I have tried blogging on and off throughout the years (about 7 or so i believe), and so far it never stuck for more than a month. It's not for a lack of love for the craft: I love writing, I love reading, I love socializing. Yet, I never felt i had enough to say to fill a blog. Then the truth hit me: does anyone really? After getting sucked into following a couple different blogs the last few weeks, I had an epiphany: all they do is write about their everyday struggles with their goals in the hopes that the readers help keep them accountable! AMAZING! That's what I want, as well as a convenient way to share updates on Baby Corwin (affectionately called Oswald Fauntleroy Oliver Corwin till baby is born and we have a gender for naming purposes). So this will mark the beginning of my hopefully new found way to communicate, and use the God given talent of writing that I have been neglecting. I do miss writing even if not daily, therefore it's time to broaden my horizons and start with a bang! Note: even though i despise reading grammar problems in text, I do tend to get ahead of myself when typing and end up with zillions of mistakes that may not all be caught in my very short and informal editing processes... I hate editing my own work.
So then: where to really begin? First a touch about me, I guess. My name is Diane Corwin. I was born and raised and still live in Southwest Michigan. I have an eclectic style for everything. My hobbies include: reading, writing, knitting, scrap booking, card making, movies, dancing, walking, and talking. I've have been married to Jerry for just over (like one month over) five years, and I would never trade our life together for anything. We have initiated simple living, homesteading, green living, going old school, whatever you prefer to call it in our lives. People think we are crazy, which is always the sign we are on the right track. We are officially eight months pregnant. Our journey to pregnancy was not easy, and we praise God everyday for the joy of our child. I am a bit of an over-planning, neat-freak, perfectionist, but I'm starting to realize perfection is not what we need to attain. The easiest way to get me talking is to ask about Disney World; it's my true home, where my heart really lies.
The most intriguing thing I have noticed after branching out and reading many blogs on topics I'm beginning to enjoy, is that most of these simple living moms all have one words for the year as well. Last year my word was tenacious. And not to brag but I rocked it! I may not have achieved all my goals (it's hard to run a 5k when your doctor tells you no running), but I achieved the most important one. The one I thought would be the hardest to measure achievement. "Get my body healthy enough to get pregnant". Well check that one off! I also had reading, writing, and knitting goals (collective called my hobby goals). And I had spiritual goals. Most were achieved or at least worked on during the year, and all in all I feel 2011 was a great year full of tenacity.
This year our family word is "Kaizen". This is a Japanese word for "slow, continuous improvements." It has been used in many companies as a philosophy for corporate restructuring, but we are using it to help us realize this year is all about life change. EVERYTHING will change with in the next 6 weeks. Though we feel we are as prepared as is possible, we know it will be a major time of change, individually and as a family. The dynamics of our relationship, and our relationships with others are going to change drastically. And it's quite scary to think about. Yet, we have been there before: getting married was a major change for both us as well. We know there will be struggles as we learn new routines, but we have made it through so many struggles all ready that I feel we are prepared for this.
I also really like kaizen as our choice, because I am not a very patient person. "SLOW, continuous improvements." Everything is changing slowly for us. We have been working at adapting our routines to help accommodate for having a baby in the house. We are slowly and continuously working on paying down debts to help afford the lifestyle we want with our children. We are using kaizen in almost every aspect of our life right now. I have finally completed reorganizing our entire upstairs in preparation for baby (minus the kitchen and pantry- that will be a major project for the next 6 months to try to find space for when Oswald F.O. Corwin starts solid food). We slowly (too slowly for a pregnant woman) redid our bathroom to fix a long standing leak in our shower. Our next major overhaul? Cleaning the mold said leak has caused in the basement, and organizing our basement. Patience will be key.
I will also need patience as I learn to care for a newborn. And we are going "old school" on so many things when I am used to modern conveniences. I have 7 nieces and nephews; I have changed many diapers. But never a clothe. Yet, here we are working on making and buying clothe diapers. Patience for laundry... lots of patience for laundry. I am also not great at having to wake up for someone else in the middle of the night, I do enough of that on my own (I am a terrible sleeper without Tylenol PM, by best friend!). So patience will be key for me as I learn all these new things. "Slow, continuous improvements." That is all I can ask for this year.
So as Jerry and I embark on this crazy journey of simple parenting, I hope you will help keep us accountable, enjoy the updates on our little Oswald, and understand our simple living practices. They are strange for most Americans today, but like we say around here: most Americans are broke, obese, and inconsiderate of others. Why should we strive to be like them?
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