Winter, please go away.

The house looks cold and grey.

The lane looks bleak.

The fort and tire swing are frozen in time waiting for the warmth of a child's hand.

The barn has furry icicle bangs hanging down it's face.

The hanging basket stand made from old rebar and electrical tape is exposed and wishing to hide it's primitiveness with belching bunches of flowers.

Who's ready for spring? Who's tired of being cold?

My winter hibernation has begun. I hate it. I don't want to go to bed at night and I can't get out of bed in the morning. I don't want to do anything except eat, drink hot liquids and sleep.

So, what did I do to get my engine running?

Enrolled in a pottery class. It starts next Monday-Monday-MONDAY! The classes I took last summer where I learned the basics were so much fun and I felt so good after an evening of playing with Clay, er, I mean clay. Problem is, although I came home with a lifted spirit and was able to draw out some creative energy, I also brought home a lot of spittoon-like things that my husband uses as loose change holders.

This class I'll learn how to make specific pieces. Serving dishes to be precise. I'm going to make a bunch of serving dishes, to serve things on and in and to. I need a few serving dishes, so this is good. Let's say serving dishes a few more times.

Also, I picked up a couple good books at the local library. Have you read any Betty MacDonald books? I loved The Egg and I. Now, I'm reading Onions in the Stew. It's about her rugged, yet charming, rural life on an island in Puget Sound. I also checked out a couple of her children's books to read aloud to my kids.

The second book I picked up is The American Homeplace by Donald McCaig. It's about how the author and his wife moved to an abandoned farm and learned how to farm and eventually how to live completely off the bounty of their land.

Why do I read books like these?

Because they help get me charged up for my upcoming tasks; building a garden, caring for our tiny orchard, building a chicken coop, fencing an area for a cow and lets not forget canning and 'putting up' the harvest.

We didn't buy a house in the country just to look out at the beautiful land and grow a lot of green grass. We wanted to be out here to get our hands dirty, partake in the wonders of nature, delight in the satisfaction of producing a plateful of food and watch our children grow up in the great outdoors.

But, that's mighty hard to do in the winter. Especially, since this is our first winter and we didn't move here in time to get a compost bin started which can be a nice outdoor distraction when everything lies dormant. I'm anxious for warm weather. I want to smell dirt, use my shovel, pull weeds, feel the ache in my back and sweat.

Hopefully, my yearning to be outside can be quieted by making pottery and reading farm books.