The Simple Woman's Day Book . . .

FOR TODAY, September 14th, 2009 ...

Outside My Window...
The sun is just peeking up over the horizon. What a change this is from even a few weeks ago. The days are drawing in so quickly now. I am waking up in darkness and coming home from work in darkness. I can see signs of change all around me now . . . the plants in the garden are browning up and dying off . . . their blooms quickly turning to seed heads . . . getting ready for the big winter sleep ahead. Conchers are getting ready to fall down from the chestnut trees, whilst the leaves are beginning to turn. I miss the vibrant colours from back home . . . the deep reds and oranges . . . but it is beautiful here just the same.

I am thinking...
About the lovely walk that Todd, Jess and myself took across the Orchards early last evening. It was quite cool, but pleasant nonetheless. Jess loves to chase apples. Anything that is round is a ball to her and she had picked one up very early on during our walk. After a time it was broken in half and so Todd threw it off into one of the bushes. A bit later we could not see Jess anywhere. We called and we called . . . finally we saw her white legs and white tipped tail bouncing through the orchard towards us . . . in her mouth the broken apple. She had the exact same one and had been searching for it. She did it each time we tried to get rid of it. No matter where Todd threw it, she dug it out and was carrying it in her mouth. Right now . . . it sits at the end of our drive . . . Dogs are amazing creatures, are they not?

I am thankful for...
I have such a special life. I know that I work very hard where I work, and long hours, but I am so blessed to have a job at a time when many others are losing or have lost theirs. I have a comfortable home and plenty to eat . . . boy do I have plenty to eat! We did up our Christmas Cards at the weekend to send to the two children in Africa that we sponsor. We always include a monetary gift for each of them and for their families. We always get pictures back early in the next year showing us what our gift has bought. It does my heart good to see their smiling faces and to know that, in however small a way, we have been able to make a big difference in someone else's life.

From the kitchen...
There's lots of nummies to share. Nummies are better shared don't you think??? I am thinking a nice big bowl of oatmeal for breakfast in a little bit. I never liked oatmeal when I was a girl, but I have come to love it now. Funny how that goes . . .

I am wearing...
Pink knit pajamas with sheep on them. Yes, I'm back to my warmer pajamas now. It's been cooling off nicely in the evenings and a bit cooler in the mornings. I do hope we don't have to start using the heat for a while yet though. That always seems so final . . .


I am creating...


I did another design for a Christmas Card yesterday. I think I am going to sell them in groups of six this year. Six assorted for a tenner, I think. You can see the whole design here if you like. It felt so good to paint something. I am sorting out a pattern to make a doll of one of my character drawings. I have it pretty much planned now and only have to dig out my sewing machine . . . once I have some time to do so that is!

I am going...
There is seminary this week, as well as Young Women's mutual. I am not sure what we are doing in the Mutual Activity. In any case it should be fun. We have a really small group this year. Basically we only have the one girl coming out. It's kind of sad for her really. I wish we had more . . . I have two seminary students, brothers. They are good lads and so smart. We're studying the Book of Mormon this year. I'm enjoying it a lot. I think it's good to study the scriptures . . . to feast on their words. Everytime I read them, I am able to bring out some new wisdom, something else that I hadn't noticed before . . . that's pretty amazing I think!

I am reading...



Life in the Scottish Coal Mines, or any coal mine, was a horrible existance for any human being. I am still reading this book which follows the journey of several families who made the move from this hopeless existance, to the city of Edinborough and on across the Atlantic Ocean to America, culminating in the long trek across the American Plains to find the "Promised Land" which lay in a valley between two mountains. It's a fascinating and riveting historical novel about some of the early Scottish pioneers in the LDS church and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I highly recommend, even if you aren't a member of the church. To think that people once had to live and work under those conditions in the coal mines is mind boggling. I'll never complain about any job I have to do again! Todd is reading a book written by Gerald Lund called The Undaunted, which is on a similar theme. I got it for him for his birthday and it's been signed by the author. We've both read pretty much all of Gerald Lund's books. He's a wonderful author.

I am hoping...
My mother is going in to have her second eye operated on tomorrow. I am really hoping that this operation goes better than the last one. She is still not seeing well after that one. One of her friends is staying with her to help her afterwards. It is at times like this that I really hate living so far away . . .

I am hearing...
It's all very quiet except for a magpie making a big ruckus in the garden and the ticking clock on the wall. It sits right above the computer . . . the clock that is. It is a teapot with a teacup pendulum and was one of the first things we bought together for our home when we got married almost 9 years ago now. It made me smile then, and it makes me smile now.

Around the house...
Not a lot has gone on this past week, except for the things that had to be done. Hopefully things will look up this coming week!

One of my favorite things...
is collecting salt and pepper shakers. I have quite a few sets now. I have always loved them. Each set is so very unique and different from the rest. When I was a girl there was a restaurant in my town called the Shaker Restaurant and it had a whole wall filled with salt and pepper shakers. I think that is when I first fell in love with them. Sometimes after school we would gather in one of the booths and have a coke and a gossip. I used to oggle the salt and pepper shakers. They were far more interesting to me than the boys that hung around. hmmm . . . wierd I know!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...
Work, painting and cooking, with a dash of Seminary and Mutual thrown in. I am also hoping to get some sewing in. We shall see!!!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...



Some of the corn flowers in our garden that are blooming so well right now and providing a bit of colour. I was so surprised to see them. Our Sweet peas had not been doing well and so Todd threw in some of these corn flower seeds and lo and behold, they ended up being scattered amongst the sweet peas, which finally started to bloom . . . little pockets of blue amidst the other blooms. Pretty, very pretty. I love old fashioned blooms the most of all . . . I guess I'm just a gal with simple tastes.

And there you have it, my Simple Woman's Day Book for today. 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 made Todd and myself a delicious Tagine for our supper last night. A Tagine is just another word for Moroccan Casserole. I like the word Tagine better though . . . it sounds much more exotic. I don't have a regular tagine dish, so I just use my Dutch oven. It works much the same. I don't think I'd be able to use a Tagine with my halogen burners anyways. Does anyone know?




*Autumn Chicken Tagine*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

I love Tagines. I don't have a regular tagine dish, so I just always cook this in my dutch oven. I like to think it comes out tasting the same regardless, but if you do have a tagine, use it by all means! The chicken gets meltingly tender and the sweet potatoes and squash all juicy and flavourful with the merest hint of spice. This goes very well with couscous, barley, rice or ebly.

olive oil
8 chicken pieces
3 large red onions, peeled and chopped
5 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 cinnamon sticks broken in half
1 pound of winter squash, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
a small bunch of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
a small handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped

Place a bit of olive oil in the bottom of a large flameproof casserole or dutch oven, or tagine. When it is hot add the chicken pieces in batches and brown all over. Remove and keep warm. Add the onions to the drippings. Cook, stirring, until soft and then add the garlic and cinnamon. Cook until fragrant. Stir in the squash and sweet potatoes. Return the chicken to the pan. Add the stock and bring to the boil. Cover tightly, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Season with some salt and pepper. Scatter the parsley and mint over top and serve.



This was dessert. Caramelized Pears with Mascarpone Cream. Check it out on The English Kitchen. This my absolute most favourite dessert of all time, and that says a lot!