Who am I?

I've returned to blogging. I've been blogging since probably around 2003 and possibly a year or two before. The blog has been called by a few different names and housed on several different sites during that time. Blogger, Blogspot, Webcrimson, Wordpress, my father's site, and now Blogsome have all provided space. The blog has been called rainberryblue since at least 2003 but previous to that it was known as Denim Cottage.

So... 

I am a 30-year-old work-outside-the-home solo parent to a boy born in late November 2004. (I heard that term "solo parent" a little while ago and I like it. It more aptly describes my situation than "single parent" would since I am my son's only involved parent. His father is not in his life at all by his own choice; he decided to meet him the summer B was two years old and by the time the end of summer rolled around he'd seen him a handful of times and hasn't seen him since.) I work shifts, which isn't ideal for my little family but the pay is great, it's nice to have days and blocks off mid-week instead of only on the weekends, and I have a great benefits and pension package. Come next fall though when B is in kindergarten and goes to school all day every day (instead of all day Monday, Wednesday, and every other Friday currently) I will be looking into getting a day job as otherwise there will be more times when I won't see him for a few days at a time. It will be a major adjustment to go from days off scattered throughout to only having Saturday and Sunday but the alternative isn't acceptable.

In August 2007, I purchased my first house, a little 1952 sweetheart (which has tested my love a few times since). As the months go on, I've slowly been making a few changes here and there - minor ones - and I'm loving how much it has become "our home." I have a fully fenced back yard perfect for B to play in, four raised-bed gardens that were built last spring, my very own reel clotheline that extends across the yard, and a cute little composter by the back shed. I find myself becoming more and more aware of small changes that I can make to my daily living that will benefit both my family and the environment - the composter, line-drying in the warmer weather, green cleaning and laundry products, cloth toilet paper (have not and will not be using it for solid waste though), cloth diapers and trainers when B was still in those (the cloth diapers were only part-time), non-disposable menstrual products, not buying paper towels or napkins, using a reel mower, etc. My son is also on an additive-free diet which has made a huge difference in his behaviour. I do my best to keep artificial colours and flavours as well as preservatives out of his food. I'm hoping to cook more and more from scratch (ie: make my own mixes, bases, breads, and the like). I've also begun to budget (yes, 30 years into my life; never too late to start) and have stuck with it for nearly two months this time and it feels great. I have not spent nearly as much as I used to (impulse buying and credit cards do not get along) and once I have my credit card debt gone (one card with a $1000 balance) I can add that money to the small amount that I am trying to put into savings (of which I previously had none). All in all, I really like the person that I'm becoming. I've heard it said that the 30's are so much better than the 20's (despite the fact that I would have wholeheartedly disagreed when I was in my 20's) because one stops being so concerned with what others think and one is able to (or willing to) just be their own person. I hear it's even more so with the 40's and while I'm not looking forward to those, I am loving who I'm becoming. This blog is to be a bit of a view into my journey to becoming more aware, more frugal, more self-sufficient, and more responsible with what has been entrusted to me.

To close off (the dryer is calling) and toss the rest into one small jumbled paragraph (please, no grammar police) - I am a knitter (even though it has been months since I last picked up the needles) and I also sew. When my son was in diapers and trainers, I made all of them and enjoyed doing it. If I ever have another baby I plan to CD from the very beginning. I have two digital cameras, a point-and-shoot Nikon Coolpix P50 and a Canon Rebel which I'd really like to learn how to use properly instead of only on auto. I'm trying to get back into exercising as it will be two years in May since I've been to the gym and I'm carrying an extra 10 to 15 pounds that do not sit well on my frame, finding a home on my butt and thighs for the most part with that ever-loving roll around the belly.

Weight is an awful note to end on but the dryer is being insistent and I want to pull the clothes out before they get cold. It's a quirk of mine that I don't like folding cold clothes. Just one quirk of many.



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