How to Fill a Week

 

Deer racks to the back of the property.

A round patch of hay for a bed.
 

 When Steve is away I envision the time home alone as a blank calendar to fill as I wish, until he returns. In reality, the week is not much different than when he is home, except I am doing for one instead of two.  Regardless, I try to make the best use of time and fill it up so the days pass in a productive way. It is a luxury to not have to stop and cook. This week I ate sandwiches, salads, and mini chicken pot pies I had put up in the freezer. I spent zero time cooking anything this week.

It is still snowy, cold, and frozen outside. We did have one sunny day in the upper 30's and it felt nice. I was surprised by the gentle snowfall we had all afternoon today. I wanted to be outside in it so I bundled up and put cleats on my boots and went for a walk around the property. It was peaceful and quiet and I was very happy to walk around in the snow. For a moment I longed to be standing on frozen Lake Morey in Vermont. I recalled standing there last winter on that vastness of ice and hearing nothing but the solitude of nature in winter. Back on on our snowy patch, I saw rabbit tracks and cat tracks. There were also many deer tracks, as usual. The snowy footprints made it easy to see how the deer follow a set path to and fro. Huge swaths of field contain no tracks at all and only a set area contain all the tracks. I followed these across the field to see where they led. They went into the thicket at the back of the property, near the graveyard. I found a bare patch on a grassy knoll and it was clear that some deer had bedded down there. 

My walk was over too soon and I went back inside. I finished working on Valentine cards for the grandchildren. I made a big, crafty mess on the kitchen table, even spreading supplies onto the floor. There was only myself to clean up after! I used You Tube video tutorials to cut, fold, and glue all sorts of colorful paper and trimmings into cards. It was fun! Some of the grandchildren are getting older but I hope they still appreciate a note from Nonni expressing my love.

 Earlier in the day I dropped off three items to be quilted to a local lady who does custom quilting. We discussed my ideas and I gave her pictures of how I would like them quilted. I felt like I was handing over my precious children to her, trusting that all would be well with them. I hope to write good things about the quilts when they are returned to me in a couple of weeks.