Thursday, December 31, 2015

Planning to Cultivate!

It’s New Year’s Eve and for the first time in about twenty years I have no plans, no people at my house, no kids wanting goodies and playing games, no friends ringing in the New Year. It’s just me, my hubby, my girl and the pup. And I’m ok with that.
 My "pup" Darby. 

Christmas was a whirlwind and very fun. My kids were here. My mom. Both my brothers, my sister in law and both nieces. My nephew was the only one absent. It was one of the best Christmas we’d had in a long time.
The time since has been filled with reflective thoughts, lots of cleaning, more cooking, and plans for the upcoming year. It is nice to justbe.
As I sit and watch the Orange bowl (Go Oklahoma) (you don’t know how hard it is to type that, because orange is my colorbut they are an Oklahoma team) I find myself planning for the New Year and next few months. I can’t help myselfI am a planner.
I have decided that this year since my OLW is Cultivate. I will deem myself a cultivator of thoughts and ideas, not just a planner. So tonight I am cultivating what I want to accomplish in the next few monthsthis year.
First I want to learn something new. Not just something, something that I can profit from to save for a trip to my oldest brother’s house next year for Christmas. The daughter and I got a new Cricut for Christmas from grandma, so I’m hoping to learn how to use it. I’d really like to learn how to make blog designs. I’ve got the girl working on it tonight and together I think we can come up with some cuteness.
Next I want to travel. I have not been outside of Oklahoma in a few years, so I feel this is the year.
I want to do some “fixing upping” on the house. Do you watch that show? Fixer Upper? It is my new obsession and at the top of my list to where I want to travel this summer. Lucky for me it’s only about eight hours away.
Last I want to cultivate new habits and relationships. But that’s a whole ‘nother post!
What about you? Do you have anything planned for this year?  
Happy Cultivating!

Tammy

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Cultivating a New Blog, New Thoughts, a New Me

Hi Tammy here of First Grade at Storybook Café. I have decided that a new year is the chance for me to start a new venture. I have been blogging for a few years now, but the last few years I have somehow misplaced my drive and enjoyment of blogging. I found myself comparing myself to others, and feeling a lack there of. I wanted to write marvelous posts of teaching and creating, and sadly it just wasn’t there. I have stopped and restarted time and time again. I had (have) lost my passion to write for me (and honestly I might still have).
So on this eve of the eve of a new year’s eve, I am beginning again. I begin with my thoughts the last few days and the contemplation of my OLW for 2016. I have been doing this ever since I heard about it on Oprah years agobut honestly that is the most I have done “thought of and picked a word.” I can’t even remember my word from last year. So this year I hope to do more with my word to help keep it in my daily or at least weekly life.
With the brainstorming of my OLW came the thoughts of a new blog and a new direction. I found myself writing about many personal things on my “teaching” blog and one of the reasons I quit writing is because I assumed those reading (other than my mom and husband of course) were looking for my wonderful teaching insights not my latest recipe or epiphany about being an empty nester, or turning 50.
After spending a few days and a few restless nights I have decided to redesign my blog (not yet as cute as my last, but soon), rethink my writing, and maybe revitalize myself and my passion in the process (again).
So I’m going back to my beginning. Back to where my blogging began. Back to where the very first spark to blog and write was ignited all those years ago. I am linking up with the Two Writing Teachers for the weekly Slice of Life Writing Challenge. I made my very first blog post there, so it seems only appropriate to begin there again.
This blog will be an agglomeration of all of me. I will be cultivating thoughts about being in my fifties, about my life, my family, my wants and needs, my dreams and desires. I will be cultivating ideas about things I love like riding my bike, crafting, writing, cooking, and reading. I even hope to cultivate a few works of fiction. I will be cultivating concepts about teaching and students, school and education in general. And in turn this year I hope I cultivate new habits, new ideas, new friends, and maybe a bit of a new me.
And there you have it my OLW for 2016. Cultivating. It came to me on a bitterly cold December day, and wouldn’t leave my thoughts until I cultivated this new blog. I hope your word finds you for 2016 and you are able to cultivate it into something beautiful.
Happy Cultivating!   

Tammy