“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” – Margaret Atwood Mission accomplished! I’ve been digging in the dirt for a few weeks now, preparing the soil and tracking a bit too much of it back into the house with me. I have been (literally!) cultivating. There’s something about preparation time that lights my soul on fire. The hard work and anticipation add up to hope. This is the season to plant seeds in…

“I wandered lonely as a cloudThat floats on high o’er vales and hills,When all at once I saw a crowd,A host, of golden daffodils;Beside the lake, beneath the trees,Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.”– William Wordsworth, Daffodils Hello, March! This is the month we’ve been looking forward to—the month we get to start our seeds, celebrate 15 years of marriage, and see the earth come alive once more! The camellias are blooming and we had our first daffodil this week—spring…

The sun rides higherEvery trip.The sidewalk shoesIcicles drip.A snowstorm comes,And cars are stuck,Though road salt fliesFrom the old town truck.The chickadeesGrow plump on seedThat Mother poursWhere they can feed,And snipping, snippingScissors runTo cut out heartsFor everyone. – February by John Updike We have, indeed, seen a bit of snow and many-a-chickadee lately at our feeders! Aside from flurries and winter birds, though, my favorite thing about January is the paperwhites. Each year on my birthday (at the end of December),…

January isa clean white sheet, newly-ironed;an empty page;a field of freshly-fallen snowwaiting to be mappedby our footsteps.– John Foster Hello, friends! Hello, new year! Oh, how refreshing you are already! Want to make January extra refreshing—and avoid jumping ship on your new goals mid-month? Remember these two words: pace yourself. There are a lot of action steps I want to take in January, but I’m intentionally spreading them out over the year. No need to do them all at once…