Beautiful Winter

It is SO pretty out there today!  The Lord can sure paint some gorgeous winter scenery!  When the humidity and temps are just right, there is a frosty rime that coats everything, making Honey B Farm look like a "winter wonderland".  I am not the best photographer, and I have a real simple digital camera - my old SLR Pentax camera  with zoom lens has a broken meter and it is difficult and expensive to get film for it anymore.  And a camera doesn't really do justice to what the eye can see, but here is my attempt at showing everyone just how beautiful it is out there today!   It has been like this for several days actually, and every day the frost just keeps building up.   I am reminded of winter scenes in the old movie Doctor Zhivago - that's what it sure looks like!

Looking towards my upper garden with the old Allis tractor sitting near it. 

The beeyard in winter.  Most of the hives were sent to California, but we still have one hive left alive that got missed!  Other hive boxes are dead and empty and waiting for new bees in spring.

Every woods around here is covered in white frost.

I think this is the prettiest photo!  Looking towards the north side of the property and the road.

My Favorite Soup Recipe

It's been really cold lately - was 30 below on Sunday morning - and a good soup tastes wonderful on such a day.  This is my favorite soup that I am giving the recipe for here.  It's a meatless soup, low in fat, very inexpensive to make, and has a good protein content!   I have served this to non-vegetarians over the years and they also love it.  I got this recipe back in the 1980's from a vegetarian cookbook called Laurel's Kitchen.  She called it "Golden Broth Noodle Soup" but I wish I could find a better name for this soup, because it really isn't a broth in the strict sense of the word.  Please do try this soup - I know you will love it, too!

GOLDEN BROTH NOODLE SOUP

For the soup base: 

1 medium sized onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled but left whole

1/2 c. yellow split peas

1 vegetable bouillon cube (optional but I think it adds a little to the taste)

2 qts of water (8 cups)

     Simmer everything together for about 40 minutes or so.  The garlic will be floating at the top of the liquid, and mash the garlic clove against the side of the pan with a large spoon.  Mix everything up good.  If the yellow split peas have not almost disintegrated, mash things up with a potato masher. 

Now, add : 

a couple of potatoes, peeled and diced

1 or 2 carrots, diced

1 stick of celery, chopped

1 tsp. salt (might need a bit more)

ground pepper, to taste

     Let all this simmer for a while, then add a small handful or so of noodles.  Simmer the soup a little more until the noodles are done.   I like to use Kluski brand noodles - they are like thick homemade type noodles.   You can also use small shells or broken medium wide noodles or fettuccine.

     You could also add frozen peas or lima beans, or chopped zucchini at this time also. 

Makes about  10 cups of delicious soup

The yellow split peas add color and protein - nobody will miss the meat in this great tasting soup!  And you only need 1/2 cup of the split peas to make a big pot of soup.  Really tasty soup!

Three Homemaking Writings

As you may have guessed, I love to write about homemaking and every aspect of it.  While cleaning out some drawers and files, I found these three items I saved.  Two of them are rather funny, and one is serious and something we should all do.  So I am sharing them here with you:

Violence In The Kitchen

She breaks an egg

She beats it up

She whips the cream 

She cracks the nuts

She chops the cabbage

She pounds the steak 

She punches the dough 

She cuts the bread

She scalds the milk 

She mashes the potatoes 

She shakes the lettuce 

She squeezes the lemon 

And slaps the supper on the table.

     - Erna Oleson Xan

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And here's one about Great Grandma - she sure had energy!

A Perfect Day

Grandmother, on a winter's day

Milked the cows and fed them hay, 

Slopped the hogs, saddled the mule, 

And got the children off to school;

Did a washing, mopped the floors,

Washed the windows, and did some chores, 

Cooked a dish of home-dried fruit, 

Pressed her husband's Sunday suit, 

Swept the parlor, made the bed, Baked a dozen loaves of bread, 

Split some firewood and lugged in enough to fill the kitchen bin;

Cleaned the lamps and put in oil, 

Stewed some apples she thought would spoil;

Churned the butter, baked a cake, then exclaimed, "For Heaven's sake, 

The calves have got out of the pen".  Went out and chased them in again; 

Gathered the eggs and locked the stable, Back to the house and set the table, 

Cooked a supper that was delicious, and afterward washed up the dishes; 

Fed the cat and sprinkled the clothes, Mended a basketful of hose; 

Then opened the organ and began to play, 

"When You Come to the End of a Perfect Day" !

............Whew!  Grandma did all this in one day??????

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And finally, this is something I've had on my refrigerator for years.  We have all seen those dishtowels with what you should do every day Monday through Sunday - "days of the week" stuff.  Here is the housewife's daily prayers: 

Monday - "Wash Day" - Lord, help me to wash away all my selfishness and vanity, 

                                     so I may serve You with perfect humility through the week.

Tuesday - "Ironing Day" -Dear Lord, help me to iron out all the wrinkles of 

                                         prejudice I have collected through the years, so I may see

                                         the beauty in others. 

Wednesday - "Mending Day" - O God, help me to mend my ways so I will not set a 

                                                bad example for others. 

Thursday - "Cleaning Day" - Lord Jesus, help me dust out all the many faults I have 

                                             been hiding in the secret corners of my heart. 

Friday - "Shopping Day" - O God, give me the grace to shop wisely so I may purchase 

                                          eternal happiness for myself and all others in need of 

                                          Your Love. 

Saturday - "Cooking Day" - Help me, Savior, to brew a big kettle of brotherly love 

                                            and serve it with the clean sweet bread of human 

                                            kindness.

Sunday - "The Lord's Day" - O God, I have prepared my house for You.  Please come

                                              into my heart as my honored Guest so I may spend the 

                                              day in Your presence.

My Latest Project

Winter is a good time to do those things that require time, and are indoor projects.  For years now I have been wanting to change the shelf decor in my kitchen, but only now am I finally getting around to it.  When we first moved into our new home in 2006, I put Contac paper on the shelves because I was in a hurry to move.  That probably wasn't the best thing to do, I quickly learned, as Contac paper doesn't stay put after a while (it peels and buckles in humidity), and when you try to wash it the design washes off!  I probably should have painted the shelves with several coats of paint, not just one of primer, but I hate painting so much!!
     Well I used some holiday money that was given to me and bought some really nice heavy, cherry-motif oilcloth from Fabrics.com to use as shelf liner.  This stuff is made in the good old USA, and has a washable cotton backing, and the whole thing can actually be put in a washing machine to clean.   So I am gradually working on the 5 banks of cabinets in my kitchen and replacing the peeling Contac paper with this nice cherry oilcloth.  It took me the better part of an afternoon to remove the old stuff, measure out the piece I needed, wash all the dishes and put them back - and this was just for ONE cabinet!  I bought 6 yards of the oilcloth, which comes 47 inches wide.   Here are some photos of what I have done.   I think it will be really cute.   Of course, you can only really see the bottom shelf when you stand in front of the cabinets, but at least things will be washable now!
      I have open shelves without doors in my kitchen, and things can get a little dusty after a while.  But I like the open style, and it sure is easier to get things in and out without having to deal with doors.   In my dream world I wish I could afford cabinet doors with glass inserts top to bottom, but I know that isn't going to happen.  Besides, open shelving is sort of early 50-ish country farmhouse look anyway!   I strive for the vintage 1950's look in my kitchen, and this cherry motif stuff fits right in!  I like things to look "cute".......

The cherry motif cloth really matches my dishes!

A better view of a larger piece

All 3 shelves on one side finished

And 3 shelves on the other side of the cabinet finished.  Another set of my "good dishes" goes in the space on top, but those dishes were soaking in wash water at the time this photo was taken.

With four more cabinet banks to go, this project will take me at least a week - but it sure will be pretty, don't you think?

Happy New Year!

It's time for a new look for this blog, and so I have changed things a little.  It's always nice to have something new to look at.  The start of the new year is a time for new beginnings.  I never make any resolutions, though.  For one thing, I know I will never stick with 'resolutions'.  Instead, I try to think about what new things I would like to do during the coming year.  This year Harold and I hope to finally finish the walls in our bedroom.   We built our house in 2005, and moved into it in May of 2006, and the walls are still not finished!   It's the last room of the house we haven't done.  About 3 years ago I bought some wallpaper for it, and that's as far as things went.   It's always been a matter of time and money (mostly money) as to finishing projects.   But enough is enough!  Time to get the bedroom done! We will move into the guest room while we work on our room. 
     We are also thinking of new things we would like to try in the garden and greenhouse.  Since Harold plowed up the pasture last fall, we now have lots more room to plant.   We hope to put some apple trees in there, and some chokecherry, highbush cranberry,  and Nanking cherry bushes.  Also we will plant all the spreading crops like pumpkins and watermelons and cantaloupes.   I asked hubby how we plan to keep the deer out, and he says an electric fence.  Well, it will have to be a solar fence since the pasture is quite far from the house and power pole.
     I am also picking up the challenge put forth by our church pastor of reading the Bible through from cover to cover in one year.   From Genesis to Revelation in one year.  I have read the Bible through before, several years ago, but in recent years I have only read parts of it on a daily basis.  Well, I'll read it every day according to the schedule given.   Pastor says at the end of the year those who have taken the challenge will receive a nice new leather-bound Bible with our name engraved on it, the last Sunday of this year.  Sounds good to me - I do like rewards!
     Harold and I also want to build a new chicken house and get some new little chicks.  I miss the fresh eggs we used to get every morning.  Our chickens got too old to lay eggs and we gave them away to someone to butcher.  We needed a new chicken setup anyway. 
     And I hope to continue my weight loss regimen.   I fell back a little during the holidays, but I am still hoping to achieve my goal of losing 30 lbs.  This will surely be easier to do in nice weather when I'm busy with yard and garden work!  Meanwhile I will use the winter time to rest, catch up on reading, plan my gardens, try some new recipes, and work a lot of crossword puzzles.   The winter scenery is so pretty right now, too.  Actually every season is beautiful, but winter seems to be especially serene and peaceful.
     There isn't much going on today, but I did take a photo of some of my cats sunning themselves this morning after their morning meal.   I took this photo through the kitchen window - that's about the only way I can get them to "pose".  Otherwise if I go out the door, they are at my feet in an instant.  They follow me everywhere - to the mailbox, down the road for a walk, to and from the car when I haul in bags of groceries, etc.   In a few months when Harold and I go to the woods to tap trees for maple syrup, they will be following us from tree to tree.

About half of the farm cat crew sunning themselves this morning.  That's Popeye sitting in the food dish.  He is the runt of the litter and never misses a meal.

People often ask me why I write up a blog.  I guess it's because I enjoy writing, I enjoy taking pictures -  (of everything else, though - not me!), and I hope that my articles will inspire folks to try gardening and canning and sewing and old-timey skills.  Some people have said to us that they think living in the country is kind of lazy and laid back.  Nothing could be further from the truth!   Everyone I know around here is always swamped with work and there just aren't enough hours in the day.   Self sufficiency makes for a lot of work.  But we do enjoy it.  Writing about my simple daily living is how I like to share my life with others.  One of my favorite authors is Gladys Taber.  She wrote many chronicles of her life in rural Massachusetts and the seasonal happenings and observations at her home called Stillmeadow.  If you would like some good clean reading check out her books at the library.   She has long since passed away, but her books are quite interesting for many future generations to enjoy.
     I hope that everyone has a truly great 2016!  It will be a new adventure in life for all of us.  What does The Lord have in store for us??