News

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Happy New Year ~ 2022 ~

Happy New Year, everyone!

This time of year, many people are examining their lives and creating resolutions, setting goals, choosing intentions, selecting a “word of the year” – and much more. I personally tend to just set goals as I see things I want to adjust or need to accomplish, and that happens year round, but December and January do lend themselves to a bit more examination simply due to the cycle of the year. To me, winter creates a quieter time, a time to let some things go (temporarily or permanently) if they don’t serve my needs, and to begin laying the foundations for new endeavors.

Being a military spouse, this often also means I learn if we will be moving in the coming year, and where that will be. (These things are also rather cyclical, based on past moves; not everyone gets this news over the holidays – it just happens to be the rotation plan our family falls on.)

Foreshadowing? Yes. Totally. Continue reading →

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2020 in Review

Well, we’re finally to the last day of 2020, and I think many of us are ready for a fresh start. We may or may not get it, but here’s hoping, at least!

Here’s a quick run-down of what I’ve been up to, on my own and with my family:

January: My husband and I, along with several good friends, successfully completed a week-long NRA training intensive to usher in the new year. I became certified as an instructor of the NRA’s Home Firearm Safety, Basics of Pistol Shooting, CCW, and Personal Protection Outside the Home courses. My husband received his next duty assignment, which was not to the state we originally were told it would be – that actually turned out to be good as we were able to “DiTY” our move (do it ourselves). THAT turned out to be a good plan since, oh, pandemic and military stop movement issues that threw a lot of monkey wrenches in the works when it was time to move.

February: We traded in my beloved Ford F-250 on a Subaru Ascent. Then I started voluntarily self-isolating, since my autoimmune disorder puts me in the high risk category with the virus, and put hardly any miles on the car. Still haven’t, really, including driving it halfway across the country. (I’m still not even to the first oil change yet. Wow.) I did get really wild and take it off on some dirt roads a few times. I even drove up a big woggledy hill (until I chickened out halfway and turned around). It TOTALLY still counts as off-roading. Totally. LOL

March: Started packing, anticipating moving mid-April. And the gods laughed… Continue reading →

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Long Time, No Post!

Hello, out there! 2019 really slammed into me. I hope this finds you all well, hearty, and hale. I’ll have updates for you soon – but it’s going to require some time to figure out what all is even worth sharing. LOL Suffice it to say there was a job in town that I’m no longer at, a military PCS move that didn’t end up happening, and a bunch of educational opportunities (with more still on the list).

Keep an eye out for updates here on the blog, though – they will be happening in the next few weeks. If you’d like to see things more frequently and be able to keep in touch, feel free to come visit me on Instagram at authormeloniek and prepareanywherebook.

More soon!

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Little Bit of News:

The Good: I’ve started a whole bunch of training that will help me better serve my local community, and you, my readers.

The Sort-of Bad: The time I would usually spend writing will be split and a large part of each week’s work hours will be used for said training.

The Sort-of Ugly: The Prepare Anywhere book release will be delayed until after the first of the year (Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise).

The Not-Ugly: All of this continued education on MY part will give me more resources for YOU! It’s gonna make the book even better – that’s worth waiting for, right?!?!?!

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Oh, What a Wonderful Wednesday!

Just for fun, here’s a little list of random bits and bobs I’ve come across (or done) this week:


The above picture is a picture that makes me very happy, indeed! While my daughter was taking a free crochet class at the library, the Bubby and I hit the stacks. I picked up Vern Yip’s Design Wise; The Urban Homesteading Cookbook; Wheat Belly 10-Day Grain Detox; and 101 Easy Homemade Products for your Skin, Health & Home. I’ve already finished Design Wise – some loooovely photos and great tips for decorating, no matter what your style. See those two pieces of pottery? The yarn bowl is from Knitting Lagniappe – I purchased it at a fiber festival in Texas a few years back and so enjoy using it. The piece on the left is a mug I received for Christmas; instead of a handle, it has a piece that wraps around your hand so you can use the whole mug as a hand warmer. Perfect for my cold hands and achy joints! (If this sounds useful, my folks ordered it from Lehman’s. It was hand made by a potter in Washington state.) Lastly, those of you with sharp eyes may have noticed that my shawl is larger than it was Tuesday morning – eight more rows done on the Knúsa!

If you haven’t already noticed the Blogroll tab here on my site, I’d like to encourage you to go check it out. The blogosphere is chock full of amazing people – I bet you’ll stumble across a few that you’ll enjoy reading as much as I do. To get you started, I’d recommend:

One last thing before you go: remember that post of mine about how my Uber Frugal Month was going? I got my final statement from the phone company and my official balance due is -$3.20! Not much, but I’ll gladly take that check and stick it in savings. Every little bit counts, right?

Happy Wednesday, everyone!