welcome twenty ten

Hi All! It's been a few days since I've blogged. I know it's been a few days when I'm speaking to my bf on the phone and she says, "Gosh, you still haven't updated your blog. How am I to know what's going on with you?!"

The new year is in full swing. Me, Andy, Liz and Tony traveled to Whitesburg to ring in the new year with family, friends, and good hearted folk. On the drive there Liz had gone above and beyond and created festive little cards for us to write our wishes out for the new year. We also had our cards on which we wrote our wisehs out the previous year. The car ride gave us a chance to go over those and see how each one panned out. I was certainly very pleased to see that almost all the things I wanted to happen did.

At Summit City there was a dance floor with disco ball and the dance tunes flowed throughout the evening. I danced with my mama, my brothers, my best friend, my sister in law, with Tony and with Andy. There were hats, and noise makers, glitter and sparkles abound. There were eats and drinks. More drinks. The next day I was reminded of why I no longer drink this much on a regular occurrence. But boy for that one night, it was completely worth it. Welcome 2010...twenty ten. It has a nice ring to it.

The new year's day retreat was a great day. I was surrounded by 15 lovely yogini's and there hope-full energy throughout the day. We sweat and worked it out to a two hour detox practice, ate some fresh and healthy food, shared our challenges and struggles, confronted our fears, reflected on what we wanted more of in life and wanted we needed less of. We got creative in crafting our vision for the year, ate fruit, and went through the eight steps to create and commit to a yoga practice that would help sustain us throughout the year. We juiced. We toasted. And we danced.

I learned from them. They learned from me. We all learned from each other. Something so sweet, so simple, yet so very powerful about all of this. We women has the creative power to change our lives and the lives around us. We must learn how to harness this power and use it for good. For ourselves and the world.

I retreated into the woods of Estill County for two days. Giving myself some time and space to sit quietly, to relax, to reflect on what I hope this new year will bring. I'm hope-full in my heart and feeling content knowing that those things that will help me to learn, to grow and move forward on my path will certainly present themselves.

Snug Hollow Farm is a small piece of paradise. Actually it's 300 acres, so maybe small isn't the word I'm going for. The Appalachian mountain gal in me really resonated with this place and with Barb, the owner and innkeeper.

Barb herself is from Jackson (Breathitt County) and she is a breath of fresh country air. The farmhouse felt like so many homes I've been in in Appalachia.... old, lived in, loved on, unique, and simple. You look at the pieces of furniture, the books, the lamps and you just feel some story behind them. And Barb is a success story on her own. I won't share too much. You'll have to take a trip down to see her and discover her wisdom and beauty for yourself.

And her food. Oh my. Oh my. AND she has a cookbook. "Hot Food & Warm Memories is a 123-page treasure that includes the author’s inspiring insights along with her best-loved recipes. “Stuffed green peppers, pot pies, bean soup, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese or even a good cheesy pizza are my favorites,” she writes. “I stick to my Kentucky roots where we grow it, cook it, eat it or can it.”

Everything Appalachian food should be. AND everything vegetarian cooking should be. How is that possible, right?! Yeah I know. I was completely surprised too. She has an organic farm, cooks with cast iron skillets, uses tamari and nutritional yeast in most everything. Her food...completely and utterly amazing.

I returned on Tuesday and this week I've hit the books and the laptop, preparing for our upcoming teacher training that begins next Friday. It's a great joy. A great love. And a lot of work. In years past we've worked from a binder. This year I'm making a bound manual. With the plans of using it more than the binder and continually working from it throughout our six months together.

Compiling all the info together and adding some new content. We're now up to 116 pages. Excited to see how it works out!

Alright I think that's for me! I hope the new year is treatin' each of you delightfully well. Adios!

**I have tons o' pics to share, but for some reason the camera isn't cooperating for now.**