HAPPY NEW YEAR, FARMGIRL READERS! Here we are in 2025, and the start to my FIFTEENTH year blogging here as the MaryJanesFarm’s Suburban Farmgirl! It’s hard to believe – time just speeds by. January is probably the least favorite month among most people, but I think January is a good month to rest, regroup, get organized, and look ahead to a fresh, new year!

In New England, January can seem like it lasts forever. I always call it my “nesting month”. It’s been cold this winter, but sunny, so I don’t mind. We’ve had a few small snowfalls. Snow is so peaceful. 

I like to get my Christmas decorations put away the first week, especially outside before it gets too cold or snow-covered. However, getting outdoors, even if it is for a short time, is a great mood-booster. We took a quick, refreshing New Year’s Day walk on a Connecticut beach. 

As I put away the holidays, I think ahead to next year, so I don’t stress. Organize supplies like wrapping paper, and make notes on your calendar for what you’ll need. Our local TJMaxx sells beautiful rolls of vintage-print wrapping paper, made from recycled material, in the fall. If I see my stash is low, I’ll write on my calendar to pick it up in October, so I am not stressing in December to wrap gifts. Now is also a good time to organize gift bags, throwing out any that are too worn to reuse. 

After all the indoor Christmas decor is put away, I like to give things a good “spring-like cleaning”. Clutter can bring on stress; having things organized also helps save time in the long run. I’ve got my routine down pat, and what tools to use so I don’t spend too much time on chores. 

My forecast for 2025? I’ll be vacuuming Christmas tree needles until June, haha! After a good vacuuming, I neaten up the fringe on our throw rugs with a comb-out, using a teasing comb meant for hair. I remember my mama doing this tip back in the 1970’s. 

After the holidays, with all the food and baked goods, I give the pantry, fridge, and freezer a good cleanout, and check expiration dates. Groceries are SO expensive these days – I want nothing to go to waste! I am not much for New Year Resolutions, but mine this year is “no food gets wasted!”

In the pantry, repurpose plastic produce bags to keep open boxes of crackers, chips and cereal from going stale. (This is another tip I got from my mama, who did this when I was a kid)!

I love that in my area, I have an old-fashioned bakery to get fresh baked goods from, and an old-fashioned butcher for meat. By stocking up on basics and picking up meat in bulk a few times a year, we rely less on expensive take-out. However, buying in bulk and freezing is only economical if you don’t throw out food that got buried, forgotten and past its expiration.

To keep track of what I have on hand at any given moment, I bought a small dry-erase board and keep a running inventory of what I have, so I don’t buy more of what I don’t need, or forget about what I have. 

On snow days where we might get a later start, I’ll make a big, hearty breakfast with homemade muffins, eggs, and the occasional treat of bacon.

To clean my cast-iron skillet of the grease, I’ll throw uncooked oats on the bacon grease as the skillet cools. The oats soak up the grease, which I give to the chickens as a treat. Cleanup of the skillet is a snap, without ruining the seasoning of the pan, no grease goes down my drain, and the chickens LOVE their treat. It’s a win-win.

I also always keep frozen and canned veggies on hand. That way, I can throw together a pot pie or a soup from leftover meat cooked for the previous night’s dinner. I also freeze dinner portions of casseroles like lasagna for great comforting dinners on busier nights when I’m too tired to cook. Cook once – enjoy several times!

In the laundry room, we changed our washer filters this week, which I mentioned in last January’s blog post. I also cleaned my iron. It’s amazing how much gunk builds up!

Using an old cloth or towel, you simply run your hot iron over the cleaning paste. Mine was really nasty! After a bit, your plate is as shiny and smooth as new!  What a difference!

I knew a lovely lady who still ironed all of her sheets when she changed her linens! I don’t do that, but I do like to iron my vintage linens, such as decorative vintage dish towels, for example, or my all-cotton clothes. I love that crisp, fresh look. Many people do not iron anything anymore…do you? 

It’s good to look forward and try new things. I’m a true, simple-life loving farmgirl, but I did something not so “farmgirl” last year. Though I really don’t like change, I am open-minded to trying new things. New foods, new exercise classes, new books to read, and new experiences are just some examples of things that make life interesting. Now in my 50’s, I had not been to a big concert since my 20’s (growing up in Houston, I used to go all the time as a teen). Especially since the pandemic, I had no desire to go to a concert – I don’t like crowds, I don’t like being out late, but when my daughter was a teenager, she made me absent-mindedly promise that I’d go with her to a certain band’s concert if they ever came to town. Little did I know that over seven years later, she would hold me to that promise, in November 2023. She bought tickets six months early, as a birthday present to herself. Five bands would play; she promised we would leave if I felt uncomfortable at any time. I like what I like – in my house or car, most of the time I’m listening to 1940s Big Band and Swing music. Honestly, the day of the concert, before we left I was actually scared to go, to the point of tears (the crowds, the being out late…the HEAVY METAL)!  I never thought I’d like it, or end up enjoying one band so much that I’d WISH to go again! So…for Mother’s Day last May, we went to see the band again (a Swedish HEAVY DEATH METAL band – can you imagine me there – what a hoot!) This time, it was “standing room” only, and we ended up right at the stage. It was phenomenal.

Waiting in line to go into the venue, one young “goth” man opened his umbrella for us to stand under while he got soaked, and while inside waiting for the concert to start, several young ladies standing with us said how much they wished their moms would go with them! We had a wonderful time, (and I actually was not the oldest one there)! It was a perfect evening with my daughter, an experience I will never forget.  

After that, I ended up unexpectedly going to two more concerts in 2024. One of my best friends got tickets for her birthday for us. This time, it was all 80’s bands, such as Thompson Twins and Psychedelic Furs (be still, my Generation X heart)

Lastly, for our 32nd anniversary, my daughter treated our family to a weekend in Boston and a Glass Animals (modern pop) concert.

My point is that getting out of our comfort zones, and thinking “outside the box” keeps life fresh and interesting. I also think it’s important to have something to look forward to. I’m looking forward to going to another concert with my daughter later this spring.

I’m also looking forward to a new, upcoming garden season, and all that comes with a fresh, new year. I hope that 2025 is a great one for us all! I can’t believe I have blogged here for 15 years! It means so much to me that you all are here! Thank you so much, MaryJane, and dear farmgirl readers, newer and past. Wishing you all a great winter, and a very Happy New Year! 

Tell me, what are you up to in the “nesting season” of winter? And what are you looking forward to in 2025? Leave me a comment…I want to hear from you!