The Halfway Mark

Halfway through the year; halfway through my year. It's my half-birthday today, and I'm going to celebrate.

Everybody thinks December 31 is a great day for a birthday. Everybody celebrates, right? Yeah, at new year's eve parties. And my birthday gets lost in all the year-end hoopla. Also, my husband hates new year's eve; he was never able to separate that holiday from my day, so he never wanted to plan anything, he didn't want to do anything. He's a bit of party-pooper anyway, or I should say he's introverted, doesn't socialize much. I, on the other hand, love a good party, whether I'm the host or a guest. This was one of the ongoing differences we had over the years - I was invited to a lot of parties, I wanted to go to the parties, he wasn't comfortable with people he didn't know, so I went alone to some of them - and skipped a lot of them over the years, just to avoid an argument.

I'm also going to reboot here on my yearlong project; I've been creating and working on projects with my kids and around the yard, and cooking quite a bit lately, but I haven't documented most of these things. I'm just going to make a list of what I can remember, and start anew on Sunday, July 1.

1) I did build a new compost bin; but I still have to move most of the old pile to the new location.

"found" pallets 

the set-up

ready to make gardener's black gold

2) My older daughter R. made a hobo bag for herself; I helped with the sewing part. She did a good job on her own little creation. She's also trimming a dress for CONvergence next week. I'm helping her and my son C. get costumes together for the four-day event.

3) I made raspberry-almond crisp earlier this week; my raspberry crop is thriving this year! Lots of rain last month, and lots of heat this month - that's the key, I guess. I even took pictures as I mixed the ingredients; I'll post them later.

ready for the oven

4) I gathered supplies for a couple of projects that I haven't gotten to yet - an arbor made of branches; and wine bottles. Lots of wine bottles. I'm hoping to turn the bottles into hanging planters or candle holders, for the Etsy shop. Don't copy!

5) I'm sewing trim on a coat for C., for one of his CONvergence costumes.

6) I froze leftover coffee in ice cube trays (one of those "what to do with leftover coffee" suggestions that I do periodically), mixed the cubes and some coconut milk in the blender, and made my own icy coffee drink.

7) Some recent food creations: potato pancakes (using Simply Potato hash brown shreds! So simple!); garlicky shrimp and bacon pasta salad; homemade pizzas (yeah, a repeat, but different crusts/ingredients); banana oatmeal muffins with coconut milk; white gravy and mashed potatoes. There are more, I'll have to ask the kids what meals they remember.

8) I have to redo my resume. There's a job opening at Children's Theatre Company that I'm quite qualified for, which would make my life a whole lot easier, at least for the next few years - if I get it.

UPDATE: I just got a confirmation email, they have my resume and will start scheduling interviews by the end of the month. Fingers crossed!

So, there's my little recap. Like I said earlier, I'm taking a mulligan for June. But I need to get back on track, with my blog and with my life. Time to move forward, and keep the little grey cells involved and active. Time to celebrate a half-year, and prepare for the next stage in my life.

Happy Saturday!