The Simple Woman's Day book . . .

FOR TODAY, November 22nd, 2011...

Outside My Window...
It is cold, dark and damp. Here comes winter! I wish we would have a big freeze though as I am starting to get another cold. I can't believe it! The whole time I worked down south, I got maybe two colds in 7 years and this is at least my 4th one since moving back to Chester 18 months ago!

I am thinking...
I ponder daily my many blessings, the answers to prayers . . . my walk with the Saviour. I know some may think me silly . . . but when I thought I might have cancer, I really sat and reassessed my life. It became all that much sweeter. I weeded the important out from the not so important. I don't want to forget that, or become complacent. I want to live each day as if it were my last.

I am thankful for...
Oh, I am more thankful than you can ever imagine that I do not have cancer. When I got the results it was like a HUGE load had been lifted off my shoulders. I am ever so thankful also for all of the prayers and petitions which were spoken and offered on my behalf. I don't think anyone on earth has ever felt as loved or as carried as I did. You are all so very wonderful.

From the kitchen...
Leftover Carrot Pudding (see below). And it's almost tooooo good. A delicious alternative to the traditional Christmas pudding. Only down side is you can't keep it to allow it to mature like a Christmas Pudding . . . so it will have to be made just before Christmas . . . or you can make it and freeze it. It also freezes very well.

I am wearing...
Pink nightie (M&S), Pink jim jam bottoms, pink slippers, aqua robe. Layering for warmth and comfort. I wish I could wear my night clothes all day, but alas . . . I don't think Todd would tolerate it! He'd think me very, very lazy!

I am creating...
I did this yesterday:




Not sure how I feel about it though. I suppose it will do.
I've also gotten quite a bit more done on my crochet afghan. (I know, I should be finished it by now, but I only do a little bit each night as we are watching the telly.)

I am going...
We are taking Mitzie to the Vet this morning. She was ill day before yesterday, vomitting several times. Yesteday we thought she was ok, but she vomitted again just before tea time, so we called the Vet and made an appointment for her this morning. I hope she will be ok. I can't help thinking about our Jess. I made Todd let Mitzie sleep with us last night so I could keep an eye on her. She seems ok this morning. She had a bit of egg last evening and kept it down, but better to be safe than sorry.

I am reading...



The American Wife, by Curtis Sittenfeld

On what might become one of the most significant days in her husband’s presidency, Alice Blackwell considers the strange and unlikely path that has led her to the White House . . . and the repercussions of a life lived, as she puts it, “almost in opposition to itself.”

A kind, bookish only child born in the 1940s, Alice learned the virtues of politeness early on from her stolid parents and small Wisconsin hometown. But a tragic accident when she was seventeen shattered her identity and made her understand the fragility of life and the tenuousness of luck. So more than a decade later, when she met boisterous, charismatic Charlie Blackwell, she hardly gave him a second look: She was serious and thoughtful, and he would rather crack a joke than offer a real insight; he was the wealthy son of a bastion family of the Republican party, and she was a school librarian and registered Democrat. Comfortable in her quiet and unassuming life, she felt inured to his charms. And then, much to her surprise, Alice fell for Charlie.

As Alice learns to make her way amid the clannish energy and smug confidence of the Blackwell family, navigating the strange rituals of their country club and summer estate, she remains uneasy with her newfound good fortune. And when Charlie eventually becomes President, Alice is thrust into a position she did not seek–one of power and influence, privilege and responsibility. As Charlie’s tumultuous and controversial second term in the White House wears on, Alice must face contradictions years in the making: How can she both love and fundamentally disagree with her husband? How complicit has she been in the trajectory of her own life? What should she do when her private beliefs run against her public persona?

In Alice Blackwell, New York Times bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld has created her most dynamic and complex heroine yet. American Wife is a gorgeously written novel that weaves class, wealth, race, and the exigencies of fate into a brilliant tapestry–a novel in which the unexpected becomes inevitable, and the pleasures and pain of intimacy and love are laid bare.

I have only just started this book, but so far it is a can't put it down type of book. I've had it in my bookcase for a couple of years and have only just now picked it up to read. I wish they had a Kindle version as it is a thick book and my arthritic wrists struggle to hold it in bed, but I shall persevere as it is that good!

I am hoping...
I am hoping that Mitzie is ok and that it is just a passing bug. She is very naughty when Todd takes her over to the park. If she finds a treat that has been dropped she grabs hold of it and brings it home. I always take them away from her and bin them. You just never know where they have come from. I told Todd he always should have a high value treat in his pocket that he can tempt her with to make her drop the one she's found. There are a lot of despicable people around and after having lost one dog to poisoning, I am loathe to lose another!

I am hearing...
Early morning sounds as the world wakes up around me. Every day sounds. Peaceable and comforting. My everyday sounds in any case. Our Mantel clock makes a noise as the hands move around it's face . . . not a tick tick, but a low rumbling. I miss old hand wound clocks. These modern battery operated ones are just not the same.

Around the house...

Source: google.co.uk via Marie on Pinterest

I have always held a fascination for old pot holders, or even new ones that look old. I have several that look like little dresses that I crocheted several years back and I have one crocheted one I bought from etsy a while back. I also have some lovely quilted ones that I bought on Etsy. I think they are quite lovely.



This is one of them. Isn't it sweet? I bought them from a shop named ScrapHappie AZ. I just love her shop. She has tons of pot holders in all different colours and patterns. They are very well made. I am saving up to get a few more sometime.

I am looking forward to...
We are having our Christmas Additional Meeting for Relief Society this Thursday evening and I am looking forward to it so very much. I know it is Thanksgiving on Thursday for all of you Americans out there. I miss Thanksgiving . . . living over here. I have tried to do it several times, but it is never quite the same.

If I could change one thing it would be ...
No child in the world would ever go to bed hungry, or cold, or feeling unloved or afraid. I wish that I could do more to help change that. We do our best, but it is not enough.

One of my favourite things...
Puttering. I love to putter. Todd often sits and watches the telly in the afternoons. I just can't make myself. I have to be doing something. I will watch the telly in the evenings, but not during the day if I can help it. I have to be really tired or feeling unwell to watch the telly in the daytime! I have a need to putter! Nothing important . . . just a bunch of little odd jobs and activities. That makes me happy. My mom and dad always had a nap in the afternoon . . . I hope I never feel the need to take naps. I want to be doing!

A few plans for the rest of the week...
I have the Vet for Mitzie today, the Additional Meeting on Thursday night and then Sheilagh and Ralph are supposed to be coming on Saturday. I hope that they can make it. I always enjoy their company so very much!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Source: greigedesign.blogspot.com via Marie on Pinterest

A man must seek his happiness and inward peace from objects which cannot be taken away from him.
~Alexander Humboldt (1769-1859)

Peace and beauty often enter our hearts when we are able to appreciate the smaller things in life, the things that come free. A blue sky, the smell of freshly cut grass, the pretty colours of a rose's petals . . . the feel of dirt on our hands when gardening, a much beloved cuddle from a grandchild, love of family and friends. They are the things that stay with us forever and that have the most meaning.

As a closing thought I would like to leave you with this:

"We are living in a part of the universe occupied by the rebel. Enemy-occupied territory . . . that is what this world is." ~C S Lewis, Mere Christianity

Are you wearing your armour? Don't forget to put it on, and keep it up to scratch. The great deceiver is always looking for a chink in our armour that he can take advantage of.

And there you have it . . . my day book for this week. Don't forget to hop on over to the Simple Woman to check out the other day book entries! (Or better yet, do a simple day book entry yourself! It's not that hard and I am betting you would enjoy it!

I have the sniffles again. In reality that cold that I had never really disappeared and yesteday it came back with a vengeance. There is nothing better for a cold than Chicken Soup. Well, it IS better if your mom makes it (I can attest to that!) but my mom is too far away to make any for me now, so I just have to make it for myself.



*Chicken With Rice Soup*
Serves 4-6
Printable Recipe

Commonly known as Jewish Penicillin this soup is good for whatever ails you. I always keep my carcasses from my roast chickens to make this soup. As I always cut up chickens myself to use in other recipes I usually always have bags of chicken backs and necks in the freezer as well, which are very good when used in this soup also! Its amazing what you can do with a few bones and some vegetables!

1 spent chicken carcass (if there is not a lot of meat left on the carcass you can add a few chicken wings or a leg)
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme
1 carrot, unpeeled and cut in half
1 stalk of celery
Handful of celery leaves
1 onion, unpeeled, cut in half, root end removed
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper

To finish:
1 carrot peeled and grated
¼ of a swede peeled and grated
1 handful of long grain rice

Put your chicken carcass in a pot and cover with boiling water. Add the bay leaf, thyme, carrot, celery, celery leaves, onion and salt and pepper. Bring back to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 ½ hours to 2 hours. Strain broth into a clean pot. Discard vegetables and pick off as much meat as you can from off of the bones. Cut into small chunks. Bring broth to a boil and reduce somewhat. Taste and adjust seasoning. (If it is not very strong you can add a TBS or two of Marigold vegetable powder, but it really shouldn‘t be necessary.)

Add the grated vegetables and the rice and simmer for about 15 minutes until cooked. Add the diced chicken meat. Heat through and then serve with some nice crusty rolls.

Marie's Sunday Six

Surely my biggest Smilemaker this week had to be finding out I didn't have Cancer. It's pretty hard to top that, let me tell you! When I was waiting to find out if I did or didn't have it I had a pretty scary couple of weeks. I was trying to be very optimistic, of course . . . positive thinking and all that . . . but I couldn't help but try to prepare myself for the worst, just in case. It would be devastating to not be prepared for the worst at all, even in the smallest way. One thought that came to me frequently was the sadness that I would never really get to know these six very special people in my life. The thought of each of them surely brings a smile to my face every minute of my every day!



These are the three pirates in my life . . . Daughter in Law Anne, and grandsons Gabriel (eldest) and lil Luke. They are my oldest sons family. My eldest son has taken the efforts to come and see me each time I have been home, and we have skyped on several occasions so I could talk to the boys. It's a lot of fun skyping when you live so far away. Almost like being together, except you don't get to pinch cheeks and plaster slobbery kisses all over their foreheads!



Gabriel is the oldest at 5 1/2 now. He's in his first year of school and also goes to Beavers, which he really enjoys. He is a sweet sensitive little boy who is filled with curiosity and the joys of life. I find him quite, quite interesting and love seeing the world through his perspective. He's outgoing and gregarious. He reminds me a lot of my son, his father, when he was a boy. Life was always new and exciting! You never knew what was going to be next on the agenda!



Luke is the younger brother and will soon be two. I don't really know him very well, but he seems a sweet little boy too. I think he is also very sensitive and engaging. He likes to eat too, because most of the pictures I have of him he is eating in! I can tell he really looks up to his elder brother because in all of the pictures that they are together in . . . he is looking over at him with love and glee.



These are Doug (my middle son) and Kayla's boys, my other three grandsons . . . Jon is the eldest (5), followed by the little redhead of the family, Josh (3) and then baby Jacob, who just turned one. Three very different and no less loveable boys. I have been able to skype with them as well and the last time I was home to Canada I got to finally meet Jon and Josh for the first time. It was lovely!



Jon is the oldest and is also in his first year of school. He is a little treasure! So full of life and a bit of a ham as far as I can tell from the videos and photos that I have seen. He is very sweet and protective of his younger brothers. You can tell he takes the big brother position in the family very much to heart! He loves music and zoo animals.



Josh is three and the only red head in our family. I just adore his pretty blue eyes. He is very shy and sensitive as well. I am sure he really blossoms when he is around people he knows and trusts, but he doesn't know me very well at all and mostly just clung to his father's pants when we were at their house two summers ago. Mind you he was only about 18 months old then, so it isn't a surprise that he was a bit shy with us. He seems to be a thinker, a sweet little boy.



Jacob is my youngest grandson and just turned one year old on the 16th of November. He's just beautiful. He looks so much like his father, our Doug, that they could be twins! Right from those big baby blues to that curly mop of golden hair. Our Doug had a mop of curls just like that! I don't know very much about him, but he seems to be a very happy boy and an enjoyer of all that is around him. I got to see a video of him walking last week, and there is also a photo of him helping to sweet his other nan's floor. That broom looks ever so tall next to him. He seems a delightful little chap and I look forward to getting to know him and his brothers much better as they get older.



This is my youngest Grandchild, Maryn, the only girl in the bunch and the daughter of our Amanda and her husband Tom. I have not been able to get to know her at all. She will be a year in February. My youngest daughter is somewhat estranged from me, but I do get to see pictures of little Maryn on the computer. I think, quite naturally, she is just the cutest little Ladybird that I have ever seen!



She looks very intelligent and inquisitive to me, and very sweet too! I do so hope that I will be able to get to know her as she grows up, but in the meantime I do enjoy seeing the pictures of her as she grows, so very much. There is a little girl in our Ward who was born around the same time and so I look to her and imagine how much little Maryn has grown and some of the things that Maryn must be doing now.

Hopefully next summer I will get to meet both her and Jacob. Those are the only two of the grandchildren that I have not had the opportunity to meet in person yet. Grandchildren are wonderful little creatures. They are better than children in a way because you feel like you can freely spoil them . . . and they are your last chance to give some loving back to your own children. When my own children were growing up there was not a lot of time, there was so many of them . . . and not a lot of cash either. I may not get to see my grandchildren very often but I try to reach out to them as best as I can. I like to think of myself as the Present Granny. I do not get to spend time with them, but I can send them little treasures in the post and hopefully they get as much pleasure out of receiving them as I do in sending them!

Anyways, six BIG reasons to smile and to live for! My smilemakers of this last week in November, 2011! Many thanks for indulging this proud and thankful Grandma!!

I was busy most of yesterday but then later in the day I had an opportunity to go into my craft room and put my paints to paper again. This is what I came up with:



I think that I like her a lot . . . even more though . . . I like the words that inspired it. We are all beautiful creatures of light. Some of us may not be able to see our light, but it's there all the same. Sometimes we just need a little reminder of who we are and what we are.

Here's another recipe from my Marie's Muses Archives. It's a delicious steak with an even more delicous mushroom and stilton sauce. I often toy with the idea of becoming a vegetarian, but the thought of never having another steak always stops me. I do so love a good steak!



*Beef Steak with Stilton Mushroom Sauce*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This to me has to be the perfect way to cook a steak. Tender, juicy and accompanied with a delicious sauce full of the flavours of mushrooms and tangy stilton cheese. Yummy!

4 (6 ounces) Strip Loin Steaks (You may use other steaks, as long as they are suitable for grilling)
2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
5 TBS butter
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
1/3 cup dry red wine
½ cup sour cream
3 ounces Stilton or other bleu cheese, crumbled

Rub the steaks with the chopped tarragon and the black pepper. Take a large skillet and heat it over medium high heat. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in the skillet until it is foaming. Add the steaks and cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side or to the desired degree of doneness. ( 2 minutes each side for medium rare) Remove the steaks to a warm plate and keep warm while youmake the sauce.

Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until they are tender. Add the wine, reduce the heat and let itcook for another 1 to 2 minutes to deglaze the pan. Stir in the sour cream and ¼ cup of the cheese. Cook, stirring, until the cheese melts. Season to taste with some salt and pepper.

To serve, drizzle the sauce over the steaks and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. You can garnish with sprigs of tarragon if you wish.



I'm having a Mincemeat Fest over in The English Kitchen today and these scrummy Mincemeat Rolls are on the menu!

“God knows that some of the greatest souls who have ever lived are those who will never appear in the chronicles of history. They are the blessed, humble souls who emulate the Savior’s example and spend the days of their lives doing good.”
~Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Poetry Saturday . . . Beautiful things

Source: sarahlovenphotography.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful faces are those that wear . . .
It matters little if dark or fair . . .
Whole-souled honesty printed there.

Source: Uploaded by user via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful eyes are those that show,
Like crystal panes where hearthfires glow,
Beautiful thoughts that burn below.

Source: everythingyoulovetohate.tumblr.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful lips are those whose words
Leap from the heart like songs of birds,
Yet whose utterance prudence girds.

Source: flickr.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful hands are those that do
Work that is honest and brave and true,
Moment by moment the long day through.

Source: Uploaded by user via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful feet are those that go
On kindly ministries to and fro,
Down lowliest ways, if God wills it so.

Source: redbubble.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful shoulders are these that bear
Ceaseless burdens of homely care
With patient grace and daily prayer.

Source: google.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful lives are those that bless
Silent rivers of happiness,
Whose hidden fountains but few may guess.

Source: Uploaded by user via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful twilight at set of sun,
Beautiful goal with race well won,
Beautiful rest with work well done.

Source: weheartit.com via Marie on Pinterest

Beautiful graves where grasses creep,
Where brown leaves fall, where drifts lie deep
Over worn-out hands . . . oh! Beautiful sleep!
~Ellen P Allerton

Source: antsintheafterbirth.tumblr.com via Marie on Pinterest

I just love this poem . . . it speaks to my heart of lives well spent and the simple joys that make it worth living . . . the things in life that truly matter most of all.

Once again I want to thank everyone for their prayers and support over these past few weeks. You surely carried me aloft on them and I was strengthened and touched by each and every one. I do believe that I have the best friends and family in the world. Y'all are the best.

We are going to go look for some rhubarb crowns to plant this morning. I'm not sure if we will find any . . . we've probably left it far too late in the season. I also saw a cat figurine of a ginger cat a few months back that I had wanted to get for my mother for Christmas, but then . . . I left it for another day, so I want to go back and get it so that I can get my boxes all packed and ready to go over to Canada. Only 38 days people! Christmas is fast approaching!

I'll leave you now with a tasty recipe from my Marie's Muses Archives. I didn't really cook yesterday . . . we had a meal out to celebrate. Nothing outrageously expensive, just the local carvery where you can get two meals for £7. Cheap and cheerful! I'm in wedding mode now and going to be trying to take off a few pounds before the summer. In the meantime, this is drool worthy, even if I can only look but not touch . . .



*Bacon, Egg and Cheese Toastie*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is a wonderful way to have your breakfast, all stacked together in one delicious pile. Every forkful brings you a taste of bacon, egg, cheese and toast, all together in one luscious mouthful!

4 slices of thick country style white bread
12 slices of dry cure streaky bacon
8 ounces of medium cheddar cut into slices
1 TBS butter
4 large free range organic eggs

This is my secret way of cooking bacon so that there’s no grease on top of your stove and no messy pan to clean up afterwards. Pre-heat your oven to 220*C/425*F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil wrap. Lay the bacon slices out onto the baking sheet without overlapping. Pop the pan into the heated oven and bake for six minutes. Turn the pan around 180 degrees and bake for another four to seven minutes, depending on how crispy you like your bacon. (For this recipe you only want it medium done and not too crispy as it will be going under the grill after) Remove the bacon to a plate, lined with paper kitchen towelling to drain. I, then, blot the top with more kitchen towelling. You can then just pitch the foil wrap into the bin and you have a clean oven tray to continue on with the rest of the recipe.

Heat your grill while you make the toast. Toast the slices of bread until they are medium toasted, not really dark as they will then be going under the grill and you don’t want too crispy a slice. Once they are toasted lay each one out onto the baking sheet and cover them with the slices of cheese equally. Divide the bacon equally amongst the sandwiches and lay it on top of the cheese.

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat and pop some butter into it. When the butter is foaming, crack in the four eggs. Turn the heat down to medium and cook them slowly for a few minutes until the whites are set and the yolks are as done as you like them. If you don’t want them sunny side up you can flip them over if you like. We like them sunny side up. When they are done to your taste, turn out the heat and remove the pan to the side while you grill the toastie.

Pop the tray with the bread, cheese and bacon on it under the grill and grill until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the bacon is as crisp as you want it. It should only take four or five minutes. Remove from the oven and place a fried egg neatly on top of each. Remove to heated plates. Sprinkle each with a little seasalt and cracked black pepper. Serve.




Over in The English Kitchen today, a delicious Lemon Cake Pie!

“You can't go through life on "Borrowed light.”
~Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Another Quickie

Source: flickr.com via Marie on Pinterest

Just wanted to let you all know that your prayers have been answered. All the blood tests came back negative for markers, and my biopsy was normal. I have been given a prescription for IBD and I am now on the watch and wait list. Had another blood test this morning just to make sure there are still no cancer markers and will go back for another scan in 3 months time. For now, all is great! I do thank you all so very much for supporting me and keeping me in your prayers. I am greatly relieved to say the least as is Todd. God bless you all.

Thursday Thoughts . . .

This is my newest piece of work. I did it yesterday afternoon and I believe it just may be my favourite of all the pieces I have ever done. You cannot see the girl's faces . . . but you just know that they are the best of friends . . . kindred spirit friends . . . eternal friends.

Can you remember when you were young and at school . . . when you had a best friend, who was such a best friend that you just had to have the same boots to wear . . . or coat, or dress . . . someone to share your deepest innermost thoughts with???

Source: uktv.co.uk via Marie on Pinterest

My sister has always been my best friend. She is the one person in my life that has always been there for me, through thick and through thin, no matter what . . . even if she didn't always agree with what I was doing. She has always supported and loved me, regardless of anything.

I have known her, her whole life and most of my life, and loved her for the same amount of time. We share a history together that I share with nobody else on earth, save my brother . . . and even that is not exactly the same . . . because he is a man and I am a woman, and we see things quite differently.

I can tell my sister anything and I know she will understand, and even if she doesn't . . . she will try to understand as best that she can, and never judge me or find me wanting in any way. Her love for me is unconditional and eternal. We may not always see eye to eye . . . but we always see heart to heart . . .

Source: Uploaded by user via Marie on Pinterest

She always gives me the best advice . . . even if I don't always want to hear it. She has always looked up to me . . . even when I wasn't behaving like someone worth looking up to.

There was a time . . . before divorce, and jobs and life which got in the way . . . where we spoke every single morning, for at least an hour and sometimes two. I cherish those moments for what they were . . . and treasure them close in my heart. With time and distance, we seldom have the chance to talk these days as we did then, but she is always in my heart and on my mind. This past week we've been able to talk almost every day . . . just as in the old days. Not for hours, mind . . . but for long enough, and it's been wonderful. I cherish these moments too.

Source: elmwoodcemetery.org via Marie on Pinterest

On these days when my heart is that little bit more tender and my strength wavers that tiniest little bit more . . . and while I am not feeling the bravest that I have ever felt, these conversations this week have been a gift to me, and I am grateful for them and to my Heavenly Father who knows how very much I need them.

I've been carried through these past few weeks on the wings of love and I can feel it. All of your prayers and thoughts are so very much appreciated. Only one more sleep.



*Italian Stir Fry*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Quick, easy and delicious!

2 TBS olive oil
4 medium courgettes, washed
1 large onion, peeled and sliced into wedges
½ cup vegetable stock
2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
¼ cup fresh basil chopped, or 1 TBS dried
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Cut the courgettes in half lengthwise and then cut each half into ½ inch thick slices.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat just until it starts to shimmer and then add the courgettes and onion. Stir fry for two to three minutes, just until it starts to brown slightly. Add the stock, reduce the heat and simmer for about four minutes, just until the stock is evaporated and the courgettes are crispy tender.

Throw in the tomatoes, basil, garlic and black pepper and stir gently. Heat for about one minute to combine flavours.

Sprinkle with the grated Parmesan and serve!



Cooking over in The English Kitchen today a delicious Digestive and Marshmallow Custard.

“Patience is not simply enduring; it is enduring well!”
~Dieter F. Uchtdorf