Goodbye 2014 and Welcome 2015...

At the end of January, I will have been blogging for 4 years.  Pretty cool.  I've always kept a garden journal and I found blogging to be the perfect way to journal and add photos.  What I hadn't expected was that my circle of friends and inspiration has grown immensely through the blogging community.  Part of the enjoyment of keeping a record of the everyday thing is that you can look back and see progress or lack of progress (orchard fence comes to mind).   Another positive of keeping a record is setting goals for the new year.  Goals give me a compass.  My priorities for the upcoming year are:  

~Go on a bear hunt with my husband.
~Be a good host as I anticipate many guests at the cabin this year.    
~Go on Jeep adventures like we did when "we were kids" (That is code for when my husband and I were first married).
~Redoing the front flower beds.  I don't mean plants I mean the actual beds. 
~The veggie focus will be sweet corn and tomatoes from seed.  After last years poor showing, I will never buy tomato plants.  My challenge will be to grow an egg plant and a giant pumpkin.  
~Relax on the porch with family and friends.
~Expand my blogging community.  Become inquisitive again and visit new blogs. 
~Stay on top of my wine making.  Which means keeping notes, labeling, and keeping on track.  You forget to take some notes and don't label a few things and chaos ensues.   
~I haven't given up on the orchard fence.   

How did I do last year?  Well, I didn't set my sights very high.  The year prior had been exhausting.  A review of 2014's goals.

1.  To keep my husband happy and healthy.  He will undergo some health challenges this year and I will be beside him helping and nagging.  Done, my husband's surgery was successful and he is back to his old self.  I'm impressed with his determination.

2.  Continue to push my garden skills.  This year I would like to focus on annuals and containers. I turned my strawberry bed into an annual bed.  I got the idea from Deborah's cutting beds at the Dandelion House and Garden.   I was very happy with the results.  I'm going to have to find somewhere else for them this year as I finally purchased strawberries and the bed is back to it's original purpose.  I did a few containers and they were ok.  


3. Continue to produce Pinterest projects.  I have really enjoyed finding recipes, projects, and ideas from others.   I will also continue to turn the old into something new.  I am very happy with my Pinterest projects and try to share them regularly.  I've tried sewing, cooking, baking, and spa projects.  Some very successful and some complete failures.  One doesn't know until you try.

4. Continue my education and exercising.  I have been working out regularly.  As for education, the young kids I work with are constantly giving me an education:)

5.  All I have to say about fencing that orchard is if there aren't any shrubs left due to the blizzard (Atlas they call it) I am going to raise Highland Cattle in that damn corral.  The shrubs took it hard.  We still haven't finished the fence.  Partly because I wasn't sure if it is even worth finishing.  

5. Take it easy this year.  Stay close to home and enjoy the little things in life.  We didn't venture far this year.  Instead we enjoyed hosting visitors to our cabin.  Most notable was my two nieces got to spend the night.  We also enjoyed hosting my cousin and his family on their giant road trip.  There was also a very nice brunch on the porch with my relatives Bob and Phyllis.


That is it.  My review of the past and future goals.  As for the present,  I'm happy and healthy.   I have an awesome husband, a good dog, great family, good friends, and a beautiful cabin in the woods.  Life is good.   I wish everyone a wonderful 2015.