Happy New Year!

So I did a little bit of sewing. I have the wool pieces appliqued for the next bird. I'll start embellishing it today. I also hand pieced a tiny star block for Stars Upon Stars. 

Yes, we'll be having greens (collards) and black eyed peas tonight. I used  THIS RECIPE  for a different kind of black eye pea dish, with cornbread, sausage, cheese - it's good and has quite the kick. This recipe is by Plain Chicken - I love her recipes! Always good! 

I'm luckier than most in that our 2020 was not as bad as some people's. No one in our family has gotten Covid. No one in our family has lost their job. Our kids live in the same town we do and we feel comfortable seeing them. Of course, Sadie made this year a very happy one for all of us. We finished building our new home, moved in, and love it. After the initial shock of staying home all the time, we've adjusted well. 

I don't make resolutions for the new year, but I do make goals. I looked backed at my 2020 goals and I did pretty well with them. 

My goals for 2021 are pretty simple.

1. Selfcare. I will continue my walking that I started a few weeks ago. I'll continue to eat healthy (MOST of the time). I'll keep monitoring my blood pressure.

2. Read. I need some improvement here. I read each evening before I go to sleep, but not long enough. I've passed the halfway point of Jane Eyre, but the old me would have been finished weeks ago. After I finish reading Jane, I'm thinking I'll splurge on an Audible membership. I can listen to books WHILE I WALK. I think that will be a game changer for me. I plan to continue to read classics this year.

3. Wallpaper. So this is rather specific, isn't it? I want to buy some of the peel-off wallpaper for a few areas of our house. I love the idea of being able to peel it off easily when I get tired of it. 

4. Write. Years and years ago I wrote a novel. Our kids were young. I was a stay-at-home mom and needed things to entertain myself. I started writing, I started quilting, and I entered cooking contests. The novel was a cozy mystery. It was good enough to get a New York agent to represent me, but it was never picked up by a publisher. That brings me back to my goal. I want to pull the novel out and modernize and tweak it. I will probably add more quilting in it - there is already just a bit, as I was beginning to learn quilting as I wrote it. Anyway, it will be entertaining for me, and who knows? Maybe it will get picked up. Nothing to lose here.

5. Quilt. I want to quilt my Marshal top myself. That will be fun and there's no rush. I want to make a blue and white quilt. Other than that I'll keep working on UFO's. And I'm sure I'll start some new projects here and there, including another curved hexie quilt. 

I'm pleased with my goals. They are doable. I'm looking forward to lots more time with Sadie as she learns to walk and talk this year. Yes, we have a stroller, so she'll be joining me on walks, too! I know it will likely be months before I'm able get the Covid vaccine. So I'll keep staying home and staying busy.

Happy New Year!

Stay safe!