. February is a hard month for me. I realized recently that maybe February is hard because its sameness lays bare my  sameness.  These days of being a mother of young ones and a caregiver to even more young ones are marked with a startling amount of sameness.   Sometimes, I think of my days as an infinite series of the tiniest steps.   There are no brain surgeries or gigantic acquisit

Let's talk food for a bit. I like food. My family likes food. We try and eat a lot of homemade meals that the kids will also enjoy.  But, this takes time.  And energy.  And money. Three things that all families seem to be a bit short on these days. So, I've been reading the Clover Lane blog for awhile. This mom has six children ranging in age from 19 months to 19 years.  Yup.  Busy lady. She is awesome.  She has a plethora of sage advice on child rearing and family time and simplicity, but she also shares some recipes and some amazing ideas for organizing and paring down. Which gives this mommy hoarder  collector some great ideas. She is my blog crush.  You know, the ones you read and want to post a link to EVERY post??   Yup. Anyway, she's been sharing some very simple ideas about menu planning and grocery lists using--gasp!!--pen and paper!!  (Do people even own pens and paper anymore!?)   I've adopted some of her i