"Happy" New Year

It's hard to know how to start the first post of 2022 (which means it will be the one that kicks off our next blog scrapbook). I'm still hoping that "family scrapbooking" may be a more shared endeavor this year, with more guest posts by Jason and/or the girls, but we have yet to discuss that at a family meeting... So here I am. While I type, Alida is busy doing some cooking experiments in the kitchen - she has made up a recipe which she has called "Cinnamon Sleeping Bags." Terah has long since finished her cracker experiment and has moved onto other things - she just did her own hair in pigtails, and that was after losing her 2nd tooth yesterday all by herself.  She also just cut out a shape from orange paper and brought it to me saying it was a picture of "you and Daddy hugging with me interrupting." Jason is outside moving some plants around, Kali is still in Pittsburgh and my parents are on their way back home to Tangly Woods after a few days away. It's been a different feel with just four of us in the house... 

I think I'm going to have to split catching up on the blog into a few distinct posts. But I'll just note for this opening one that I'm doing my first blog post on our new mac computer. Hopefully it will remain in one piece for the duration. Emotions are running strong in this house (in my body) as we navigate what feels like a pretty monumental transition for us. And some of those emotions come out most strongly as we try to set up new systems with new devices in our home and come up against so many different tech challenges (if you've ever considered Republic Wireless for phone service, don't go near it right now as the company is a complete mess). I will not bore you with the details... I admit to not remembering to celebrate the successes - we did finish up a bottle of wine left with us when we got a series of files moved from my work computer to our mac, but have neglected many moments of acknowledging positive movement forward since then.

Jason has successfully started Sassafras Enterprises here in the new year and has his first few days of work under his belt and a lot of office hours getting everything lined up. It's clear it could take as much time as he would wish or need for it to. We are still hoping that home and farm can be the focus for both of us for at least a good portion of the year. For these first three weeks of the year, we are carpooling to town for our respective jobs a few days a week. 

While Jason is experiencing lots of new start up things, my life right now is full of endings and goodbyes. Each day feels like I'm releasing some additional piece of me. It one of the many both/ands of life - it's the right thing and it's painful and hard. While I'm smiling in the selfie below, I was probably crying soon thereafter when I went through a basket of cards in my office. 

The note that got me choked up that day was a sheet of paper with a scrawled note from Jason and some colored little marker lines done by baby Kali. It said, "We are writing to say how much we love you and how much we miss you when you're at work. We hope that someday we can make a life where we all spend a little more time together during the days, too." Will 2022 bring that some more of that almost 18 years later?!

There's much more that could be said, but that's probably enough for now. I'll move on to the more exciting updates - going back in time to some delayed holiday gatherings that fed our spirits in such wonderful nourishing ways!