Wednesday, 20 November 2024

Wednesday Witterings . . .

 

 I decided to have toast and jam for my breakfast this morning.  That is not something which I have very often at all. Jam is a rare treat for me because I am a diabetic and I only have a thin smear of it on the toast. Just enough to get a taste of us.


When I was eating it I was reminded of my ex-mother-in-law Elizabeth. She passed away a couple of years ago now, but I can remember sitting at her dining room table eating toast together in the morning with jam.  She would break off little bits of her toast and each bit got a spoonful of jam on it.  Oh, how she enjoyed it.  Watching her do that somehow gave me permission to do the same.


It was far too much jam, and far too sweet. But she was in heaven.  I don't think she really ate unless people were visiting her. And when we were at her place, she loved to go out for dinner and brunch.  Pizza, etc. There was an all you could eat Breakfast Buffet in Charlottetown that she loved to go to with us. Her treat.  And she would eat at least six desserts. No mains. Just the desserts. And she would scrape all of the filling out of her piece of pie and eat just that, but she would scrape and scrape and scrape until she might just as well have eaten the crust all the same.


She had a really sweet tooth. So did my ex.  I never really had a sweet tooth back then. We were not brought up in a home where we were indulged with a lot of sweet things. Christmas and Easter were pretty much the only times we had baked goodies and sweeties. Oh, and Halloween. Our mother couldn't control that.


 

We have been enjoying a week of rainy, cloudy days. Not quite as cold as it could be, but not warm either.  I can deal with rain. I got more than used to it when I lived in the U.K. They loved talking about the weather there. And they had plenty of it.  Weather, that is.  I remember my first year there it rained every single day.  If it wasn't coming down in torrents it was just in the air. Mist.  There were loads of floods in the Southern part of the country as there often is. That was the year I learned that you don't melt in the rain, and that if you stayed indoors because it was raining, you would never get anywhere or do anything. We did not have a car then so going out in the rain was just what we did.

I was a bit annoyed about it because the stepmom had told my son that he wouldn't want to go to England because it rained all the time there, and I did not like her being right about it. Petty I know.  Life is what it is.


 

That is a bit like my week is going this week.   I make plans in the evening for what I want to do the next day, but then the morning rolls around, and they all go south. 


My foot lady was supposed to be here at 9 am yesterday to do my toenails.  That came and went, then 10 came and went, 11.  No foot lady.  So, I put something in the oven, and just as I was doing that she called and asked was she supposed to come, and could she come now??? I told her, give me half an hour because by then it was 11:30, and I just wanted time enough to be able to get what was in the oven done and out of there.   I had also taken out my sewing machine thinking I might get some sewing done, so I needed to get that put away.


 

A lot of people are putting up their Christmas Decorations now.  I don't know how to feel about that.  Is it too early?   I was watching a girl on YouTube decorate her new home with her family yesterday.  Forgotten Way Farms.  Watching them put up their Christmas things made me feel a bit sad actually.  She had boxes of things she had been collecting for years and years, everything holding sweet memories for them of years gone by and Christmas's enjoyed together as a family.  I think I started to feel a bit sorry for myself, which I really hate doing. I thought about all of the beautiful blown glass ornaments I had collected over in the U.K. and the nativity sets. The Jim Shore Angels, etc.  I don't know what happened to any of that stuff.

And then I thought of all the Christmas ornaments that I had created myself and collected when my own family was growing up and how when I had to move out of the family home, my ex kept all of that stuff, and I wondered where it had all gone to. All those memories I had made for our family and things the children had made.

It just made me feel really sad.  There is a part of me that just wants to take every penny I have and go out and buy all new stuff so that I can have Christmas in my home now, but that wouldn't really change a thing and so I won't.

I just feel a bit hum buggy about it all.  I had bought all those lovely Christmas cards to send out and then the darned Post Office goes on strike.  Party Poopers. They know how to pick their moments, and it is always at Christmas.

So, I guess no, I am really not feeling like it is time to put up the Christmas Decorations. Not now anyways.




I guess I am just feeling a bit blue this morning. My brother has his appointment with his Urologist on Friday to discuss treatment. He is pretty sure he is going to lose his kidney and some lymph nodes.  Not the best news really.  It all makes me feel really sad.  It also makes me feel like burying my face in a cake or a bag of potato crisps. But, of course, none of those things are good things and would not change anything.

The reality is that when the people I care about get bad news like that I always think that it should be me.  That I am the one who really deserves to get the cancer diagnosis because I am the one who has totally messed up their life.  That I am the one who doesn't deserve to be happy, or healthy, or successful, etc. That if life was really fair, it would be me, and not them.

And it's not fair. Not really. My brother deserves so much more out of life. He is a good, good person. A much better person than I have ever been or will ever be. 



And then I have to remind myself of this.  I had hoped to do a video today. I have the fruit for my fruitcake macerating right now.  But now I don't feel like it. My heart just isn't in it, or in anything really.  So, I will end this now, believing that tomorrow is a new day and that somehow on the other side of today, things won't seem so bad.


A thought to carry with you . . .


° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ | 田田 |門 ★

 *.˛.°It isn't hoarding if
your stuff is really cool.
~unknown
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •


Open Face Tuna Melts


In the English Kitchen today, Open Face Tuna Melts.  These were really very good. I enjoyed them with veggies and dip.


I do hope you have a great day. Sorry I am not full of sunshine today. This too will pass. In the meantime, don't forget!


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⊰✿░G░O░D⊰✿⊰L░O░V░E░S⊰✿⊰░Y░O░U░⊰✿
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And I do too!    


   



Tuesday, 19 November 2024

A Day Book . . .

 



FOR TODAY, November 18th, 2024


 
(source)

OUTSIDE MY WINDOW ...

It's still dark outside and it is cold and wet, with a light rain. It is supposed to be rainy all week this week.  That's November, dismal and grey and wet. It could always be a lot worse! It could be frigid and snowing!  I'll take the rain!



I AM THINKING ...

This was back in the day. Early Coronation Street.  I started watching it when I was a young teenager, not quite as early as this episode, but it was still in black and white, and it fired in me a desire to visit the U.K. someday, as if the Beatles hadn't already done so.  I watched it for many, many years and then I stopped when I was living in the U.K. as a certain someone didn't like it very much.  I probably wouldn't recognize it or the characters that are in it now.


 

I AM ALSO THINKING ...

My church is having a turkey dinner with games, etc. on the 30th of November. We can bring guests if we want to.  I would like to bring my father as I think he might enjoy it, and I would also like to invite Eileen and Tim.  They wouldn't come, however. Nobody from my family has ever been to my church except for my mother. I don't know what they are afraid of.  My mother came once, just to the sacrament meeting part of it.  When she went back home my ex-husband met her at the door all anxious and worried that something bad might have happened to her for going to my church. That is why nobody in my family will go to my church. We live in the Bible belt of Canada, and they all think that Latter Day Saints are on the fast track to hell. And that if they went to my church even once, they would be in danger themselves.  I see other people at church with their families all the time. It is a very family-oriented church. That is the hard part of being a member of this church when you are on your own.  I think my dad might come, but I will see. There is no harm in asking.


Vanilla Buttermilk Cake

IN THE KITCHEN ...

A delicious Vanilla Buttermilk Cake.  This is a six-inch cake and one of the best Vanilla cakes I have ever baked and eaten. It's simply fabulous. It's a good thing it's not any larger than that or I would be in big trouble, lol




ON MY "TO COOK" LIST ...

Italian Venetian Soup.  From 2 Sister's Recipes.  This looks simply fabulous!


LOOKING FORWARD TO ...

We are all going to the Big Scoop for supper on Wednesday night, even Dan. That will be fun. They have a new rotisserie now to do chicken. I might give it a go!


 

SOMETHING NICE ...

I love Anne of Green Gables. I have watched all of the movies a few times. I watch them every chance I can get.  The old one with Megan Fellows in it.  I also like the series on Netflix, Anne with an E.  A friend had gifted me with the whole series when I was in the U.K. and I loved it.  I will re-gift myself with it one day. 


 

SOMETHING ELSE THAT'S NICE ...

White wooden furniture with a distressed finish. If I had the money, I would replace all of my dark dining room furniture with white furniture, but sigh, I am old and will make do with what I have.



SOMETHING THAT I KNOW TO BE TRUE ...

I cannot refute this.  I live it every day. It can sometimes take years, but eventually . . . He will save us and turn our lives around for the better.


I AM WANTING TO CREATE ...


 

Natural decorations for my tiny Christmas Tree . . . 


 

My fingers are itching to paint  . . . 


 


Tiny bottle brush trees . . .  PixieHill




Knitted bows  . . .  Source



Crochet Santa Badges . . . Etsy 



 

OH MY GOODNESS ...

A nest full of baby otters.  So cute.


 

NOW THAT'S A CHEERFUL SIGHT . . . 

Pristine white, all decked out in red and green.





I AM READING ...

Where the Broken Heart Still Beats, by Carolyn Meyer


At the age of nine, Cynthia Ann Parker was captured in an Indian raid and taken to live as a slave with the Comanche. Twenty-four years later, she is the wife of a chief and the mother of a young warrior destined to become the great chief Quanah Parker. But in 1861, Parker and her infant daughter are recaptured and returned against their will to a white settlement. This moving story is a riveting examination of the conflicts between Native Americans and white settlers.


THINGS I LOVE ...

 

Hot spiced apple drinks  . . . 


 


Flea market treasures  . . . 


 

The smell of cinnamon  . . . 


 

Stamps  . . . 


 


Hugs from the ones that I love . . . you can't beat them!



SOMETHING TO WATCH ...

I've been revisiting the series Olive Kitterage on Crave.


A THOUGHT TO CARRY WITH YOU ...


° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ | 田田 |門 ★

 *.˛.There is one thing which gives
radiance to everything.
It is the idea of something
being around the corner.
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
~G.H. Chesterton
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •


And that is my daybook for this week!  Thanks always for being here!


  ⋱ ⋮ ⋰
⋯ ◯ ⋯ Take time to enjoy the small *´¯`.¸¸.☆

  ⋰ ⋮ ⋱ blessings in life.*´¯`.¸¸.☆ 




✿¸.•*¨`*•..✿✿¸.•*¨`*•..✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿ ✿¸.•
*¨`*•. ╬♥═╬╬═♥=╬╬═♥╬╬═♥╬╬═♥=╬╬♥═╬♥╬╬═♥╬╬═♥=╬╬♥╬
░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░░░░░░░░░░░░ 


Have a beautiful day!  Don't forget!  

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⊰✿░G░O░D⊰✿⊰L░O░V░E░S⊰✿⊰░Y░O░U░⊰✿
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And I do too!    

   


Monday, 18 November 2024

Small and Wonderful Things . . .

 



"The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand. But who gets excited by a mere penny? It is dire poverty indeed when a man is so malnourished and fatigued that he won't stoop to pick up a penny. But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days. It is that simple. What you see is what you get." ~Anne Dillard 


 A few of the small and wonderful things which bring untold joy into my life. It's the small things in life which truly mean the most. Simple abundance . . . it's the best.




The blessing of family. It may not be perfect, but I have a family which I love very much and who love me back.  I enjoy the times we get to spend together whether in real time or in virtual time.  My parents did a good job.  They raised three individuals who are caring and loving and kind. We also enjoy each other's company and have raised pretty good families of our own. We miss our mom, but she is never very far away from us as we all carry her in our hearts. I love my family.  They are a great blessing from God.




I love my little home. It, too, is not perfect, but it is mine. It is all that I need.  I could not ask for any more than what I have.  My home is comfortable, and it is affordable, and it is mine. It keeps me warm and safe. It is cozy.  I have everything I need and then some. I am blessed beyond measure.

I also love my car.  I am so blessed to have one and to be able to drive it. I did not drive at all in the U.K. It was too crazy over there. I never felt comfortable driving over there. Wrong side of the car. Wrong side of the road.  Far too busy.  And don't get me started on the roundabouts.





My two furry family members. I get to share my space, my home, with these two furry companions. They provide me no end of delight, entertainment and love. I am never alone or bored with these two sharing my home with me.  We play together. I laugh at them. We share cuddles.  I could not ask for any better companions to share my home with me. It is a mutual admiration society.





Food and work. Work and food. I never go hungry. I always have plenty to eat and a job I enjoy working with food that helps to occupy my time, keeps me busy and keeps me well fed. I am able to be able to say that I have never known real hunger and deprivation. What a great blessing that is.  I do take it for granted sometimes, but when I stop to think about it, I know how blessed I am to have what I have. Food is more than just sustenance for me. It is fun and preparing it provides me with a decent living.  God is good.


 




My Faith and my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  It is everything to me. It garnishes my every hour.  I pray unceasingly.  I have surrounded myself with small reminders of my Heavenly Father's love for me.  I have always been a person of faith. For as long as I can remember, God and Jesus Christ have been a part of my daily life. I am grateful for parents who taught me how to pray and where to look for help when I need it. My faith has given me strength in times when I did not know how I was going to move forward, and it has strengthened me to help keep me going, and going, and going. Whether it is real or not, or imagined, or whatever other people think . . .  it is real to me and tangible. God is real to me and tangible. I have seen too much evidence of Him working in my life for it to be otherwise. I wish I could give the gift of faith to everyone, but unfortunately, it's not something you can give to another. It is something they need to find for themselves.




I am grateful for my God given talents. My super-powers. We all have them. They are not all the same, but once you recognize them for what they are, they will always hold you in good stead.  I have been blessed with many talents, some of them quite obvious and others hidden. You have talents too. Some people are singers. Some are painters. Some are sewers, cooks, etc.  Some are encouragers, light givers, smile makers.  Helpers in thought, word and deed. We do not have to be the best at anything, we only need to try and to give what we can, when we can, in whatever way we can. A talent buried is a talent wasted. We must use them and in doing so, know that they will be multiplied.

Love, talents, joy, faith, friendship, etc. these are all nothing unless they are shared. Sharing doubles what you have and brings abundance into your life. 

Are we not all blessed?

And with that I best leave you with a thought for the day  . . . 


° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ | 田田 |門 ★

 *I alone cannot change the world,
but I can cast a stone across the water
to create many ripples.° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
~Mother Theresa° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •


Muskotsnitter


In the kitchen today, Muskotsnittar. A Swedish crispy butter spice cookie made with just 6 ingredients. Perfect for the holidays with a cup of coffee or for a Christmas cookie exchange!  Be warned.  These are incredibly moreish.


I hope that you have a beautiful day filled with light, love, and filled with abundance. Be blessed and happy. Don't forget!


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⊰✿░G░O░D⊰✿⊰L░O░V░E░S⊰✿⊰░Y░O░U░⊰✿
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And I do too! 
 


Saturday, 16 November 2024

Saturday nice . . .

 


I like the silence of old fields at night,
The peace of evening, dawn's attendant hush,
Mother-of-pearl inlaid against the sky
As if a master hand with careful brush,
Stippled the sky as housewives often do,
Tinting their kitchen walls in rose and blue.

I like a quiet place where no rude voice
Shatters the silence into quivering sound,
Where porticulas grow in furry clumps
And lie like home-made carpets on the ground,
Where sweet wild olives leaning by a pool
Wave silver wands to children by the school.

I love the peace of Sabbath afternoons,
The calm well being of a day of rest,
Where men walk idly out around the barns,
Clean shaven . . . garbed in all their Sunday best.
Even the cattle seem to sense the day
And walk sedately on their homeward way.

I like the silence of an autumn woods
Before the russet leaves begin to fall,
The utter stillness of a prairie night,
As if it slept in some eternal thrall,
A willing prisoner held in Beauty's sway
Dreaming the quiet centuries away.
~Edna Jacques, Silence
Beside Still Waters, 1939


Silence is golden, or at least that is what the song always said. I think there is some truth to that thought.  We are surrounded by noise on a daily basis.  There is a very busy road that runs just past the end of my street.  My weekdays are embroidered with the sound of large trucks zooming past, loud radios blaring from hot rods, (never mind their blaring engines).  An occasional ambulance on its way to the main motorway which lays just to the North of us.  Trucks beeping as they back into the farm market behind me, delivering their goods.

Silence is peaceful.  A late afternoon with the waning light scattering its golden beams across the floor, a cat nestled into my side on the sofa . . . his breath coming in quiet snores, the heat pump humming across the room, the sound of my fingers as they brush against the pages of the book I am reading as I turn them . . . the trickling sound of the cat's water fountain . . . the ticking of my clock.

Peaceful moments. The quiet sound of joy.




My sister had a box of old photos for me the other day.  I guess mom had been separating photos into three boxes for us children at some point. My sister had forgotten all about them.  The box is full of photos of my children through the years, and myself. I was so pleased to get them. This was one of the photos in the box. I would say I am somewhere between the ages of 2 and 3 in the photo.  I look pretty happy. That is my mother next to me. I recognize her face, and I can see that she is smiling back at me. She looks very happy, even if all I can see is the side.  This is a photograph filled with joy.

Nobody could have given me a nicer gift than this box of photographs.  The next time we go to Michaels I am going to pick up a few photo albums to put them in. I did not have many photos of my children and now I have a lot. It's simply wonderful. What a gift.


 

I am having the family over here for dinner tomorrow. Nothing too special. I had bought one of those Christmas pies at the Superstore the other week.  It's a turkey pie with all of the flavors of Christmas in it supposedly. My sister said it was good as they have had one.  Anyways, I am going to cook the one I bought and make some sides to go with it. Just a simple meal, but one that my sister doesn't have to cook. It will make for a bit of a break for her and be a bit of a treat for me.

I don't have the family over very often, so this will be nice.


 

I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; 
Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 
PSALM 139:14


Fearfully, when translated from Hebrew, means “with great reverence, heartfelt interest, and with respect.” Wonderfully, when translated from Hebrew, means “unique and set apart.” So, it’s not exactly the way we understand it in English. 

I think the Psalms are one of my favorite books in the bible. Psalms and Proverbs, aside from the four Gospels, of course. There is so much wisdom there. Words for life. 

What a wonderful thought to think that each one of us, with all of our individuality and uniqueness, was created with great reverence and heartfelt interest . . .  with respect by a God who loves each one of us individually and has a vested interest in our futures. 

Patiently, deliberately knit together with intent whilst we were still in our mother's womb. (Vs 13 of the same Psalm.) Knitting is a craft.  It is intentional and done with purpose.  The hands that do it must be skilled and patient, stable. Every person was made with that same gravity of intention, fearfully and wonderfully. 

It's how we all begin our lives. And then life happens, and it is much kinder to some than it is to others. Some lives appear to be quite charmed.  Others quite harsh.  What happens to us, how we live, our environment . . . this is what shapes us as individuals. 

But we all began, created with the same loving intention and reverence. We are all God's children.  At least that is my belief.  I, with my imperfectly human love, love each of my children equally, unconditionally, no matter what.  How much more perfectly does He love us.   It is good for us to love one another as He does, or to at least try. To always be kind.





What is your perfect day?  A day in which everything you touch turns to gold and where nothing untoward happens? Some days are diamonds and some days are dust.  Some days our cakes fall and our toast burns. But there is something splendid in each day, even the burnt toast days. The toast may have burnt, but at least you had toast.  

At the end of each day, I always take a few minutes to express the gratitude that I have for the day I have just spent. And even on my worst days, I can find things to be grateful for.  Sometimes even if it is only that I opened my eyes in the morning.  But it is never just that.  Never.  There is always something more to be thankful for. Small pearls.  Pockets of joy. 

Our lives are built from small and simple things and pleasures. It is good to take note of them.  To count them.  To add them up and store them in our vaults of gratitude. That is how a good life is built. 


 



I loved this.  It is how I try to spend my days.  Paying attention. Finding something amazing to feel in even the simplest of things. Seeking out the joy in the ordinary.

No, I am not Pollyana, and I do have my moments. Moments of sadness. Or hurt.  But just think, what is joy if you have never felt the sad. Or happiness without having also felt the hurt. There is great value in opposition. You cannot have one without also having the other.   What is a holiday if you have never had to work?


 

I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields,
that it kisses them so gently?
And then it covers the up snug, you know,
with a white quilt; and perhaps it says,
"Go to sleep darlings, till the summer comes again."
~Lewis Carrol


We have not had any snow yet.  A few bits of sleet, but no snow.  It will come and when it does, I will be filled with wonder.  The first snow of the year always fills my heart with wonder.  It's like magic, and then January happens and February, and it loses a bit of its charm. And March, still yet more charm is lost  . . . 

What if we tried to find joy and wonder in every snow fall? Believing that each flake is a little kiss from heaven?  Is it possible?  Ask me in January.

And with that I will leave you with a thought for the day  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ | 田田 |門 ★

 *.˛.°Today: Soak in what's real and
what's real is unhurried. The ground.
The air. The exhale. the planted seed.
The shift. The season.° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
~Victoria Erickson° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •



Heuvos con Ajos (Spanish Garlic Eggs) 



In The English Kitchen today . . .  Heuvos con Ajos, Spanish Garlic Eggs.   These were insanely delicious. Simple and delicious. Unbelievably so.


I hope you have a beautiful weekend. May your cup runneth over with all the things and the people and moments that you love.  Don't forget!



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And I do too!