Domestication

I'm feeling quite... domestic lately. There really is no other word for it. I'm not sure if it's because I'm in my thirties now; or because I have a husband and two kids, and our family is complete; or because we moved into a new home a year ago, and we plan to stay here for a while. But suddenly I'm enthralled with home-making: cooking, sewing, decorating, organizing, etc.

I know, most of you know me well and so you are thinking, Wasn't she already domestic? But I have a new, deeper interest in all things home-related. Here's a few examples:

I used to enjoy finding a good recipe. But now I enjoy reading a cookbook. This never made sense to me before--I always thought, what's there to read? But now I get the joy of turning through each page, imagining creating that delicious dish or the perfect occasion for it. (I'm especially enjoying my new cookbook, a mothers' day gift from my parents!)

I used to enjoy making cupcakes for my kids' birthdays. But now I'm trying to think up reasons to decorate the adorable (and complicated) cupcakes from this book.

I used to enjoy borrowing my mom's sewing machine to complete simple projects like curtains or pillows. But now, I am thrilled that she is giving me her old sewing machine! I don't have any projects lined up yet, but I just love that I have the option to create. (I'm thinking something like this may be showing up on our couch soon!)

I used to enjoy thinking of simple decorating ideas for our home. But now I read home improvement and DIY blogs every day, imagining the ways we can transform our house from acceptable to beautiful.

I suppose I'm thinking about all of this now because it's the beginning of my summer break, and I always have a list of "summer goals" ready at this point. (Here's what I had in mind for 2008 and 2009.) Most of what I'd like to see happen this summer revolves around home and family:

*Create fresh, delicious meals for my family, and take care of them with the food I make for them. (Most of those recipes will come from my favorite cooking blog!)
*Work on a DIY remodel of our bathroom and bedroom, as I mentioned before. We're hoping to start next week!
*Focus on my kids. I want to spend time helping Lauren learn how to read (and she's already off to a great start). I want to spend time helping Jonathan learn how to talk. And I want to give them the opportunity to do swim, ballet, or other classes that they want, although it's not as important to me as just having quality time with them.
*Focus on my husband. We will be celebrating our tenth anniversary this September, and we would love a vacation for just the two of us. Honey, we need to make it happen!
*Focus on me. I'm truly enjoying finding new sides to my personality, and new things that I enjoy. I want to take time for me and not feel guilty about it. :)

And that's about it. Not a lot of specific goals, just a lot of thriving. I'm ready!