about | meet Shannon at From Wooden Spoons
Life is full of opportunities to celebrate, create and savor – from the first day of Spring, a child finally able to sip soup with a spoon, or the crust of Thursday’s baked bread. In our house, it really is the hope of the potential and the anticipation of the unfinished that gets us up, and gets us excited!
Where it Began
We are absolutely beginner homesteaders, and first time home owners ta-boot. Ex-suburbanites to long time city dwellers to small town north Texas land owners just busting to experiment with years of book and blog reading behind them. Our two acre property has already given us a beating between long term home renovation projects and total garden destruction from unusually bad weather. But we show up, rather excitedly and overly hopeful, just grateful to have ground to call our ow n.
In fact, it is the last four years of transition that made way for this little space. Living in a large city was the ultimate unrest for our tinkering hearts, manifesting in apartment garage woodshops and balconies covered in potted plants. Did I plant kale seeds in the apartment’s garden beds? Yes, yes I did. It led to a lot of self-education, and exploration of what we could do (homestead, bake, garden, build, remodel) in such a small, urban spot. To see the different phases our garden has taken, read more HERE!
What Matters
Parenthood was another transition that have made the last five years full of learning, contemplation and growth. It was one thing to suddenly have the freedom to explore this new lifestyle, but it was a delight to have little eyes to show, and little hands to share with and a little mind to expand. Little by little, it reveals deep parts of me and what I really value: namely family, faith, community, wholesome food, outdoor time and a cozy home.
The garden has become a huge component of our day to day, creativity and parenthood. We are there holding bugs, learning processes, admiring, moving, instructing, forgiving and more. The 1000 sq. ft. of clay and compost show us the seasons and the trials of the human experience up close. I am so in love with every part of it.
We have 6 raised beds, a few fruit trees and 8 3×35′ “raised rows” due to flooding in our first year. A lovely clay berm surrounds our western side and a field of invasive grass encroaches from the east. Mama is prepared to battle for her tomatoes. We have 15+ chickens, a growing compost pile and a hand me down John Deere tractor and a golden pup that harvests my watermelons for me.
Growing home as a haven seems more necessary and powerful with each year. Not merely as a soft place to land at the end of a hard day, but as the launching pad for every endeavor and life that grows here. At home, foundations are laid. At home, truth is spoken, and chewed on, and wrestled with. At home, hearts are protected and sheltered within good boundaries, discipline and abundance of love until the right time. At home, we prepare for what comes next.
Me, Specifically
I am an enneagram 9 with an 8 wing – so I feel the feels, cherish the cozy and am absolutely ok with a day entirely at home. I love and need my few close people, but definitely recharge in the quiet with busy hands. The last few years have educated me on the importance of “having your village”, and investing in friendships and neighbors. I’ve had to push the limits of personal comfortability to make these relationships, which in turn fill me to no end. People, they’re important.
Entrepreneurship is something that I have always dabbled in, from lemonade stands to wedding cakes. In the next few years, I see small business being a tool in our pocket for together time, homeschooling and supplementing our goals! Growing cut-flowers for our local community has been a delight and something we will continue to build upon in the coming years.
My Mission in Motherhood
As a I step into motherhood, I am learning more on how to incorporate rhythms and routines for myself and my family – to make space for the important things and plenty of flexibility as well. Days are good when we move, when we get outside, when we cook nourishing foods, when we flex our creativity, when we spend time with God and when we find good rest. Do we accomplish these aims daily? No, but that’s why we are learning, shaping and celebrating each day for what it has!
Homeschooling is an adventure that we are just beginning. I am delighted with the ability to lean into learning with delight, and creativity, and tangibility. We encourage life long learning, continual curiosity, and the space to dive into topics completely. We celebrate the freedom to shape our children and give them a firm foundation from which to launch – in their self-confidence, their worldview and sense of family support. We started with “Bunny Book Club”: incorporating themes into our week with books, recipes and activities. Now that the littles are of age to dive deeper, the lessons expand within this framework we have built.
My hope is to encourage myself and others to grow in confidence in the decisions you make for your family with “your own wooden spoons”.
“…and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you…” [1 Thessalonians 4:11]
Be sure to check in for what is new in the KITCHEN | GARDEN | and BOOKSHELF!