saturday is here again

it's saturday, once again, and i feel worn down to my bony bits. we went two very cold days without kerosene for our monitor heater and two of the coldest nights this Winter (the first night was down to 10 degrees and the second one was down to 11 degrees; the highs for both days were below freezing). so we did the best we could: we shut off the rooms without water pipes, ran the small ceramic heater non-stop near the bathroom and had the oven on for nearly 48 hrs on warm. i DO NOT recommend heating the house with an oven; it is VERY dangerous and a FIRE HAZARD. but, with no other source of heat, what were we to do? sleeping under so many covers/quilts reminded me of staying over with my mamaw as a girl. in her house, many quilts were the norm, even in the Summer (though not as many as in the Winter).

on a very happy note, we had kerosene delivered yesterday (hoorah!) and today is near 60 degrees outside (!). i also noticed our daffodils beginning to peak out of the ground by the st. francis statue outside the kitchen door. there are several spring/summer birds beginning to return to the feeders. slowly the season is changing from Winter to Spring. i'm pouring over seed catalogs again, trying to choose a good variety of vegetables and herbs that i know we'll eat and use. pictures of sunflowers go a long way to cheer one up.

this evening is dinner with our neighbor, with perhaps a game of cards or a board game over after-dinner tea. right now i'm taking a break from house cleaning for tomorrow's Sabbath. my prayer is that all would enjoy a peaceful day of rest and worship. let us not forget to count our blessings!

adventures in homemaking--baking cookies

i baked about two dozen pumpkin chocolate chip cookies yesterday. of course, i had to modify the original recipie; instead of using a pre-spiced can of pumpkin pie filling, i used just plain canned pumpkin and added 2 3/4 tsp. of pumpkin pie spice. i added an extra teaspoon of the spice because the chocolate can overpower the pumpkin flavor. here is a picture of the cookies cooling.

here is my photo of the recipie. notice my lovely recipie cards! :)

here is the photo of the cookie batter; notice how orange it is. the batter is in my favorite mixing bowl.

i'm enjoying learning how to post pictures to this blog, so bear with me as i learn! i hope everyone has a wonderful Preparation Day for the Sabbath tomorrow!

preparation day

it's saturday and that means it's preparation day in anticipation of the LORD's day tomorrow...i'm hoping to get a start on some deep-cleaning today in addition to my regularly scheduled cleaning tasks...Autumn always makes me want to clean and organize the cottage; i suppose that's in anticipation of the cold Winter days when i feel the urge to do less strenuous tasks...i hope all have a good LORD's day tomorrow!

saturday-preparation day

it's been a while since i've posted here and there have been some changes. the garden has been having a tough time due to the lack of rain and water restrictions (and, to be honest, the lack of attention from the resident gardeners). however, we are still getting some eggplants, peppers, squash and okra; there are also some baby pumpkins! i've been trying to weed and water when i can, in between sorting through possessions to sell, take to the thrift store or throw away (a never-ending task, it seems).

the weaving is going much, much better than it was earlier in the summer. i think that's in part due to a shift in my attitude; as Autumn approaches, i can feel a quickening inside me. i think Autumn is my favorite time of year, with Winter a close second (then Spring and then Summer). i do have to say that i missed having at least one good, solid snow-fall this past Winter and i'm already hoping and praying for such for this one! but back to the weaving; i finished an order for the gallery where i have some of my things and took it over. they're a nonprofit organization and August plus the financial situation 'round the country wasn't too nice to them. so the director let me know that payment may be a bit later than normal. so that got me thinking...

i do enjoy having my handwovens in a local gallery and i'm committed to supporting this gallery as a nonprofit and its role in the regional arts community; so i'm not going to stop taking orders from them! however, another venue through which to sell would be wonderful. so i'm taking another look at using etsy. i still haven't made a decision, but if i do open up a store, i'll post a link to it from here (and vice-versa). i've got to take some decent pictures of my items, to start with. my camera isn't top-of-the-line, but it was free and i'm very thankful to have it and to be able to take digital images. i just need to figure out how to maximze its capabilities.

we are also being blessed with 'free' free-range eggs from our neighbor's chickens. they have decided to hang out in our yard and lay eggs on our front and back porches; never very many but still, free eggs! i think we've collected six in a week. they're funny animals and the cats enjoy watching them through the windows. yesterday i actually heard one of them sneeze; how many people can say they've heard a chicken sneeze?

today i've been busy with cleaning the house and then trying to plan an afternoon activity, or rather pick an activity from the many on my list that need to be done or started or advanced. an order of yarn came in the mail today for some placemats that one of my mom's coworkers ordered; so i need to dress the loom for them soon. i'm looking forward to tomorrow as a day of resting, relaxing, renewing and contemplation.

preparation day

"She seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands." Proverbs 31:13

saturday, filled with chores and preparation for the LORD's day...we planted the sweet peppers, muskmelons, bee balm and some basil seedlings. in the flats of seeds we planted earlier in the week, some seedlings are already showing. i'm hoping for a quite a few herb seedlings as well. cleaning today includes the bathroom, changing out the linens, washing several loads of clothes, vacuuming/sweeping, taking out the trash and working in the garden (with dishes and food preparation, of course). if everything goes fairly smoothly, there may be time for some weaving in the early afternoon.