Ladybug Farms: Big Accomplishments

I'm eleven weeks into my 52 Weeks of New adventure and I've learned a few things already along the way. I'm not even a quarter of the way into the project, so I can only imagine where I will be when I'm all done. Here is what I've learned so far.

1. New things are fun. I used to avoid doing things I've never done before because I wasn't sure I'd like it or that it'd work out. I worried about the details of any new outing. I didn't want to try new foods because what if it was gross? Well, after eleven weeks of trying new things, I've learned that my fears were unfounded. Yes, I've sampled some gross food in the last eleven weeks (today I tried a new cereal and gagged--threw that box away). But I've also discovered some new foods that I actually sort of like--like brussels sprouts (as long as their roasted in lots of olive oil). And out of all of my new experiences, not one has turned into a dud outing. I've enjoyed every one.

Grapefruit was not a big hit in our house this week

2. Accomplishing big projects feels really, really good. Last week I finally cleaned out my entire storage room. Every time I step into that room to get something from my food storage in there, I feel a huge feeling of accomplishment. It just looks so good in there! This week I tackled the jungle in my backyard. The kids and I cut down all of the weeds, covered the whole 20' x 24' area with cardboard and newspapers, and then covered it all up with a huge sheet of black plastic to hopefully kill all the weeds in preparation for turning the wasteland into a garden next summer. Every time I glance out the window and see that big sheet of black plastic, I feel happy that I am finally doing something to make my backyard pretty.

Isn't this how all people do yard work?

All those recyclables being put to good use

Every random thing in my yard is now holding down the plastic

3. New things beget new things. With each new thing I try, it makes me want to try more things. I think, "Hey, I did that! Now I can do anything." Well, almost anything. I'm still not about to go pick up a snake any time soon. Maybe in week 52 I'll consider that.

We all know that David is much braver than me as just seeing this picture
gives me the willies. Blah....

4. Determining to try new things makes me always on the lookout for new challenges. When I am at the grocery store, I look at those weird, exotic fruits that I used to bypass and wonder which one we should try this week. I bought Salmon this week for the second time in ten years and made it. (Sure, it was a total disaster, but now I know why I've never been a fish person) When a new opportunity comes my way, rather than dismiss it out of hand, I find myself saying yes. I volunteered to handle the costumes for the Christmas play that my kids are in without thinking about it for weeks. I had 24 people over for dinner on Saturday and where I used to stress out over big dinners and considered every meal a direct reflection on me, I just laughed when I realized that miscommunication led to us not having any starches for our dinner. Before, I would have been mortified.

If you haven't already, I think every one should start their own year of trying new things. You'll learn a lot about yourself, grow as a person, and have a lot of really cool experiences along the way.