resolutions

Happy new year! I inadvertently took a little break from this space, it seems. December was a bit crazier than usual with some sickness lingering around our house. We were all feeling better by the time Christmas came around, and then we rested up a bit for this new year. I hope your holidays were peace-filled.

I really like the fresh start of the new year. I’m not all that great about resolutions (I make too many and then stick to few of them), but I still persist in making them each year. I thought I’d share a few of my Grace Garden-related resolutions for 2013 here, in hopes of all of you keeping me accountable!

1. Stretch my cooking muscles. I would like to be a bit more adventurous in the new year – try new foods and new preparation methods, especially ones that I find intimidating.
2. Make and eat more fermented foods. I got a few of these for Christmas because my attempts at fermenting have been a little disastrous with the more traditional methods. Fermented foods are remarkably good for you. We’ve been drinking kefir water, and I’ve been experimenting with a sourdough starter (posts coming soon). I need to incorporate more kimchi, saurkraut, and other fermented goodies into our meals on a regular basis.
3. Be more strategic with our garden. Grant has already promised to double the size of our garden this year, so I need to start planning now to ensure we maximize all of that new space.
4. Make a cold frame to extend the seasons. Trust that I’ll document that project here!
5. Get more people on the real food and gardening bandwagon, largely via our new Creation Care ministry at Grace (interested? Email me!) and plugging people in with Westfield’s Plant A Row for the Hungry Program.
6. Use less energy. We recently performed a home energy audit, so that we can see where our energy use is currently and how we can do better. We use less than the average American family, but we would like to decrease our consumption further. I’ll share our progress here, of course.
7. Eat more local food. This has been one of our resolutions for the past several years, but we can always do better. This year, we need to find a new CSA, preserve more, and try to be more strategic when we eat out to support local places that support local farmers.
8. Teach our children the responsibility that we have as stewards of God’s creation.

I think that’s it for now…what are your food/gardening/Creation Care related resolutions for 2013?!