Barefoot in February

I’ll describe this week as disjointed.  Up and down, sky high and low, low.  What a funny collection of tired and exhilarated I felt.

Who knows why?  But my rhythm was a bit off.  Perhaps it was as result of the cold working it’s way through my family.  And, yet, there were highlights.

Like a perfect picnic under February sun.

My children frolicked, as only children can.

And I got up to collecting the many moments and gifts of the day.

Picnic blankets on a solitary beach.

A 4-year-old photographer.

“Lion-head” trees in winter.

A sun-kissed baby.

Discarded boots.

Eyes that look deep.

Bare feet in February.

What was I lamenting?

I certainly can’t recall.

Blown away in the face of all these blessings.

Putting My Head Back in the Clouds

It’s February, and I am fast approaching my first blogiversary.  Just under a year ago, I began Musings from the Middle, as a way to track all of the amazing changes I’d been experiencing in my life.  My heart is full, even now, as I read over some of the posts I wrote last year.  The hopes and dreams and wonderful directions in which I was going.  And, thankfully, continue to be (albeit somewhat stalled).

Last year, I:

1. Started blogging

2. Quit my job

3. Wrote a novel

4. Started a business

5. Rediscovered photography

6. Generally fell in love with life

I have to say, it was a good year.  It was fueled by the discovery of a few wonderful books, and the help of a few wonderful people (my husband and children).

I’m not sure what to say, but my heart has been asking me to come back to this place.  The place where it all began.  Running an online community, while learning how to learn with my children, while desperately finding ways to generate income has been – well, busy.  I’ve been online a lot.  And none of it here.

But, past few weeks, especially leading up to the day I started writing my novel last year (and thinking of what has come since then), have made me introspective.  And, I’ve been trying to remember why I started all of this in the first place.

So, however this goes.

I’m welcoming myself back to this place.  

This place of recognizing the beauty in life.  

The moments and the wonder that make it worthwhile.  

The creativity that blossoms when we least expect it.  

And the wise voices that infuse it.  

For anyone with a creative soul who reads this.  Welcome yourself back to that place.  The place where it all began.  The place that helps you remember.  And the place the fires you up.

Go forth and create.  And capture and cherish those moments that make your heart sing.

Happy year two.

Catching September Fever

I always find September to be a time of rebirth and renewal.   A time of excitement and a certain freshness that echoes the cooler temperatures.  I love breathing in September air.  And I love looking forward on the horizon.

September always feels like the start of a new year (much more so than January). Something about the end of the hot weather, and the shorter evenings signal a new sense of organization in me.  As though I know my days are getting shorter, and I’d better make better use of my time!

This year, my September preparation largely revolves around my children.  Making the decision not to send my son to preschool, I have been deciding what we might do instead.  How we might choose to structure our days, in a way that works for all of our family members.  What classes he’ll take, what events we’ll attend, what homeschooling supplies to purchase, if any.  And what elements we want in our day, and in what order.

However, this September, I also want to think about me.  Summer always feels like a time for being out of the house, enjoying life at the tips of my fingers.  A bit of everything, a gathering of experiences.  Fall feels like rhythm.  Like settling in, buckling down and diving in.

So what will I dive into this September?  My new business, The Homeschool Co-op.  But, I also want to make more time to read, and remember the other parts of me (that don’t involve a computer).  This fall, I am going to read over my novel, and decide on whether or not to edit it.  I also want to continue improving my photography.  And, I do know I am itching for some stability and good old fashioned rhythm and routine.

It isn’t like me, but this year I crave a schedule.  I crave some order, and some new and awesome experiences.

So, I looking forward to breathing in the fresh September air, and taking out the cool weather clothing.  I am looking forward to doing some of the things I have been talking about.  Homeschooling, writing, blogging, growing a business, and cherishing my children.

Mostly, I want to catch September fever.  That time of year when anything seems possible, and new beginnings are a given.  I want to learn something new, and fly with it.

Welcome to September everyone!  And what are you looking forward to this season?

Homeschooling, Playing Outside & Growing, Always Growing.

Berry Picking

Life has been getting in the way!  Summer is such a wonderful season, and I’ve got to admit I have just plain been having fun.  But, the past few months have been big ones in terms of life change, and growth, too.  I figure it’s time for me to record these things, and, so, here it goes.

As the year has progressed a few priorities have come to light for me.

  1. To be a stay-at-home mom.  Learning and living with my kids, daily.
  2. To be a homeschooler.  An extension of the first.
  3. To explore creative options for work, and to continue to use my expertise, while stretching myself.
  4. To spend more time outside.

To this end:

  1. The kids and I have been playing outside almost every day.  The wonderful therapy of sunny (or overcast) summer days, woodland walks, exploring and bike riding has been, well, wonderful. (An exciting side benefit has been all of the new photographs I’ve been inspired to take while breathing it all in).
  2. I resigned from my full-time job, instead working on call every once in awhile.  I still get to be a librarian, and I get to appreciate being at work, because I don’t resent the fact that it is taking me away from my children everyday.
  3. I have embraced the idea of homeschooling, and have been doing tons of reading, research, and learning with my kids.
  4. I have started a brand new form of work: The Homeschool Co-op.  Combining my expertise as a librarian (research, writing, reader’s advisory skills), and my passion for homeschooling, I have started a brand new business.  In essence, it’s an online homeschool co-op: a place for people to share their passions & expertise with one another.  It’s part blog, part social network, part resource sharing & book recommendation, and a large part heart.

If your interest is homeschooling – check it out (www.thehomeschoolcoop.com).  I’d love to have you join our community.

This entire year has truly been a process of growth, rediscovery and refinement.
When I stopped to consider why I started Middlemusing, and what I’d like to continue using it for, I realized something.  I started this place for myself.  A place to record my personal growth and acheivement.  Although my children often overlap with this, Middlemusing is not solely about them.  Nor only about my family.
So, I have also started another blog, seaandforest.com.  If you want to check out my family’s home learning journey, follow us here.  It’s in its infancy, but I’ll be tracking our progress together and sharing our discoveries.  As for my own personal journey (literary, creativity, goals) I’ll continue to be charting it here.  So (breathe a sigh of relief if you like), those of you who aren’t so interested, don’t have to hear about my kids all the time (just sometimes).

Many thanks for reading, and here’s to an invigorating fall (always a season of new beginnings for me, but that’s the subject of another post).

If you’ve had any major (or minor) life changing decisions of late, I’d love to hear about them.

Beauty in the Discovery: Following Whims & Passions

First off, I am at the conclusion of a wonderful day.

I spent the day with my children, enjoying the Canada Day celebrations in our town (happy birthday, Canada!).  For some reason, I felt centred today.  Relaxed and able to embrace things like dawdling (and having to carry my 3 year old around), making lunch (actually enjoying the down time of preparing a healthy meal for my family) and having no particular purpose or goals for our time (outside of enjoying ourselves).  Me at my best.  And (surprise, I know) I got my son at his best this way, too.  I can’t really recall, but I’m going to say it was a day without tantrums.

My last post was about re-focusing on my goals.  After all, tracking my goals is one of the reasons I started this blog in the first place.  So, to follow up, I took a look at the goals I have set for myself since the new year:

1. Create a creative space (a place in my home where I can feel inspired and do good creative work)

2. Daily tea ritual (enjoy a cup of tea, centre myself, and remind myself of what really matters, daily)

3. Carve out an hour a day for myself (most often I seem to use this to blog, or read)

4. Focus more on self-care (to stave off “dead-eyed Mom” syndrome)

5. Write poetry (an ode to my high school self)

6. Contribute to MCP Project 52 (in a effort to practice photography on a weekly basis)

7. Write a novel (in a month)

8. Start (and, presumably, continue) running (Hmm… maybe there’s a loophole here)

9. Write at night (after the kids are in bed – the only sane moment of my blissfully chaotic days)

10. Early to bed, early to rise (okay, I only flirted with this one, but darn if it doesn’t keep rearing it’s ugly head)

11. Write a guide for Canadian homeschoolers (a goal that has grown and morphed, but remains)

12. Chart my journey with the earth (as in, create greener habits, and keep track of my progress)

13. Embrace thrift (buy less, play more!)

14. Become a professional mom (but remain constantly learning)

15. Start a family nature club

16. (I think this is my favourite one) Remember to be constantly amazed!

Which brings me back to (do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti…)… my wonderful day.

I think I did it today – I remained constantly amazed.  I loved watching my kids interact with the world today.  I was present, and I so enjoyed their company.  For themselves.  As distinct and beautiful beings.  And, in doing so, I enjoyed myself so much more.

I recall, when starting out on this blog, that I wanted to live a life that followed both whims and passions.  Re-reading my goals for the year, I think I have happened upon just that.  I have delved into things I had only dabbled into before (nature appreciation, homeschooling, writing, personal health).  These whims have morphed into passions, and intersect in the most remarkable ways.

So, for the rest of the year, I will focus on those stated goals and habits I feel compelled to work on.  But, I will also remain open to new whims.  Because I couldn’t have predicted what life has thrown at me so far this year, and I don’t think I would have wanted to.  There has been so much wonder and beauty in the discovery.

And now for a (short) book recommendation.  Read Toot & Puddle: On Top of the World, by Holly Hobbie, and love how the random whims of these two pigs lead them to Nepal.  I hope to be so open to life’s adventures – both little and large.

And so.  How does goal-setting work for you?  Do you have an encouraging story of whims and passions to share?

Checking in With My Goals for Summer Solstice

As it turns out, 2011 is nearly half over.  Today being the summer solstice, we are embarking on the second two seasons of the year.  The latter half.  Winter and spring passed for me in a flurry of activity, reflection and big life changes.  And I find myself here, in the thick of things.

Beachcombing

I wanted to find a good way to celebrate the summer solstice, but I hadn’t planned anything specific.  So, I took the kids outside.  We spent hours enjoying a blissfully warm (hot, but not too hot) day, hiking in the woods, wading in the river, and running (or crawling) through the buttercups.  I brought my camera, and practiced snapping portraits.  It felt glorious.

Forest Walker

Today’s summer solstice also happens to be the first official day of my professional motherhood.  Any other Tuesday night, I would be working at the library. Instead, I am at home, writing.  That also feels great.

Moving Right Along

So, to cap off the celebration, I thought I’d go introspective.  Take a look back, and also forward.  For the first time since starting my blog, I have decided to go back and read over all of the goals I have set for myself this year.  Some goals, I have accomplished with leaps and bounds.  On others, I have made significant progress.  And on others, I still fall woefully short (running…ahem…we’ll deal with that later).

Close Encounters

It turns out there are so many, I will probably need a post to deal with each one.  Which is a good thing, since it will keep me thinking and reflecting, on…oh… what exactly am I doing again?  Regardless, just looking over them has invigorated me, and made me realize just how far I’ve come these past few months.  Both in my own self-awareness, and the actual completion (or, more accurately, inhabiting) of my goals.

Which makes me, for the umpteenth time, so thankful that I started this blog.  I can’t count the number of ways writing it has changed and challenged me (a topic for another post).

And because (as it turns out), I like to assume grand challenges for myself, and then state them here, reading over my goals has caused me to create yet another one.

I am going to use the seasonal solstices as check-ins.  Times of reflection to go over my goals, re-focus and propel myself forward.

There it is, in quotes.  Something about doing this for the solstices appeals to me.  It just feels rhythmic.  Beautiful and inspiring in a way that “quarterly reports” do not.  So, there it is.  The seasonal me.  A new ritual to tie me to myself, and my environment, and to that elusive cycle of life.  I’m sure there’s something incredibly symbolic in all of this, somewhere.

Stepping Up

So, for the next few weeks, I’ll be checking in with my goals.  Checking in, and stepping up.  And, finally, a hearty welcome to summer everyone!

And you?  How did you celebrate the solstice?  And how do you stay focused on your goals as the seasons progress?