Every summer when the children pack up their schoolwork for a short while my mind goes into overdrive planning all of the things I myself can be learning in the time I usually spend teaching them. Suddenly I have hours of blocks of time that I can devote to research and reading and gardening and whatever else I’d like. So I came up with a *wish list* of things I want to do and learn, knowing that at best I’d only be able to dabble in a bit of each if I didn’t want to wholeheartedly focus on only one or two. Here are my thoughts about what I’d like to do:

• spinning: no, not the exercise kind. The kind where I take a big pile of wool and turn it into yarn. And then I take the yarn and turn it into whatever I like. A kind woman at the old milling town nearby is teaching me what she knows at her shop (for free!). I just love the quietness of spinning and the wonder of turning a big soft pile of wool into a beautiful bobbin-full of yarn. I’m such a newbie I don’t even know the right technical words! I bought this book to help me learn:

• weaving: did you read about the amazing gift I received? I have calls into two different people to help me set it up properly and get it going. I just may use all that spun yarn to create lap blankets. I also want to play with cotton and make kitchen towels. Oh, this is going to be fun! I am reading more about weaving from here:

• yarn learning: because I’m fairly new at the all of this, I picked up this book all about yarn to read. I am really enjoying it a lot!

• watercolors: I’ve always liked the look of watercolors, and I thought I’d take the children and myself outside for some art time. I am reading through and planning to play with the exercises out of this book:

• basketry: I have plans to make it into the city this summer to visit a basketry supplier, and I know a couple of people who know the basics (yoo hooooo…). I have lots of baskets around my home and know I would enjoy sitting on the porch and trying to craft one of my own. Here is a book I like on the subject:

• In the kitchen, I am going to be very busy making lots of jams and jellies for the year, plus dehydrating seasonings. For the “new” thing I want to learn, I am going to try my hand at making crackers, because we go through them like crazy!

• I have lots of writing to do. This is a challenge for me as my husband and I share a computer that goes to work with him. Someday I may (or not) have my own, but in the meantime I just content myself with picking at projects here and there. I am working on putting my last blog into a book format, and also am putting together From My Kitchen Table 2 (see here for the first one). At some point I’ll put ISBN numbers on them and sell them through Amazon, etc. I also have a paper to write to finish up my masters degree in Holistic Nutrition, and will be writing about treating dental caries through nutrition. Doesn’t that sound interesting?

• I’ve given up whining about not feeling at top notch and promised myself, for my 40th birthday year, to do all I can to be healthy. The first thing I did was a detox, and then I made appointments with the dentist and the naturpath. I got my hormone levels checked and have plans to check the heavy metals in my system as well. A friend spurred me onto running my first 5K this September for the good of fighting the slave trafficking problem (did you know that slavery is worse TODAY than it has EVER been?!). So, I am currently running on the Couch to 5K program and loving it; I’m starting week 5 tomorrow!

Other things continue: Bible study and memory, book reading, gardening, etc. Is there anything you are wanting to learn? It’s never too late!

Blessings,