Simply Days

Aprons

Like I told you... I have been excitedly sewing again.  I am so happy. :)
I decided the other night to make myself a new apron.  I like the smock type of aprons so I went for that.  This one is modified a bit from my original purple smock that I love.  This fabric was my Grandmothers/Nannie Red's.  I only had a smallish remnant and sadly the smock is a bit too short for me.  I am considering what I want to do with it now... try and sell it in my Etsy or possibly wait and see if I can refashion it to make it work somehow.
I LOVE  how it turned out... the colors are wonderful and vibrant and I adore the fabrics.
I finished the edges with bias tape and made 2 pockets on the front... perfect for clothes pins on wash day or running out to the garden to pick a few peppers. The rick rack was a tribute to a dear friend of mine and I just love it. :)
I hope to find the time to get back in the sewing room again soon... to make one equally as cute that I can wear. I LOVE my aprons, I love wearing them... I actually do wear them.  Putting one on helps me feel ready to get to work. :)
Here is a little something a friend sent me about aprons, I was reminded of it when I saw it on a message board that I frequent...

Grandma's Apron

Broccoli Soup and a Book!

Happy New Year Everyone!

I thought I would share a recipe for Broccoli, Potato, Cheese Soup.  I made it yesterday for the first time and it was a home run!  I also wanted to share the title of a book that I am reading.  I think some will find it beneficial.

Green up your Cleanup by Jill Potvin Schoff

Some of the material I already knew and some not.  I love to scour the internet for tips, etc...However, I am a visual person who sometimes prefer the book or magazine in my own hands.  Anyhow, I think that it would be a great resource for any household.  I borrowed it from our local library, but this  maybe one that I will put on my wishlist to purchase.  Happy Reading!

Back to the soup!  The recipe is as follows:

5 large potatoes peeled and cubed

1 Medium onion, chopped

Head of broccoli, chopped (including stems)

3 T of parsley

Salt and pepper to taste

3/4 C milk (I used leftover whipping cream, naughty I know!)

2 C Shredded cheddar cheese

Place potatoes, onion, broccoli in a a large pot. Fill with water until vegeatables are just barely covered.  Cook on medium heat for about 45 minutes until potatoes are tender.  Remove from heat and mash with a potato masher.  Add milk, parsley, salt and pepper.  Add cheese and simmer until cheese melts.

I found this recipe on Cooks.com, the one above is not exactly how I found it.   I made a few minor changes.  This was a real economical meal to make.  I had everything in the house.  I know cheese is real high in some areas, but you could ask you local deli for cheese ends as an substitute.  They sell them at a much reduced cost.  I know, because I have purchased them before for quiches I have made.

I have a very busy day ahead of me and like others that I have read about, it is back to our regular regime! 

Have a terrific day!

Jennifer

Back to normal?

  What is normal, really? I don't think things were ever normal per say. LOL But we are back to our regular scheduled program.  Grinding is over and my husband is back working his regular 6 to 5 hours instead of the afternoon hours that he had for the past four months. And school will be up and running  tomorrow morning.

   We would have started back with school this morning but I had a doctors appointment with my GYN.  I have a love hate relationship with this man. Love the person that he is, but hate what he does, if you know what I mean. The most embarrasing day of the year for me, the wellness visit.  Yuck! And it probably wouldn't be that bad if it would end after only the one visit, but each year there is a problem that needs futher attention. And this year is no different. I have been having pains in my lower stomach and lower back area so he wants a vag. ultrasound. I had them schedule the mammogram and the ultrasound on the same morning of Jan. 29th.  He wanted to do a MRI but me and those tiny sausage like machines don't get along. Last time I was stuffed into one I paniced and had to be removed after only about 30 seconds. So I nixed that idea right away. The ultrasound was option B. I'm not going to know anything for at least another six weeks so I'm not going to stress or worry about it. God is in control, so no need for worries.

   Also ran to the DMV today after the doctor's appointment to drop off a license plate of a car that I just sold and to get my 15 year old an ID. He is way big for his age and no one believes him when he says that he is only 15. He turns 16 this next Monday on the 12th and now has to buy hunting and fishing licenses,  so he will need this  ID to do that. Well nothing got done at the DMV because as soon as we opened the door I saw that the place was packed to the roof. What is it about DMVs?  I told him we would return  early in the morning  and try to beat the rush. He was a little disappointed but understood. He is such a good kid.

   I took my current issue of Mother Earth News with me to the doctor's office today and read a few aticles on gardening. I am so ready for a spring garden, heck I'm just ready for spring, period. I'm done with the cold and all the brown deadness everywhere. Bring on the color and the flowers!

Being Available.

Pastor preached yesterday on being available to God for Him to use. And it stuck in my thoughts all the day long. I mulled it over, I chewed on it and I prayed and thought some more.
I believe many people need to be prodded to be available because of the shortage of volunteers that I see all around me. Few are doing the work of many and so much more needs to be done . . . . So we put out the call for others to step up and step in.
But what does it mean to me to be available? Rarely do I turn people down when help is needed- I’ve filled in the gaps at church in more places than I care to think. Some worked, some didn’t. But I felt I had to stick to the adage “See a need, fill a need.” I can’t think of how many times I’ve sighed in resignation and said, “Oh alright, if no one else is going to do it I guess I will.”
What kind of an attitude is that?
So I ask again what does it mean to me to be available?
My thoughts are running in an entirely different direction. I have kept myself so busy- doing what I thought was needed and necessary that I now find . . . . .
I haven’t been available.
I’ve been too busing DOING to be available.
Being Available is not synonymous with “Do, Do, Do”.
I got that part wrong.
God is calling me to Be Available.
To be free from other burdensome jobs/ministries/etc. in order to hear Him calling me.
I heard Him call me in the quiet yesterday afternoon.
He called me to
REST.
Simply rest.
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” [Matthew 11:28-30]
I’ve been going about it all wrong and it took hitting the wall at warp speed and spending a few days trying to summon the energy to crawl out for me to begin to hear.
God isn’t always calling us to “do” something, sometimes He calls us to be quiet so He can speak to our hearts, so He can help heal.
I believe God calls people to times of rest.
I believe because I know He is calling me to such a time.
I’ve become dysfunctional.
I’ve become what I dreaded may happen when I began over seven years ago . . . .
All about the business and busyness and becoming lost to the quiet in the secret places.
Becoming a world-class “do-er” isn’t God’s design for me.
Super-woman-wife-mom-youth director-and-whatever-else-I-can-tack-on-to-show-the-world-that-I’ve-got-it-all-going-on is not the title God has in mind for me.
He just calls me to be His servant.
And He is calling this servant to a time of Rest.
Rest.
Restore.
Renew.
Revitalize.
Rebuild.
Refresh.
Rekindle.
Recharge.
God’s got a plan for me- and I now know it starts with stopping.
Be Available.

Winter Weather

Well, so much for global warming - at least in Southeast Alaska!  Our average temperature for December was 6.5 degrees lower than normal.  I'm glad it has warmed up over the last few days, but now we have snow - and lots of it!  Light and fluffy and not too heavy to shovel.  It has been snowing here at our house about steady since Friday, small flakes to large flakes.  I took a few pictures Saturday morning when Rod and I went out.  Here is the chicken coop - I shovel the snow around the base of the coop to try to keep the heat in for them.  Our wood pile is off the back of the coop so we have just one path to keep clear instead of two.

Here is a shot of the garden with the coop in the background - the twigs in the foreground are my red current bushes.

I shovelled the chicken yard, but they didn't venture out.

Here are a few chicken pictures - it is difficult to get good pictures because they are always on the move.  Here is one of the Buff Orpingtons with a Barred Rock on the left and a Wyandotte on the right.

Here is a Buff Orpington, Wyandotte, Light Brahma, Barred Rock and Aracauna in the back.  The Light Brahma is one of the younger chickens, but she is huge!  Rod thinks she is part goose  :o)

Here is one of the Rhode Island Reds in the nest box.  We have been getting around 6 eggs per day.

Here they are trying to clean the snow off my boots for me!

Amy Update

I continue to covet prayer and wish to extend my deepest gratitude to everyone who continues to lift up my prayer request. All the prayers lift me up and sustain me. Thank you.
Mr. Steady and I will be meeting with our pastor this Tuesday evening to give him our proposal of cutting down my hours (and pay). We will also be asking that the church board begin to actively seek a replacement for me. Our plan is that I be able to help see the youth ministry through this transition. We are setting a “time limit” stating that I would like to be phased out of paid youth ministry be early May.
This has been an extremely hard decision for me to make. And yet as things begin to come together to see the end- I am beginning to feel the release. I have never before been brought so low by a circumstance. I have never before not been able to bounce back.
BUT
It has been a most humbling experience.
I hit the wall.
And found God right there beside me.
I have cried buckets.
I have complained and whined to the Lord.
And I wasn’t afraid to do so- I know my God is bigger than my pain. Big enough to hear my whining.
Most definitely.
I have stepped back these past few days- I couldn’t do anything but.  I couldn’t “work” as I needed to- just how was I suppose to do more than the mechanics? Wednesday morning it took all my fortitude to get out of bed and face the day. I have never been a wallow-er and I felt that what I was doing was wallowing.
In pity, disgust, anger and despair.
Etc. Etc. Etc.
I cried out and said “I’m burning out! I can’t do this!” and felt that I wasn’t really heard.
But I was.
God heard me.
Mr. Steady heard me.
As did many others who lifted me up in mighty prayer.
Each day God met me right where I was at.
Each day got a little bit easier.
I have begun to experience the quiet again.
I believe God is giving me a cleaner, clearer vision.
The better to see my priorities with.
The better to see my family with.
The better to see myself with.
I love being “needed” and “necessary” but . . . . . .
It doesn’t matter how needed and necessary I am to others if I’m not delivering the goods here at home first and with my bestest most worthwhile effort.
I can no longer be split in two by ministry away from home and the ministry right here at home.
God has shown me time and time again that Home IS my ministry.
Period.
My prayer is that my pastor listens and begins to understand and accepts the proposal. Our church board’s monthly meeting is this Thursday evening and it is our desire to bring this proposal to the board at that meeting- the sooner “the cat is out of the bag” the sooner they can begin looking for a replacement and all the sooner for me to feel I can take a deep breath and am not squeezed in by the pressure to perform.
The sooner I can begin to rest.

Monday on the Homestead

We have been focusing lots of our time with my son.  His visit home has been wonderful.  He said it has been just what he needed.  The girls and I have been keeping the meals and baking going almost non-stop since he came home.  I am glad to see him enjoying home cooking so much.  He still has a couple more weeks with us. 

Today some of life needs to go back to normal.  Emily starts work again (after a couple week holiday break) and I think I will have the youngest kids do a little school.  Jacob may go out and about in town with Richard today so he may not start school yet.  He is way ahead of schedule anyway so I am not too concerned about it.   

On my to-do list today is laundry and housework.  I need to get some floors mopped and some dusting done.  Wood heat seems to create a lot of dust!  I also need to get the kids back to my daily house cleaning chore list today.  With all the fun times and off schedules my house is showing a bit of neglect.  So that much of a normal schedule will start today! 

Tobin and I will be having our weekly date so I need to get a pot of bean soup cooking before we leave.  I was thinking Italian Pintos were sounding pretty good.  Maybe I will find the time to get some French bread made before I leave too..  we will see how the days goes.   

I will be back soon to more blogging and sharing but for now life seems very focused on my kids and family.   

I wanted to leave with a pic of my grandbaby Elizabeth taken at Christmas time..  she is growing so quickly! …

Hope you all have a great Monday on your Homestead!

The Sewing Bug...

I have been bit by the sewing bug again, finally.  I haven't been in my sewing room since the craft festival.  I have thought about it, only to say, "No way".  I don't know, it must have been all those nights of being in there until 3 am that helped me to shun my  love of sewing for all this time. 
So I had been thinking of making my children some colored pencil rolls.  I thought they would be a nice thing to have to take along to church, on field trips, to have on hand when they want to sketch something... I also thought I would make them a bag to hold their pencil roll, their Bible, and a sketch pad... I still have to make those. :)
So Saturday afternoon, I seized my opportunity to go into my sewing nook.
And here is the outcome.
The one above is Cameo's.  She loves the fabric.  I made 14 slots in hers... 12 is because colored pencils come in a 12 pack at the dollar store and then I wanted her to have a place for a pen and a pencil.
It was a strange thing when I went to the sewing nook to pick out the fabric... I pulled most of the fabric off the shelf, sorted, folded some neatly and came to realize that the deer/elk fabric was the only boyish fabric that I own! NO JOKE! How sad is that! I know that there is some really cute boyish fabric around but I own only the half a yard or so I used to make these roll ups.  So I had to make two different colored ties for Eli and Abrams so they could tell them apart.
I ended up making myself an apron after I finished the pencil rolls and I will show you pictures of that later on. 
And if that didn't tickle me enough, I taught myself how to knit a little.  Oh, am I awkward and silly looking right now... but I figure in time it will become easy to me.  I know how to cast on, and how to do the knit stitch. I am so tickled.  I have been practicing over and over and am so slow. haha. Next I will learn the purl and hopefully try and make something... hooray! :)
Have a great week friends.
My Cup Runneth Over...

Prayer request

Cute photo

I thought I would share this photo of my children -- taken a few weeks back at our little church's Christmas pageant. My camera broke down that night and my pastor's wife took this snapshot. :)  I loved it........ this was our children's first ever Church Christmas pageant.  Our previous Church never held Christmas pageants or Christmas' Eve services, so you can imagine how very excited the kids to be involved with the nativity pageant this year!  The text was taken right from the bible word for word, so the kids had a bit of memorizing to do - but they did a great job and enjoyed themselves.  ( they are holding treat bags in the photo -- the "wise man" brought "gifts" for the children)

The kids had the following parts:

Hannah: Mary

Jacob: A Wise Man

Rachel: A sheperd

Samuel: Joseph

Paul: Zachariah

Peter: An angel

Rebekah: The angel Gabriel

Sarah: A Sheperd

John & Naomi :  "sheep"

I am so thankful for my little Church that focused on the true meaning of Christmas this year and really chose godly activities to bring Jesus front and center to the Holiday season.  It is so refreshing.

~ gloria ~