Hi! And welcome to my online journal here at A Simple Life. All the many things you will find here on my blog are a result of my constant seeking and discovering in parenting and homemaking and remembering who it is I'm meant to be here, in this lifetime.
I am married to the love of my life, Lee, and together we are raising five children, ages 8 months to 13 years. While most days are as wonderful as the photos in my blog show you, rest assured, our life together in a 1000 square foot home within an intentional community in Upstate NY is full of the usual quandaries and bumbles.
When I'm asked why I chose A Simple Life for the title of my blog the one thing that comes to mind is that we're living life, plain and simple. We've been given this one life to live, either in peace or at war with our struggles and idiosyncrasies: we can choose to live simply or we can choose to be at odds. Together, as a family of seven, we chose to live as simply as we can, with each other, our neighbors, and within our community. We strive to consume less and give more. Our life in an intentional community is a constant reminder of how we have chosen to live out our days: focusing more inwardly to reveal our God-given gifts and be of use to the world around us. While life is full of ups and downs and not everyday is lived as fully as we'd anticipate....if there is one thing we've learned its:: everyday is a new day and the perfect moment to start again is now!
As parents, we hope to provide for our children a holistic balance within their life - between being home and at school, between family time and friend time, between alone time and play time. We love to be in nature often (gardening, hiking, discovering a new place, or just good ol' playtime), use simple creative expressions (painting, drawing, handwork), we aim to be very connected to the food we eat (cooking together, baking, growing our own food and herbs to eat and be creative with, working with the natural world around us whether with the bees or the sheep and chickens in our backyard), read and share stories together, sing, and follow the celebratory rhythms of the changing seasons. We are inspired by Waldorf tradtions and education but have adpated when necessary to support and encourage the individual needs of our children. While we'd love to homeschool each of our children, we realize that that isn't the best option for all of our children, so in compromise, our home is a Waldorf inspired home.
I am quite aware that the children who have come to me and my husband are only ours for a brief time and it is of utmost importance to guide them and encourage them in the ways that are meaningful, mindful, expressive, respectful and full of heart.......for themselves and the world around them. Our children will be the leaders of the next generation. It is our greatest concern to work very hard in raising our children to be connected to the natural rhythms of themselves and the ever- changing world around them, to be accepting and knowledgeable of more than just how to pass a test or consume, and to be confident in whatever choices that they make while they are living this life here with us. While I'm sure we've made plenty of mistakes, we also love deeply and treasure every moment that passes for it is fleeting. Enough time has been washed away......our simple life aims to slow it down...at least a little bit.
We are homestead dreamers and working on being self-sustainable. While we don't always recycle like we intend to nor do we catch rain water from our roof :) we are always seeking how to better use our garden space, new ways to upcycle used wood to add on to our chicken coop, and wondering (and dreaming) of other livestock to add to our farming aspirations. The community we live in has a flock of sheep, many chickens, bees, and myriad other implementations that are sought to live more intentionally and closer to the land. We feel so fortunate to be here right now.
Having had no formal secondary education, I consider myself a Renaissance woman. Nearly all I know is self-taught through seeking this passion of living and making connections through kindred spirits and following my bliss. There are many thanks to go around from those that have supported the life I have chosen with my family and to those who encourage me to continue to seek my truth. Writing has always been an outlet for me, a process by which every thought and feeling funnels. It is by creation of this blog that I have found my way to reach out to the wide, open spaces of the world around me in hopes of making more connections and discovering the great works and teachings of others.
Thank you for coming by. Your presence here makes it all the more worth while.
Peace,
~ Marcy
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