Memorable moments of the month

It just occurred to me that it’s almost the end of 2022 and I only wrote one post in December. I guess it’s time to write another post! Here are the significant things that have happened for the rest of this month.

I suppose the most signficant one is that I went camping with my family. Even though it’s the winter and it’s not as common to camp – especially when the forecast says it will be a 50% chance of rain the next morning and you have three kids. But the thing is – my husband and I had wanted to go camping two other weekends and cancelled. The first, we thought it might rain. The second, it actually did rain. This time, we chose dates, we asked for time off from work, and we made it happen. We thought it would be worth it even if we packed up and left early in the morning. We did a cookout and enjoyed healthier food than the last time we camped. And in the end, it didn’t rain! That was a big bonus. What’s more, we packed great blankets and no one complained that they were cold! There was a stream nearby and we got to play. It was a refreshing break from the routine.

That being said, my routine is actually not so bad at the moment. As I’ve mentioned I took a break from teaching in the pandemic and started to work at the local deli counter, serving customers food they want. I work with a team, usually of about 3 or four other people. There are predictable and unpredictable parts of the job. It’s relatively predictable what products are being offered and how you serve them. Yet it’s unpredictable how many people will come at any given time and what they would like. I enjoy seeing familiar faces who come to the counter. I enjoy that it’s a clean environment with standards of excellence. I appreciate that people talk to each other to give each other feedback and understand each other. And I also appreciate that I get to work while my children are in school. When they are out of school, I can be available to them. And if they are in after school activities or otherwise occupied with homework or playmates, I can work on entrepreneurship. It feels good to be able to be intentional about my time. There’s time to work, time to play, and time to just be.

As for entrepreneurship, in the month of December I set a goal to journal lightly every day and come up with a daily action – something to move my business forward in some way. I also decided to move forward in the project of my next children’s book this month. I’ve done a bit of painting and editing. Other movements in my business are that I put a few offers out in a new online storefront, which you can see here: https://onlinecollection.org/home-made-restaurant and have been driving traffic both there and to this website. What’s more, I created a dashboard to help me see how much traffic I’m actually getting. This way, I can get feedback on various online promotions / campaigns. I’ve gotten a couple of clients for tutoring and after school activities. I’ve also made some money selling apple cider at the local outdoor farmer’s market. This was fun, because I could see my community. I’ll probably do it again soon!

There was another community event that was significant for me this month. One of the families in my community celebrated their daughter entering a new stage of life. Girls her age even made up a song and performed it, personlized to her! The adults in the community chipped in to cook soups, veggie spreads, cakes and more. We got there ahead of time to help set up all the food and then enjoyed the chance to catch up and celebrate her. It’s a big privilege to live walking distance among a community of people who can collaborate in this way, along with some family who travelled to join us.

Here’s a picture of the soup my family contributed:

And here’s a picture of the apple cider that we sold:

It’s fun to experiment with income streams – to come up with ideas, try them out, and help people in various ways. Ultimately, I’m grateful for my home, my family, my community, and the freedom to try new things in this part of my life.

Happy holidays and new year to all!