Monday Inspiration

Since so many of us begin our work weeks on Monday ~ whether in an office, school, store, or in the home ~ I thought these three quotes were something for us to think about as we make those lists of things to do :)

"Getting things accomplished isn't nearly as important as taking time for love."
~ Janette Oke

"The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook."
~ William James

"You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose."
~ Indira Gandhi

Seven Things About Me

I was tagged by a few different friends several weeks ago, but I've been busy and haven't had the chance to respond. So, after much thinking, I've come up with seven things about me.

1. I love to take road trips and have driven cross country on my own, or with our daughter, several times (DH prefers to fly and meet us at the destination!). The love of road trips comes from my childhood. My dad had a job where he traveled a lot, and he saved big trips for the summer and my mom and I would go along. I got to see a lot of the country that way, and with those trips, combined with ones I've taken in my adult years (some flying and some train travel, too),I've been in 45 of the 50 states, a few different places in Canada, a few different places in Mexico, and on the island of Guadalupe in the Caribbean.

2. Most people love warm sunny days. I'm the opposite and love snow, dark rainy days, the night time (I'm a real night owl!!), and a real favorite is the Atlantic Ocean in winter on cold windy days (and if it's snowing, that's even better!). Unfortunately, I now live in a place where it's warm and sunny almost all year long :(

3. Only children "runs" in our family :) My parents were both only children, and so was my maternal grandmother. I'm an "only", and I only had one child, a daughter, so she's the 4th generation only child (all females) on my mom's side of the family. If you look at pictures taken of all four of us when we were around two years old, all four are almost identical.

3. I've had several pets throughout the years: an alligator, several gold fish, two turtles, a parakeet, a horse, six dogs, and 42 cats (I won't even begin to explain, lol).

4. Our daughter and I are huge NBA fans. Each year we get "League Pass" so we can follow all our favorite teams and will often watch two to four games a night. Great time for getting caught up on my needlework and crocheting :) Although we've been Spurs fans living here in Texas for awhile, our favorite player has been Pau Gasol for years and we've followed his career (Grizzlies, the summer games in Spain, and now with the Lakers). It's fun to see him with a great team :) I also see problems for us in deciding who to cheer for come play-off time.

5. My first (late) husband and I owned a 36-foot wooden Chesapeake Bay style Skipjack sailboat. We bought it on our first anniversary when we found it at a marina on our vacation in Connecticut, and the man who built it wanted to sell it ~ and quickly. It needed lots of work so the price was great. It was about a 5-hour drive from where we lived, but we had lots of fun going up every weekend working on it and getting it ready to sail home. That ended up to be an exciting trip, since we ended up in the tail-end of a hurricane that had just gone through "unexpectedly" by Montauk Point, around the Long Island Sound and Atlantic Ocean area. Years later after he passed away and I remarried, I donated the boat (which was in need of work once again), to the Clearwater Association. They invited me to come and christen the boat with a bottle of champagne when they had finished the work and renamed it, which was a lot of fun.

6. I learned to sew and bake from my paternal grandmother, crochet from my maternal grandmother, and knit and do needlepoint and stamped cross stitch from my mom. I still enjoy all those, along with quilting and counted cross stitch that I learned on my own.

7. We homeschooled our daughter from third grade through high school graduation, and those were some of the best years ever! We really had a great time together. She graduated summa cum laude from college last May, is teaching part time, and is taking more classes after enrolling in grad school last fall.

A Time for Everything ~ January

JANUARY, A TIME FOR...

Becoming frugal and thrifty...

"Nothing should be bought that can be made or done without."
~ Old New England Saying

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
~ Theodore Roosevelt


For finishing all the projects you begin...

"When a task is once begun, never leave it until is is done."
~ Old New England Saying


For using leftover cloth and fabrics...

~ Save elegant fabric scraps and old brocade ribbon and sew into a fancy patchwork pillow. To make it extra special, add some dried lavender to the stuffing.


For beginning a journal...

~ Purchase a pretty cloth-covered journal and a special pen, and spend a little time each day alone with your thoughts. Write down those favorite memories from your childhood, thoughts about a favorite relative, goals you wish to accomplish, prayers for yourself and your family, challenges you've faced and overcome, and all the blessings in your life. If you find it difficult to write, think of it as a letter to a special friend... that just happens to be you.

~ As you become more comfortable in your writing, start a journal for your children, to be passed down to their children... let the future generations of your family see what life was like for you during your time... from the simplest of tasks you do each day, to your deepest thoughts and dreams.


For writing letters...

~ Start a new habit... decide to write to one person each week. Buy some pretty stationery, a box of small notecards, and a notebook. In the notebook make a list of family and friends, and all the special people in your life who have touched you and influenced your life. Then make a special page with each of their names and addresses, where you can enter the date each time you write. Spend 15 minutes each week writing to one of them. It can be a long letter, or just a brief note telling them what they've meant to you. Email notes are fun and a good way of staying in touch, but there are few things more special than receiving a handwritten note from someone, knowing they took the time to think of you, and to write.

December 1st

Happy December 1st! We've pulled out our favorite Advent calendars and enjoyed looking at the pictures for the day. Over the years we've saved some special ones, and have added two new ones this year.

We're having a grey, damp day, but my husband is outside getting the outdoor Christmas decorations from the storage shed. He'll be checking lights and then start hanging the garlands and bows along the fence, hanging wreaths on the side of the house and on the garage doors, and then adding the swags along the front porch area.

He already brought the empty "Autumn" box in from the garage for me. As soon as I finish my coffee and chatting with you, I'll pack the autumn decorations away until next year, and do some dusting. This evening I can begin setting up Christmas decorations. Maybe tomorrow we'll set up the tree...

Yesterday I took a few packages to the post office to mail, and I have a few more ready to go this week. Today I'll spend some time getting other things wrapped and put in boxes, and then just need to finish a few stitching projects to add before those are mailed.

My other tasks for today will be to start on the Christmas cards and to work on a few of my lists, making sure everything is listed that needs to be done.

I wish you all a wonderful and blessed Advent season! This is the time of year I really love adding to my Christmas blog, The Keeping of Christmas, and I decided to spend this month on my Authors' Ridge blog talking about Christmas books. What could be better??

Near October's End

It's so sad that October is almost over. Where has the time gone? My plans for a peaceful and quiet fall season have gone astray and I've become so busy, and while I love my part-time job teaching, I also miss the quiet times at home to work on my favorite crafts and Christmas projects.

This week I have off :) Well, most of the week. We had classes yesterday, but there are no classes again until Monday. The co-op had a school-wide field trip today for any families with children who wanted to participate, so they used that for the second day of school this week, and cancelled classes for tomorrow. Yay!

This morning I went out and did a bit of grocery shopping, including many bags of candy for the trick-or-treaters tomorrow night. We usually have between 100 and 150 knock on our door, so I'm well prepared. I decided to catch up on my blogs for a bit while I have a big glass of water (I was thirsty after my Starbuck's Cinnamon Dolce Latte which I enjoyed while running errands).

Plans for this afternoon will be to do some straightening of paperwork that's piled up on the dining room table. After that I have a few things to get ready to mail to friends, and I hope to write a letter or two. If I succeed, I can have those ready for my trip to the post office and UPS store tomorrow.

I'm very behind in my cross stitch and I hope to get caught up with that this week. It seems I've been doing a lot of grading or lesson planning in the evenings while watching TV, which is my usual stitching time. My plans are to take care of all my other errands tomorrow and then have the rest of the week to relax and stitch - or sew (something else where I'm very behind!!).

I hope to be able to report in by the end of the week, as well as share some photos of finished projects :)

Apple Butter

"Apple Butter"

It takes a woman's hands to lock
Such sweetness in an old brown crock.
Cooled in a springhouse made of rock
- Apple butter.

It tastes of clover blossoms fanned
By winds that fell upon the land;
Of pinks and phlox, you understand?
- Apple butter.

The apple tree threw out its shade.
Its roots grew deeply in the glade.
From crimson harvest we had made
- Apple butter.

And when I eat it now I see
The mellow arms of that old tree
That generously gave to me
- Apple butter.

Once more across the table's space
I smile into a lovely face
And share with her, in my old place,
- Apple butter.

I guess I'm like the tree that bore
These apples, finding more and more
My roots grown deep in time's rich store.
Pass me, and open childhood's door,
the Apple Butter.

~ Anne Campbell

I love to make apple butter in the fall. I started this tradition when we lived in the mountains in Arizona, and we had two apple trees in the back yard. They only produced a large crop of apples every other year, but that was plenty to make a huge batch of apple butter. We always had enough jars for our own use, and I often added them to Christmas gifts. One of our favorite ways to use it is as a filling for crepes. Just sprinkle them with a little powdered sugar, and they're really delicious!

When we were preparing to sell our home I realized I had several containers of peeled, sliced and blanched apples in the freezer that I was going to use for apple butter, but forgot about. I started working on a small batch each day, and everyone that came in to look at the house always commented on the wonderful aroma :) I managed to use up all the apples in the freezer, and we just packaged up the processed jars along with everything else in the kitchen that was moved.

One of my favorite things about the entire process (which I think I mentioned when I wrote about the jar of peach butter I made last month) is letting the jars cool after their hot water bath, and hearing the little pops of the lids as they set :)

When I first started making this I used a stove method, but I found that I preferred the oven method. There's less chance of the butter sticking, so you don't need to keep watch on it and stir it quite as much.

APPLE BUTTER

To prepare pulp:
24 medium apples (about 6 pounds)
2 cups apple cider

~ Wash apples. Remove stems and blossom ends, but do not peel or core. Cut into small pieces and cook apples in cider until soft. Press through a sieve or food mill. Measure 3 quarts apple pulp.

(A few notes: If you don't have a food mill and prefer not to deal with that, you can peel and core the apples first before cooking in the cider. When soft, run them through the blender or food processor until you have your pulp. Be sure your equipment is thoroughly cleaned and sanitized before using!

I'll often do this entire process in one day, and then put the puree in the refrigerator until morning, or place it in the freezer for a later time.)



To prepare butter:
3 quarts apple pulp
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon cloves

~ In a large saucepan combine apple pulp, sugar and spices. Cook over a low heat until thick enough to round up on a spoon. Make sure to stir frequently to prevent sticking.

Oven option ~
Combine apple pulp, sugar and spices and pour in a large glass baking dish. Cook in a slow oven at 325 degrees for 3 to 4 hours, until it is thick enough to round up on a spoon. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.

To Process:
Ladle hot butter into sterilized hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps, and process 10 minutes using the boiling-water canning method.

(Image: Maureen McCarthy)

The Blessing of Herbs

No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace,
As I have seen in one autumnal face.
~ John Donne

I had a huge herb garden years ago when we lived in New Jersey. I loved harvesting the plants and would hang the cuttings from the wooden chandelier in the dining room. It was a perfect place because I always had the windows open in that room in the autumn, as well as the top of the Dutch-style front door in the living room entry. There was a constant breeze between those two rooms, and as the herbs dried the entire house took on the wonderful aromas.

I've never had as much success with gardening as I did then, but I still like to make herbal gifts. Here are some ideas from one of my notebooks. Many of them would make lovely Christmas gifts!

~ Fill antique bottles with white vinegar and insert a sprig of your favorite herb into each one. Place them in a row on a windowsill for a country decoration until they're ready to use.

~ Line baskets with a homespun cloth and fill with your favorite mixture of potpourri... and place them throughout your house.

~ Make up lots of herb sachets and place them in your dresser drawers.

~ Layer different herbs and dried flowers in old canning jars and display them on windowsills, tables, or the fireplace mantel.

~ Place a spoonful of crushed herbs into a piece of Christmas homespun or calico, and tie with a red ribbon... use them as package decorations, or tie to the tree as ornaments.

Sunflowers and Planning

"The sunflowers hung their banners out in the sweet September weather;
A stately company they stood by the garden fence together,
And looked out on the shining sea that bright and brighter grew
And slowly bowed their golden heads to every wind that blew."

~ Celia Thaxter

This morning I've been going through some pages I printed out several years ago for a literature class, and thought I'd share the above quote. As you can probably tell, it was a collection of autumn quotes and poems :)

I have most of today free, so I decided to do a little lesson planning this morning for my literature class next week. I have that completed, and now I'm trying to catch up on some emails and blogs while I have another mug of hazelnut coffee. I'm hoping to catch up on laundry today and a little straightening that's much needed, and then I can have tomorrow free to work on some Christmas gifts. I think I'll also pull down the summer sea-theme decorations and begin decorating for autumn.

Last evening I was bringing my calendar up-to-date and realized how little time there is until the holidays arrive! I always think of the holiday season beginning in October with Halloween, and then there's Thanksgiving, and then Christmas. It always goes much too quickly for me. So, I'm hoping to get my time planned out so I can get things done that need to be done, and still have lots of time to enjoy my favorite time of year.

All the holiday catalogues are beginning to arrive and I just love looking through them. I do shopping online throughout the year, so I've also started receiving emails from a few companies with special offers. It's always so much fun to sit in front of the computer late at night in pajamas, having a mug of cocoa, and doing Christmas shopping :) This afternoon I'll be looking through the latest catalogues that came in ~ Gooseberry Patch, Current and Lang. One of my all-time favorites should be here in another few days ~ the one from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I already have a good portion of our gift giving taken care of, but it's always fun to find little items to go along with themes.

Time is passing quickly as I sit here, so I think I should finish up my computer "work" and start some of those homekeeping tasks I mentioned earlier!

Organizing My Time

First, the photo has nothing to do with my organizing. It's just one of the many photos I took on our vacation the beginning of the month and we've had it as our desktop wallpaper for a few days. I find the picture so peaceful and I love the colorful flowers against the brown background of the house. And yes, it's another photo of The House of Seven Gables :) I think I've included other pictures from there on this blog, as well as on my new blog, Authors' Ridge.

Back to organizing...

I'm trying to get used to our new schedule and decide what day is best to do shopping, which day to do laundry, which day to do baking and a little extra cooking. Then I also have to add in some other errands, working on my lesson plans and grading papers, and then the two days I'm teaching. It's really not all that involved and I don't have that much to do. I just need to come up with a schedule so I'm using my time a little better. The more I use my time wisely, the more free time I have to work on my stitching and sewing projects, and the more time I have to make Christmas gifts... all the fun things I love to do!

The reason this is on my mind? I planned to spend today at home in my old favorite shorts and T-shirt (I won't even describe this but I've told my friend Vicky about it in the past and it made her giggle, lol). I was going to spend the day doing laundry, grading some papers, and then spending the rest of the day stitching. Unfortunately, last evening a few things were added to the shopping list and they had to be bought today :( I didn't realize I had planned so badly last week... or maybe we just used things a lot faster than normal. In any event, I ended up having to go to the grocery store. Since I was there I decided I might as well do some stocking up for the next few weeks, so I think that's taken care of for now. (And I'm so blessed to have a wonderful daughter who enjoys putting the groceries away once they're home!!)

I decided that since I *had* to go out to the store to buy groceries, that I might as well drive a little farther... you know, since I had to be out anyway... and make a stop at my favorite needlework store. The owner and the other lady who was working there today were in a particulary good mood. They were just finishing up with two customers who bought a lot of items. They asked if I needed any help and I said I was just browsing. It ended up to be quite funny, because they were working on their order for the week. Between my choices and those of the last two customers, we cleared them out of a few items. While the owner was writing up my purchases, she was calling out the various things I bought (where I noticed things were low), and she had her sales associate running around checking items and adding them to the order :) We were all laughing as this took place.

The great thing with a small business like that shop is that the customer service is so personal and they keep up with things. Those items that were low ~ or emptied ~ were re-ordered today, and they'll have them in the store the end of the week or early next week. I always hate visiting some large chain stores where I see the same empty hook or rack week after week. (I know this isn't always their fault since I worked in a fabric store part-time for a few years. We'd be so careful about placing our orders each week, but sometimes the large suppliers just didn't send everything along. It was always frustrating as an employee as I know it was for the customers. Sometimes things were even deleted from our order by the district office. Argh!)

Anyway, during my visit today I found a perfect gift for a friend with a September birthday. I was planning on making her gift, but I've run out of time with my other projects. She enjoys needlework and I found a sweet fall project for her. It's got some autumn leaves around the border, and in the center there's a cute jack-o-lantern charm. The pattern uses cross stitch and some straight stitching for the leaves, and I think she'll like it. I bought a piece of linen to go with it and three skeins of floss for the leaves and vines that were called for (it comes with the charm and some specialty overdyed thread). It feels good to have the gift crossed off my list :)

Back to organizing my time...

I think I'm going to use Tuesdays as my day at home, working on grading papers, lesson plans for Wednesday's class, and catching up on laundry. It's also a good time to do a little freezer cooking if I'm in the mood... or, I can spend lots of time relaxing, reading, and working on projects.

Mondays and Wednesdays are our days to teach. While my daughter is teaching her second class, I've been using that time to catch up on my correspondence, which is very overdue! It's a good time for me to relax and focus on my letters, and I think this will work out well.

Thursdays I'll do any necessary errands and/or shopping, and catching up with laundry again. And Fridays can be another stay-at-home day to use as I see fit. There are always the usual homekeeping tasks to add into these days, but those are flexible.

Now that I think I have a schedule made up, I'm looking forward to getting to work on my Christmas projects. I'll try to include pictures when I can and let you know how things are progressing (especially since many involve stitching or quilting, and I have so many stitching and quilting friends who stop by here to visit).

I hope you're all having a wonderful week and I wish you lots of time to work on your favorite things :)

To Love What You Do

"To love what you do and feel that it matters
~ how could anything be more fun?"

~ Katherine Graham

That quote came to mind this week for me as I started working outside the home for a few hours two days a week, and also when I had a "nesting" day (as my husband calls them) on Friday.

Our daughter began classes in grad school this week, working towards her Master's. Those classes are in the evenings, and she began teaching at a Christian school (our former homeschool co-op we belonged to during our homeschooling years) two days a week. She's teaching 9th grade American History and 10th grade World Literature. Since they still had a few openings after she applied, I offered to teach, too. I have the 9th grade American Literature class.

I taught there a few years ago and really enjoyed working with the high school students, and it's just as much fun now. The kids are great, and I also enjoy hearing about our daughter's experiences in the classes she's teaching. Of course, we've both been spending much of our free time the last few weeks writing lesson plans, homework assignments, and welcome letters. But, now most of the initial work is done, and we're finding other things to add to the previous plans, papers to grade, etc.


With our different schedules each day of the week, I quickly found that meal planning was difficult. So, Friday I spent the day cooking and baking. When my husband walked into the house after work that evening the first thing he mentioned were the various aromas. I told him I had made a huge batch of chili, a huge batch of beef stew (actually, my grandmother's Hungarian Goulash since I use lots of paprika), an apple pie (Mrs. Smith's... I cheated on that one and didn't do "from scratch"), and a cinnamon swirl loaf (also cheating... I used Pillsbury's mix). That's when he said "ah, fall is coming and you're nesting", lol. I told him no, that I was actually stressing about our schedule, but I think perhaps he was right. I have been really focused on autumn these last few weeks!

We had our choice of foods for dinner that night, and then I froze the rest of the chili and goulash in serving-size portions. We emptied, defrosted and cleaned our large freezer in the garage before our vacation, so it was fun to begin stocking it once again. There are three of each meal stored in there now, and I'll be adding to the supply over the next few weeks ~ even if I just make a little extra of each night's dinner and freeze the leftovers.


Yesterday I was still in a cooking mood, so I took four large peaches, peeled them, diced them, cooked them until soft in about 1/2 cup apple juice and 1/2 cup water. When they were soft and much of the liquid was gone, I pureed them in the blender. I ended up with two cups of peach puree. To this I added 1 cup sugar and about 1-1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon, stirred it together, and put it in an 8-inch square baking dish. It went in the oven at 200 degrees for about 4 hours. Every hour I'd stir it to make sure it wasn't sticking. When it was nicely thickened, I removed it from the oven, poured it into a clean jar, and popped it into the refrigerator. We love peach butter and will be using some of it in crepes this week!

Usually when I've made peach (or apple) butter I make a large batch. Then I finish it off in a hot water bath so it's safe and can be stored for quite some time. Since I only made the one jar and we'll be using it in the next few weeks, I skipped the bath. Of course, one of my favorite things about canning the butters is listening to the popping sound of the lids as the hot mixture cools. Oh well, maybe I'll do this again in another few weeks making some apple butter. We've been out of that for some time, so it would be fun to stock up once again.


With our new schedules I've been trying to get paper work and letters written during our breaks at the co-op. That's giving me more time at home to work on some crafts and Christmas gifts. I just finished the second design of Prairie Schooler's "12 Days of Christmas" (I apologize for the poor picture... I'll do better next time). This is for a SAL we're doing on a stitching list and we'll make wreaths with the stitched ornaments.

Last night I just couldn't wait to begin another autumn design, so I began stitching Prairie Schooler's "Thanksgiving Comes Again". It seems to be as much fun as "Pumpkin Patch" was. And that reminds me that I still haven't made that one into a banner. Hopefully ~ this week!

What's new in all of your homes? Is anyone else having that "autumn nesting" feeling??

Decorating Thoughts of the Sea

"Ah! What pleasant visions haunt me As I gaze upon the sea! All the old romantic legends, All my dreams, come back to me... Like the long waves on a sea-beach, Where the sand and silver shines, With a soft, monotonous cadence, Flow its unrhymed lyric lines ... " ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, from 'The Secret of the Sea'









"Cheerful voices by the sea-side
Echoed through the summer air,
Happy children, fresh and rosy,
Sang and sported freely there... "

~ Louisa May Alcott, from 'Little Paul'






I'm always trying to decide just what to do in the master bedroom when it comes to decorating. This is the one room in the house that's never come together ~ in the 7 years we've lived here. I think it's because I could never make up my mind. I went from one idea to another.

When we were on our recent vacation and visiting the gift shop at Mystic Seaport, I saw a pretty handpainted wooden picture of a sea gull in flight and I mentioned to my husband that it would look nice in the bedroom with the colors (the bedroom is painted blue... at least we got that far all those years ago, lol). We talked about the decorating a bit and decided that a seaside theme would be perfect in there, since we both grew up near, and love, the ocean. This was, of course, one of the ideas I've been toying with over the last several years, but then other thoughts popped up, and I couldn't decide.

I have a huge amount of decorating items for a sea theme that I pull out each summer and use in the living room. (That room changes theme from season to season.) There are some charming wooden lighthouses and sailboats, some large shells, sea glass, and many other items. Some things I've picked up on vacations in New England, like a pretty blue bottle I filled with some ocean water from Maine, and a cute jar I filled with sand from the same beach. Some things were gifts, like a huge shell that we received as a wedding gift from my step-daughter from my first marriage. Then there's a sculpture of three sailboats in the wind, and another sculpture of an anchor with a gull sitting on top.

So, I definitely have everything I need. I just have to decide where to place everything and what else I might want to do in there. The walls are light blue, the trim is white, and the curtains on the large windows are white and gauzy ~ all perfect items for a sea theme. I think this will be a project I'll work on over the next month or two. I also have quite a bit of blue and white fabric, and it might be fun to make a patchwork quilt or duvet cover to go along with this idea.

In the meantime, I decided to look in my summer notebook to see if I had anything written for ideas on decorating, and I found these. I thought I'd share them with all of you :)

SEASIDE COTTAGE DECORATING IDEAS

~ Decorate with shades of blue, white and green.

~ Look for summer items that are now on sale... old-fashioned metal pails with sea scenes make wonderful containers for a silk flower arrangement... or fill it with specialty bath items in a sea theme for the guest room or bathroom. Crabtree & Evelyn and Caswell-Massey have some of my favorite products along this line, and they can often be found in sample sizes.

~ White wicker gives the feel of summer by the sea, and you can decorate the cushions with pretty summery fabrics and pillows.

~ A large shell looks lovely with some small items inside... try sea glass or colored glass marbles, an assortment of smaller shells, silk flowers, or fill it with small soaps in the shape of shells as a bathroom accent.

~ Look for candles in shades of blue and green, and in the seaside or ocean breezes scents.

~ Use lots of little lighthouses as accents.

~ Brass lantern lights give a nautical look and would be pretty with candles inside.

~ If you have a writing or desk area, look for stationery items with a sea theme. Lang Company items are a favorite and they have beautiful stacking boxes in different shapes, as well as artwork of ships, lighthouses, and seaside themes. Place the stacks in different places in the room ~ a night table, shelf, dresser, or in a special corner. There are also note cards that are in pretty boxes, mugs (which make nice pen or pencil holders), and coasters.

~ Decorate with books ~ look for those coffee table books featuring lighthouses or the beach... novels about the sea... and don't forget some of the children's books that feature a sea theme. Spend an afternoon wandering around quaint used bookstores for your selections.

(Photos taken in July 2007 at a beach near Newport, Rhode Island.)

From My Summer Notebook

I spent a bit of time this morning looking through my summer notebook, and found these ideas I had written down a few years ago. I thought I'd share them with you :)

Summer Outdoor Entertaining

~ Place votives set in terra-cotta saucers along your front-porch or deck railing.
~ Set votives or citronella candles in flowerpots filled with sand to burn in the evenings.
~ Decorate trees, bushes, or a fence with tiny white Christmas lights.
~ Use a plastic tablecloth to line a child's wagon, and fill it with ice and cold beverages.
~ Use flowerpots or crocks to hold utensils for an outdoor picnic.
~ Tie pretty helium balloons to your fence or gate.
~ Hang mobiles, or tie long streams of colorful satin ribbons to tree branches.
~ Cut a watermelon into a pretty basket for serving fresh fruits.

For the kids ~
~ Set up a sandbox with extra pails and shovels.
~ If you have the space, set up an area for croquet, badminton, or volleyball.
~ Have lots of "bubbles" and wands on hand for easy entertainment.
~ Have sidewalk chalk ready for an art contest in the driveway (be sure to rope off an area to keep the cars away, and the children safe).
~ Make a tent for the kids to play in by hanging an old tablecloth or sheet over a portable table, a few saw-horses, or a clothes line.

Welcoming Touches

I'm always looking for new ways to add welcoming touches to the front entryway and porch. Here are some wonderful ideas from an old favorite book, "Country Living and Country Lifestyles", 1992 (published as a weekly series of "cards" to go in a loose leaf notebook by Time Life books). Happy decorating!!

~ Clay pots of flowers on the steps, or marching up the rungs of a stepladder
~ A whimsical mailbox, or mailbox decoration
~ A slate and chalk near the door for messages
~ A tiny statue of bunnies nestled in the greenery by your front door
~ A newly planted tree
~ Seasonal pleasures: flowers in summer; cornstalks, gourds and Indian corn in fall; holly and pincones in windowboxes for winter; and tulips and crocuses in spring
~ A huge clay pot of daisies
~ An attractive lantern lighting the doorway
~ Rag rugs or braided rugs as doormats

Suggestions for a back door entrance:

~ Line the path with pots of flowers or windchimes
~ Hang freshly starched curtains, lace or a frilly valance on the back door window
~ Mount a woodpecker door knocker or an amusing plaque or a slate and chalkboard bearing a message of welcome

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Sights of Spring ~ Bunnies & Tulips

Yesterday afternoon I did some shopping at my favorite "gourmet" market. They have the best specialty departments so I love to visit there each payday. Today I couldn't resist the tulips in their floral department. I bought my favorites ~ the purple ones ~ and then found some pretty ones in the palest of pinks. I made sure to buy ones that were not quite open yet, so I can enjoy them a little longer.

Tulips and another spring favorite, hyacinths, just don't do well in our climate and I miss them so much. It was fun to add the two vases of tulips to our living room. They need to be arranged a little better, but I was in a rush to make dinner and just added the flowers to the vases. As they begin to open today I'll do a better job of floral arranging :)

I never managed to get my decorating done this spring, but did put my bunny collection on the fireplace and mantel :) They'll rest there a couple of more weeks before they're moved back into my crafts room. There they have a special resting spot on the top of the bookcase.

Don't you just love the face on the larger bunny sitting next to the vase with purple tulips? I found him two years ago in my favorite Christmas store in Flagstaff, Arizona. I was there during Spring Break week (so I could enjoy cold weather and snow!!). They had a small little display table in the front of the store that had spring decorations. I spotted him right away and loved the face. I walked around the store and chatted with the woman working there for quite awhile, and kept going back to the table to look at the bunny. He finally hopped into my hands :) I just couldn't resist him. He's soft and cuddly, too.

Roses, Home and Nesting

"The Bible does not say very much about homes;

it says a great deal about the things
that make them.

It speaks about life and love and joy
and peace and rest.

If we get a house and put these into it,

we shall have secured a home."


~ John Henry Jowett

Isn't that a nice quote? It was in my daily calendar for March 29th, and it seems to fit with what I've been trying to accomplish in our home the last week or so.

Unfortunately, the three of us like to have our things around us, so piles of items surround our areas. We all like books and magazines, and then there are DD's college papers, text and research books, and lots of my stitching projects. Then there's the dining room table, where I like to sit to do paperwork and write letters, or wrap presents, or cut fabric for sewing.

These things normally don't bother me since we don't have a lot of company or do much entertaining, and it's just us (and we're comfortable with things the way they are).

BUT.... our daughter is graduating from college in early May, and we'll be having two house guests. So, I'm trying to get the house back to "company ready". It's good incentive for me to do some spring housecleaning that I'd normally put off in favor of sitting and stitching or reading :)

Since I haven't been doing much stitching this last week or two, I don't have any photos to share of my work. I decided to add a few more pictures of the roses, instead ~ just to make this post look a little prettier. These are the same roses that were in the last photo, and were taken on Monday, April 2nd (the other pictures were taken on March 27th).

It's amazing how fast those blossoms all opened up, and now those two bushes are full of large flowers. When I took the first pictures on the 27th, there was just one fully opened rose on each bush. The orange is always the first one to open, and then the yellow rose bush is next (although the blossoms are a peach color when they first start out). There are a few more bushes that are still just green, but will be getting buds soon.... a pink one, a pale peach one, and a lavender one.

A few friends have asked how we have roses so early in the year. We live in a part of Texas where it's warm most of the year. There's always something blooming and green, and the roses start to bloom in March and continue all year. There's usually a time in late summer when lots of the blooms are gone and then start up again a few weeks later, and then they continue blooming throughout the fall and winter.

I always laugh at our Christmas photos outside... there are Christmas decorations up, a few of the trees are bare, a few of the trees are still turning autumn colors, and our roses are in full bloom. The fall pumpkins are always still out, too. In fact, we still have one of them sitting on the front porch in perfect shape (although a little dusty after a recent heavy rain storm). I have no idea why they last so long here, but they do. I think I'll include a photo of the pumpkin that I took on Monday to share with my autumn friend, Heidi :)

Now, I think I'll get those photos uploaded so I can share some spring with you. You'll see the orange roses, the yellow roses, the impatiens that come up each year in small pots I keep on a wicker chair on the porch, and then the pumpkin :)

A Little Bit of Organizing

I've been spending much of my time the last few weeks working in the Guest/Crafts room, and I'm almost finished. I pulled everything out of the closets and have donated lots of magazines and crafts items to the local 'donation station'. I've been going through all my fabric the past year and have given most of it away, just keeping those fabrics that are for designated projects, or ones I really love and know will be used. I decided to move all the books and leaflets from the bookcase into cubby holes in the closet, and take the fabrics from the plastic bins, and put those on the shelves. Now it will be easy to find just the perfect fabric to match a project.

As you can see in the one photo, there are several bunnies on the top shelf of the bookcase :) Somehow I started a bunny collection a few years ago, and hadn't even realized it. They come out to the living room in the spring, but spend the rest of the seasons up there ~ away from Dinsdale, one of our cats who just loves to play with them. The baskets and hat box are filled with ribbons and lace to be used in projects, or for wrapping gifts.

I still have a few more things to add to the shelves, but since I've been so quiet, I thought I'd stop in and share my progress :)

On Friendship

"A recipe that is old as time itself,
Yet always delightfully new.
They call it simply friendship,
Beloved, tried and true.

~ Author Unknown

This is a thank you to all of you who have left me such beautiful comments and sent such caring notes. I've been busy with lots of organizing in my crafts room the last few weeks. Yesterday I went through the last three boxes in one of the closets and found that they were full of old photos and cherished keepsakes. Naturally, I spent several hours going through them. There were some wonderful "treasures" and I'll share some of those in the weeks ahead.

I haven't done too much stitching since I finished the Winter Winds, but have some beautiful new charts and hope to be starting at least one of them soon. The hardest decision is always selecting just one :)

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

"Food,
like a loving touch or a glimpse of divine power,
has that ability to comfort."

~ Norman Kolpas

Dinner tonight will be a simple one ~ baked ziti and fresh sauteed zucchini. I've been in a chocolate mood the last several days, and it's cool and grey with a chance of rain, so I think the perfect dessert will be Hot Fudge Pudding Cake. A definite "comfort" meal :)


HOT FUDGE PUDDING CAKE
(Yield: About 10 servings)

This is a delicious "comfort food" cake that makes its own hot fudge sauce!

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup cocoa, divided
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1-3/4 cups hot brewed coffee

Whipped cream for topping

~ Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

~ In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

~ In a large bowl combine milk, oil, and vanilla; stir in flour mixture.

~ Spread batter into an ungreased 9-inch square baking pan; sprinkle with brown sugar and remaining 1/4 cup cocoa. Slowly pour hot coffee over mixture.

~ Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until cake begins to crack on top and pull away from the sides. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes.

~ To serve, spoon the cake into serving dishes and top with whipped cream.

Favorite Coffee Cake

"When the girl returned, some hours later, she carried a tray, with a cup of fragrant tea steaming on it; and a plate piled up with very hot buttered toast, cut thick, very brown on both sides, with the butter running through the holes in it in great golden drops, like honey from the honeycomb. The smell of that buttered toast simply talked to Toad, and with no uncertain voice; talked of warm kitchens, of breakfasts on bright frosty mornings, of cosy parlour firesides on winter evenings, when one's ramble was over and slippered feet were propped on the fender, of the purring of contented cats, and the twitter of sleepy canaries."

~ Kenneth Grahame, 'The Wind in the Willows'


I just love that passage! One of my favorite breakfasts or late-night snacks is hot buttered toast. It's such a comfort food for me, and I love the aroma as it warms in the toaster. A special treat is when I add a little sugar and cinnamon. But, of course, no one needs a recipe for toast :) So, I thought I'd share another breakfast treat ~ Favorite Coffee Cake. I used to make this years and years ago when I was working at a magazine, and I'd often take some in as a treat. It was always so good at "coffee break time".


FAVORITE COFFEE CAKE
(Yield: 8 or 9 servings)

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspsoon salt
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup soft shortening
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
Topping (recipe below)

~ Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease round layer pan 9 x 1-1/2 inches or square pan, 8 x 8 x 2 inches.

~ In large mixing bowl, blend all ingredients except topping thoroughly with fork. Beat vigorously 30 seconds. Pour into greased pan and sprinkle with topping.

~ Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serve warm.

TOPPING

1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons firm butter or margarine

~ Mix dry ingredients together and cut in the butter until crumbly.

NOTE:

To make a streusel-filled coffee cake, follow the above recipe except spread half the batter in the greased pan and omit the topping recipe. Instead, mix 1/2 cup brown sugar packed, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1/2 cup finely chopped nuts and 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted. Sprinkle half this mixture over the batter and repeat with remaining batter and mixture.

Saturday Afternoon

"Year by year the complexities of this spinning world grow more bewildering and so each year we need all the more to seek peace and comfort in the joyful simplicities."

~ 'Woman's Home Companion', December 1935

Isn't that a wonderful quote? And to think that people felt that way back in 1935. I think it's appropriate for my afternoon. This morning my husband put away the last of the Christmas decorations and is planning to repair a few outside lights that aren't working properly. Our daughter has been working on papers for her college classes, and I've been doing laundry and working on some preliminary things for our income tax (I actually love doing them!!).

But, now it's almost 3:00 in the afternoon, and I'm planning on spending the rest of the day relaxing. As soon as I finish this note, I'm going to make myself a pot of tea. While the water is heating up, I'll load the dishwasher, and by the time I'm finished with that, the water should be ready. I have a new box of tea that I received from my friend Heidi in Holland. She included two bags with her Christmas card and when I told her how much I loved it, she was so sweet to send me my very own box. It's called "Winter gloed" by Pickwick, and is really delicious. I've been having fun trying to read the box... which is in Dutch, I believe. :)

Once my tea is ready I'm going to take the teapot and cozy to my favorite spot in the sunroom, and spend a few hours working on two of my cross stitch projects. This afternoon is sunny and breezy, and it will be a perfect way to spend the next few hours until it's time to make dinner.

I hope you all enjoy your day and weekend, and that you're able to "seek peace and comfort in the joyful simplicities".