FOR TODAY April 1st, 2014
Outside my window...
It's overcast, but we really have had some lovely days. The wind still has a real nip to it though. The sun is feeling a lot warmer. If we could just get rid of the wind, but then again it is helping to dry things up!
I am thinking...
`•.¸.•´¸¸.¸.☆¨"“The true way to live
is to enjoy every moment as it passes,
and surely it is in the everyday things around us
that the beauty of life lies.”
~Laura Ingalls Wilder
Never underestimate the beauty of an every day life.
I am thankful...
I am happy for Spring being upon us. I love Spring in the UK. It's one of my favourite seasons.
In the kitchen...
A Spring indulgence of Rhubarb Clafoutis. So good!
I am wearing...
In my Spring/Summer nightgowns now. Packing the Winter ones away! Yay! This one is white cotton with violet coloured ribbons and white lace trim, and purple violets printed all over it.
I am creating...
From Positively Splended Dot Com, a beautiful scarf that is simple and easy to make and you can tailor according to whatever is in your wardrobe and your own needs. I love it! I am so going to make this! It's a complete tutorial and just brilliant!
Mason Jar Luminaries from Mom Spark! They are so easy to make and so beautiful. Mason jars, glass gems, hot glue and another tutorial on how to make your own solar lids. Wicked!
How to decorate your own fabric using Bleach Pens. Found on Craft Gawker. Such an easy and brilliant idea. Why didn't I think of that? You could do table runners and mats for special occasions etc. Imagine autumn leaves on brown fabric for Thanksgiving, Jack O'Lanterns for Halloween, Holly for Christmas, and what fun you could do for other occasions such as Birthdays, Valentines Day, etc. All I need to do is find a bleach pen here in the UK. My ex boss used to bring them back from America with her when she came back. I am on a search!
I couldn't find a source for this, but it is candles made using metal cookie cutters. They are quite cute. I especially like the flower shapes ones, and the snowflakes! Brilliant!
Normally I would do one more. I am trying to break myself of the habit of sticking to numbers for things as it seems a bit OCD to me. Always when I have done these posts, I stick to numbers. Five or Ten. If I go above two or three, I make myself do five and if I go above five I make myself do ten. No more! Grrr....I am feeling a bit like Sheldon on the Big Bang though and my nose is beginning to twitch! arrrrrgh!
I am going...
On Friday I am going Visit Teaching with a friend, and we are hoping to get to the Temple this week. Other than that, no firm plans are in place.
I am wondering...
I am wondering what to do with the chicken breasts I have in the refrigerator thawing for supper. I need to lose weight . . .
I am reading...
The Midwife's Confession, by Diane Chamberlain
I finished Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain and I enjoyed it so very much I looked for another one of her books to read. I settled on this one. I downloaded a try me first section and I was hooked and so I had to go for the whole book. It's very, very good.
Dear Anna,
What I have to tell you is difficult to write, but I know it will be far more difficult for you to hear, and I'm so sorry-
The unfinished letter is the only clue Tara and Emerson have to the reason behind their close friend Noelle's suicide. Everything they knew about Noelle - her calling as a midwife, her passion for causes, her love for her friends and family - described a woman who embraced life. Yet there was so much they didn't know. With the discovery of the letter and its heartbreaking secret, Noelle's friends begin to uncover the truth about this complex woman who touched each of their lives - and the life of a desperate stranger - with love and betrayal, compassion and deceit.
This is a nail biter for sure! Another can't put me down book! So happy to have discovered this author!
I am hoping...
I am hoping I can get my act together soon and start taking losing weight seriously. I have been such a naughty girl this past year and it is telling on me. I need help. I am not good at dieting. I am hopeless at it. Dieting has only ever made me fatter. I need something which will work and not be discouraging. I am also working within a very limited budget. Hard task.Makes me Smile...
I was going through our photographs and stumbled on the ones we took in Austria 5 years ago. What a fun time we had together. It was a beautiful country and we made some lovely friends. Todd and I love to travel. Unfortunately our budget has really been trimmed since I lost my job and we don't get to do it very much now. I am grateful for the times we were able to travel and those memories make me smile.
I am learning...
If at first you don't succeed, try . . . try . . . again. Will keep trying and never give up. You have to believe in yourself if you expect anyone else to believe in you.
Around the House ...
Spring cleaning is in progress.
Home and Garden has a lot of great tips and some printable labels, recipes for cleaning supplies, etc. I like the idea of using environment friendly ingredients.
How to Deep Clean a Kitchen from Premeditated Leftovers. There is some really great advice and tips on how to get your kitchen really clean. We always have a problem with ants. I spray and keep ant traps outside the back door, but they drive me up the wall. Being scrupulously clean is my best defence I have found, which isn't so easy to do when you have a husband who is not always so scrupulous and leaves sugar scattered on counter tops, etc. Sigh . . . men!!
From A Bowl Full of Lemons . . . the ultimate plan of getting the job done. Pretty intense. I need intense. I love being organized. In reality I am a very disorganized person. Things like this help me to be better at getting things done.
I am pondering...
(¯`•♥•´¯)☆
*`•.¸(¯`•♥•´¯)¸.•♥♥•
☆ º ` `•.¸.•´ ` º ☆.¸.☆¸.•♥♥•¸.•♥♥•¸.•♥♥•"Kind words are like honey—sweet to the taste and good for your health". Prov 16:24
Have you received a compliment and afterwards it feels it nourishes your soul? You play it back in your mind. They are sweet like honey and good for your health. Remember you reap what you sow . . . are you sowing kind words to others? I am trying to sow good seed . . .
A favorite quote for today...
`*.¸.*✻ღϠ₡ღ¸.✻´´¯`✻.¸¸.Ƹ̴Ӂ
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*´Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ
¸.•´¸.•~♥♥♥~•.~
The Two Great Lessons of Life:
Choose Love & Trust God.~Jonathan Lockwood Huie
One of my favorite things...
It has been a long time since I have fallen in love with a children's film, but I am totally in love with "Frozen." We got the dvd yesterday and we both really enjoyed it. I think it's just wonderful! I loved the characters, and the music, the moral of the story, etc. It's just a great film with a great message. Quite rare these days!
A few plans for the rest of the week:
Once again not a lot in my date book.
A peek into my day...
An awful lot of this goes on . . . I just wish I was this cute when I was doing it!
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⋯ ◯ ⋯ Take time to enjoy the small*´¯`.¸¸.☆
⋰ ⋮ ⋱ blessings in life.*´¯`.¸¸.☆
✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿
╬♥═╬╬═♥=╬╬═♥╬╬═♥╬╬═♥=╬╬♥═╬
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Wherever you go and whatever you do I hope there's a wonderful day planned for you!
Enjoy a lovely day Marie. I hope the wind loses the cold nip to it. I will gladly send some heat.
ReplyDeleteMiss 17 is in the kitchen cooking biscuits so she has treats for college tomorrow. It is good to see.
I loved watching my kids in the kitchen too Suzan! Always made me happy to know they were carrying on the tradition of cooking and enjoying it!
ReplyDeleteHi, Marie! This past weekend we finally had some tastes of spring--warm sunshine--BLISS! It's been so lovely to wake up to sunshine and birdsong. NICE scraft tutorial. It's similar to one I've made before--I love infinity scarves--so easy to make & wear! Sweet idea for the candles using cookie cutters. Best wishes on your new way to weight loss. Perhaps "diet" is the scary-part--you know all the heavy stuff that comes with dieting. Think of it as healthier eating/living. :o) Have you seen this site, Slender Kitchen: http://www.slenderkitchen.com/ It's Weight Watchers connected, but I've used lots of recipes from it--it's good food, not "diet" food. I've used several of the Slow Cooker Sunday recipes with great taste success, and bonus is that we save some calories. ;o) Was it really 5 years ago you & Todd were in Austria?! Wow... the time does fly! We love to travel too, but haven't done a lot of extra travel the past year or so. Our trips home to the US to see my family are expensive, and we make those a priority. So many places we'd like to go. But gotta see my folks! LOL...Spring cleaning is VERY much in progress here as we wind up some home painting/home improvements. Happy Week to you all there, my friend. :o) ((LOVE & BIG HUGS))
ReplyDeleteTracy, I will have to check that site out! Thanks for sharing it! xxoo
ReplyDeleteWe had thaw too:)
ReplyDeleteStill lots of snow but the thaw felt great.
So hard to tip the scales backwards..especially in winter..and with a love of cooking ..baking..
We had chicken breasts sat but not lo cal just delish.
You can make a grilled chicken salad?
You can do anything..anything at all.
I know you:)
Great little craft ideas..
Oh yes Monique, I am really looking forward to the nicer weather and eating lots of salads and grilled things! xxoo
ReplyDeleteYou always have so much to say. I wish that I could post the way you do. I agree with you about compliments. I love to get them. Many of the compliments you so freely give me warm my heart and list my spirits... but I also enjoy giving compliments. While I was in the hospital I tried to find things to compliment each nurse I had. Some nurses were naturally happy and kind. It was easy to give them a compliment. A few nurses were a bit serious. Smiles did not come as easily to them but I found they always warmed up after a few sincere compliments.
ReplyDeleteAre you going to join the A to Z challenge? I am trying to do it. It would be easy for you since you always post every day.... it is going to be a real challenge for me. I started with A today... I wonder if I will make it all through the month to Z?
Have a great day. Hugs, Lura
Marie, I clearly remember your trip to Austria. Was happy for you but sad because you were not going to post! What this means is I have veen reading your blog for atkeast 5 years now!! Do you know I read the Bible and pray first thing in the morning, then check my mail abd then read your blog and FB everysingle day. Every single day. I Hate not reading your blog.
ReplyDeleteI got to watch Frozen at my son's house while visiting there this past week. His boys know all the songs and love to sing along. They said it was their 3 or 4th time watching it so I was thankful they watched it once again so I could see it. I'm behind commenting as I've been away a little over a week but am back home again now.
ReplyDeleteI thought about doing the a to z challenge Lura, but then decided I probably wouldn't be able to keep up with it. Todd wants to go see his brother at some point his month so that will be about 3 or 4 days I won't be around.
ReplyDeleteI am sure you nurses all loved you! I cannot imagine them no doing so, you are such a loveable person!!
Anna, thank you so much for commenting!! Thank you so much for your loyalty! It means the world to me!
Pam, so happy you had such a nice time at your sons place. I would love to learn the songs myself. THey are so lovely. Let it go was one of my favourites. I think I will learn that one first!!