Posted on by raisingriblets

Blessings in Disguise

I knew we were really lucky to live through our renovation at my dad’s place. I lived through a renovation, during high school, in this same home, and it was messy and inconvenient. So, when my dad said sure we could stay here during the renovation, I felt a sense of relief.

We were supposed to be in our house by now but because of unforeseen circumstances and having to rejig a few things, we were delayed.  Who would have thought that this would be a blessing in disguise. 

While I love our new home, the yard needs a lot of TLC and, honestly, a month of being home with the kids might have been a challenge there. Entertaining them in a barren backyard. However, being at my dad’s has been full of wonder and exploration.

I would be lying if I said this whole quarantine and virus hasn’t kept me up at night, not to mention our family suffered a great tragedy of losing a loved one way too soon during this time (not to Corona), but a few things have brought me great comfort. 

One being my husband and his time in the Marine Corps.  He was born for moments like this. He has been prepared for the worst since touring countries that literally saw their daily life change over night. This kind of stuff doesn’t make him nervous because he is always prepared and has a plan, and that is the greatest comfort. 

Another thing we have under our belt is that my parents have always taught us how to do things ‘old school’, from gardening to canning to bee-keeping, and with the uncertainty of the days to come, this makes things a little easier. We’ve baked with my mom and learned to bake bread with my aunt and the smells coming out of the kitchen are ones to remember. 

But this 21 acre property that my immigrant grandparents bought by scraping dollars together has offered my kids some of the best memories these past few weeks. From exploring the neighbouring golf course my grandfather once owned to filling buckets with estranged golf balls, climbing sand traps, sliding down them in our boots and wading through the golf course ponds. We’ve started our garden, killed time teaching the kids to chip golf balls, and collected so many worms. Getting messy and muddy at the farm has proven to be one of the biggest blessings.

Posted on by raisingriblets

Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone

I’m the type of person who gets really cozy and comfortable when things are good, I mean why rock the boat? I promised myself when I turned 30 I would step outside of my comfort zone and do things that make me feel a little uneasy because without risk there is no reward. I also wanted to show my girls that it’s ok to try things that are new or something you couldn’t picture yourself doing. Setting new goals and challenges are all a part of the journey.

Step 1. Start a blog, so far this journey has been really gratifying; have I become a blogging world sensation over night, no. But have people come up to me and said, ‘loving your blog,’ yes! And that is more than enough for me. I wanted to write stuff that was honest, true and gives people warm fuzzy feelings. Something that makes them feel like home when they read it. If I am doing that for you, yay!

Step 2. Move and start a home remodel. Moving with 3 little kids is like an Olympic sport, I think we placed bronze in this category, near the end I’m pretty sure my husband and I were just stuffing things into the storage bin – only the strong will survive. Also, this is the first time we ever ran into a snag with closing a home (mind you this is only are 2nd home) – and let me tell you snags and closing a home is a sure fire way to shed a few pounds. Remodel starts this week, stay tuned for more pictures and updates.

Step 3. Try one of those supplements people lose a ton of weight on and claim to be changed from. I did it, I jumped on the band wagon – the Herbal Life bandwagon. I did it for a few reasons, one being with kids I am always just stuffing whatever I can grab into my mouth – at least with the shakes I’m getting some essential nutrients; not just table scraps. Another reason being I really like some of the girls in this accountability group and the way they set goals and inspire others to do the same.

The holidays are upon us and the new year will be here before you know it. I’ve got a kick start on my resolution and so far stepping outside of that comfort zone is proving to not be too uncomfortable.