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Everything Country Farmhouse

Everything Country – Checking in

Just checking in with some updates 🙂 This post was written at the end of January 2021 and the past year really was a year of change for all of us. It’s now 2022 and as I reflect on this latest past year it feels like more of the same. Although I was able to learn and progress on many of my areas that I am passionate about. I hope you keep reading and checking in on other pages as I keep growing this blog and website.

Here is the rest of the original post for Checking In:

As I mentioned on my ‘about’ page, I retired last year and joined my husband in that club.  However, due to Covid we have not been able to start some of our plans for retirement.  We had hoped to celebrate retirement with a cruise, but that will have to wait. 

We did, however, start the renovation of the main floor of our house. I will show more pictures of that in a future blog.  The kitchen renovation seen in My Country Kitchen was a big part of that. I hope you like the country decor items highlighted there.

Checking In - here is one of my passions that is part of this site

We plan to downsize our house, as both of our kids have flown the coop.  We really hope to find a smaller home that will be a good ‘retirement’ sized fit for the two of us, without being too small that we drive each other crazy.   We have definitely had to cut back our spending for our ‘retirement sized’ budgets, but thankfully we are okay.   

My Bucket List

Besides travel, a few other items on my bucket list include continuing to learn new languages.  I am taking a weekly Finnish language lesson with a Finnish teacher through online Facebook lessons.  Since my heritage is Finnish-Canadian I have been learning Finnish off and on for years.  I am hoping to be more fluent, but for now supposedly I am an early Intermediate speaker. That is pretty good 🙂 

I also plan to work on my French language skills as I am about the same level in French.  Both of these will be great for my brain health in the long run. 😊 

The recipe I posted for Finnish Salmon Soup – Lohikeitto would be a great one for brain health!

Checking in - Finnish recipes are another huge passion.

The other plan I had was to continue with learning piano and/or guitar.  My husband plays guitar really well, so he will be a good teacher.

Like most people, I do need to work on my overall health.   I have been trying keto for a while and now am mostly trying to get my 10,000 steps a day, which has been challenging with Covid and winter weather.  As well, as I am working on getting a caloric deficit and also trying the MIND diet. Lots to do and keep track of!  I will let you know how my progress is. The MIND diet seems very interesting and the studies support its ability to lower the risk of Alzheimer’s and Dementia.  There are lots of good resources on the MIND diet. You can google it 🙂

The Website

This Everything Country blog/website has allowed me to pursue some of my other passions. This includes country music and getting caught up with all that has been going on the past few years.  I love being able to promote and encourage country artists (all in my free time and for free).  I do that through my twitter account and enjoy connecting with artists in the process.  My Latest in Country Music – Live Calendar, also is a way I can share who is providing free livestreams and where. It also helps promote emerging artists (free). I post updates each week on free country music livestream events. So keep checking in!

I also have a love for country decor as you can see from some of my Blog posts, and yes, I enjoy cooking and trying new Recipes. I am happy that I have been slowly but surely able to post a few of my favorite recipes. Many of these are tried and true, and others I have always wanted to try.  I will keep posting more recipes, e.g. Coquille St. Jacques and Beef Bourguignon, both of which I make on special occasions.  I had never written down my Turkey Stuffing recipe, so when I told my son I was putting it up on the website, his eyes lit up.  I think that’s a good sign 🙂

I am also a bit of a photo hound and have posted some of my own photos in my Photo Gallery. I know I am not a professional, but its really about the enjoyment of it and documenting the moment. Keep checking in for more updates to my photo gallery.

Future items will include expanding my Country Store to other ‘antiques and collectibles’ that folks might be interested in, to browse or purchase if they collect similar items.  The hunt for new items via local garage sales, online marketplaces and thrift stores is a something I never tire of. This could keep me busy for years! 

I hope you are enjoying seeing some of my posts and country related musings.  I feel blessed to be able to share some of my passions with you.  Here’s hoping the next year brings us all more joy and good health!

I hope you come back and visit again! Thanks for checking in!

🙂 Bonnie