The Quiet Pleasures of Home

Do you have other homemakers you look up to?

2012-02-07T15:41:00.000-08:00

I remember a conversation I read on a homemaker forum many years ago. The ladies were talking about the little tricks they used to keep them motivated to do a good job with their housework. One woman entered the conversation and, almost in an embarrassed way, admitted that she would pretend she was Ma Ingles from Little House in the Prairie. She said that Carol Ingles was a character she really liked and could relate to and so she used that as something to aspire to. After she made this admission, woman after woman entered the thread saying that she shouldn't be embarrassed because they did the same exact thing. Some with female characters from The Waltons or Anne of Green Gables or Aunt Bea. It seems that it was a little internal motivator that many women were using.

I have to admit, that I do something similar when I feel I need a bit of extra motivation on a glum day. I think about real homemakers that I have known (like my mother and grandmother) or homemakers I have met online (like Lady Lydia or Cheryl from Copperswife.) And I imagine what they would do if they were in my house as a homemaker at that moment. Would they leave the dishes undone or get up and take care of them? Would they do whatever the job at hand is in a half-way manner or would they be thorough? Well, the answers to those questions are fairly obvious. It always gives me the little ooomph that I need to do what needs to be done and do it well when I feel like giving into the flesh and ignoring a chore. Let's face it, some days we need a little bit more encouragement and inspiration than on others and this little trick really helps me to get myself going.

So what do you do to keep yourself motivated?

A few words on church youth groups

2012-02-03T12:12:00.000-08:00

I know that many people have very strong views on church youth groups. So please know that I'm not writing this to say that either side of the issue is right or wrong and I'm not trying to change your mind and opinion on them. I simply want to share my point of view and my experience on the subject.

My church has a very active youth group and my two kids are a part of it.

Our youth group does not:

* Exclude the parents or other adults in the church from youth events.

* Get the kids together for no reason at all without supervision and senseless games and activities that serve no purpose.

* Encourage separation of children and parents at church or events. This is totally left up to each family unit and whatever each family decides is best for them gets respected by everyone else involved.

Now, let me explain what our youth group does do:

* Our boys get trained in the capacities they will be called to serve in the church when they are older. We don't simply plop a boy - who has never been in front of a crowd before - up in front of the congregation to lead a song or read a verse. In ways appropriate to different age groups, our boys are trained by the men of the congregation on how to do these things with confidence and competence. By the time a young man is at the age to get up in front of the church to serve in any capacity, he is ready. He feels good about what he is about to do and feels that he has the skills to lead and speak publicly in the the church. And I can speak for all the adults when I say we are all so very proud of our boys when they get to that point. And everyone makes sure they tell these boys just how proud they are and what a good job they did.

* Our girls also get trained in how to teach children's classes. We have a class for the pre-teen/teenage girls where they are taught about the ways a woman can help and serve in the church. For the girls who choose to, they are are taught (by adult women in the church) also how to lead songs, read verses, and speak publicly. This way, when they are grown they will be ready and willing to take part in and teach in things like Ladies Days and Ladies Bible Classes.

* We do get the kids together for fun activities but we never, ever have an event without a Bible lesson, singing songs of praise to God, and prayer. Some of these lessons are used as time for our young men to "practice" giving a lesson, leading songs/prayer, etc.

* Our events always have parental supervision. I don't mean just one or two parents in attendance. I mean almost every single parent is a "chaperon" of any given event. Not only that, but several other adults in our church who do not have children of their own will attend our youth events to help out as well. This shows our kids that it's not just their parents who are invested in them, interested in them, and are observant of what they are or are not doing. It makes them feel that their entire church family is behind them and want to see them succeed.

* As I said, we get our kids together sometimes for fun activities but that is also balanced out by getting together for times of service of education. In the summertime, our youth meets every Monday night for a devotional, a fun pre-planned game, and a time of learning something very hands-on that they will need to know in life. Some examples of things that have been taught in these Monday night get togethers are different cooking skills and learning how to start and use a gas grill. Each kid got a turn from start to finish on starting the grill up and using it. Needless to say, these things are very well supervised.

* Also in the summertime, our kids meet once per week in the church kitchen to cook or bake. They make little goodie packets from the things they made and then split off in teams with a couple of adults and deliver them to shut ins in our area. They take the food and visit with the people. Our shut ins always look forward to these visits.

Yes, I can say that our youth group does things to help equip our kids for a responsible adulthood. I can say that being a part of our youth group has helped these kids grow spiritually. I have seen it in both my own kids and the other kids at church. I know that many people think youth groups are terrible things that accomplish nothing good for kids. That they separate families and allow children to run amok unsupervised. That they do not help them mature spiritually at all. And if a youth group were guilty of all those things - I'm sure some are - believe me I would be the first person gathering my chicks and running fast. But I just wanted to represent the other side of that coin. I wanted to share how great they can be when they are organized and managed (and yes, it takes a lot of managing and participation from the parents and adults) in a proper way. Youth groups are only going to be as good as the parents and adults running them. But if you're willing to do the work, they can be very rewarding for all involved.

1940s radio

2012-01-27T17:49:00.000-08:00

I love music. I always work better if there is good music playing softly in the background. As I've said before, when I was growing up my parents kept the radio paying 24/7 and the music that played was a mix of things from the 1930s through the 1960s. I took classical piano lessons from the time I was 6 until I was 16. Throughout my high school years I was in a choral group and participated in many musical productions. So yes, music is a big deal to me.

I love the old music from the 1940s and 50s. Now, I don't know about where you live, but where I am you can't turn on the radio and simply find a station that plays those old tunes. However, this week I found an online radio station that not only plays all music from the 1940s but even the commercials are recordings of the radio commercials from then! The news stories are news stories from the 40s as well. I have been enjoying it so much! I found it on a radio app that my husband has on his Ipad. It's the Uk1940s Vintage Radio station. It's been so fun to go throughout my day and have this playing in the background. Love it!

Amen!!!!

2012-01-24T09:40:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share this article about our younger generation with you. It's from LifeSiteNews.com. I wholeheartedly agree with this author. "You can be smart, funny, and cool while having morals." Our young people need to learn - so desperately - that they need to care more about morals and their relationship with God than looking cool to their friends.

Matronly...and proud of it!

2012-01-21T11:08:00.000-08:00

I've had something on my mind for a while now. I've been mulling it over and have wanted to do a blog post about it but couldn't quite get my thoughts out yet. I needed to think on it a bit more. Then I read this post at The Apron Revolution and it helped me figure out what I want to say. (Truthfully, she probably says it much better than I will be able to, so please click the link to read what she wrote. True and wise words.)

I find myself a bit perplexed and confused as to how things like wearing your pajamas around in public has become not only the norm...but the expected. And I saw firsthand on a forum today how if ladies dared to say that it was not proper to present one's self in that manner in public, the pajama clad side started slinging accusations of, "Judgement!!! You can't judge us!!!!" and then they just went down hill from there with all manner of foul language and discontent.

I'll not lie.
It makes me weary.

How did we get to the point that instead of valuing women like this:

(the above picture and many more can be found here)

Our society now values and is enamored by women like this:

Don't even try to tell me you can't see the difference.

It's as though anything dignified is looked upon with suspicion and disdain. Anyone who isn't going with whatever is the current flow is gets looked upon in the same manner. If you don't agree with it and wish to encourage others who share your views, you're looked upon as trying to "recruit" others to your way of thinking. And also apparently wishing damnation on those who feel differently.

Not true.

But I will be honest and say that our world could stand a rather large dose of dignity right now. Not so long ago the majority of people wanted to live their lives in such a way that they would be seen as responsible, dignified, and mature. Now it seems that so many would rather be seen as comfortable in their pajamas in public than a mature and dignified example to the younger generation.

My husband paid me a compliment recently. He said something that would make the blood boil of most women my age. But I dearly love what he said and it made me feel wonderful. I was standing in our kitchen wearing a simple dress and a new apron that I had recently purchased. He came in, looked me over, and said with a kiss, "Don't you look matronly." He meant it as a compliment and I most certainly took it as one. It still gives me a smile when I think of it.

It seems that at some point being seen as something like "matronly" has become this taboo thing that women associate with...well, I don't really know what they associate it with but it's obvious it's something negative. I happen to hold no such reserves where that and similar words are concerned and think that the thoughts they convey are wonderful. I found in one place the word matronly described as, "maturely dignified or stately." What woman in her right mind wouldn't want to be seen as maturely dignified or stately?

I know that some must think a "matron" could only be a lady who is very elderly. But in the past, this word wasn't just reserved for the very old ~~ it was used to describe any lady who carried and presented herself as such. This photo ~ looks to be from the 1950s perhaps? ~ is even entitled by the photographer, "Young Matrons."

So, yes. I believe in being "matronly." And I believe that no harm would come but plenty of good would if women still aspired to behave as and be seen as a "matron." Pajamas in public need not apply.

Doing Laundry is such a Blessing!!!

2012-01-18T21:29:00.000-08:00

What? You don't agree? You think that doing laundry is a chore that you would quite happily do without? Well, I'm here to tell you that it's a blessing! Yes, I promise, it's a blessing! I know because I have just had to go a couple of days without doing any...and sad to say...before this 2 day laundry hiatus I was behind on the laundry.

Eeeeeekk!!!

You see, I had an exceptionally busy long weekend. I fell behind on the laundry during that time. Then on Tuesday, I decided to get it back under control and thought I would start with the biggest and most difficult item first. That item was our kind sized mattress cover. I've washed it many times so I knew our machine could handle it. But I guess this time it was just too much for the old gal because right in the middle of the load...while the washer was filled with water...she (my washing machine) died. (Sigh.)

So I was behind on laundry and couldn't catch up. I called my husband and work and told him our machine was officially dead. He said he would look for another machine for me and I told him to just make sure it was heavy duty and large capacity or it wouldn't stand up to my abuse, lol. So it took until 10:00 tonight, but I've now got a working washing machine in my laundry room humming away. And an unbelievable amount of laundry to do, lol! That's ok though. I don't really mind doing laundry. It's actually one of my more favored chores. I guess that's a good thing because I know have the privilege of doing quite a bit of it!!

So if you ever feel like laundry is a chore instead of a blessing, just go a few days without doing it and let it all pile up (I don't actually recommend that!) and see just how happy you are be able to set it all right again.

Happy Washing!

Good Night ~~

2012-01-15T19:36:00.001-08:00

An article from Ladies Against Feminism

2012-01-15T10:50:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share the link to an article on Ladies Against Feminism with my readers. It is entitled, "The Death of Pretty" and I wholeheartedly agree with every word of it! Our young ladies (and a good number of our grown ladies as well) have taken such a turn in the wrong direction in this day and age. We so desperately need to turn our families back to a more modest lifestyle...truly in more ways than just dress and appearance. I hope you enjoy this article and find the truth in it just as I did.

Shopping at our Mennonite markets

2012-01-14T18:53:00.000-08:00

I had such a good time yesterday. I went with a friend to our two Mennonite markets here in our town. (Have I mentioned on my blog before that I live in an area largely populated with Amish and Mennonites? I can't remember if I've shared that or not. It's just as common to see horses and buggies going down the road as it is cars.) :-) Have you ever shopped at a Mennonite market? It's quite the experience and is always so much fun especially if you enjoy cooking and hand made items. Our markets have a store section and then a kitchen section where you can shop their fresh baked goods or have them make you a sandwich on their fresh baked bread. So we ended up shopping and eating lunch at the second market.

Let me share a few of my finds with you.

I found a basket with a little sign saying these were bread basket liners hand made with vintage materials. I fell in love with this one. I do intend to use it as a liner for a bread basket, but for the time being I'm enjoying it under the centerpiece on my table. See the little birds on it? I love it.

Next I got this knitted kitchen rag. It's quite thick and sturdy. I don't have a dishwasher and hand wash everything so good sturdy kitchen rags are a must. I also got this knife. Now, I'm not someone who thinks a lot about knives for the kitchen. But my friend who was with me told me about these knives that are sold at the Mennonite markets and she said that they are such good quality that they are the only ones she uses and she always like to get a new one or two to add to her collection each time she goes to the market. So I decided to try one and I have to say, I'm not sure I've ever used a sharper knife! I'm hooked. I'll probably want to start picking up another one or two each time I go there now too, lol.

We go through a lot of popcorn. I make it the old fashioned way on top of the stove so I have to purchase it loose as opposed to those microwave bags. I've found the Mennonite market to have the best price. I buy these bags which are a little over 6 pounds and it costs me about $5.00. Yesterday was just the right time to get some because they had a sign up that said it was National Popcorn Week so all their popcorn was 10% off. Very nice. :-) I also got a canister of butter flavored popcorn salt.

I fell in love with these salt and pepper shakers! The pepper shaker says, "Milton Kirby's Pepper" and the salt says, "Percival Duffin's Salt." Too cute. And they match my kitchen because I use a lot of red in my kitchen. I love how old fashioned they look and they hold a lot too. Now, for the items that came from the bulk spices that the Mennonites sell. (They sell sooooo many bulk spices! It's pantry heaven.) The bag on the left is a spice mix for beans. You know the little flavor packet that comes in 16 bean mix soup from the store? This is basically what is in that packet. So I can now get that nice, smokey flavor with any type of bean I want to cook. The one of the right is called a "greens mix" for soups and stews. It's basically an assortment of dried veggies and spices to add to soups to give it some extra flavor and heartiness.

And last but not least, my kids would think it so very wrong of me if I went to the Mennonite stores and didn't bring home some candy. You've never seen so much candy as they have in these stores! All bagged up in these little cellophane bags. They love the fruit flavored twists and I must admit to loving the nonpareils myself. I don't know if you can tell it or not, but the fruit twists were already opened when I took this picture. The kids grab them as soon as I get home, lol!

So that was my Saturday ~ shopping and lunch with a sweet friend at the very homey Mennonite markets. It was a simple day, but we both had so much fun! I hope to go back soon. ~~ Blessings to you my friends ~ may your week ahead be filled with simple pleasures that bring a smile to you heart!

Wow

2012-01-11T00:07:00.000-08:00

I am writing this at almost 2am. I really don't know if I want to laugh or cry. I seem to be going back and forth between them both at the moment. See the above set of broach and earrings? My mother had that set. But over time, one of the earrings got lost. I don't even know if my mother lost it before she died or if I did afterwards. And two of the glass beads in the broach came loose and have come out. I felt certain I could fix the broach, but had no idea how to find that identical set of earrings so I could have the whole set. You see, that set of jewelry reminds me soooo much of my mother. It's just so...her. And I really wanted an intact set.

But talk about trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Trying to find one earring in all the world.

I've really had this on my mind a lot in the past few weeks. How to go about finding this pair of earrings. Well today I decided to try Etsy. The glass beads are very much a peach color in real life. So I thought about searching for "vintage peach jewelry." But then I thought that perhaps most people wouldn't list them as peach, but orange. So I did a search for "vintage orange jewelry." And got 250 pages of results. This was going to be a long day. So in between chores and while the kids were busy with their school work, I would search through the pages, hoping to find mom's set. When I got 160 pages in...my computer locked up and I had to turn it off. By then I was tired and needed to do other things. But tonight after everyone went to bed, I continued my search. I put in "vintage orange jewelry" hoping to be able to skip ahead to page 160 where I left off and finish through the 250 pages. Only to find that now there weren't 250 pages to sort through, but about 380. Sigh. Ok.

So I got started. I was getting very tired and at 1:30am told myself I would search until 2:00 and then call it quits. I clicked through about 2 or 3 more pages...and there it was! Not only the earrings, but the whole set with the broach as well.

I'm just...shocked. I can't believe I found it! Of course I purchased it and it should be on it's way to me soon. I need to go to bed, but right now I just don't think I could sleep if I tried.

Dressing as a lady - learning about vintage styles

2012-01-07T19:34:00.000-08:00

I have a new hobby that I am enjoying immensely. If you've read my blog for any time at all, you've probably read some of my posts on lady's dress or lack thereof in this day and age. Well, I have a soft spot for anything 1950s related. And recently I was doing some online searching, just for the fun of it, about vintage 1950s fashion and hairstyles. I'm fairly adept at copying a hairstyle once I see a visual of it, so I thought it would be fun to try some really old fashioned ones.

Oh my dear. Once I started delving into the world of vintage...let's just say I'm never going back! I've discovered that I love not only the style of the 1950s, I love anything from the 1930s through the 1950s! And they are truly more different from one another than you would think.

Vintage is my new favorite word, lol. My new favorite thing to occupy my down time. Etsy has a lot of wonderful vintage finds ~ everything from clothes to Bakelite.

One of my most fascinating finds has been blogs of other ladies who dress in a vintage style from their favorite era all the time. My favorite one at the moment is Va-Voom Vintage. This is a blog written by a young wife and mom who is a vintage enthusiast and she has everything on her blog from vintage hair and make-up tutorials, to reviews of old movies, to what to expect and how to shop at an estate sale. I warn you though - one vintage blog will lead to another and another until you have a whole list of vintage enthusiast blogs saved in your favorites! :-)

I love these old fashions and it's so nice to see that others do too and that they have a lot of knowledge to share about such things. And the fact that a whole sub-set of our population is dressing in such a classy manner on a daily basis absolutely tickles me pink ladies, lol!

If you think you might be interested in vintage styles, do some searching online yourself. I think you'll be surprised at just how much information is out there - everything from blogs to Youtube videos. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do because I have been having a very good time with my new "hobby."

Drowned in Butter Biscuits

2012-01-05T07:54:00.000-08:00

(This picture is after my family started their inital attack on the biscuits, lol. I wasn't quick enough to get a picture of them untouched!)

These are the tastiest biscuits I've ever made. I have a **very** picky family and they all love these so much! They're not the prettiest biscuits ever, but the taste...oh my word. You'll just have to try them for yourself to see that I'm right, lol! Oh, by the way, my husband gave them their name. Because there's enough butter in this to make Paula Dean proud.

Drowned in Butter Biscuits

2 C. bisquick

1/2 C. sour cream

1/2 C. 7-up

1 whole stick of butter

Take your 2 C of bisquick and use a pastry cutter to cut in the sour cream. Make sure to get it all worked in and crumbly. While you are doing this, let the stick of butter melt in a pot on the stove. Now mix the 7-up into your bisquick/sour cream crumbles. This will make a very wet dough. Put some more bisquick on your counter or bread board and dump the wet dough out onto it. Now go back to your melted butter. Pour it all into a 9in. square pan. (Or you could do what I do. I use a glass pie pan. I've found they make the best biscuits! Perfectly brown on the bottom every time.) Now pour all that butter in your pan. Now back to your dough. Knead it a few times. Not too many. Just enough so that you can handle the dough well enough to transfer it in one piece into your butter pan. It will still be wet. That's ok, you want that. When you carefully make the transfer into the pan, if there's any excess bisquick on the dough blow it off. Place your dough that's been formed into a rough circle or square shape right down into that butter. Now take a knife and carefully cut the dough into individual biscuits. Roughly all the same size. If you don't cut 100% all the way through all the dough, it's ok. Just do the best you can.

Now at this point your going to think that there is no way this recipe is going to work. It will look like a wet, runny mess with so much butter that the dough will be too soaked to even bake properly. Just relax, and trust the recipe. Pop it into a 450* oven. Keep your eye on it, I usualy start checking them around 10-12 minutes. Bake until they are golden brown. The butter will have sopped up.

Eat them. I promise it will be bliss.

My favorite things

2012-01-02T10:46:00.000-08:00

I thought I would share a few of my favorite things with you. I always love to see things that other women love and get inspiration from them, so I pass along the gesture to my sweet readers.

Pond's Cold Cream:

Of course, now days it looks like this:

I tried to do some research to find out exactly how long this cream has been on the market, but I wasn't able to unearth that little fact. But I remember my momma using this when I was a wee little girl and she always talked about how long she had been using it. I know that women have been using this...well, forever! And decades of women just can't be wrong. This is what I use to wash my face with every night.

Noxema:

I always purchase the original formula:

I know that they have lots of other formulas of Noxzema available now days, but I always stick with the original. I can't help myself, I'm a bit skeptical about all the new ones. I'm not one to want to re-invent the wheel and I say if it's not broke, then don't fix it! :) I've used this product since I was a young girl. My mom started me on it and I started my daughter on it a few years ago as well. I love the fresh smell of it and the tingle it gives to my skin. I use this every morning to wash my face. The distinct smell of it always helps wake me up and gets me ready to start my day.

Aprons:

I absolutely adore and love wearing aprons. I've been wearing them since I was first married. I must admit to being a bit picky about my aprons though. I don't like half aprons ~ I don't much see the point in them. I prefer a full bib apron that ties in the back. I also prefer for them to have some length to them ~ at least below the knee. I have different ones for different jobs. I have a denim one for really messy jobs and a white denim one for when I'm using bleach. I have several cotton ones to choose from for daily wear and also some special ones for the Christmas season.

I remember once when my dad was still living he was watching me in the kitchen one day. I grabbed my apron and put it on. When he saw me do that he said, "Uh oh, better watch out. She's fixing to get serious in there!" Lol, that still gives me a laugh when I think about it.

So yes, I love my aprons. This one below is one I recently purchased off of Etsy. I can't wait for it to arrive!

Victory Rolls! :)

I love all things vintage and that includes hairstyles. My current project is to learn how to do my hair up in Victory Rolls. I don't have it perfect yet, but I'm getting there. I really like it and my 15 year old daughter thinks it's weird ~ so I must be doing something right, lol!

This is one of the videos I've used to learn how to do it:

Ideals Magazine Publications:

I love these publications. More often than not, they can be found in Christian bookstores. Although occasionally I have found them in regular bookstores. They are put out for the seasons and for holidays and I always keep my eyes out for them. These are not regular magazines that you will want to throw away once you are done with them. In my family, we keep them and even pass the collection down from one generation to the next. They have short stories, poetry, recipes, and beautiful photography in each one. They are very uplifting and have a very positive influence.

These are just a few things that I love and that give a little lift to my day.

I may add to this post over time if I think of more things to add to it. :-)

Sweet Day

2011-12-30T20:11:00.000-08:00

I'm tired and don't have a lot of energy to write much tonight but I just wanted to share that I had the best day today. :-) I took my daughter and two of her friends shopping for a "girl's day" and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I made out like a bandit with all the sales going on ~ I'll share pictures soon of some of the goodies I got.

One thing I'm very happy about is that I was able to get some more pieces of a kitchen ware set that I'm collecting for my daughter's hope chest. If you want to see it, go to my Pinterest account and look in my "Old Fashioned Domesticities" board. It's the Owl set. Trust me, you'll know it when you see it. ;-) Both she and I love the design of it and it makes me happy to see her Hope Chest collection grow. I got a few home items as well. And to top it all off, hubby and I have a date planned for tomorrow! We are both looking forward to that.

I had a great time with the girls and it was just a very precious day. I'll try to share some pictures soon. But for now, my bed is calling my name!

Being happy and content within your role

2011-12-29T04:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know if it's just the season of the year and all the things that go with it or if I'm just getting older and more settled and content within myself and who I am, but I have been so happy and content lately. Especially so where my homemaking is concerned. I have been enjoying and have been made so happy by all the cooking, cleaning, and creative endeavours that I am able to partake of in my home.

I have decided to just give myself over to all of my old fashioned tendencies. You see, I was raised in a very old fashioned home. And I'm not just talking about moral standards here ~ although that was the heart of it! But I'm also talking about the music that was played in our home, the decor of the home, the rhythm of our life. I was born to "older parents" who were in their forties when I was born in the 1970s. So if you do the math ~ it is easy to see that the 1940s and 1950s had a big influence in our home.

I have found myself pushing 40 and I see that life is just too short to not give into who I really am. So I have been surrounding myself with things that are familiar to my past and my family. The types of music I grew up hearing all the time ~

My parents literally kept an old radio playing softly in the background 24/7/365. So throughout my entire childhood...I had background music of a very old fashioned kind, lol. I recently made a playlist with some of the old songs I remember and I play it while I'm working in the kitchen. It's very comforting to have those old fashioned, familiar sounds in the background once again.

Speaking of music, I have to share this funny story with you. I was somewhere online recently and the topic of music came up. One young lady made the comment that no one listened to real music anymore. That the things that are popular in pop culture now days can't really be called music and that people should listen to the classics again...like Ozzy Ozborne! Lol, I kid you not, there is apparently a percentage of the populous that thinks of Ozzy Ozborne as being "classic." Be still my heart, but it makes me want to close my shades up a bit tighter, lol.

Anyway, I've just been very happy and glad to be working in my home ~ everything from the fun stuff like decorating to the down and dirty stuff like washing dishes and laundry. I'm grateful that my husband wants me to stay at home and work in our home instead of outside of the home. I'm able to do so much more than I could if I had one foot in both worlds. I know that he works very hard at his job and that makes me want to work very hard at mine as well. I don't want him to work hard all day and then have to be in a slovenly kept home reigned over by a slovenly kept woman! I want him to know that I appreciate and respect all he does. I try to keep hot meals & hot coffee coming, keep things tidy without making the family feel uptight as though they were at a museum, and uphold my husband as the head of our family. ~ I want him to feel like he has a woman to come home to, not a brash competitor.

I try to keep myself presentable as well. I'm finding that I'm quite content with an "everyday uniform" of a dress or a skirt and top and always with an apron.

(This apron pattern can be found on Etsy, here.)

Yes, I know it's terribly old fashioned but it makes me so happy and content. And I have to say, it seems to have the same effect on my family!

I really wish that more women could see and understand the happiness and peace that comes from building a home-centered life. It seems so many are so busy ranting and raving about what they insist they are entitled to and that they should never have to compromise (but somehow their husband and children having to compromise all the time for them is ok) that they can't even fathom slowing down and enjoying a calm, quiet, femininely productive life. It makes me sad for them really. If they only knew what they were missing, I think a lot of them would be willing to make some changes.

Christmas Snowflake Craft

2011-12-23T11:53:00.000-08:00

We found a very cute paper craft yesterday. At first, they just look like paper snowflakes ~ very pretty.

But upon closer inspection, you realize the snowflakes are made from Star Wars characters!

Do I even have to tell you how cool my 13 year old son thought this was?

I now have them strung up all over the living room, on the Christmas tree...there's no telling where they will end up next!

After the Christmas decor comes down, I can't bare to throw away all his hard work. So I'm going to get some dark colored scrap book paper to mount them on and keep them in a scrap book.

You can find the template for these snowflakes here.

My Quiet Day

2011-12-22T09:26:00.000-08:00

For Today:

Outside my window:

It's rainy, wet and chilly.

I am thankful:

A church member pulled through brain surgery.

And my daughter is happy with new love. :-)

I am praying for:

Wisdom! ~ Always.

From the learning rooms:

We are on Christmas break. But there is still some crafting going on. My son is very busy right now cutting out paper snowflakes ~ and they are very pretty if I do say so myself!

In the kitchen:

A spaghetti dinner for tonight and 2 chickens fixing to get put in a brine for tomorrow. They will be turned into chicken and dumplings. Either today or tomorrow I'm also going to do a large batch of homemade peppermint patties.

I am creating:

Almost done with a pair of pillowcases that I'm cross stitching on. I'm also still learning to use my Knook.

I am reading:

II Chronicles

I just finished The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. A bit of a departure for me as far as genre goes, but I enjoyed it. It's the first novel by this author and from what I've read she is garnering quite a following.

I am hearing:

My husband talk to our son about printing out more snowflake templates and the space heater humming beside me.

My favorite things:

Friends whose kids are my kid's friends as well. It's like a big happy family with the kids going back and forth between homes, the moms getting to "mother" the whole brood.

Time for hobbies like my stitching and reading, watching movies or playing the Wii with my kids.

A few plans for the rest of the day:

I have an "extra" child coming over later, she will spend the night. Puttering around the house, fixing this and cleaning that. I would *love* to finish those pillowcases too.

A picture thought to leave you with:

My favorite Christmas cookie jar is a big snowman. My daughter took this picture of him in sepia tones. :-)

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

2011-12-18T08:57:00.000-08:00

This is so much better than those little packets from the store. It makes a large amount, I keep mine in one of the old fashioned Tupperware containers from long ago, the large size. Being Christmastide, this is our favorite drink of choice at the moment. (I have noticed that you do need to stir it a bit more than the instant packets from the store.)

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

10 C. dry milk powder

6 1/4 C. powdered sugar

2 C. cocoa powder

1 3/4 C. powdered coffee creamer

Mix all ingredients well and store in an airtight container.

I'm linking this post to Foodie Friday. :-)

City Mouse/Country Mouse

2011-12-10T17:39:00.000-08:00

(This picture is entitled "The Town Mouse and The Country Mouse." See the little guy on the right? He's the town mouse ~ calm, cool & collected while riding the...train, perhaps? Now see that little gal on the left? Fretting & worried & wanting to be at home in her little cottage? That, my friends, would be me.)

When I was growing up, we moved around a lot. My father was a preacher and he believed that after about two years he had said all he could say to one group of people and it was time to move on. So I learned to be very adaptable to different places. Finally when I hit my teen years, we stopped moving around and it just so happened we landed in a very tiny town. So I spent a number of years there. Then I married and moved to The Big City. My husband and I spent the next 4 years there and I acclimated to the lifestyle flawlessly. I wondered how I had ever managed living in a place that was so far out there was no such thing as pizza delivery or coffee shops. I imagined how difficult it had been to live 20-30 minutes away from the nearest store when in the city anything I could possibly want was an easy 5 minutes in any direction.

Oh yes, I fancied myself quite the city mouse.

Imagine my surprise when our life's path meandered right back to that same small town with no pizza delivery, grocery stores half an hour away and nary a coffee shop in sight?

I'm going to be honest here. I cried every single day for the first six months. I'm not even exaggerating. (You'll have to excuse the six months of hysterics. I was still quite young with ***lots*** to learn, lol.) That was not a fun six months.

Eventually, I got over it. And myself as well, but that's a post for another day. ;-)

Long story short, here I am 13 years later. Older, wiser, and very much in my comfort zone in this tiny town. Funny thing happens as you get older. You start to lose that ability to seamlessly float from one lifestyle/culture to another. When your younger self seemed to scoff at things like routine and solitude ~ your older self desperately wants to gravitate toward those very things.

And then you realize it.

You are a certifiable Country Mouse.

And doing things like spending the day in The Big City is no longer fun! It's stressful and nerve wracking and, quite simply, not worth it.

You find yourself racing down the Interstate headed back home to your cottage thinking about things like 18 wheelers hidden in your blind spot, why is that person next to me blasting his music so loud it literally makes my chest hurt, and people actually do this and live here every single day by choice and like it??

Can you tell I went to the city today?

This country mouse is now back home and is very happy to be here. I love it that our stop lights here get turned off at 9pm sharp. I love it that most businesses are closed on Sundays. I love that I can walk down the street and meet person after person that knows my name. I love that the 2 little old ladies who own the florist shop always want to chat when I go in. I love knowing that I have people here only 3 minutes away - and that is all the way across town - who will, and have, come to my aid in an emergency.

Pizza delivery and coffee shops?

I guess I don't need those things anymore. I've got yeast and a percolator. And that suits this country mouse just fine.

Thinking on "these things"

2011-12-07T11:20:00.000-08:00

I have had this post rattling around in my brain for a while, I just haven't stopped to give voice to my thoughts.

Whatsoever things are true

Whatsoever things are honest

Whatsoever things are just

Whatsoever things are pure

Whatsoever things are lovely

Whatsoever things are of good report

if there be any virtue

if there be any praise

think on these things.

I think there are so many things in our life that are needed...responsiblilites that cannot be left undone...that sometimes we don't let ourselves have permission to stop and slow down and enjoy the more charming side of life. I think that sometimes when we read the above verses, we can have a knee-jerk reaction of thinking of "these things" as some great issue like our moral standing - and it's true, those things certainly do cover that! But I also think we don't give enough credit to the small comforts the Lord blesses us with and wants us to enjoy!

I think that in the current time we find ourselves in there are a great many things happening and that will happen that will be difficult. And I think there are those who would have us believe that we need to spend every waking moment working to be ready and more self sufficient. And if you are not so dedicated to that pursuit that it becomes your whole life, then you are doomed. But I don't think that the Lord wants us to forgo any pleasure in order to "prepare" for it all. Yes, we need to be responsible and be as ready as we can for an unforseen future. I wholeheartedly believe that. But ladies, honestly, I can only spend so much time organizing and stocking my pantry before there is simply nothing left for me to do in there. I can only spend so much time caring for our chickens and other things we do to be more self reliant before those chores are done for the day.

Yes, the world might be a scary & difficult place right now. Yes, our future may look very different than our past. But that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with taking some joy, feeling contentment, and enjoying our blessings! As a matter of fact, cultivating a spirit that can enjoy & relish small blessings may very well be a wonderful attribute to have in the coming days! If you have learned how to be happy & content & how to get a smile in your heart from something simple like a cup of tea & a good book ~ how very blessed you are!

So.....

Whatsoever things are true

Whatsoever things are honest

Whatsoever things are just

Whatsoever things are pure

Whatsoever things are lovely

Whatsoever things are of good report

if there be any virtue

if there be any praise

*think on these things*

I'm linking this post to

LACE ~ at Lily-Rose Cottage

and

A Return to Loveliness

A Delightsome Life

A peek into my day...

2011-12-06T11:13:00.000-08:00

I don't have anything huge or important to share today. Just a little of this & that I would like to share. Sound good?

I got a surprise delivered to my door a little while ago. We do "Secret Sisters" at church and whoever my SS was took a gift for me to one of my close friends and asked her to deliver it to my house! :-) So my friend walked in the door with a jar that has a coffee themed kitchen towel in it and then it had been filled to the brim with coffee flavored Werther's Orignal candies! Did you even know such a thing exists? I did not but let me tell you...they are divine. We are big coffee lovers in this house.

I love it!!

I'm also finishing up the kid's sock monkey pillowcases. I finished the first one (except for the fusible webbing I always put on the back but that won't take long) and then the project got put aside. I got it back out last night while watching a movie with the kids.

This is a new (to me) type of hoop that I haven't used before and I must admit, I think it's for the birds. I have grown accustomed to using Q-Snap frames and I absolutely love them. They hold your piece so firmly. I think they now have me spoiled such that no other frames can live up to them in my mind, lol.

Here is the other one that is completed. I changed the colors around from what the pattern said to use. It said to use 2 different greys for the monkey...hmmm, no thanks. In my mind, sock monkeys are meant to be brown! So I chose 2 different browns to use instead. (You can't tell it's 2 different ones in the photo, but you can in person. It gives it some shading.)

At this time of year, most of us are baking our little hearts out and making lots of Christmas goodies. So I wanted share a link with you. It's my favorite place online to store recipes. I may have shared it in the past, but I thought I would post it again so others can find out about it. It's very user friendly and super easy to use.

One tsp.

And now I'll leave you with a little picture thought from my house to yours. This little table is the first thing you see when you walk in my house. :-)

Today I'm linking up to:

Far Above Rubies

Time-Warp Wife

Interesting little tidbit...

2011-11-26T10:11:00.000-08:00

My son and I recently went on a tour of some Civil War battlegrounds and buildings that were original to that time period. It didn't take me long to notice that everywhere we went that day, every time I had to open a door to go through it, the doors in these old buildings were incredibly heavy. They weren't overly large, but made from very stout and strong wood which made them quite heavy. Simply opening a door to go from one room to the next was a challenge to me most of the day. My son had to help me with them several times. I have to wonder if that is where the tradition of men opening doors for women stemmed from? If buildings in the past were built such that most, if not all, the doors were as heavy as I encountered on our tour that day it would make perfect sense. Your average run of the mill door that can be picked up at Lowe's or Home Depot now days is made of very light weight material that didn't even exist back then. They used heavy, good quality wood. And believe me, you could tell the difference when opening them! Combine the weight of the doors with the width of women's dresses of yesteryear (with hoops, etc poofing them out) and I can certainly understand why it would have been almost impossible for ladies to open doors on their own!

Well, we may not have hoop dresses or extremely heavy doors anymore but I am certainly glad this is one tradition that has not died out. At least in our region, men still open doors for women on a regular basis and the women thank them. Let's hope it continues!

Memorizing Scripture?

2011-10-31T22:18:00.000-07:00

I have a question for you. Does anyone else find it much more difficult to memorize things as they get older? I know...I suppose it is common sense that it would get more difficult but I started noticing a marked difference in my ability to memorize Scripture (or anything else for that matter) in my late twenties. I was raised memorizing Scripture and when I was 18 even memorized the entire book of Matthew for a class I was taking. But now...it just does not happen the way it used to! I get discouraged thinking it may not even happen at all. A friend informed me about this...and I'm giving some thought to it. But I'm honestly just not sure I can do it!

So, what about you? Do you have certain techniques for memorizing Scripture? Do you, like me, find that it is not as easy for you as it once was? Surely I'm not the only one!

Casual Dress, Casual Life ~ an article shared

2011-10-31T04:20:00.000-07:00

This article gives some very good food for thought. A reminder for us all ~ sometimes little reminders like this are just what we need to give us the oomph to keep on keeping on in areas of life that can so easily slip.

*click link below
Casual Dress, Casual Life

Injured

2011-10-29T14:31:00.000-07:00

I have hurt myself. I bent over this morning to retrieve something and then coughed at the same time. I think either one of those things, by themselves, would have been fine. But the combination of the two together did not work out so well for me. I think I pulled all the muscles going across the small of my back. I knew instantly what had happened and uttered, "Oh no!" I'm ok if I sit. But standing and walking are all but impossible at the moment.

So, I have been holding court at my kitchen table all afternoon. I have computer, stitching catalogs, and recipes within arm's reach to keep me occupied. I've been sending various loved ones to fetch this and deliver that and by doing so have managed to put together a homemade pizza crust that is now rising. So supper is taken care of.

I hope I can go to church tomorrow but I'm wondering if that isn't a bit too ambitious a thought. Usually when these particular muscles take a leave of absence (yes, this has happened before) it is a solid week before I can stand up straight and walk normally again. We shall see.

But for now, I'm going to attend to our homemade pizza from my kitchen table throne.

The blessing of tending to your home

2011-10-27T10:59:00.000-07:00

There is something about this time of year that turns many a homemaker's concentration in towards her own four walls. The gardens are put to bed and the temperatures are turning cooler and in areas like mine, things outside are rather damp. It's time to burn candles and bake treats and plan Thanksgiving dinner. (Can you believe it's almost Thanksgiving?) I love making things cozy during this time. I'm still on my media hiatus and am so much calmer for it. Life is busy enough with family, friends, church, and other commitments without adding whatever Yahoo or Google or ABC has to say about it.

I love cooking for my family and others. I've been going through my recipes today picking out the special ones I usually reserve for these colder months. I will also have an extra teen in my house this weekend. She is a friend of both of my kids and she needs a little extra TLC right now so I'm looking forward to her spending the weekend with us. Anytime there are teenagers involved, there must also be food involved! So far I have planned cinnamon rolls and pancakes for breakfasts, spaghetti with sauce & meatballs as well as baked chicken for suppers and cake mix cookies and brownies for snacks. Still some holes to fill in there to make it through the weekend, but I'll have it all planned out before she gets here.

What are you cooking this Fall?

Enjoy!

2011-09-04T05:18:00.000-07:00

This disturbs me

2011-09-03T04:20:00.000-07:00

I have recently noticed something that I find disturbing. At different places online where Christian wives (usually stay at home) are ~ forums, social networking sites, etc ~ I have noticed young wives being very lax in their...choice of words. One young lady was explaining how much she loves being a wife and a child of God. She talked about how her husband was a Godly leader and even went so far as telling exactly where she went to church, complete with address. And then in the next breath (keystroke) she wrote how much she loves to," *$#! her husband!" And she didn't use just symbols either...

Somewhere else ladies were sharing recipes and a young wife gave her recipe but titled it, "Cr*p."

Why? Why are they doing this? I can't wrap my brain around it. If you want to talk like that in your own home then fine, go for it. Even many places online I'm sure wouldn't bat an eye. But to go places specifically intended for Christian wives and then when you participate use that language? Am I the only person that finds this very odd? And I truly believe these were not "trolls." These were, for all intents and purposes, sweet young wives who seemed to have no ill will and who enjoy the lifestyle of a stay at home wife or mom.

Maybe I'm terribly naive or something, but I'm asking because I truly (obviously) don't know. Is this type of speech normal for today's twenty somethings? I really don't think I'm so old that I'm out of touch with things ~ I'm only in my late thirties! But I *keep* coming across this in different places online. And, quite frankly, it troubles me! It makes me want to give them a hug, sit them down at the kitchen table and gently explain exactly how doing that effects the way other see them...and their husbands...and parents. I could go on but you get the drift.

How can you give out your church address in one breath and then blast everyone with the F word in the very next?

Being blessed in small spaces

2011-09-01T22:31:00.000-07:00

I live in a very small home. We didn't always live this way, there was a time we lived in a huge house with three levels that by most people's standards was, quite impressive. But when the time came to take care of my parents, we moved into their home. Then when that season of my life was over, it was time to move on again. Which brings me to our little cottage. We chose the small-house-lifestyle very much on purpose. I had a small inheritance from my parents and we could have easily used that for a very respectable down payment on a house.

But we chose differently.

We decided instead, to take that little bit of money and find a home that we could purchase for cash so we would not have to live under a mortgage. And we do *not* regret that decision! We purchased a 1940s cottage that is right at 1,000 square feet. It has three small bedrooms and two small bathrooms. An eat in kitchen, small living room and a pantry that is absolutely to die for. Whoever the lady was who was in charge of building my pantry, she was someone after my own heart. It is a 12x10 room with floor to ceiling shelves all the way around three walls. We were also very lucky in that it had a new metal roof.

When we first moved in, we weren't sure how this was going to work. We just knew that it was going to. Granted, there are days when some more space would feel good. Days when the kitchen (of course everyone gathers in the kitchen, the "heart" of the home) does feel a bit cramped to me. But those thoughts are fleeting and quickly gone when I remember that this little cottage is 100% dh's and mine. And when cleaning floor to ceiling no longer takes me all day. I remember once shortly after we moved in and got settled, my daughter walked through the living room to take a shower just as I was fixing to deep clean the room. When she came back through ten minutes later she stopped in her tracks, shocked. Because in that short amount of time every single thing that needed to be done in there was done, lol. I had decluttered, dusted, vaccumed, and straightened everything. I must admit, being able to sail through cleaning jobs like that is nice.

Contentment truly is possible in small spaces! Just because we have children does not mean we have to live in a McMansion to raise them well and be happy. My son is actually planning on continuing the small home lifestyle when he is grown. He sees the difference in how much faster it is cleaned and stays that way. He is old enough to see the difference in our electric bills now compared to what they were in larger homes. We have explained to him what a mortgage is and he is able to grasp how long thirty years is. I don't know who my daughter in love will someday be...but I do believe she will live in a small home, lol.

Don't buy the bill of goods mainstream society has tried to push on us that tells us we need more.

Defy convention.

Bloom exactly where you are planted.

And relish every minute of it.

A good wife...

2011-09-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

"Success in marriage does not come merely through finding the right mate, but through being the right mate. "

– Barnett R. Brickner

“It’s better to live alone in the desert , than with a quarrelsome, complaining wife.”

-- Proverbs 21:19

"All married women are not wives."

-- Japanese proverb

"It was a wife's duty to be interested in whatever interested her husband, whether it was politics, books, or a particular dish for dinner."

-- Eleanor Roosevelt

Home Tasks ~ Digging right in with gusto

2011-08-23T04:12:00.000-07:00

I want to tell you about a lesson I learned almost 13 years ago. I was a young mother with two very young babies. At the time, we lived about ten hours away from my parents and my family home. It could be lonely, but I think I was doing a pretty good job of things. After all, two little ones kept me very busy and I *loved* that season in my life.

At the same time, I was still very young and still had many lessons left to learn. We were a happy little family and I was running our home to the best of my ability at the time...but yes, many lessons still left to learn.

We were finally able to make the ten hour trip to visit my parents. This was a very big deal. There is a lot of planning that goes into taking a trip like that with two littles ~ one who was still nursing at the time! I was able to spend a week at home with mom and dad. It was a very eye opening week for me because it was my first trip home with two children and I was at that point in life where I was starting to see my mom as another woman instead of my mother only. I'm sure many of you ladies can relate to that time in life and know what I'm talking about.

So I watched her that week. I really observed her and how she did things. Not that I had never done that before, but this was the fist time that *I* had something at stake here. I was now a wife and mother too! One thing I always had trouble with was letting myself get derailed from my day's needful tasks because of one type of stress or another. If I didn't feel very well or if the children had a bad day or...insert any number of things here...my day would get off track and never really get back on. Granted no one would go hungry, but that doesn't mean dinner would be on the table. It would be more of a throw-things-together or even a let-hubby-forage type of night. I couldn't quite figure out, well, how to get it together. My mother had been an excellent example for me growing up but sometimes I, quite frankly, need some hands on experience of a thing before the light bulb comes completely on. :-)

I remember one day of that week in particular had been hectic and a bit stressful. I don't remember the exact reason, but she and I had been out of the house most of the day and were quite behind in getting home. Then once we got home there were things to unload out of the car, the children to attend to, well you can imagine. At that point in time, if I had been at home rushing in like that I probably would have plopped a pizza in the oven (if that) and called it good. But I remember taking note that as soon as we got in the house, my mother went straight to the kitchen and, very quickly, started putting together a "real" meal. She still had other things tugging for her attention and she would stop and attend to them as needed. But she still stayed focused that it was supper time...time to cook the family meal...and regardless of the day's stresses she stayed focused on the core needs and did not let them slip. I remember her in that little kitchen working with gusto. And in just a little while, she had accomplished what she set out to do. We may have rushed headlong into the house but before I knew it, we were all sitting at a set table eating a home cooked meal.

The difference between what I had just witnessed and what I knew *I* would have done in my own home that evening was not lost on me. It made quite an impression ~ and she never even knew it. She was simply living her life...doing what was utterly normal to her to do. I decided that night that I needed to pay more attention to what I think of as the "core" household chores. ~ The things that should be done each day regardless of what else happens. And I also realized that when I was put into one of those days where things were tempting me to throw my hands up and say, "Forget it! I give up," that those were the very times I needed to really dig in with gusto.

Soon it was time for us to head back home and it was a long day. We got up early and packed the car, the kids, and ourselves. We drove all day long. Finally we got back -home and we were all exhausted and tired and there was a car packed to the brim to unpack and two littles all up in the middle of it. I quickly realized that I could either put into practice the lesson I had learned or continue on in my let-the-hubby-forage ways. So I decided to dig right in.

Just like that evening at my mother's house, I focused on the task of fixing supper. I would still have to stop here and there for a child or to help hubby in with something as he was unloading the car. But then I went right back to what was needful. Before I knew it, we were all seated at the table enjoying a "real" supper at a nicely set table. And it was truly what we needed after the long day we had. I don't even think my husband noticed what I was up to while he was going back and forth to the car. Because on his last trip in, I had dinner on the table as he came in the door and he did look a bit shocked, lol. But he was certainly pleased! And I was too.

I have used that lesson on "digging in with gusto" so many times since then. Yes, there are plenty of times when going about housework with a slow and steady pace are certainly called for. But I have to say that, for me, when things start to get off track and I feel like I am very close to falling off the homekeeper wagon, putting the gusto principle to work is what helps me keep on track. And it certainly helps keep the family happy!

I am linking this post to the following blog parties:

A Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life

A Titus 2sday Link Up at Time Warp Wife

Domestically Divine Tuesday Homemaking Link Up at Far Above Rubies

Beautiful Music

2011-08-20T04:00:00.000-07:00

I love music. I always have. I took classical piano lessons from the age of 6 until 17. I almost always have music playing in my home. I am very partial to classical and bluegrass/folk music. I love Pandora Radio ~ it's a free online radio that let's you build your very own station. You put in an artist and it builds a station based on that exact type of music, using the one you gave them plus pulling from other artists that use a similar style. If you want to listen to what I have playing in the background of my kitchen most days go to Pandora, open an account, and in the spot where you fill in the name of your preferred artist type in "Vivaldi." I love Vivaldi and the Vivaldi station on Pandora. It is *perfect* background music for me when I'm working in my kitchen. :-)

2011-08-18T08:59:00.000-07:00

Last night I attended our Ladies Day committee meeting after church. We always hold a large ladie's day each November. We have a guest speaker and many ladies from other churches attend. We decided on doing a Ladie's Tea as our theme and we will use the "Beatitudes" from the books of Matthew and Luke as our Scripture basis for the day.

We're going to do something (well, *try* to do something, if schedules allow) different this year for our speakers. We would like to put together a panel of four ladies who grew up in our congregation and have since married and moved off ~ to see how the things we have established for the youth can pay off and how it helped these ladies become established in their new church families.

I'm thrilled to say that I am again in charge of the brunch. I *love* this job. Since we have a "tea" theme this year I will make sure we have scones, tea cakes, biscotti and assorted teas as well as our other offerings that we normally have. It will be so fun.

After two brunch sessions in the morning and two assemblies to listen to the speakers, all the ladies will go over to our Christian Service Center for lunch. We have a whole team of ladies set to prepare lunch and our teenage girls will be the servers.

Last night was just our first meeting. There will be lots more to plan over the next two months. But I'm excited and happy about it. This is always such a fun venture for me. :-)

"Reduced Circumstances"

2011-08-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

I was recently watching an episode of Anne of Green Gables and Anne was going to stay at a boarding house ran by a lady who was renting rooms due to "reduced circumstances." When I heard that, it caught me and gave me pause. It is one of those old fashioned statements that we have all heard from time to time. But usually in old movies, shows, or books instead of in real life. It struck me just how much was being said with those two words. If you are on the receiving end of that comment, you should know;
* It is a time of financial difficulty or something similar.
* The person may be making changes to their lifestyle because of it.
* The "reduced circumstances" may be temporary or long term.
~~~~ And, most importantly ~~~~
* It is absolutely, positively...none of your business!

There seems to be something going on in the frugal/housewife/homemaker set. I will fully admit that I do not know if this is something going on everywhere or if it is peculiar to my area. But I'm going to post my thoughts on it. It seems to me that when women who are like minded (Christian, homekeepers, wives, mothers) become close to one another there comes a time when they feel that it is ok to lay bare every detail of their family's financial life to each other.

This can sometimes be done under the guise of something noble. Examples could be:
*Asking a close friend for prayer. ~~ "Please keep us in your prayers. My husband lost his job and I just don't see how we're going to make it."
* Not wanting to make someone else feel bad. Perhaps lady A's husband makes more than lady B so lady A will say something like, "Oh, we got that on clearance," if lady B notices something new in the house.

Now, asking a friend to pray for you and wanting a spare a friend's feelings are very good and noble things. Yes. But...do we have to sacrifice the personal details of our family's life in order to accomplish those things? No, we don't! You can still ask your friend for prayers without telling her all the details. And if you have something nice in your home...it really isn't anyone else's business if you paid a lot or a little. Truly. Somewhere along the way we told ourselves that it is ok to tell our best girlfriends everything we are going though. This frame of mind can sneak up on you and before you know it, it will become established within your relationships with other women.

Let me ask you something. If you were going through a time of financial hardship...because of job loss, bad decisions, whatever the cause...and you were sitting down for coffee with a close female friend, would you tell her all the details of what was happening and why? Now, what about if your husband were sitting at that very same table with you and your friend. Would your conversation be any different? For many women, I believe it would be. Is that right? I don't think it is.

I have seen this culture of lay-it-all-out-for-our-friends play out. It usually ends in one of two ways.
* When other people are told every nitty gritty detail of someone else's financial life, they may (hopefully) feel bad for them and pray for them. But it also colors, even ever so slightly, their viewpoint on their friend's decision making skills. " Well, if I were going through that, I would do this and this and this differently." They will start to watch what you do and where you go. "They said they couldn't pay their bills but there they are at the shopping mall." Not seeing the whole picture they may not know that a grandparent gave money for new clothes for the kids or any other of the many ways that scenario could play out. By telling your friend all your business, you might garner some sympathy but it is a very real possibility that you will garner some judgement as well ~ whether you ever find out about it or not. This does not help with building a respectful and dignified reputation for your family.

*The other thing I have seen happen is that in circles where all the women have shared all the business of their finances or lack thereof with each other, it seems they will try to "out-frugal" each other. They feel like if they have something nice or are able to spend a bit of money on a treat for themselves or their family they have to justify it to their friends. "Yes, it's a new outfit but the store was having a really good sale." It's almost as if this culture of I-can-be-more-frugal-than-you can make women feel ashamed of their blessings. And this is just as wrong as being irresponsible with them! If God has given you a financial type of blessing, then He wanted to bless you with it, not have you be ashamed of it! But, at the same time, private things are just that ~ private. And our best girlfriends should not be exceptions to that.

So whether you are having a wonderful time due to a financial windfall or you are struggling with nary a light at the end of the tunnel, please keep private things private. As much as we should not boast about things we have purchased or the amount in our bank account, we should not lay bare the details of our financial life when it is troubling and a struggle. I have to admit that the more I think about it the more I like the old fashioned term, "reduced circumstances." It succinctly sums up a situation if someone where to ask while at the same time, to anyone with some manners and decorum, it closes the door on any further talk of the subject. Yet again, just another example of how the generations before us valued their personal pride and dignity and privacy. We surely need to start bringing that attitude back!

I'm liking this post to the following blog parties:

A Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life

A Titus 2sday Link Up at Far Above Rubies

Domestically Divine Tuesday Homemaking Link Up at Far Above Rubies

L.A.C.E ~ Wednesdays at Lily~Rose Cottage

Carefully placed hedges in our life

2011-08-09T23:12:00.000-07:00

I really was not sure what I wanted to title this post. My first instinct was to call it, "Making your life small," but I feared that some might misinterpret my meaning as negative when in fact I mean it all in a positive light. But then I thought that "Carefully placed hedges in our life," might convey exactly what it is I am wanting to share.

It is quite common in our time to hear someone say that it is such a "small world." It is said that with all of our technology and knowledge we have made the whole of it all so much smaller and more accessible to the masses. Which, in many senses, is true. But in reality, have we really made our world, our personal world that touches us each day, any smaller? I think we have done just the opposite. Gone are the years when wars on the other side of the planet would go unnoticed by us. Gone are the times when news of weather systems hundreds of miles away from us would never reach our ears. Gone are the days when our life would consist of...our life ~ instead of our life with everyone else's life (and stress and strife) heaped upon our shoulders as well. Gone are the moral standards of privacy when no one would dream of laying out all of the personal details of their life for every Tom, Dick, or Harry to view.

Is this really good for us? Is it helpful or edifying? Or does it take time and mental energy away from what our real life really is. Let's face it, real life can be very stressful. It can be painful and hard. That is simply a fact of life. So is it helpful for us to fill our minds and homes with so much extra information that can also cause stress and pain and hurt? Does anyone else think that perhaps we have taken it all a bit too far? Remember the Tower of Babel...

The more I live and the more I see of the world, the more I want to pull down my shades and roll up my sidewalks and work on cultivating the life that God gave me. He did not give me wars on the other side of the world to attend to. He did not give me politicians to reason with or a national budget to balance. He did not give me control or influence over whatever the headlines of the day happen to be. He did give me one little house with one little family inside of it. And I find that I am becoming more and more fiercely protective over it. I am feeling very strongly just exactly where my scope of influence and activity starts...and just exactly where it stops.

I will tell you something. Over the course of the past week (or two ~ I'm not sure) the big news and big talk has been of the impending financial doom of our country. And I purposely...deliberately...ignored every bit of it. Because you see, there is simply not a thing on this Earth that *I* can do about it. God did not place me there. He placed me here. And here still needs to be attended to in as thorough and charming a way as it ever did, despite what the national ills are. If I partake of all the hoopla going on over it (and after this hoopla there will be a different one and one after that, repeat, repeat, repeat) all that will happen in *my* life is that *I* will get upset and stressed out. That will transfer onto my family members right down the puppy dogs and kitty cats. (Perhaps the chickens would come out unscathed...) It would take away my peace of mind which would in turn effect my ability to concentrate on my family and home. ~The very family and home which God gave me! ~ I would be forsaking the blessings and responsibilities he placed before me in order to, at least mentally, pick up the responsibilities He gave to someone else!

Philippians 4:8

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

I don't care for the news anymore and I choose to stay away from it. I have a small circle of online sites I go to ~ my blogs and others I read, my Yahoo group The Gingerbread Cabin, Netflix where I have found some wonderful period movies (*love*), and a small spattering of a few more. I leave it at that. Now days, when I turn on the tv it is usually to watch things like Cranford, Wind to My Back, Anne of Green Gables, or The Waltons. I am blessed to still be able to get all of these on t.v. although I would not be surprised to see them yanked off the air soon. (In which case I will purchase the dvds and be happy as a fat little bug in a rug.) It does seem that people's tolerance for wholesome entertainment is quite low...but I do hope each of these stay on air for a long while yet.

So. It is in that spirit ~ of taking care of and attending to the things of my own life instead of that of the world at large ~ I bring a few homemaking tips to you today. :-)

The first one is something I do with cinnamon sugar. I started doing this as a young bride and continue on with the habit today. When I am making a sweet bread ~ pumpkin, zucchini, pear, what have you ~ after I grease the pan instead of flouring it, I liberally sprinkle on cinnamon sugar instead. Then after my batter has been poured in, I also sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar. It bakes up beautifully, the bread does not stick to the pan, and the top has the slightest crunch that people can't quite figure out how I achieved. Cinnamon sugar. It's a good thing.

The next tip is about febreze spray. I know everyone already uses it and it is a staple in almost every woman's home. But one of my favorite things to use it on is our bedding. I always spray the bed while I'm making it but I also like to spray it every night after I pull the covers down. I spray the sheets and blankets and the pillows also. It is not an overpowering scent but just enough to where it is noticable. It's so nice to lay down in a bed that smells good! Very relaxing at the end of the day.

And finally, furniture polish. If you, like me, have a shower with a glass door you know they can get very yucky with soap scum and film. It is very difficult to get off. So they key is to never let it get on there in the first place. What you want to do is spray some furniture polish on your rag and wipe it all over the inside of your clean shower door. It has the same effect as wax on a car. The water rolls right off. Just make sure you use the adage of, "a little goes a long way." You don't want to drench your rag. Just a bit. Too much and it might slip off the glass door into the shower and make a slippery hazard. But I have been using this method for over two years now ~ making sure to use just enough but not too much ~ and have never had any get onto the shower floor. And I've got the cleanest shower door in town. ;-)

May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home & some carefully placed hedges as well!

I am linking this post to:

A Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life

A Titus 2sday Link Up at Time Warp Wife

Domestically Divine Tuesday Homemaking Link Up at Far Above Rubies

L.A.C.E ~ Wednesdays at Lily~Rose Cottage

The very best way to die

2011-08-07T15:11:00.000-07:00

I want to share something amazing with you. I have had a very full weekend filled to the brim with activity. My church had it's annual Gospel Meeting with a wonderful guest speaker and I was truly blessed by hearing his sermons. This morning he was telling us about his parents. He mother died when he was only four years old. His father - a strong man of God himself - then raised him alone and loved him deeply. He said he was so glad that his father got to live long enough to see him become a preacher. His dad even got to lead the singing at his first two Gospel Meetings that he spoke at.

Then our speaker shared with us they way his father died. He got up on Sunday morning to teach the morning Sunday School class. He walked up to the pulpit looked out at the audience and said, "There has never been a perfect man in this world except for Jesus Christ." And then, he fell over dead. He had a massive brain aneurysm that killed him instantly.

Can you imagine dying with the name of Jesus Christ on your lips? Can you imagine teaching others about Christ being your very last act of life? Can you imagine a better way to die? Because I certainly cannot! This man was truly blessed. His family is blessed as well ~ what an amazing legacy to leave behind and what a comfort to his loved ones to know he was serving God with literally his last breath.

Amazing!

Fresh Strawberry Cake

2011-08-02T20:10:00.000-07:00

As promised, here is my recipe for strawberry cake. This cake is one of my family's favorites. **Love** this cake. It is very moist and delicate ~ so much so that it lends itself much better to a sheet pan rather than a layer cake.

Ingredients
1 box white cake mix
1 box strawberry jello mix
1 C. oil
1/2 C. milk
4 eggs
1 C. mashed strawberries (not drained)

Icing
1 box confectioner's sugar
1 stick butter
1/2 C. mashed and drained strawberries - very important that they are drained
1 container regular vanilla frosting

Method
Spray your baking pan with cooking spray. Mix all the cake ingredients together with a mixer and pour into pan. Bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes.
For the frosting, mix the first three ingredients with a mixer. Next, add in the store bought frosting and stir well until everything is incorporated together. Frost when cake is completely cool.

I'm linking this post to:
Tea Time Tuesday at Sweetology
and
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed with Grace

Dressing as a lady

2011-08-02T12:32:00.000-07:00

I know that many of you who blog, especially in Christian circles, have noticed that sometimes it seems there is a certain subject that is on the minds of many bloggers at the same time. I do not know if that is merely coincidence but I certainly would not discount the thought that it may be the Holy Spirit giving us a nudge as to what we need to be thinking about and what others need our influence with.

So it is with that thought that I bring my ponderings to you today. This subject has been on my mind for a while now and I have noticed it must be on other's minds as well because I have seen quite a few blog posts about it. It is about the manner in which we dress...or in some cases, do not dress. When I look around today at the public at large, I truly cannot make myself be okay with what I see. Please know my intention with this post is not to cast fire and brimstone down on others for that alone is the Lord's job and not mine. But as I said, I cannot be comfortable with or happy about the way women in particular dress now days.
Let me give you an example. This weekend past my family (with the exception of my son who was at a friend's house) attended an author's talk and book signing. We had a very good time and the author was very informative and entertaining. Our daughter was tickled pink to get three of her books autographed as well as getting a picture taken with the author. We were all glad that we went. But what I could not believe...and what my husband could not believe...was that there were a great many young ladies in attendance with shorts on so short that they...well, as my momma used to say ~ they came up to their ying yangs. Now, I have a few thoughts on this. Not the least of which is how absolutely improper that is in any setting at all. But also, who in their right mind would would dress so flippantly to an event as dignified and proper as an author's speech and book signing??? Also, how and why did the parents of said girls allow them out of the house dressed like that? And finally, I was soooo glad we did not bring our son with us! I told my husband that as we were waiting for the event to start and he agreed with me.

Which brings me to something else I noticed. The difference in the amount of clothing the males and females were wearing. There was not one male there dressed in an immodest way. They were all completely clothed. And I daresay that if a man had arrived dressed in clothing as scanty as most of the females were in those very same females would have thought it gross and creepy. Why then is it any less so for them simply because they are female? Can someone please answer me that??

There were close to 200 people in attendance and besides my own family (and we were all completely clothed I assure you) there were probably ten or less women there who looked as though they took care in their appearance for the event. One mother/daughter pair stood out among the rest. They were not raving beauties and neither was slim by today's standards either. Although to me they were both cute as buttons. The mother had on an ankle length navy blue and white floral patterned dress and the daughter had on a skirt and blouse combination with the cutest old fashioned looking shoes. They looked like something a school marm would have worn in Anne of Green Gables. The were neat, feminine and simply precious. It was nice to have somewhere the eye could fall that afternoon and have it be a safe haven.

I have read on Lady Lydia's blog Homeliving that some of her critics have said that the women who dressed properly in the past were all very rich and well off and that "real" women didn't have time for such things because they were busy slaving away day in and day out in factories or other similar jobs. Apparently they believe that in order to dress well and spend your days looking like you have a certain measure of dignity one must have a lot of money and do no work. Oh, hearing things like that just make me tired. Truly. Does it look like the woman in the picture here in the car is rich? Does she look like she's never known a bit of hard work in her life? What about this one? She is in an apron in a kitchen. I daresay that no one would look at her and say she never has to work or that she has a silver spoon in her mouth. But she is neat, clean, modest, has taken time to dress and fix her hair and she looks like a lady. See, what I would like all of the detractors to know is that those of us who do not want to "shlumpadink" through our life (and quite frankly, would prefer that others did not either) and care about how we present ourselves and our families ~ we are not trying to sit around all day in full blown Victorian regalia. Yet that seems to be what we are accused of trying to do. It is very much a plausible and doable thing to dress nicely regardless of if you are a housewife or "slaving away" in a factory all day.

As a matter of fact, my mother when she was in her 20's was one of those girls working day in and day out in the factory. She used to tell me how she would sit and sew for hours and hours on end in a room that had no air conditioning and even had covers over the clocks so the women working would not be able to keep an eye on the time. She also talked about how she always made sure she was dressed neat as a pin for work (simple, shirtwaist dresses) with every hair in place. I'm not kidding. My mother was actually known her neatness from head to toe from the time she married at 16 through the years working in factories and nursing homes and after that during her years as a stay at home mom and preacher's wife. Let me tell you right now, she knew hard work and we were never rich. So as far as I'm concerned, the whole "real women couldn't live that way and it's all just looking at the past through rose colored glasses" does not hold one bit of water. Any reasonable, thinking person could figure that out.

The picture above is a housewife from the 1960's. Simply grocery shopping on a rainy day. Dressed nicely ~ imagine that!

I've heard many other bloggers talk about how they are treated differently when out in public when they are dressed like a lady. I honestly tend to be a bit too lost in my own thoughts to notice such things but something did happen last week that I could not help but notice. I needed just a few things from the store and decided to go to our local Stuff-Mart (you know which one I mean...I don't really like going there but that's a post for another day!) I had on a long skirt and top, hair done and face put on. When I got to the place where the buggies were, three people had the way completely blocked. One man getting a buggy and one woman and a friend getting another. The man was simply taking his time while the women were actually standing there having a conversation (another pet peeve, but I digress.) So I chose to simply stand there and wait until someone decided to turn around to see that they were hindering progress. The women looked up but didn't care and continued on blocking all the buggies and talking. The man looked up and realized what he had been doing and started to walk away with the buggy he had chosen. Then he looked at me and stopped. Without a word, he came over and handed that buggy off to me and turned around to get himself another one entirely. It took me a bit by surprise but I took the buggy and said, "Thank you," as he was turning around. Then he looked back shocked that I had thanked him! Good gracious. I really think if I had just blended in with the crowd of halter tops and cut offs he would not have even registered my presence.

I realize that I am somewhat preaching to the choir here considering the audience of my blog. And I'm so glad for that! But ladies, please never underestimate how much our daughters, the young wives and the rest of the women in our population need a Christian influence in regard to dress. If those of us who agree on this subject don't work to be an influence on them, then the standards of dressing like a lady will be gone within one generation's time. For heaven's sake they are already being told they can't do it if they are not rich and have to work in almost any capacity! There needs to be other women who will tell them and show them differently!

I am linking this post to:

Far Above Rubies: Domestically Divine Tuesday: Homemaking Link Up

and

Time-Warp Wife: A Titus 2sday Link Up

Elevating the common things

2011-07-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

It is evening and we have had our dinner hour and everyone is now relaxing for a while with their own pursuits. We had a lovely dinner, simple as it was. I baked a large pan full of hamburgers, served them with buns and all the accouterments and also had green beans and a salad. A fresh strawberry cake (I'll share the recipe next week during the Tuesday blog parties) rounded everything out quite nicely. It was a simple meal, yes but I wanted to make it nice for my family. So even though it was only hamburgers and sides, I set the table with my blue willow and a pretty embroidered tablecloth that has been in the family for ages.
It is so easy to let life get in the way. When we allow that to happen it is even easier for us to slip into what I and my husband call survival mode. To us, survival mode is when you are going through life at full tilt, doing just what you have to do to get by and letting small details fall through the cracks. Believe me, I have been guilty of it myself and it is no fun. The danger of survival mode is that some people do not ever make the realization that they are in it and that it is how they are living. In turn, it continues day after day and year after year - like a hamster on a wheel.
So that is why I like to elevate the common things in life. Perhaps the fare for supper was not anything special but it was served with care and beauty and taken together as a family. Taking the time to pay attention to details and make things pretty truly helps to keep oneself out of survival mode. Everything from how you fold your towels to taking time out to do special things will all help keep you and your family out of the dreaded survival mode.
I understand that sometimes it is a necessary thing to fall into that frame of mind. For example, when taking care of a sick loved one (perhaps for an extended period of time) or when arriving home after a long trip and you find yourself exceptionally tired with lots of unpacking to do. Sometimes life truly does happen to us and things get put on our plate that causes us to slip into a time of letting the sweet details of life pass us by. Sometimes (as in the examples above)it can be something we cannot avoid and a bridge we must cross. However, I personally feel that slipping into survival mode for no good reason ~ simply because we cannot be bothered with the effort required to do otherwise - is a shameful thing. So many people don't care about the niceties of life and manners and good sense simply because they do not want to and it has not served us well as a people.
So ~ you may be only serving hot dogs and a side but set your table with the good dishes anyway. You may be only running to the local store for milk but fix yourself up anyway. You may only have a front stoop consisting of two steps and nothing else but put some flowers on those steps anyway. The masses have stopped doing these types of things. Do you really want to be like them?

Peanut Butter & White Chocolate Biscotti

2011-07-25T22:01:00.000-07:00

(Sorry for the picture quality, I had to use a cellphone. This is the finished biscotti on my Mikasa platter ready for ladies night.)
For Tuesday's homemaking/cooking blog parties, I offer you my newest recipe find. Peanut butter & white chocolate biscotti. I had the best excuse to make them today. It was our once monthly women's Bible study. It is hosted in someone's home each month and each lady in attendance brings a dish. I was so excited to try my biscotti out and take it to share with everyone tonight. I had a basic recipe to work with, then I changed it around to suit my taste.

Above is a picture of the biscotti in mid-process, after the initial baking. There are 3 bake times. You make two loaves and one loaf is cut and the other is how it will look after the first bake. These will spread while baking, so account for that when you place them on your baking sheet.

Here is the recipe:

1 package Duncan Hines moist deluxe classic yellow cake mix

1 C. all purpose flour

3 large eggs

1/2 C. butter, melted

1/2 C. peanut butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. finely grated sea salt

1/2 C. dry roasted peanuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350*. Cut parchment paper to fit a cookie sheet. Using a mixer, combine cake mix, flour, 2 of the eggs, butter, peanut butter, vanilla and sea salt. I mixed it with my regular beaters until it started to come together then I switched to my dough hooks. Beat it just until it works together into a dough. Then mix in the peanuts by hand until they are fully incorporated. Divide the dough into equal halves. Work each half into a rectangle that is 8 inches long by 2 inches wide and 1 inch high. They truly need to be that exact measurement ~ I went so far as to measure mine with a ruler. Place on your lined cookie sheet, giving enough room between them so they can spread without touching.

Beat the remaining egg and brush over the top and sides of each dough loaf. Bake for 30-35 minutes and then let them cool for 10 minutes. After they have cooled, cut each loaf in half on a diagonal, with a serrated knife. Cut very slowly and carefully. After they are cut in half, start cutting them length wise into strips. Then place them back onto the cookie sheet, one of the cut sides down. Put back in the oven for 10 minutes. (Now, the recipe calls for 10 minutes here, but that was a tad too long in my oven. So be careful, this second baking is to brown the side that is on the bottom. Maybe start checking them at 5 minutes and each minute after that until they are browned to your liking.) Take them out of the oven and flip them over. Now bake them again for 5 minutes longer. Take them out and let them completely cool.

After they have cooled, it is time to bring some chocolate into the equation. You can decide if you want dark, milk, or white chocolate and if you want it drizzled or dipped. I decided to dip one side of each biscotti in white chocolate and serve on the platter with strawberries. I used this melting chocolate which now comes in a handy microwavable bowl.

So all I had to do was zap it in the microwave and then dip the biscotti. Very quick and easy with practically no mess! Once they were dipped I put them in the refrigerator so the chocolate would harden off. They did great. These were really good and would be perfect with a cup of coffee or tea. I know the recipe seems long, but it really wasn't difficult at all. I am sure I will make these again.

Blog parties I am joining:

Tempt my Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed with Grace

Tea Time Tuesday at Sweetology

A Titus 2sday Link Up at a Time-Warp Wife

A Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life

Domestically Divine Homemaking Link Up at Far Above Rubies

We could all take a lesson from Aunt Bea

2011-07-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

I don't watch a lot of tv, but one show I do like to see is The Andy Griffeth Show. I know, I know, terribly old fashioned but that is who I am. It simply cannot be helped. :)

I really admire the character of Aunt Bea. Truth be told, the "lifestyle" that is lived in Andy and Aunt Bea's home is very close to my own childhood. My parents were older when they had me in the 1970s. My mother even favored Aunt Bea a bit and our home was very much like that which was portrayed in the show. A set dinner hour, the table always set, the family always eating together, a calm and quiet atmosphere at most times. So I suppose it is no wonder that the show and especially Aunt Bea seem very comforting to me.

How is it that we have lost so much in just one or two generations time? I'll admit it's a challenge, even to me who was raised that way, to hold the standard. Life in general is so much...different now. Which makes me want to hold to that old standard all the harder. Also, when did it become this taboo thing for women to grow old gracefully and naturally? Aunt Bea would have laughed at the lengthes women go to to try and appear younger than they are. Shouldn't we be proud of the years we have lived and the wisdom we have gained?

I remember growing up how my mother and the other women of her generation held their weekly hair appointments as a sacred thing not to be dilly dallied with on the schedule! Their appearance and the impression they gave really meant a great deal to them. But their intention was not to hold on to the vanity of youth. It was simply a matter of self respect.
Even simple things like going to the local grocer was worthy of getting dressed up in a respectful manner. They would not have dreamed to leave the house looking like a ragamuffin. They took a lot of pride in the small details of their life - the simple things like going to the store - and treated them accordingly. But now it seems that those same small details of life mean...nothing really and most women are quite content to plop their hair atop their head in a scrunchie and prance around the store in their pajamas. Where has our pride and self respect gone?

Even when their entire day consisted of staying in the home and cooking and doing housework, these ladies always looked presentable, acted respectable, took pride in the appearance of their homes, and expected nothing less than that from those around them. ~~ Yes, we could all definitely take a lesson from Aunt Bea!!

Whatsoever Things

2011-07-22T12:17:00.000-07:00

This is just a little ramble of my own private thoughts. Take it for what you will. :)

I have a natural tendency (and I've shared this on my blog before) to want to hole up a bit in my own life and attempt to turn a deaf ear to all of the hurtful, evil and scary things this world has to offer. I don't want to look at the news to see who is killing who or who is sleeping with who or who is divorcing who. I don't want to see rubble from bombs or hear about debt ceilings. It is all just too much. When I was younger, it didn't bother me so much. But I think perhaps it's like a bucket you start filling with sand one grain at a time. At some point, your bucket will be full and about to overflow and then just one more grain of sand is all it takes for it to all start spilling out. My bucket got full and overflowed. And I am purposely trying to not let it refill.

But, on the other hand, I want to make sure that I do not give myself over to trying to stay out of the world's ills so much that I become self centered. I don't want to be blind to those around me that I can help with problems I can do something about. This life I am living is not all about me. At all. Our lives are to be about what we can do for others.

And so I try to hit a balance. A balance between staying away from and putting up walls against all the gratuitous drama of the world at large while staying open (through observance and prayer) to the opportunities the Father puts in front of me to step up and help or encourage others.

Sometimes I still give myself a bit of grief over the walls I put up to keep the world at bay because I fear that in doing so I will, at some point, become the self centered person I do not want to be. But this morning when I woke up, Philippians 4:8 came to my mind.

"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."

I realized that there is nothing wrong with keeping out drama and violence that is there simply for the sake of drama and violence. There is no wrong doing there. As long as we are open to the opportunities placed before us to show God's love to those that need it, we are doing God's will while also filling our minds with the virtuous things He wants for us.

May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~**~~**~~**~~

Yogurt Bundt Cake

2011-07-18T08:30:00.000-07:00

This cake was so simple to make and it came together very quickly. If a cake batter could ever be described as pretty, this one was. Very smooth and almost glossy ~ more so than other cake batters. The yogurt makes the cake bake up like a pudding cake ~ very moist. The top comes out with just a hint of crunch. I think it would be good to bake it with a crumb topping. Maybe I'll try that out in the future. I also think cinnamon would be a good addition. There is no need for any icing or even powdered sugar on this one. It stands alone on it's own just fine.

I did substitute white sugar for the brown sugar because I wanted it to be a light cake. And it was. Also, I didn't bake as long as recommended. In my oven it was ready at 37 minutes. And I know I had the temperature right because I had my oven thermometer inside the oven keeping track. :-)

This recipe is a keeper.

Yogurt Bundt Cake

*******************

1/2 C. butter, softened

1 C. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

2 C. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 C. plain yogurt

Preheat oven to 375. Grease and flour a 9 inch bundt pan. Cream butter, brown sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat in egg till smooth. Combine flour, baking soda and baking powder; stir in the batter alternately with the yogurt. Spread batter in the pan. Bake for 50 minutes until knife comes out clean.

I'm linking to the following blog parties:

Tempt my Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed with Grace

Tea Party Tuesday at Sweetology

Domestically Divine Tuesday Homemaking Link Up at Far Above Rubies

A Titus 2sday Link Up at Time Warp Wife

Just popping in ~~

2011-07-16T07:20:00.000-07:00

I'm just popping in for a brief moment. :) I was talking to my husband about the magazines that I wrote about in the post below and how I can no longer find them. So before I knew it, he had me look each one up online and I now have a subscription to each! No more trying to find them in a store only to be disappointed. I cannot wait until they arrive!

Today will be filled with puttering in the garden and kitchen, fixing new treats, and some time spent in the Word and with my stitching. I hope that everyone who reads here has a wonderful Saturday! May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~

Why are we doing this to ourselves?

2011-07-13T20:58:00.000-07:00

I am a bit upset about something. I really enjoy picking up copies of Southern Lady magazine, Tea Time magazine, and Victoria magazine during the month, usually when doing the grocery shopping. These magazines are beautiful and wholesome. They give me ideas for decorating, new recipes to try, show me products for the home I would not otherwise know about and it is very relaxing to just sit with some tea and peruse their pages for a while.

I recently went into our local Wal-Mart to pick up my treasured periodicals. Usually, they are on a shelf surrounded by other magazines about cozy cottages, romantically styled homes and Victorian gardens. But this time, instead of all of these lovelies, my eyes were accosted by Cosmopolitan and others of it's ilk. Row after row of gaudy covers with scantily clad women and headlines blaring about things that a few generations ago would not have even been whispered about in closed company. At first I was hoping they had simply moved my choices to another spot. But no. They are gone. Completely.

Why have we become a people that would rather have...or even worse expect to see/have/purchase/partake of the baser things this world has to offer instead of things that are more refined and dignified? Now I realize that many would laugh at me for taking on the world's ills over the magazine selection at my local Wal-Mart, but is it not a result of the public's feelings, expectations, and preferences? Yes - it is, and quite frankly, the public at large is making some very grave errors for which we and the future generations will pay for dearly.

When your average woman (it is the women these magazines are geared towards after all) who is a wife or mother or teacher or whatever - would rather pick up a magazine with a sensuous woman on the front and one that is filled with articles talking about spending $200 on one dress and what a good deal that is and how to make their intimate relations more wild....well, when did we become that??? Because we can look back in history - not too far mind you - and see that we absolutely, positively were not that. How did we become this and why are we continuing to let it happen? Who looked at us and said that this was ok and please continue in this vein?

As women shouldn't we be concerned about being a dignified example for the next generation to follow? Are the women who feel the way that I do really that sorely out numbered? Because if we are, then may God help us. We are surely going to need it.

Attention given to the small things

2011-07-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

Do you know who Anthea Turner is? I discovered her quite by accident. She is from the other side of the pond and seems to be their version of Martha Stewart. There are a precious few videos of her on Youtube and I wanted to share this one with you. I love the method of folding towels that she shares in it and I have been folding my towels this way since I first saw this video. Granted, it takes a bit more time but the end result looks so nice. Making a house a home is a whole that is made up of many very small details. Everything right down to how you fold the towels.

I'm linking to the Domestically Divine Tuesday Link Up party at Far Above Rubies.

I'm also linking to A Titus 2sday Link Up at a Time Warp Wife. May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~~

Menu Plan Monday

2011-07-11T11:48:00.001-07:00

It's time for Menu Plan Monday again ~ so here we go!

Monday ~ meatloaf fixed low carb style

Tuesday ~ shredded pork roast

Wednesday ~ teen meal at church, I'll be bringing a dessert & some turkey

Thursday ~ fresh roasted chicken (from chickens that we raised ourselves)

Friday ~ leftover night

Saturday ~ apple & sage pork chops

Sunday Dinner ~ garlic baked chicken

I'm linking to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie. ~~

Sunday Favorites Blog Party

2011-07-10T14:18:00.000-07:00

I am participating in Happy to Design's "Sunday Favorites" blog party. It is a blog party where you share one of your favorite posts from the past. I have been enjoying the blog parties I have been in recently. They are such a good way to meet other bloggers. So ~~ I hope you enjoy my "Sunday Favorite!"

Maturity

I believe there is a decided lack of maturity in out culture. Where once a certain level of maturity was a thing to be admired and cultivated, it is now something that so many look at with scorn. Has anyone else noticed that a teenager who exhibits a proper level of maturity will more often than not be met with insults and degradation by most of their peers? This is so sad.

I am not necessarily speaking of age either. I have met very young men and women who were remarkably mature. By the same token, I have met older men and women who were so immature they really should have been ashamed of themselves, but were not.

So many details of our lives would run so much smoother if people would take seriously the matter of maturity. If they would strive to behave themselves in a civilized, mature manner. The reason this seems so far out of the grasp of most adults is truly beyond me.

Your level of maturity is evident in so many of our every day tasks. Let me give you some examples.

1. Being on time. When you have somewhere to go or someone to meet, are you perhaps 15 minutes early or are you the woman rushing through the door 15 minutes late in such a harried state that no one would dare take you seriously?

2. Speed limits. This one goes hand in hand with number one. When you have somewhere to be, do you plan your time such that you have plenty of driving time? Do you obey the speed limits? Or do you see them as mere guidelines? They are not guidelines. They are the law of the land. They should be treated as such.

3. Tone of voice. Yes. One's tone of voice is a very good indicator as to their level of maturity. Do small annoyances get under your skin so much that your volume starts going up? This is something that everyone should try very hard to overcome. The person that can go through a stressful situation with a normal tone of voice intact is showing a good level of maturity.

4. Details. Are the details of your life attended to? Things like bills filed into folders, junk mail disposed of (as opposed to piling up), all the behind the scenes work that needs to be done for your family in order for their needs to be met? Or are these things that get pushed to the back of your mind. Please, make no mistake that small daily details are very important! They make up the whole of our experience and without them nothing is accomplished. It takes a mature person to consistently attend to all the details that need attention. It is not something that can be done one day and then not thought about again for weeks on end. As a matter of fact, it is not something that should be put to the wayside even for one day! Chaos can truly take over in a days time.

These are just some examples, but I'm sure you could think of more that would be applicable to your own life. Please, feel free to share them in the comments section. We can all use inspiring ideas from others who are like minded!

Remember ladies, we are building the foundation for our children and their children as well. If we are not mature enough to do a quality job of it, how sad for them! Children deserve mature parents. They deserve to be raised in a home where a mature mother and father are consistently taking care of the day's details. So much of who your children will be depends on your maturity level. Please, don't ever forget that.

Time for a spot of tea

2011-07-09T12:51:00.001-07:00

I wish I could share a picture with you (my camera reader is misplaced for the time being.) If I could share a picture, I would show you the pretty black and toile teapot that I currently have filled with Cinnamon Hibiscus tea. If you have never tried a hibiscus flavored beverage, you really should. I was skeptical the first time I tried it, but was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Now when I find something with that flavor in it, like my tea, I snatch it up!

So since I can't share my own pictures with you, I'm going to share a link and some lovelies from that link. Today I came across the Annie's Tea Time website. If you love teapots or teacups and everything that go along with them, you will love this store.

One thing I found that I really liked was this little pouch to carry teabags and sweeteners in. If you are a tea drinker, there will usually be times that you want to take a tea bag or two with you and this little pouch is perfect for that. It even has individual pockets inside for tea bags and sweeteners.

And then there were their tea cozy selection. They have almost five pages to choose from. I'm rather partial to this one myself.
Well, I'm off for now to finish my tea. May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home. ~~~~~

Sacred Work in our Holy Home ~ a repost

2011-07-07T16:10:00.001-07:00

For today's post I would like to send you to my very first post here at The Quiet Pleasures of Home. It is a good reminder for us all ~ most definitely myself included. Please click on the link.

May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~~

Tea Party Tuesday

2011-07-05T15:45:00.000-07:00

I have a secret. A very sweet secret. You know the Little Debbie's Oatmeal Cream Pie cookies? I know how to make them. They are oh - so - good.

I don't even remember now where I found this recipe. But they taste just like the Little Debbie's but better because they will be fresher. They can be wrapped individually for a bake sale, taken on a picnic or tailgate and are equally at home set upon a pretty platter for a tea party.

Oatmeal Cream Pie Cookies
1 C butter
3/4 C light brown sugar
1/2 C sugar
1 Tbls molasses
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 C flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 C quick oatmeal
14 oz. marshmallow cream
1 C shortening
2/3 C powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Cream the first six ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Add to your creamed ingredients and stir in the oatmeal. Place tablespoon size drops of dough on an ungreased cookie sheet, leaving lot of room for spreading. Bake 10-12 minutes at 350*. You want them just brown along the edges and still soft. Do not over bake.

For filling:
(I always double this amount.) Mix marshmallow cream, shortening, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Spread on the underside of one cookie and top with another.

There you have it. If you try these, I promise you will not be disappointed.

~~~ Blog Parties ~~ I'm linking to Tea Party Tuesday at Sweetology and Domestically Divine Tuesday Homemaking Link up at Far Above Rubies~~~

Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

2011-07-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

I have a recipe for homemade chocolate peanut butter cups that taste very close to Reese's. My daughter is a Reese's connoisseur and these make the grade with her, so I know they are good!

I made a large platter of them yesterday for a church function. They got rave reviews and I came home with an empty platter. (I'm proud to say I didn't eat any of them ~ yay me!) I may have to make these a staple in my arsenal of recipes for our many church dinners.

So without further ado, here is the wonderful recipe. ~~~

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

1 Cup butter, melted

2 Cups graham crackers, crushed

2 Cups confectioner's sugar

1 Cup peanut butter

1 1/2 Cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

4 Tbls. peanut butter

Line muffin tins with paper liners and spray with cooking spray. Mix together butter, graham crackers, confectioner's sugar, and 1 Cup of peanut butter. Press about 1 1/2 Tbls. of the mixture into the bottom of the paper liners. Melt the chocolate chips and 4 Tbls. of peanut butter in a double boiler. Spoon over the filling and smooth with the back of a spoon. Put in the refrigerator to set and keep cool during storage.

~~ I'm linking to Tempt my Tummy Tuesday at Blessed with Grace. ~~

Menu Plan Monday

2011-07-04T10:40:00.000-07:00

For my menus this week I'm simply going to post the main dish as I usually figure out the sides each day. I'm also currently on a high protein/low carb way of eating, so I'm rather focused on the meats right now. :)

Monday ~ Grilled brats

Tuesday ~ Meatloaf

Wednesday ~ Baked chicken

Thursday ~ Betty's Scarborough Fair Pork Chops

Friday ~ Pizza for the family, pizza fillings for me

Saturday ~ Leftover night

Sunday ~ Pot roast

~~~ Linking to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie ~~~

Mistakes made & lessons learned

2011-07-04T09:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I suppose it is time to update my little blog here. We have been so busy around here. I knew when summer started that it would be busy, but I greatly underestimated just how much! I must admit, I have gotten myself in over my head. Small livestock is a wonderful thing to have but I think I got a bit over eager and crossed a line. I discovered that I was spending so much time outside tending to things that my time inside to tend to things was suffering. I thought about it over the course of a few weeks to decide what I wanted to do. I wanted to make sure whatever decision I made would be the right one. Finally, I felt like I had it all straightened out in my mind so I asked my husband to sit down to talk to me for a while. I admitted to him that I felt like I had made some mistakes and that I wanted to pull back a bit and refocus myself. He asked me how I wanted to do that and I told him that the first thing I felt that needed to be done was to get rid of the majority of our chickens. Not all of them ~ I would still like a few so we could have fresh eggs ~ but the largest majority of them needed to go.

In truth, the largest majority of them are meat birds anyway, so it's obvious where they are going. So we went ahead and made an appointment at a facility here in our town that will dispatch and prepare your chickens for your freezer. That will be done next Monday. Then I turned to our large flock of Rhode Island Reds. They are good, established layers so I did not want to send them with the others. I thought of a friend of mine who has a farm so I called her and asked if she would be interested in them. As luck would have it, the number of her flock recently went down due to losing some and she was tickled pink at the offer. They went to live with her last night. They will get to free range the rest of their days and will be as happy as can be.

That leaves me with what we decided to keep. We have one Rhode Island Red who lives in her own little hutch. She's much smaller than other chickens and has some health issues so they pick on her which is why we keep her separated. She is very tame and sweet and has actually turned herself into somewhat of a pet, lol. Then there is one Dominique. We kept this one because it is more of a rare breed and it belongs to our son and he is very partial to it. There is also one Easter Egger and one White Rock. So four total and only three living together in the coop/run area. We put them in there is morning and they looked quite pleased with their surroundings.

I must say, I am quite pleased as well. It wasn't easy to admit I had made such a big mistake that ended up being quite an issue in regards to where my time and energy was spent. But now that everything has been figured out and I can see how I can now refocus on more important things ~ I am so happy! Live and learn as they say...and I certainly have!

Survived the storms!

2011-04-28T07:33:00.000-07:00

Talk about deja vu. Last year, during this exact same week, our community was flooded. As a matter of fact, much of our state was flooded. My little town was/is very lucky because we sit atop a bit of an upside down "bowl" which really and truly saved us last year. We had to watch as home after home and community after community was literally washed away. All the while thanking the Lord for our higher elevation and thinking, "There but for the grace of God go I."

Fast forward to this year. It all started happening again. I had never realized before that this is a yearly pattern in our area. That this particular week on the calendar apparently brings cataclysmic storms just like clockwork. The rains started on Saturday. Thankfully, flooding was at a minimum this year, though there was some. But what this year brought with it was high winds and tornado after tornado. By Monday evening we were in the thick of it. Monday and Tuesday nights were sleepless for us as the community tornado sirens were going off. I tried to get the weather on tv (one of the few things I think it is good for) but with such harsh weather, there was no reception. Luckily I could still get live video streaming of the local weather on the computer. Things hit a fever pitch yesterday around 3:00 when what the forecasters were calling, "the worst of the worst" was headed straight for our little 4.4 square mile town.

And it thankfully...blessedly...went right over us without touching down.

We are tired. Last night was the first solid night's sleep we had in a few days. I've still got all manner of pillows and comforters and blankets piled in the bathtub, just in case I needed to put my children there. We now have three full days of beautiful, blessed sunshine predicted. We do need it so...to dry things out. (You don't even *want* to know the state of the ground inside our chicken run right now. Let's just say that Diatomaceous Earth and I have a date with each other this afternoon.)

I know that so many were not as lucky as us. Our hearts go out to them. As I said before ~ There but for the grace of God go I. All we have can be whisked away in the blink of an eye. Hug your family a little closer today.

"Seeking something higher than God"

2011-02-06T09:48:00.001-08:00

Today I am linking to a post on another blog. It is a letter that a wife & mother sent to the Pearls asking for some guidance and wisdom. Now, I understand all of the controversy surrounding the Pearls, and I myself do not subscribe to all that they say. But I do find that if I sort through the things they say, I can come away with some encouragement and a reminder to keep my priorities on God and my family. As for the things that we do not see eye to eye on ~ it does not hurt my feelings to agree to disagree.

I know for myself, my church has so many opportunities for women to help out with many different things. And I have found that I have to purposely and continously pull myself back from it all lest it become overwhelming. I have friends at my church who do not really understand why I do that. But if I agreed to participate in everything, as many of them choose to do, I would have no time with my family. For some of them, it works out fine. They tackle the service opportunities as a family thus losing no family time in the process. But with my daughter's health issues and my husband not attending with me, my family would certainly pay a price. This post contains very timely reminders ~ certainly for myself ~ and perhaps for someone reading here as well. Enjoy ~~~

I would like to close the shades & roll up the sidewalks please...

2011-02-03T14:11:00.000-08:00

With all of the turmoil going on around the globe right now and all of the possible far reaching and, yes, spiritual fallout that could come/is coming from it I find myself just wanting to back away from it all and make the sphere of my life very small. While one part of my brain says tis best to at the very least stay informed of what is going on, the other part wants nothing to do with it and would much rather concentrate on my family and home. Puttering around cleaning, cooking, and cross stitching. And still yet another part of me truly wishes that having knowledge of what is going on on the other side of the planet were not even an option. Longing for days without the internet and cell phones and television when war thousands of miles away would not disrupt the peace here in my little corner. Wishful thinking, I know. While I completely appreciate all of the good things brought into my life via the available technology, there is still a part of me that wonders if it has not all just simply gone too far.

So I believe the order of the day is to, at least for now, give into my hermit like tendencies. Give a deaf ear to the news and fix something good for my family eat. After which I will pick up a good book and a too-long-neglected cross stitch project. :-) There are many positive things about living what some people would consider a small and narrow life. Sometimes the world is just too big and too much and the best thing a girl can do is pull back from it all and focus soley on the things God gave to her to attend to. And He will handle the rest.

Decorative lattice tops for pies

2010-12-22T20:18:00.000-08:00

I found this link tonight and thought I would share. It has some lovely ideas for lattice pie tops. I can't wait to try it ~ I especially love the spiral twist.

How disappointing...

2010-12-11T12:57:00.000-08:00

I just read an article where Tasha Tudor's children were interviewed. It seems that now that she has passed on, there is quite a dispute over her will. That's disappointing enough, but what really struck me was that she has several children, not just the ones that are better known because of the website. And every single one of them were left very disillusioned by their mother. Apparently, behind closed doors they had a very difficult and sad childhood and a good number of them once they reached adulthood wanted nothing to do with their mother. Some others tried to have an adult relationship with her to no avail. Even the ones who did stay close to her and helped her run the business said that they were very unhappy children growing up and having a relationship with her as an adult was a big challenge.

How sad. I guess we never really know the truth about public figures in the way we sometimes feel we do.

Christmas Reading

2010-12-10T16:21:00.000-08:00

I love reading Christmas themed novels during the Christmas season. Today I did some shopping in a bookstore and this is one of the selections I came home with. I must admit I am drawn to books with pretty or quaint covers and as soon as I saw this one, I wanted to know more about it.

It is written by Lauren Willig. The main character is one named Arabella Dempsey and she just happens to be friends with Jane Austen! Need I say more, lol? I am looking forward to cozying up with a warm blanket and this book tonight.

I must say, going into a book store seems to be a dangerous thing for me. I go in with the intention of purchasing one thing...but I never seem to come out with just one thing! I was able to find some books for my kids. I'm so glad that both of them love to read. My daughter especially. She can devour a 500 page book at amazing speed! (A talent she got from her father ~ I'm the slow and easy one, lol.)

Well, that is all I have to share for tonight. I hope you are all staying warm and enjoying this Christmas season with those you love. May God bless you as you tend to the quiet pleasures of your home!~~*~~*~~*~~

My Christmas Kitchen

2010-12-06T22:56:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my little Christmas cottage kitchen. :-) Come right in ~ there is hot chocolate all ready for you. ~~

I just love my Christmas curtains over my sink. They were made for me by a dear friend. She loves to sew and I am often the lucky recipient of the items she makes.

Here you can see she made me a table runner to match the curtain.

This is my hoosier cabinet all decked out for Christmas. On the platter in the middle are two bags containing the Christmas cookies my kids made and decorated. ~ Please excuse my husband's ball cap atop the hoosier, lol! I didn't realize it until I uploaded these pictures. Oh well, real life is lived here! Perfection is not the name of the game.

I just love this little centerpiece I made. I've had the star for a couple of years. I decided to use it as a candy dish during the Christmas season and then I found the snowman figurine. Too cute! And it just happened to match...

These precious dishes I found ~~~ at the dollar store! I had to snatch them up.

The table is not completely set here, but I wanted to snap this picture to show the plates with the snowmen in the middle. Too cute!

So, as you can see...
We have been quite busy...

Christmas cookies must be made you know...

Creativity at work ~ my kids never get too old to enjoy this.

I love this picture. My daughter took it. She managed to make cupcakes look cozy!

Corner countertop area. We had to cover up the Tupperware baskets-for-paper-plates holder, lol.

So that's my little Christmas kitchen ~ I hope you enjoyed your visit. ~~ May God bless you as you attend to the quite pleasures of your household!

~ And ~

Merry Christmas!!!

My Favorite Things

2010-11-29T06:25:00.000-08:00

This week I am participating in the My Favorite Things Challenge over at The High-Heeled Housewife. Here is this week's challenge : "This week, instead of dreading your household chores, focus on your favorite chore. Enjoy doing it!"

I have to say, this one is a no brainer for me. Those of you who have read here a while can probably guess what it is. I **love** to cook for my family! I enjoy the whole process. From planning recipes I want to try to making my list and shopping for ingredients as frugally as I can to the actual cooking process and serving it up to my loved ones.

(This is from our latest trip to Sam's. We try to purchase as much as we can in bulk.)

I enjoy cooking all types of food. During some tight financial times, I have even been known to make our dog's food homemade!

I cook not only for my family, but extend my skills to feeding large crowds at my church and preparing food for wedding and baby showers and funerals. Every year at Christmas, I make a huge homemade Christmas goodie spread for my husband to take to work. Some years I have made individual baskets for each person at his work. Other years, I make several platters full of goodies that can then be placed in a break room for everyone to munch on.

During this time of year, more goodies and treats are made than at any other time. My children enjoy that (of course!) but I also enjoy passing down "food traditions" to them. Special recipes reserved for just the months of October through December. As a mom, I am in the business of making memories for my family and this is one way I do it. :-)

I also try to make Sunday dinners special. We pull out special dishes, cover the tablecloth with lace, and make a proper meal out of the whole experience.

These are memories my mother gave me and now I try to pass it along to the next generation.

Now, let me share a recipe with you that is going to be made in my home today.

Creamy Hot Cocoa

******************

1/3 C. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 C. (or a little less) sugar

1 pinch of salt

1/3 C. boiling water

3 1/2 C. milk

3/4 tsp. vanilla

1/2 C. half and half cream

Combine cocoa, sugar and salt in a saucepan. Blend in boiling water. Bring to an easy boil while stirring. Simmer and stir for about 2 minutes ~ don't let it scorch! Stir in milk and heat until very hot but do not boil. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Divide between 4 mugs. Add the creamer to the mugs to cool it down to drinking temperature.

~**~**~**Enjoy!~**~**~**

A very full Thanksgiving day

2010-11-25T16:24:00.000-08:00

Good evening everyone. I hope everyone had a wonderful day and I hope it was filled with the blessings of family and friends. For myself, I tried to do as much prep work as I could yesterday but I still had quite a bit to do today. We were taking all of our food over to my friend's home where several others would be. Once we got there and got all the food set out, the host asked us all to sit down. Then each of their three teenage children recited a Thanksgiving poem. After that, the father read a short history of the Thanksgiving Day tradition and then went straight into prayer.

***

We had a wonderful meal (we all ate too much) and everyone came away very satisfied. We packed up all of our dishes and leftovers and came back home. Then my husband helped me finish the dishes and clean the kitchen (wonderful!) Now all is quiet, everyone is tired, and we are going to relax.

***

Goodnight all ~ may God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your household.

I love this time of year!

2010-11-17T12:05:00.001-08:00

Hello my sweet readers!

I'm here today to simply chat and gush a little bit. :-) Nothing in particular going on ~ and quite frankly ~ more than my share of challenges these days with my daughter's health. However, I am determined and am working to renew myself in such a way that I do not let it get me down and am upping my efforts to make sweet memories in my home and tie heart strings to the little things.

***

Now, please don't anyone throw tomatoes at me because I am going to talk a little bit about Christmas. I can assure you, that I am *not* forgetting Thanksgiving! I have always been a proponent of not doing anything for the Christmas holiday until after Thanksgiving dinner. ;-) However, a couple of years ago I decided to divert from that a little bit. The reason being a completely practical one. It is not the easiest thing for me to do all the climbing up and down the attic ladder to retrieve all the decorations, etc. And since it is so much work, I decided I would like to reap the benefits of it for more than one month. :-) So Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations share the space, but Thanksgiving most definitely gets it's due respect.

Now that that is out of the way ~ we are listening to Christmas music! Yes, it's true! We have certain channels on our tv that play only music 24/7. I don't watch much tv at all, but I love these music channels. During this time of year they dedicate several of them to different types of Christmas music. Right now we are listening to "Holiday Traditions" and it is all very old fashioned and reminds me of my childhood. My parents were older when they had me and they were both born in the 1930's. So my childhood home was always filled with music from the 1930's - 1950's. There was always a radio playing soft background music 24 hours a day during my entire childhood. It's a sweet memory. So, especially at this time of year, I try to make sure some of these classic tunes fill my home so I can pass it along to my children.

***

I have found something soooooo sweet and fun! I am going to order it this week. Remember a couple of posts back when I spoke about Victoria magazine? Well, one of my favorite things to do is to take a magazine like that and really take some time picking out the small details and/or advertisements that may be easily overlooked if one were just flipping through it. So, while I was perusing my magazine, I found this: (click on it for link)

~ A Christmas Carol board game ~

Just scroll down past the "Pride and Prejudice" board game (Emily ~ this made me think of you!!) and you will find the Christmas Carol game. How precious is that?!? I must admit I am rather excited and have visions of evenings spent watching the movie and then making hot chocolate and sitting around the kitchen table playing this game. I can't wait to get it!

***

Now, I have a few plans for some King Arthur products as well. They have precious gingerbread house kits. They also have some decorations for the "candy houses" I know I couldn't find anywhere else. Here are the ones I have my eyes on: (click on them for link)

Christmas lights

Snowflakes

Winter Characters

The rest of our decorations I know I can get at the local market ~ candy canes, old fashioned ribbon candy, the possibilities are endless! (See, I informed you at the beginning of this post I would gush, lol.)

Now, let me tell you why I call them "candy houses" instead of the traditional term "gingerbread houses." When I was growing up we made what we called a candy house every year for Christmas. My father would make the structure and sometimes he would even make it look like our house! Then my mom would slather the whole entire thing in frosting and I would go to town covering the whole affair in every kind of candy you can imagine. It was allowed to stay intact until Christmas Eve and then everyone would grab a butter knife to start prying candy off and over the next few days it would be slowly devoured. I can't wait to do this with my own children this year.

***

Well, I must go for now. But please do try to remember to take some time to slow and and really savor the moments of your life. I know all too well exactly how easy it is to get into "survival mode" and before you know it you are spending your every waking moment taking care of "business" and the small beautiful things of life get pushed away. We really shouldn't allow it to be that way! Wonderful memories and a sweet life are made up of the small and beautiful things! May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home!

A recipe to share ~~

2010-11-15T07:28:00.000-08:00

Vanilla Caramels
(I make these during the holiday season to use in recipes instead of buying those hard little caramels sold this time of year.)

2 C. sugar
2 C. half and half
1 3/4 C. light syrup
1/2 C. butter
pinch salt
2 Tlbs. vanilla

Line an 8 inch square pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Combine first 5 ingredients in a *large* saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved and starts to boil. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally until candy thermometer reads 244*. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Immediately pour into prepared pan. Allow to sit at room temperature for one hour until firm. Chill for 1 hour. Cut with an oiled chef's knife into small squares.

*I don't have a candy thermometer so I just do the "soft ball" candy test and it works out for me every time.

An exceptionally busy day

2010-11-08T21:18:00.000-08:00

It is 11:15pm and I am just now stopping with all of my chores for the day done. It has not been a day full of extraordinary things, but a day extraordinarily full of the dailies that must be attended to. I knew when this day started that it would be a very full one ~ but in a good way. I was right. :-)

First thing this morning...I overslept. My eyes popped open at 7:45, I realized the time and the first words out of my mouth were, "Oh my poor chickens." Lol. They are used to being let out of the coop around 5:00 or 6:30 at the very latest. I quickly went outside and opened their door. They were not very happy. In addition to them, I was given a very small and extremely odd looking chicken by a neighbor last night. I had her under a heat lamp apart from the others (who look like giants compared to her) so I had to see that she was alright.

I came inside and did a few things online and it did not take long for my family to start to stir. Now here we must side track a bit for me to tell you that my daughter was started on a new medication last week to help with her insomnia. Last night was the first night in *weeks* that she was able to sleep all night and then get up at a normal hour in the morning! I was so happy! I knew we would be able to get a full day's worth of schooling for her ~ that is not always possible for her so simply sleeping and waking like everyone else is such an incredible blessing! ~~And~~ she was sleepy and in bed by 10:25 tonight! I know gushing over this may seem odd to some or you may think we should just force her to bed but if you have never dealt with true insomnia before please don't judge because it is as real a medical condition as diabetes or migraines. I actually have it myself so I understand what it is like.

Now, where was I? Oh yes, my day...

I received several phone calls and finally at one point I just had to say that I would not answer the phone anymore! Have you ever had a day like that? When it seems people are calling you all day one after the other? I knew I couldn't stop our schooling progress, so I just let that phone ring.

Other than schooling, my day was very full with cooking and keeping the kitchen tidy. My husband and I went out and ran some errands together this evening. I finished cleaning the kitchen from supper, tidied up my wash room a bit, and ironed my husband's clothes for tomorrow. And now I rest!

While we were out this evening I purchased a Victoria magazine and I am enjoying it so much. As a matter of fact, after I'm done blogging I'm going to look up some of the places in the magazine. I'm so glad they brought this magazine back! Alright my friends ~ it is time for me to go. May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home!

Thanksgiving Cookery

2010-11-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

It is that time of year where most homemakers are turning their minds towards their holiday tables. My mother gifted me with a love of cooking and making special meals. I enjoy it at any time of year, but I have to say that it excites me most during the months of November and December.

Let me tell you a little bit about our Thanksgiving meals. On Thanksgiving day, we venture out of our house and spend the day with another family. Since my husband and I do not have any other family, it is nice to be able to spend the day with friends. She and I split the menu with each of us providing both meat and our "specialties." This year, a third family will be joining in so we will split the menu three ways. :-)

For this get-together I usually provide:

* Turkey (of course) :-)

* Enough dressing for the whole crowd. I make it from scratch using cornbread. It's one of my favorite things to make.

* Cracker Barrell hashbrown casserole

* Cranberry Sauce (jelly style, our hostess provides the whole berry kind)

* Little Smoky cocktail sausages in jelly sauce ~ from what I gather this a Southern/Regional dish

* A large, homemade cheese cake that I prepare in a 13x9 pan.

I will usually take about two or three other items that change from year to year. Perhaps an appetizer or something chocolate...just whatever seems like a good idea at the time. This year I'm thinking about making some Red Lobster garlic cheddar biscuits and a rustic apple tart.

****************************************************************************

We spend Thanksgiving Day with our friends, but I still like to make sure my family has a special holiday meal at our home as well. That is important to me. So, usually about one week before Thanksgiving my husband and I will look at the calendar and pick the day that our family meal will be. It's best for us to schedule it because I like to have it all planned out and he is busy hunting during this time.

Once we have the day settled upon, I start making up my menu. I try to make the foods special but not the traditional Thanksgiving fare since we will be having that the very next week. Last year I made a gourmet recipe for butterflied Cornish Hens. My husband and I *love* Cornish Hens and usually try to fix them only on special occasions so they don't lose their appeal. That was the first time I ever "butterflied" a whole bird, so it was nice to learn a new skill. :-) I'm not sure what I will make this year. I need to go through my recipes and find something new and exciting.

I'm also thinking about my table setting. Our cottage is small which means that our furniture is small to accommodate the available space. Our kitchen table seats four comfortably but because it only seats four, there is not a lot of excess space for elaborate table settings that pull out all the stops. I am thinking I can keep it simple while still making it festive. I have a special tablecloth (handed down from my mother) with turkeys and cornucopias on it. Dishes will be white plates with a gold rim and smaller (dessert size) plates placed on them that have a beautiful, old fashioned Thanksgiving print on them. I want to use a pumpkin in the middle of the table as a centerpiece and perhaps a tiny gourd-type of pumpkin in each plate. If I'm feeling especially industrious I may make little name tags to tie onto each one. Our glasses will be brown carnival glasses. Perhaps some Fall leaves tucked in here and there. Of course, a majority of that will have to be removed from the table once it is time to sit down to eat, but it is the mood that it sets that is the point.

*********************************************************************

So, all in all, I am looking forward to my holiday cooking! I hope that everyone else is enjoying this season as well. Blessings ~**~**~**~**~

Respect

2010-10-15T18:21:00.000-07:00

I found a post today on respecting our husbands that I would like to share.

Very wise words indeed.

Enjoy ~**~**~**~~

RESPECT - Why?

Hello my friends!!

2010-10-07T13:12:00.000-07:00

Well ~ I said we were going to take a Fall break and we did. And I enjoyed it so much! Usually when we take a break we have a tendency to tackle a project or take a short trip. While this is fun (and sometimes needed) it can leave me more tired than when I started the "break!" But this time, we didn't do anything. We really did just stop and slow down and rest. And it was wonderful. We have watched movies, slept in, played on the Wii, read books, and for the most part stayed home. I don't think I realized just how tired and worn down I was until I started resting deeply. It was nice. I may just have to make this a yearly thing. A time to stop and rest between the seasons.

For my pen pals ~ I am at my desk writing letters to you right now. (Literally. My hand is hurting from writing so I'm taking a break to post on my blog. :-) I will mail them tomorrow.)

I have a busy time coming up. Our church is having a ladies day and I'm in charge of decorating the registration table (in Fall decor) and the morning refreshments. I will be serving a variety of muffins, coffee, juice, cider (my special recipe), and bottled water. We will have the refreshment table decorated as well. After all the classes, we will be serving lunch to all the attendees and have some small gifts for them. I *love* being able to do things like this and participate in the ladies activities. I'm so glad that my church is active and there is always something appropriate for the ladies to participate in if they so choose. I really enjoy it.

The weather here has turned cooler rather suddenly. But that is normal for our area. The change between Summer and Fall is generally fast and abrupt. Fall usually only lasts about two or three weeks and then we are straight to Winter. I remember one year we went to bed with the temperature in the 70's only to wake up to it below freezing! Oh my, everyone does get sick during these weeks due to the sudden weather changes we have. But it is simply a part of life in this area and no one really gives it much thought. Everyone just seems to expect that there will be about 2 or 3 weeks of coughing, sneezing, and sniffling and then we will all once again be acclimated to the weather here on the Highland Rim. :-)

In other news, we are expanding our rabbitry. I am going to purchase a buck and two does for the purpose of breeding and we will be selling the offspring. These are actually large meat rabbits, not pets. Though if someone wanted to purchase a rabbit for a pet that would be fine. I know some people cannot abide by thinking of using rabbits for the purpose of meat, but in our area it is quite normal and there is a good market for them here. It is a good way for our little rural-town homestead to make it's next step forward.

Well, I must go for now and finish my letters. May God bless you all as you tend to the quiet pleasures of your household! ~~**~~**~~

To my blogging and pen friends...

2010-09-20T20:45:00.001-07:00

...please know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth. Just very tired right now. My daughter had her appointments at the hospital and has started physical therapy. I'm just a bit overwhelmed. I am planning on us taking a Fall break from schooling and I will, hopefully, get some blogging done during that time as well and writing letters.

So just know that I have not left, I am still here. Just going to rest a few more days before I get back into the swing of things online.

Headed to the hospital...

2010-09-08T06:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we spent the majority of the day in the city at the children's hospital. Our daughter had blood drawn, x-rays, and we had a consult appointment with the G.I. doctor. We are leaving to go back in about an hour and she is going to have an endoscopy. We are hoping to find the reason for her stomach pain and I am actually hoping they *find something* in her stomach that is wrong because, if not, this issue is going to have to be filed under the "phantom pain" that goes along with people who have Fibro or Chronic Fatigue. Her chest pain is already categorized as that. They did extensive testing on her heart and it is fine (thank you Lord!) But I would much prefer this issue to be a problem that has a "real" fix instead of just learning a myriad of coping strategies.

Any prayers sent our way today would be appreciated.

Let me tell you about her ~~~

2010-09-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

I have had my mom on my mind quite a bit the last few days and even more so tonight. I would give anything to be able to sit down with her tonight and talk to her, pick her brain a bit, and ask questions. So many questions! About how she did things...how she always managed to pull it all together so well.

**************

I realize I just didn't get enough time with her. I only really had about 1 1/2 years to know her as an adult. I married young at 19 ~ (she always told me that she would love to see my graduation diploma one day and my marriage license the next ~ they were a year apart so I *almost* made that wish come true!) ~ And after we married we immediately moved away to where my husband had his job and home ~ he was older than me and had already started working and settling down. After 2 1/2 years, we picked up and moved again, this time even further away. We moved back "home" - to my hometown - when I was 23. But at that time, I had two toddlers and life was busy and I was still too young to realize all the things I needed to know from my mom. By the time I was 25 her dementia had started and asking any questions or even holding a conversation was all but impossible. By the time I was 26, she was gone.

************

So, all told, I had about a one and a half year window to get to know my mom woman to woman. And I didn't really do a good job of it. I was so young...I just didn't realize.

************

But I do have some very good memories of her. Indulge me a little bit while I share:

* She always ~ and I mean always ~ had our house "company ready." But she did it without being overbearing about it, without (seemingly) to stress over it, or make me or my dad feel like we were in a museum. It felt like home.

**********

* My dad was a preacher and he always felt like he needed to move on after about 2 years with a congregation. He felt like in 2 years, one person could say all they could say to one group of people. So we lived in many different parsonages during the years. Some big, some small, some in nice neighborhoods, others in more humble places. But no matter where we lived, my mom made a nice, pretty home out of it. I don't have any memories of living with or around boxes for weeks at at time. Some how, she got it all unpacked and laid out and we seemed top pick right up where we left off.

***********

* My mom made a nice, sit down dinner every single night. 365 days a year. Her daily meals were like what you would expect to find at a traditional "Sunday meal." And Sundays? Well, they were pull out all the stops, good dishes, lace tablecloth affairs. If I could count the times I have woke up around 5:00 in the morning on a Sunday with the smell of a pot roast with potatoes and carrots slow cooking in the oven wafting through the house...I would have no small sum. She did these meals every single day. A wonderful meal with a beautifully set table. Now I know exactly how much work this was and how much energy it took. Growing up, it was just my life. My normal. I didn't think anything of it. I didn't realize that not everyone had a mom who did things like that.

***********

* Speaking of beautifully set tables...oh my goodness. My mom could set a table in such creative ways. Always with a nod to the season we were in or the current holiday at hand. She made them so pretty. I have several pictures of her tables at different times over the years. These pictures are such treasures to me.

***********

* My mom always decorated the bulletin boards at church. She decorated these the same way she did our kitchen table at home. Where other people might throw up a pre-cut visual aid packet, my mom would put so much thought and time into it and would end up with something unique and beautiful when she was done. I think this is one reason I throw myself into classroom/bulletin board decorating the way that I do. I remember sitting with my mom in the various churches we were at, cutting out letters (there were no die cut machines back then) from the time I could hold a pair of scissors and cut a straight line. I always feel close to her when I'm working on decor and visual aids for the Sunday school classes.

**********

* No matter how little money we had, she always made Christmas & birthdays magical for me. We didn't have a lot in the way of funds and my mom worked literally out of her grocery money budget and that's it. She always said it matters not how much money one has but how you use and plan for what you do have. She would save money back, use the lay-a-way plans most stores had back then, and by Christmas or birthday time she made sure that she had wonderful presents for me. Now, at this point in my life it's not the presents that I appreciate or even remember for that matter, but the fact that she planned the way she did and sacrificed the way she did so she could make it special for me.

**********

She was such a good person and such a wonderful homemaker. She loved me and my dad with everything she had. It didn't matter that our family was small, she pulled out all the stops anyway. She made our homelife so sweet and relaxing and beautiful. So many people would think ~ oh why bother with all the "extras" day in and day out? They're happy to just get through the day. But my mom never once gave up on all those "extras." She seemlessly incorporated them into our everyday life. And now that I am a grown woman, I realize just how much she did for us. I am thankful.

Hi ~~

2010-09-03T13:43:00.000-07:00

Well, I know I said I was going to be offline for a while, but I didn't mean to stay off that long, lol. We've had some internet drama here. We had a power outage and some how, it made our internet go away and we've been trying to get it back. Thankfully, hubby got it all fixed this afternoon. I *love* being married to a computer guru!

I actually don't have much going on right now. I'm not feeling very spry right now ~ dealing with some back pain that I suffer from. So I'm taking it easy and having a slow day today. As a matter of fact, we traded school from today until tomorrow. We have no Saturday plans this week, so I asked the kids if they would mind taking today off and doing school tomorrow instead and they said that was fine with them. So I've been able to rest my back a good portion of today, which has been nice.

My husband will be off work on Monday and we are planning on grilling out and staying home. Tuesday we head back into the city (2 hours away) for dd's GI doctor's consult appointment and then on Wednesday she has her first physical therapy appointment.

Ok, hubby is asking me to get off the computer and fix him something to eat ~~ so off I go! Blessings everyone! ~~**~~**~~

Rather heartbroken right now...

2010-08-30T06:14:00.000-07:00

I had planned today to be sharing lovely details of my weekend activities but I am truly not up to it. Someone ~ who has absolutely no filter on their mouth ~ made a very ignorant comment to me last night about something my family is dealing with. In front of a crowd of people. I answered as succinctly as I could and managed to get out of the room and into an empty one before the tears started to fall. Two dear friends came to comfort me and I am grateful for them. Surprisingly, someone who I thought didn't even know me that well, apparently came to my defense after my hasty retreat from the room and then came to talk to me as well. And someone else, who I didn't even know had observed what happened, told the person-lacking-any-filter to literally "back off" and leave me alone.

So it is nice to know that I have people who think highly enough of me to come to my defense. But at the same time, the wind is most definitely knocked out of my sails and it doesn't take but a scant moment's thought about it and the tears want to come again. This person could not have chosen a more raw spot to pick. I probably won't be on for a couple of days. I feel wounded and I need to just be quiet and regroup.

Offline for a few days...

2010-08-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Right now, my daughter has friends over spending the night for her birthday. She turned 14 yesterday. :-) Not only that, but my husband and I had our 16th anniversary yesterday too! (I have to say, that second anniversary was quite memorable!)

So the rest of the evening will be spent making a good supper for all these girls plus my husband and son. Then I am going to put out a spread for dessert that would make any teenage girl weak in the knees. Let's just say there are gourmet cupcakes and a chocolate fountain involved!

Tomorrow I have church services and I am also helping host a banquet. I trust everyone will understand if I am a bit quiet for a few days.

Blessings to you as you tend to the quiet pleasures of your home!!

Classroom Pictures

2010-08-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

I spent time this morning working in the classroom that I teach in on Wednesday nights. We always try to change the decorations with the seasons and it was time to put some Fall things up. I always like to decorate the outside door and the wall around the door. Here is what I made ~

And a closer look at the sign ~
This is the wall inside the classroom ~

And this will be used for attendance. Each time the children attend, they will be given a leaf to add to their basket.

I always try to make sure my classroom is decorated. I don't like classrooms that are drab and plain. It's so much nicer for the children if they are kept bright and cheery.

In addition to working in the classroom this morning, I was also given the responsibility of being in charge of the church's resource room. I was quite pleased to be given this responsibility and I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

Well, it's getting late and I must close for now. May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~~~

A peek into my day

2010-08-23T19:43:00.000-07:00

This is my desk where I write my letters and my blog. I love my little tapestry that hangs from my bulletin board. It is a Thomas Kincaid picture that actually lights up. You can't tell it in the picture, but the lights in the church windows and the lamp actually flicker like candle light. I turn it on in the evenings. To the left of that, you can see a piece of paper with some little doodles drawn on it. It is a piece of paper folded over and on the inside is a love poem my father wrote to my mother for Valentine's Day about three years before she died. He was already well advanced into Parkinson's Disease, so his drawings and words on the outside were written with an unsteady hand. He used his Bible highlighters to draw them. :-) On the inside he typed this poem, straight from his heart:

My Valentine

YOU are my one true love,

The sunlight of my life,

Your love is my blessing from above,

I know your heart is true,

And to me shall bring no strife.

You are my one true love,

My helper through every pain.

I lay down before you

All that I own or ever hope to accrue.

A loving God surely drew you

From among His greatest treasures,

And gave you to me, to be my wife.

I promise I'll try to repay you,

For your trust and your affection,

By never being a disappointment

Nor cause a tear to fall from your

eyes of blue.

And so, my darling wife and helpmate,

Of my love you can be sure,

For I know that God made none better,

than YOU, MY VALENTINE.

Ahhh...tears. He had already been so sick for so many years at that point. We never would have dreamed at the time that God would call her home first, before him. She wanted SO BADLY to out live him to take care of him until his final breath. But God's ways are not ours, are they? But they are together now. And they are so happy.

~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~

Would you like to see some of the fruit of my labors in the kitchen?

This is a loaf of beer bread my husband requested. It bakes up very moist and pops right out of the bread pan once it is done cooling. It is almost all gone now.

My intention was to make lasagna one night last week but I ran short on time. So I made this yesterday, much to my husband and son's delight. Yuuumm.

A key lime cheese ball. Another yum. :-) It went to church last night along with...

...pepperoni & cheese biscuit bites! The kids love these. Not only that, they are so easy to make it's not hard for them to make them by themselves. Both of my kids have made these at different times. It's always nice to add something to their list of things they know how to make.

Well, I will close for now. It is getting late and, Lord willing, another day will start before we know it! Blessings to you all as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home ~~**~~**~~

I had the most charming day

2010-08-18T19:52:00.000-07:00

I have had such a good day! When I woke up this morning I was anticipating just an ordinary day filled with housework and homeschooling, nothing out of the normal routine. I knew that my husband had an errand to run in the next town over and I asked him if I could go with him. He said that I could. I was thinking it would be nice to just have a quiet drive with him, a little bit of alone time. That's hard to come by sometimes with two teens within ear shot of most conversations. ;-)

We left and did what my husband needed to do and I thought we then would head home. But my husband then said that he decided that I was need of some "distraction." :-) He said he knew of a little town that I would just love. (He got lost recently and ended up there, lol.) He said that they have an old rail road museum there and he wanted to find out it's hours and admission price so we could take the kids some time soon. So I called home to inform my son and daughter that dad was taking me off on a small adventure and we would be home a little later than planned. Then we took off to try and find this little town and my husband was not 100% sure where it was.

We found the town and the rail road museum. Ladies, I only *thought* that I live in a small town. This little vignette was nestled in some hills and it was just precious. It had one small main street that we spent some time walking around with an old fashioned ice cream parlor, a small catering establishment that looked as though it is only open when reserved for special occasions, and a very nice men's store that said in the window they sell an array of "Gentleman's accoutrements." How very civilized! Around the corner was a tiny market with two working gas pumps of the very old fashioned kind and a small diner. As we drove by a lady coming out of diner saw us and smiled and waved.

I know a lot of little towns around here (including where we live) are still very old fashioned but this little teeny town seems like it is a place that time forgot. And it was so quiet. I mentioned that to my husband as we were walking and he had noticed it too, saying that the only thing you could hear were the birds singing. We now have some pipe dreams of moving there some day.

After we left there we headed back home in a direction we usually don't go. But I'm so glad we did! We were both getting a bit hungry and my dear hubby asked me if I wanted to stop and get something to eat somewhere. Right at that moment, my eyes landed on an adorable little tea parlor. We passed it, but I told him what I saw and we turned around. We were in for such a treat!

It was an old house that had been turned into a tea parlor. Outside the establishment was an old, old, old panel truck. They had some old fashioned advertisements painted on the sides and the windows had been dressed with shutters and window boxes full of flowers. The wrap around porch was full of flowers and plants and a large chalk board describing the different dishes and drinks available.

We went inside. And I fell in love. Oh how I wish I had my camera with me so I could share with you how charming this place was. I know I keep using that word, but it really is the only one that will do the place justice. Each room was a different color ~ the one we were seated in was sage green, another was a yellow/vanilla color, another had burgundy floral wallpaper. There were lots of plants in each room. Each table had a small wooden plaque with a Fruit of the Spirit carved into it. Ours said "Self Control." Some of the tables were the bases of old Singer sewing machines with a table top placed where the sewing machine would have been. Every room had soft lighting given off by a variety of beautiful lamps. Our sage green room had accents in rose and peach and it was all put together so well. All of the waitresses wore either long skirts or long flowing palazzo pants with white blouses and cobbler aprons. A selection of music was playing that switched between harpsichord, harps, and classical guitar.

Can you see why I fell in love with this place?

They had a wide selection of teas and non-alcoholic drinks and I tried something completely new to me. A Hibiscus fruit punch. And true to it's name, it tasted very...flowery! I was not certain I would like something that really did taste like a flower, but I did! It was very good and I would order it again. The flavor was a bit too feminine for my husband 's taste though and he settled on one of their cream sodas. We ordered sandwiches, dh had roast beef and I had a veggie burger, and they were served on homemade buns. We also had dessert ~ dh had homemade carrot cake and I had a slice of cream cheese pie drizzled with maple syrup. Yum! ~~**~~**

I had to notice the crowd that this type of establishment obviously attracted. Everyone was calm & quiet, well dressed, and polite. I told dh my observation and he said also that no one had their eyes glued to a cell phone or a PDA. Everyone was simply relaxed and well behaved and enjoying themselves. It was so nice. My husband made the statement that we are losing so much civility in our society and it seems that we won't get it back because the majority does not seem to care. That is true and I think it is so sad.

I had such a good time today. I have a new favorite place. :-) It was so nice to spend time in a place where the people obviously cared about the small details and attended to them diligently. I do hope we can go back there at some point.

Like I said, I was thoroughly charmed by the time we left and thanked my husband for giving me such a wonderful afternoon.

Simple Woman's Daybook

2010-08-17T18:21:00.000-07:00

Outside my window ~ It is dark, our porch light is on....it's actually stuck on. We can't seem to make it turn off no matter what we do. I don't want to take the bulbs out because I want the light when I need it...I just don't need it 24 hours a day. (sigh)

I am thinking ~ Many things. All our upcoming appointments with different specialists for my daughter, homeschool work, things going on at church.

I am thankful for ~ My God, my family, my home, my friends.

From the kitchen ~ We had spaghetti with cheesy garlic bread tonight. Tomorrow will be fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and another side or two.

I am wearing ~ A blue top, a long black skirt, I just took my apron off.

I am creating ~ Nothing much right now. I need to pull my cross stitching back out. I haven't done any since I mailed my swap package off last week.

I am hearing ~ The sound of the fan and the aquarium and the show my kids are watching.

Around the house ~ I got a lot organized today. Next I need to work on my desk, better known as "mom's office." :-)

A few plans for the week ~ Church tomorrow night but a fairly slow week other than that. Next week will be busy with 3 work days planned at church, our 16th anniversary and a birthday sleepover for my daughter.

A picture thought to share ~ Our chickens gave us our first eggs today!

Courts crack down on inappropriate attire

2010-08-17T07:28:00.000-07:00

I found this article this morning and thought it was interesting. It seems that judges are getting tired of people coming into their courtrooms in sloppy, inappropriate, or skimpy attire. Some counties in certain states are even mandating a dress code. If you want to make your court date then you need to make sure you dress appropriately to go to court. Some people have been turned away at the door and not allowed entrance into the courtroom for not conforming to the dress code. This, in turn, causes problems for them because they miss their court date and are then in trouble for that.

One judge said, "...if you come to court, you need to treat it with the appropriate respect and dignity it should deserve due to the occasion."

And can I just say ~ Amen!

I have to admit (and I'll probably get tomatoes thrown at me for saying this) that since I read this article this morning my mind has been thinking of all the places it would be wonderful to have a dress code for! Now, I know it will never happen, but it would be so nice to go to the store and not see women with body parts hanging out of their clothing, people that look like they have no clothing detergent in their house but some how they can manage to pay quite a bit of money for computer games, and people who have brought their children in barely clothed. (Seeing babies toted around town in nothing but a diaper gets on my very last nerve.)

I would even venture to say (get your tomatoes ready) that some churches could use a bit of guidance in this area. A little over a year ago, I was constantly amazed at how Christian mothers were allowing their teen age girls to dress at the church I attended. Spike heels and super short skirts seemed to be the accepted mode of dress for the teenage set. Two incidents stand out in my mind. One day I was in the midst of a large crowd that was moving very slowly headed to various class rooms. There was a teenage girl in front of me and the length of her skirt stopped literally one hand's width (turned sideways) from underneath her rear. It was paired with about 6 inch heals. Another time, I overheard a conversation one of the mothers was having about her daughter. She was saying that she was older raising this one and she was tired and let the daughter get away with things she never would have her older children. She literally said, "Yeah, I let her wear those hooker shoes to church. I never would have let my other kids do that when I was younger. That's what we call them. Hooker shoes." I could not believe my ears. I no longer attend there.

My parents were "older parents" raising me and there is no way I would have been allowed out of the house dressed like that for any occasion much less church. And I don't care how old and tired I get, I would never allow any child of mine out of the house like that.

Alright, I'll step down from my soap box now. I just wanted to share the article and think about how nice it would be if people cared enough to dress in a respectful manner in other venues as well.

Silly Women, Sinful Busybodies ~ A timely repost

2010-08-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

I wrote this post in 2008. It basically says everything that I am feeling tonight so I decided to repost it. Blessings ~**~**~**~

Day's End

2010-08-11T21:27:00.000-07:00

Today has been a bit of an emotionally taxing day. I ended it by falling into Proverbs, which seemed to be the best choice I could make considering the alternative would have been to stew in my upset feelings. Now I am here, my sweet little sliver of cyber space that I share with a handful of sweet friends, with a glass of chamomile tea. I do hope I sleep well tonight. I am tired ~ in more ways than one ~ and I need to rest.

Around the house I am in *major* decluttering mode. We are planning to purchase a new bed for dh and I this weekend. Considering the new bed will be King size and the cottage's master bedroom is tiny ~ there is much rearranging and purging going on. I took a full load in the back of our truck today to our local food bank. (Our food bank is similar to a Goodwill. You can donate clothing, household items, etc.) I will have more still to go. Tonight I set down with my large collection of cross stitch magazines and patterns and sorted through them all. I tore out the patterns that I want to keep and I'm donating all the rest. In the end, what took up an entire shelf of a large book case will now be able to reside in one or two binders. It was also a good reminder of what patterns I have so I can plan my next projects.

Once our bedroom is reorganized and pared down it will be ready for the new bed. Then we will take our daughter's current bed out and she will take the one we have now. It is only about 3 years old and the one dd has now is much older. Hopefully by next week all of the furniture shuffling in our house will be done and I can get things settled down into order.

Well, the chamomile tea seems to be blessedly taking effect. I'm off to slumber. Blessings to you all. ~~~

Why?

2010-08-10T17:45:00.000-07:00

My husband and I had to go out last night to our local Wal-Mart. I don't really care for the store myself but considering we are, at the very least, 45 minutes from a town of any size in any given direction...there are certain things we must go there for if we are to have them. We do not have another store for many items. Granted, our W-M is not your average "normal" W-M. We have...literally...the smallest Wal-Mart that has been built in the U.S. At least that is what they told us when they built it. There is no vision center, no hair salon or bank. There are no stores across the front at all and there is certainly no fast food resturant in it. We do have a good sized grocery area and all other sections are given just a couple of ailses. So I suppose the shopping experience there is not as stressful as it could be if it were a full size store....but still...

I digress...

We have one second hand store, which we love. I have been able to find some very nice clothing and household items there at wonderful prices. But it is a place where you never know what you are going to find and there is certainly no guarantee that what you need will be there on any given day.

So you can imagine that buying clothing is a bit of a challenge. There is **nothing** at the local W-M that I would buy to wear. Now, please don't think me a snob for saying that. I am not someone who must have the best of the best or who is enthralled by a name brand label. And there was a time when I was able to find things to wear at stores like W-M. As a matter of fact three of my favorite skirts came from there ~ cotton blends, long, and A-line. But it was many moons ago when I purchased those and they simply do not sell anything at all like them anymore ~ especially in plus sizes.

Which brings me to my little rant....

WHY is it that clothing manufacturers seem to think that if a woman is of a plus size that she:

A) Wants to show off her chest area so everything must be very low cut? Of for that matter they assume that because you are plus size that that particular area of your anatomy must be extremely...blessed (ahem...) and everything is cut in such a way that makes it impossible for some women to wear them?

B) Wants to show of her legs? Can someone please explain this to me? WHY are dresses and skirts (when you can find them) cut sooooo short almost 100% of the time in the plus size department? I do not, never have, and never plan on wanting to show off my legs. I don't even like knee length or mid-calve length dresses. I want them ankle length. Period. Plus size = show lots of leg. I simply do not get it.

Now, I am not a dresses only lady but I surely could be if I could find what it is I am looking for! And I am having a difficult time. I seem to be able to find nice things appropriate for going to church and places like that. But something nice, neat, modest and a bit more simple for everyday wear? No... I cannot seem to find it.

Since W-M is simply not an option anymore I have turned to online stores. But I am finding much the same thing there. Is it really too much to ask to find a nice A-line skirt or some pretty calicos in a size that goes above a 12? So far, I have found some things that I have my eye on at The Vermont Country Store and one dress from Recollections. I just wish there were more choices. And I really wish I could understand *why* they make the clothing the way they do now. Because I honestly cannot wrap my head around it...

Simple Woman's Daybook

2010-08-06T19:06:00.001-07:00

~ Outside my window ~ It is dark,
just a little past nine o'clock. I suspect my chickens are roosting atop their coop instead of inside it. Silly chickens.

~ I am thankful for ~ A Lord who I can lean on, often and hard.

~ In the kitchen ~ A late night snack of chicken patties popped into the oven. Our Gospel Meeting started tonight and ds and I spent the evening at church. We got home late.

~ I am wearing ~ A gray pair of pajama bottoms and a purple top.

~ I am creating ~ I just finished my most recent cross stitch projects which was the towel I posted about a few days ago and a bookmark. It's now time to get out one of my large WIP pieces. I have one with a pair of swans I think I will pull out of the stitching bag.

~ I am going ~ Back to church in the morning for our morning meeting service.

~ I am reading ~ Stepping Heavenward with an online book club.

~ I am hoping ~ That my daughter feels better tomorrow than she did today and that she is able to keep up with school work this year.

~ I am hearing ~ Bluegrass music playing quietly in the background and the sound of my son's program in the other room.

~ Around the house ~ A few things need straightening up. I'm trying to get back into the school day routine of balancing housework and school work. One step at a time, a little more each day.

~ One of my favorite things ~ My new Bible I purchased for the Inductive Bible Study that I'm participating in. It's been a LONG time since I've had a new one.

~ A few plans for the rest of the week ~ Lots of reading, lots of studying, and lots of teaching home school lessons.

~ A picture thought I am sharing ~ The finished bookmark for the swap package I'm sending out. If the surface it is laying looks a bit odd, it's because it's a lamp shade. Most of the lights were out in the living room when I took it and instead of disturbing ds with bright lights I just put it up on the lamp shade so I could take the picture.

First day of school ~~

2010-08-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of our new school year. Everything is not going 100% smoothly but we are making forward progress so that is good. I woke up not feeling very well so I am forcing myself to take on my day, one step at a time, regardless. I have managed to get quite a bit done already and for that I am thankful. My daughter is not feeling well and has not been able to get out of bed yet. She had a fairly good day yesterday but then last night took a bit of a bad turn so I'm not surprised things are rough for her this morning. Sometimes I end up completely schooling my son and then starting all over with my daughter once he is done. She does the best she can. She has a lot on her plate for a 13 year old. Every day is a learning experience in patience and mercy when you are a mother to a chronically ill child.

Do you like my little sign I made up there? I decided to post that on our door each school day this year. I live in a little neighborhood with a few sweet elderly ladies who just love to talk. While I don't mind visiting with them, I know from our experience last year that sometimes we will get a knock on the door because someone wants to talk to me, and when that happens it is very hard for me to get the school work back on track once the visitor is gone.

So I decided to make my little sign to convey that now is not a very good time but they could come back this afternoon if they need to speak to me. I don't want to be rude to my neighbors but I really must guard the time that our school is in session. It is so important that I can teach them without interruptions. Even more so now that my daughter is in her first high school year and we already have challenges regarding her time because of her issues.

Well, I should be off for now. I have laundry to be folded and several other household chores to fit into the day around all the lessons. May God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your household!

(My son reading about giant redwoods & sequoias.)

Pulling back

2010-08-04T11:31:00.001-07:00

I have been giving thought to how much we as a society are "plugged in" ~ online. It seems that a cyber life has taken over real life! I remember when my children were both babies, I was online only about once a month and for only a few minutes. Now it seems like everyone is online all the time. Granted, a lot of life has to be accessed more online now than it did 12 or 13 years ago when I had babies. Between accessing bank accounts, paying bills online and needful things for homeschooling I do have very good reasons to be online. But I have been pulling back and pruning where I go online quite a bit.

I don't watch much tv at all so I like to be able to get some of my news online. But for a while now, what other people apparently think pass as "news" just makes me feel a tad...well, aggravated to tell you the truth. Who are the people out there who actually care which celebrity is bed hopping, which outlandish outfit is getting current rave reviews (and it generally looks horrible to my assessment), and who is leaving their spouse to shack up with another person who also left their spouse? This is news? Really?.......Really? And if it's not nonsense like that it's generally stories of heart ache brought on by some type of sin and abomination before God.

I am not attempting to be holier than thou at all. I don't know another's heart and wish that they all would come to know God's love and grace and forgiveness. But what I am saying is that for me and my mind, I just don't want it filled with what the largest majority of this world has to offer.

So I am pulling back. I'm not visiting the websites that are supposedly carrying the day's "news." I have collected a nice little (emphasis on little) collection of blogs and websites written by other ladies who I either feel I have things in common with or from whom I gain insights or get uplifted by in some way. I am working on spending more time in the Word, more time with real books in my hands (not reading from a screen), more time with my needle and thread and more time with my family.

I know that with having bills and finances online and the needs of homeschooling and blogging I probably won't ever recapture the days of being online only once per month. But I am trying valiantly to step back from having such a large percentage of my life online as is possible in our time. Real life must be attended to.

My fear is that most of our society, at this point, has forgotten what real life is! They are all so plugged in they think it odd when someone decides to not participate in a life where one's eyes are stuck to a screen all day. Do you know, I actually read an article this week written by a college professor that was giving the argument that we are all really parts of a computer program? That we don't truly exist? He was trying to prove this stance and apparently felt he had done so by the end of his article. As I said earlier...sins and abominations before God.

May we all spend less time in the silly pursuits of the world and more time attending to the quiet pleasures of our homes!

Very Busy Day

2010-08-02T18:45:00.000-07:00

Today started bright and early with lots of activity. We had to take our daughter to a children's hospital 2 hours away so she could have a treadmill test done and have her heart rate monitored. She has several challenges with her health, one of which is a heart rate that feels like it is racing and it is painful when this happens. The good news is that, from preliminary observations, her heart seems to be beating properly. This is a good thing. The bad news is that we are no closer to finding out why this is happening to her and what is causing it. So we will continue on with our plans for her treatment and continue on with much prayer that we will find the answers we are looking for.

After we finished at the hospital we stopped at a few shops because the only time we have a chance to go to them (since we live so far away) is when we are in the city. ~ And that is not very often. I went into a Lifeway Christian book store and purchased a new Bible cover for my Bible that I carry to church. I **love** this material. ~

Once we arrived home, I saw that my materials for the Bible study I'm participating in were delivered. I was so glad they came as today was day one of the study and I did not want to get behind.

(Inductive Study Bible & the companion workbook with a set of pens specifically made for the onion skin pages that most Bibles have.)
After we got home and everyone settled in...we all fell asleep! My husband, my son and I slept for about an hour. It was a long day and we all needed a bit of a rest. My daughter is still asleep and I'm not going to wake her up. She was rather miserable by the time we got home. She has Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and running on that treamill really made her sore and tired. She will probably sleep until morning.

Then it was time for a late supper. Luckily, I prepared a casserole last night in anticipation of today being too busy and tiresome to cook. So all I had to do was put it in the oven and bake it. I'm so glad I had it ready ahead of time. It really helped out tonight.

Tomorrow is a homeschool planning day for me. Lots of planning to do as my daughter will be working in high school curriculum this year!

Well sweet readers ~ that is all I have the energy to write tonight. I hope you have a wonderful evening and may God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home. ~~

A Bartering Agreement

2010-07-31T06:48:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time yesterday evening. Just when things were getting quiet and for all intents and purposes I thought my day was coming to a close, I got a desperate phone call from a friend. She and her husband keep a huge garden. For the past two weeks their produce has been coming in left and right. She told me that her living room was literally covered in cases, totes and coolers full of corn and would I please come and get some because it was all just too much for them to keep even with their large family. So of course I said yes!

Once I got there it was obvious that she was not exagerating one bit. Corn was everywhere and where there was not corn, there were tomatoes and cucumbers. After talking with her a bit she told me that she really was at her wit's end because she simply did not know where she was going to put all this corn. Their freezers were packed to the top already. We talked about canning it all but she does work full time and most of the time overtime as well. So her time is very limited. Although she enjoys canning it is just not going to fit into her schedule this summer.

I have two deep freezers and at this time only one is being used on a regular basis. I have one in our out building that is over half empty so I offered to take her overflow into my freezer and she could come and take stock out of it as her other freezers become available. So we worked out a bartering agreement. We had already made the trade that when my chickens start laying I will give them eggs and they will keep us in winter squash and some other produce. But now, I'll give them eggs and keep one of my freezers running for them to use and they will keep my family in all the produce we want.

Once we worked that out she said that it was going to have to be done soon because all of the corn really did need to go ahead and be taken care of. So right then and there and 9:30 last night, we donned aprons and headed to the kitchen to wash and bag corn. We finished around 11:30 and had 30 gallon sized freezer bags full of corn to show for our efforts. Not only that, but we kept back all the little bits that fell off here and there and collected all the ears that were not in the best shape and I was given it all for my chickens and rabbits. I got almost 3 store sacks full for my animals. And a large sack full of Better Boy and Roma tomatoes and several cucumbers as well. Then we loaded up all the corn and brought it over to our building and put it in the freezer. A very long evening but a very productive one as well! ~~~~~

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. I will be busy as my daughter is having a friend over to spend the night tonight so I need to get all my household chores done and make some snacks for them. Sunday will be filled with church activities. So I probably won't be back to this blog until next week. May God bless you as you tend to the quiet pleasures of your home! ~~

Completed swap item & a stitching tip

2010-07-29T13:02:00.000-07:00

I am still working on the bookmark that I am cross stitching on for my swap partner but I thought I would share a picture of the completed design on the kitchen towel. I have a cross stitch pattern book that is filled with patterns of children and ladies in Victorian and other types of old fashioned clothing. This little boy is at the water's edge with his net. I can just imagine him trying to catch minnows.

I have little stitching tip I want to share with you if you cross stitch or do embroidery. Most ladies who enjoy these things are proud of their finished product but are less than thrilled to show off the back side of their work. I'm 35 now and I've been stitching since I was 9 years old, so I am confident in my ability to cross stitch. But I will admit to having a moment of chagrin when someone looks at the back of my work. I am very careful with the back and keep everything neat and tight with nary a stray thread hanging loose, but I still prefer the front to be looked at as opposed to the back. That is, after all, why a stitcher spends the time they do to make a finished piece.

I have solved the problem while at the same time making my finished projects more durable and sturdy. The solution? Fusible webbing. I simply cut a piece that corresponds to the size of my project and iron it on the back when I am finished stitching. The finished piece will have to be ironed anyway, so this only adds one small step. Here is the back of the above towel with the fusible webbing attached:

Every time I have given a gift of something cross stitched to someone with the back finished in this way, they have really liked the idea. Not only does it cover your work but it keeps every stitch very securely in place and gives the item a nice finished look. This works on large kits, kitchen or tea towels, bread clothes, bookmarks, the sky is the limit.

Happy stitching & may God bless you as you attend to the quiet pleasures of your home!

Let's catch up

2010-07-27T20:12:00.000-07:00

It has been so long since I posted to this blog. I do hope to post more often. It seems that it is much easier to find other like minded ladies online than it is in real life. Although, I do have to say that I am blessed in have a small handful of "real life" friends who understand all things homemaking. But even with that, it seems I have a much more old fashioned leaning in me than they do. So, I'm hoping that I can use this blog to "meet" other ladies who feel a longing for quaint, old fashioned ways and who will not look at me like I have two heads because of the things I like.

Let's see, to catch up ~~

* I don't think I posted about this yet, but I am finally living one of my long time dreams. Don't laugh...but I have longed for a flock of chickens to care for, for literally years. But it just was not possible in our former neighborhood. We have now lived in our cottage for a little over a year. This summer, we decided to take the plunge! I am the proud owner (momma) to 9 chickens. Three are full blooded Rhode Island Reds and the other six are New Hampshire Reds. I *love* my ladies! We got them when they were barely a week old and they are now about 17 weeks old. We do not yet have a rooster for our girls, but one is supposed to be coming our way in the next few weeks. I simply could not be happier. They are pretty easy to care for, have gentle (for the most part) personalities, and some time around the last week in August we should start receiving our first eggs from them. I can't wait!

* When we got the chickens we also got two rabbits. They are very sweet animals. I never knew how sweet they were. They live outside in a rabbit hutch next to the chicken run and coop. My mornings are more full now with a full round of animal chores outside, but I don't really mind. I'm very glad that this is one goal that has been reached.

* In a few of my previous posts, I alluded to some health issues my daughter (age 13) has. She still has them and right now we are going through a time of many visits to different specialists. Last week we had our first visit with the rheumatologist. I prayed so much over this visit because I really needed this doctor to listen and have a heart turned with favor towards my daughter instead of treating us like a number and shuffling us out of her office. Well, I have to say those prayers were answered. This doctor spent two solid hours with us and really listened. She put my daughter on a new medication to help manage her pain *and* was upset to see that the cardiologist we had seen a few weeks prior had....treated us like a number and shoo'd us out of his office. Since she is a colleague of his, she spoke with him and has arranged further testing through his office for which I am so grateful! We have a long road ahead of us, but I feel like there is now someone else pulling for my daughter other just myself and my husband.

* Starting next week I am going to be participating in an "Inductive Bible Study" online. I've never done a study as in depth as this one promises to be and I'm excited! I don't think my study materials will be delivered by Monday when the study starts but I'm sure they will be soon afterwards. I'll have to play a bit of catch up during the first week but I don't mind. It is a 37 week study and it proves to be very interesting.

Well, that is all for now. Tis getting late and I need to be abed. May God bless you as you take care of the quite pleasures of your home!

Friday, March 12

2010-03-12T20:39:00.000-08:00

I sit here, late evening, with a calm and serene cat lying across my lap and sharing my space. She decided long ago that I was "her" person. She likes the calm and quiet way I talk to her and the fact that I tend to move slowly around her, so as to not alarm her. She can be a bit of a nervous nelly, lol.

Today has been a good day. A productive day. I helped my son go through his room and do a very thorough cleaning up and throwing out. We got rid of any clothing that was too small and any toys he no longer wanted to keep. Everything got dusted and sorted and put into place. I got laundry done and kept the rest of the house picked up. My only hiccup of the day was when I started the process of shampooing my carpets (which I like to do every 4 months or so) and my carpet cleaner had no suction. My husband and I looked the machine over and determined we would need a new dirty water reservoir...and of course that is the most expensive part on the whole thing. So, for now the carpets will not be shampooed. Oh well, I'll just put my mind to other things (I *really* wanted my carpets cleaned today!) I will just keep everything very well vacuumed until we get a new tank.

Tomorrow morning I am attending a youth group event with my son and then in the afternoon I am taking my daughter shopping for some things she needs for a photograph she is to take. She has entered a photography competition in conjunction with the convention we are attending in April and she has to get her picture done. After that I'm going to take her dress shopping for a new dress to wear to one of the awards ceremonies we will attend at the convention.

All in all, it will be a very busy weekend. But I like it like that. Keeping busy with such things brings me joy.

Wednesday, March 10

2010-03-10T19:18:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post tonight as the bed is calling to me. I had hoped to have a picture or two to share of my classroom decorations I made for the 3rd and 4th grade class I teach on Wednesday night. But alas, my camera seems to be hiding from me right now. But I'll have some pictures to share soon.

Tonight was my first class of this quarter and I am so happy with how it went. I got into my room well ahead of time and the girls actually all came very early as well. Tonight was our monthly meal for our youth, so after they were finished eating they headed to class to see who their teacher would be for this quarter. I was so pleased that when they came in I got a chorus of, "It's you!" and, "Are you going to be our teacher? Yay!" They all knew me because I had been their Wednesday night teacher's aid two quarters ago.

I had the lesson all prepared and I had time to get to everything that I had planned. I feel like I was able to get all the points across to them and that they understood what they were. It was a very productive class period. I'm so glad to be teaching these girls.

The Quiet Pleasures of Home

Do you have other homemakers you look up to?

A few words on church youth groups

1940s radio

Amen!!!!

Matronly...and proud of it!

Doing Laundry is such a Blessing!!!

Good Night ~~

An article from Ladies Against Feminism

Shopping at our Mennonite markets

Wow

Dressing as a lady - learning about vintage styles

Drowned in Butter Biscuits

My favorite things

Sweet Day

Being happy and content within your role

Christmas Snowflake Craft

My Quiet Day

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

City Mouse/Country Mouse

Thinking on "these things"

A peek into my day...

Interesting little tidbit...

Memorizing Scripture?

Casual Dress, Casual Life ~ an article shared

Injured

The blessing of tending to your home

Enjoy!

This disturbs me

Being blessed in small spaces

A good wife...

Home Tasks ~ Digging right in with gusto

Beautiful Music

"Reduced Circumstances"

Carefully placed hedges in our life

The *very best* way to die

Fresh Strawberry Cake

Dressing as a lady

Elevating the common things

Peanut Butter & White Chocolate Biscotti

We could all take a lesson from Aunt Bea

Whatsoever Things

Yogurt Bundt Cake

Just popping in ~~

*Why* are we doing this to ourselves?

Attention given to the small things

Menu Plan Monday

Sunday Favorites Blog Party

Time for a spot of tea

Sacred Work in our Holy Home ~ a repost

Tea Party Tuesday

Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

Menu Plan Monday

Mistakes made & lessons learned

Survived the storms!

"Seeking something higher than God"

I would like to close the shades & roll up the sidewalks please...

Decorative lattice tops for pies

How disappointing...

Christmas Reading

My Christmas Kitchen

My Favorite Things

A very full Thanksgiving day

I love this time of year!

A recipe to share ~~

An exceptionally busy day

Thanksgiving Cookery

Respect

Hello my friends!!

To my blogging and pen friends...

Headed to the hospital...

Let me tell you about her ~~~

Hi ~~

Rather heartbroken right now...

Offline for a few days...

Classroom Pictures

A peek into my day

I had the most charming day

Simple Woman's Daybook

Courts crack down on inappropriate attire

The very best way to die

Why are we doing this to ourselves?