It does not surprise me that I never got around to posting a summary of what we did in November and December as I said I would. Moving into a new home is daunting for anyone, and we knew that going in. We also knew that our circa 1890 farmhouse would need some TLC, so we set about scheduling some of that right away, before the coldest weather set in. We got connected to a helpful handyman, located an electrician, and did several other key upgrades before Christmas. Some of that work continues into the new year, calling on experts as needed, while Mark has also done a fantastic job tackling quite a bit of home repair. I place hardware store orders and help strategize on problem-solving, but he is doing the heavy lifting with the fixes!

I’ve kept myself busy with more of the unpacking and decorating tasks, or more accurately — creating lists (and more lists) for future creative projects — hanging art, buying rugs and hopefully doing some spring/summer bargain hunting for a few small pieces of furniture that fit the house design. We had a few family visitors in December (to cut down their own Christmas trees and enjoy a quiet holiday), but because of Covid and the cold, there are currently no planned guests on the horizon. Of course that makes it a good time to settle in, get used to the place, learn its quirks, and gather ideas for the months and years to come.

Now that the holidays are over, we have moved on to our plans for the land. Excited to share what we are working on but it’s too soon for that. We have much more to learn and decisions to make. We are doing a ton of research, taking online courses and attending Zoom conferences — it’s essentially like taking night school after we finish our full-time day jobs. Add on to that a daily indoor house fix here, or some evening outdoor chores there, and it just never feels like enough time. I asked Mark if we could please make a list of things we won’t talk about until March first of this year…but we could probably come up with some things to put on a list for March 1 of next year too! There has been no time to make said lists, but mentally, we can name numerous things that are getting pushed off until some future spring. We have to set priorities and honor limits to what we can tackle. We haven’t even been here for three months! We are ambitious, but we have to keep things in check and not take on too much at once. It’s a tricky balance, but we are learning our way.

For now we watch the snow fall almost every week (from flurries to feet), and feel thankful that we have the time to plan, the will to give things a try and the resources to see where all this winter planning might take us. Stay warm and healthy and follow along all month long here if you like. Happy early Valentine’s Day too ❤