No.05

1 // INVISIBLE PEOPLE

I recently discovered a Youtube channel where a man interviews different people facing homelessness. Their stories are heartbreaking and fascinating and my heart quickly broke in pieces for them. After watching a few episodes, I was inspired to search for solutions in my own town and found a short-term family shelter that I never knew existed! I quickly made a small donation (Remember my 20/20 goal from last year? Little donations still matter!) and will continue to check in for volunteer opportunities.

2 // PANTRY ORGANIZATION

With so many people in and out of the pantry around here, it quickly becomes quite messy…and it drives me crazy! I recently took everything out and reorganized the shelves, which was a great start. I also bought a set of cereal containers (affiliate link) to help. They hold an entire box of cereal, so I never have to worry about extra bits. Next on the organization plan is to get a metal rack for canned goods.

3 // THE GARDEN OF REMEMBRANCE

While I have not personally had a miscarriage, there are many, many women in my life who have. I often think of those babies as my special little saints in heaven and ask them to pray for us and watch over their mamas. A Mom’s Peace is an apostolate in my area focused on miscarried and stillborn babies and when I recently checked out their website for information on donations, I discovered their Garden of Remembrance. So beautiful.

4 // A HOMEMAKER IN THE GREAT DEPRESSION “GLORIES” IN HER WORK

I loved this essay from a homemaker in 1932 that was reprinted here. I especially loved this part: “Please do not gather from this that I am a low-brow drudge who knows nothing else. I play McDowell and Tschaikowsky because I love them, and I enjoy Sinclair Lewis and Edna Ferber and Thackeray and Wells. Washing just happens to be one of my sidelines.”

5 // USBORNE EMBROIDERY KITS

For Christmas, we gifted our daughter a bunch of crafty things, including a beginner’s embroidery kit from Usborne. It was a big hit! You may already have an Usborne consultant, but the two I know are Rosie and Sarah.