Sunday Afternoon Tea

  

"There needs to be a homemaker 

exercising some measure of skill,

imagination, creativity..."

Edith Schaeffer, What is a Family

I love this quote by Edith Schaeffer, all of her books have inspired my creativity but especially reading Hidden Art as a bride (now called The Hidden Art of Homemaking) and What is a Family... over and over in the years decades which have passed since the wedding. 

My own mother was a wonderful woman but the circumstances of her life did not make for creating a beautiful home.  It was through Edith's books that I found not only the permission to create... but the understanding that it was essential to the joy of my family.  Which is why the above quote is so special.  A family needs someone to be the one who creates beauty and makes memories and thinks of ways to bring the joy of the Creator into the home.

As this is my year to Create, I have been praying for and looking to ways I can bring that creative spirit back to my life.  One such road to creativity came about in a rather unusual conversation with my sister, Bonnie.  We were chatting away one day when she suddenly asked me if I realized how much work I had caused her last summer... ummm... no. 

Then it turned out to be a rather If You Give a Mouse a Cookie sort of adventure.  She reminded me of the lavender plant I had dropped off one day, when I realized I didn't have room for it in my own herb garden.  Yes, I remember that... I was there.  She ended up enjoying the lavender so much that she purchased a couple dozen herb plants when they went on clearance (for twenty cents each!), grew them, dried them, and enjoyed it all so much that she asked for a dehydrator for Christmas.  All because there was no room in my garden.

As a further result of that conversation, talk went to growing and harvesting and canning and getting together this spring so her granddaughter (now that is a twist) can help us do some canning.  For you see... umm...I have this problem with learning new things so I have this pressure canner that has never been used.  Over ten years old and it has not seen one glass canning jar... or any other material for that matter. 

It's not that I a perfectionist (family laughing in the background at that one), it is more that I don't like the learning curve involved in something new... especially equipment with all those instructions to keep it from blowing up... and knitting needles.

But God has other plans and one must be careful what they pray about... as in telling Him I submit to this being my year to create.  For this simple gift of an herb plant last summer will most likely end up in getting back to water bath canning and learning the pressure canner this year... small beginnings always necessary before they become something more.

I've made another start as one of my organizing projects was going through the fabric I held onto through my non-sewing years.  My sewing machine has been dropped off at the shop and a part ordered.  A discussion about knitting and learning to knit with my friend who has promised a beginning lesson.  The dust taken off the cake decorating kit I bought with Christmas money... last year.   The materials for my scrapbook journal all assembled, ready for use.  A decision to better organize recipes I want to try and then... really make them.

Oh, I have been creative through the years, my house is my canvas and you know how I love to display all things teatime... as well as vintage.  I made the decision to (finally) start a vegetable garden a few years ago and I'm learning more as each season passes.  There is always more to learn about any form of gardening.

So, it isn't that I never create, it is just that I fear not being an expert.  There, I've said it... it is hard to not do things well (let's not even talk about perfectly).  And when you begin... you often are far from good.  Believe me, have you ever had a child learning to play a violin???

I think especially those of us in modern Western cultures, where there are experts on absolutely everything, need to return to being Renaissance men and women.  We need to do without being an expert.  Perhaps that is what I loved most about the homeschooling years, we dabbled a bit in "this" and "that" and it kind of gave us permission to try and fail and try again and get really good at some things.

So, in this this year of... create... I'm tossing aside the need to become an expert in anything to try a lot of creating.  I may only have minutes to work on the scrapbook journal, and an hour here and there to sew, and if I'm fortunate... an afternoon to try my hand at pastry bags and royal icing.  I'm going to try new herbs and cooking with kale and braided bread and knitting a scarf and perhaps I may even learn what all those little symbols on my camera mean... maybe.

Everything has to have a beginning, no matter how imperfect it is.  As my very favorite quote of Edith goes, "If you expect perfection or nothing, you will always end up with... nothing".  Same with not starting at all, if one does not make that first effort... one ends up at the end of the week and the month and the year and the lifetime with... nothing. 

No books written, quilts to hand down to children and grandchildren, knitted scarves to remember one by, no scrapbooks, no memories of beautifully decorated cakes or cupcakes, no songs written or sung, no handwritten recipe cards with chocolate stains, no paintings or photographs, nothing... because we were afraid to start.  How sad...

Art in the kitchen

I think this is called "Ask, Seek, Knock"

One of things I started to notice (long ago) about some European kitchens was the use of "real art" on their walls.

When we moved to this house, I decided to hang one of my favorite art prints in the kitchen right along with vintage items and the Rooster "stuff".  I've enjoyed it for years now...

Photo: September, 2010

Note:  Someone had asked about the vintage potholders.  I found a few through the years at thrift stores but I think those displayed were the potholders my friend, Linda, gave me when she found out I collected them.  She and I have been trading thrifted treasures since we met in front of the book section of a Goodwill store.  :)

Cozy warmth

Thank you for your kindness and understanding regarding my recent post regarding family drama (and to let me know you do not think I ever ask for anything!).  That is most important.  Fortunately, now that I have come to know the truth in this situation... I can stay completely out of it and let others closer to the situation handle all the details.  :)

It has once again been cold and snowy in my part of the world.  I'm staying as warm as possible inside with a thick, cable-knit sweater and at times a throw around the shoulders.  There are eggs and butter coming to room temperature on the kitchen counter to be transformed into "something yummy" this afternoon... room temperature takes longer in January.

We're having homemade chicken soup again for dinner and perhaps a loaf of homemade bread... that is sounding better all the time.

I lit the candles on my kitchen windowsill this morning and evenings have often found the candle on the dining table lit.  It is the one item decorated for Christmas which I'll keep out all winter... the candle is all tucked into wheat... the apples are fake... the oranges are not. I find dried orange slices (and sliced apples) such a lovely and inexpensive way to decorate.

Speaking of Christmas and such... I loved the new Starbuck's ornament so much, I hung it in my kitchen.  Not very vintage but it blends right in and gives me happy thoughts. ;)

This picture is for Stephanie.  After Christmas, I hung the sweet wreath she had on this "window" back up... added my "faith" word... and a little greenery here and there.  Thank you, Steph!  I am very much enjoying those decorative items you couldn't use in the new house.

When unforgiveness becomes family drama

I do want to thank everyone who orders through my Amazon widget again.  I was able to order a book on gardening (how to!) for me, a belated Christmas gift for the New England family, and an inexpensive copy of an out-of-print book of essays because of you.  I appreciate every credit.  :)

But it also reminded me of some recent family drama.  I usually stay out of any and all such drama, especially family gossip.  I call it "closing emotional doors", something similar to what I read the Schaeffer's did at L'Abri.  Edith said every family has to have a time when the door is closed, even when they are in ministry... for them this was represented by the actual closing of a real life door but talking about protecting our family in all ways.

I am rather infamous in the family for not wanting to listen to anyone talk about someone else but especially as I developed more physical fatigue... emotional baggage brings with it physical ailments... that I do not need at this stage of life.

In this case, there were two sides to a story involving very serious accusations.  I had prayed and asked God to show me who was telling the truth.  I listened and asked questions and during one conversation, a family member told me gossip which another person had said about me and my family.  One of the accusations being that I only "got online" (they have no idea what a blog is) to ask people for money.  Others included treating my children very well and my husband... not so much.

Now, this person has only been in my house a few times in the past years and we have only spoken over the phone now and then.  I had to stop and ponder if there was any truth in her thinking I didn't treat my husband well when she visited.  For if any of you deal with a bi-polar person on a daily basis, you know there are times you do have to speak sternly, only because they are clueless as to what is going on around them in their very manic and very depressive states... but I didn't remember that happening when she was here.

As to asking for money or gifts, it may have been after receiving a financial gift from a blog friend... one who felt the Lord was wanting them to share with me to meet a need.  That has only happened a few times and as for gifts... there are blog friends who have sent sweet gifts and I cherish them all but you may notice I rarely mention it (only recently showing one gift that I framed) because I never, ever want to make anyone feel I am asking for something.  Well, other than going through the Amazon widget if you have no close friend or family who has one on their blog.  ;)

The person sharing this with me had never told me any of this before and I knew it was God answering my prayer.  As I talked to her further, I realized the other person had lied to me about other events surrounding the accusations against her... and that they were true.  Accusations which I refused to believe as they didn't seem like something this family member would do but over the years... she has changed.

As I pondered what this person and others have said, I realized she had become very bitter through the years, most likely her emotions as a simmering pot on the back of the stove concentrating all anger and hurt from her youth until now... much older... she filters the world through dark emotional glasses.  Where once was a strong, dependable woman whom we all teased as being rather "bossy"... her soul was filled with the darkness of not letting go.  Any actions of others are not seen as what they are but what she sees them as... through her worldview so to speak.

She has never believed in a God who forgives so she hangs onto guilt from bad decisions, never finding freedom and release to go on.  For there is freedom from a teenage pregnancy... freedom from (I highly suspect) abortions... freedom from anger at parents and ex-husbands... freedom, forgiveness, a lightening of the load.. "I'm sorry" covers it all as one truly repents and follows Him who washes away it all and leaves one as pure as the white snow.

On one hand, it was shocking for me to realize what the family member had become... that the accusations were true.  However, I wasn't angry at what she had said about me... much more then I had shared here. She had also spoken badly about others. Somehow I understood... it was as if He gave me a glimpse into the darkness of soul and showed me where it all started... all those years ago... and how her words against all of us were nothing more than the outpouring of that bitterness within.  I knew how to pray.

Oh, I did examine my own heart and my own ways in case there was any truth within her words... another mental Post-it-Note to be more gentle with my husband when he is having a bad day... writing here to make certain blog friends never, ever think I am asking for anything when I share how we live with beauty on such a low income... and definitely a reminder not to make immediate judgements on who is right or wrong about a situation... for it was the person I never suspected who was the guilty party.  Only God knows the heart of man.

I also took from this recent drama the need to daily ask Him what needs forgiveness in my own life, burdens to lay before His altar, forgiveness to accept, bad feelings toward others (which I HAD been guilty of last week) put away, not to be a stumbling block to another... giving grace, breathing grace, walking in grace.

The "How I beat inflation by stocking up" series... links to archives

We all have been experiencing sicker (Freudian spelling slip) shock on food prices, lately.  Last night, Christopher arrived home after watching a basketball game at a sports restaurant with friends.  He told me he thought the waiter had made a mistake when he got his bill but apparently it does now cost nearly $19.00 for two appetizers and one Cola!  His friend who was with him told him it is now over $11.00 to eat at one of the "food markets" on campus... that is for one meal.  Those are steep rises in previous costs.

This week, I saw a news program on TV about the large rise in grocery store sales as more people are cooking at home and I can tell you... it may be cheaper than eating out but those prices have all gone up, too.  I wrote a four-part series in 2009 about beating inflation through stocking up. In it, I shared how I keep food prices down as much as possible by stocking the pantry.  Here are those links...

How I stock up 1... here.
How I stock up 2... here.
How I stock up 3... here.
How I stock up 4... here.

It takes work and planning but if you look at how much you save as if you were earning that much per hour, you will be surprised!

Getting to know authors through their blogs

A walk through the grocery store yesterday brought my mind the blessing of blogs... explanation to follow.  When I created Coffee Tea Books and Me in the summer of 2006, it was partially intended as a place to write ponderings (and the recipe blog to park family recipes) as well as to replace the daily letter I sent out to Stephanie, Busy Bee, and Uncle Gibby (Jean's late hubby).  Little did I know the blessings I would find in blogs and blogging.

What sparked this walk down memory lane?  A magazine on display, one which I had made a special trip down that particular aisle to see if it was on the shelves.  Yes... and despite having to explain to my husband the expenditure... it went into my shopping cart.  ;)

For the picture on the front cover of the latest Country Gardens is the California garden of my blog friend, Sharon Lovejoy... not to mention a delightful article within the pages.  Sharon's latest book is Toad Cottages and Shooting Stars; Grandma's Bag of Tricks but I first heard of her with the book Sunflower Houses.

Sharon's blog posts gives those of us who love her books a chance to really get to know her.  If California wasn't quite so far from the Midwest, I'd show up at her front door with tea and homemade scones for a chat.  :)

Another lovely author who has become a blog friend wrote one of my all time favorite books... Frugal Luxuries... perhaps my most reread book.  That, of course, being Tracey McBride.  I'd love to chat with Tracey face to face and I have a feeling the chat would last for hours and hours.  She is a lovely person!

Then there has been online correspondence which created face-to-face, person-to-person, special friendships, as happened with my friend Sally Clarkson.   Sally's books were proof to me we do "read to know we are not alone" and her tapes (now CD's) were sources of inspiration in my homeschooling years.

When Stephanie was growing up, even her friends would at times think we were rather odd.  We loved old books and used words they didn't always understand (picked up from our reading and not to impress), we loved chatting together over coffee and came to love tea parties, we loved all things "English" and were rather "Old World"... and if that were not enough... our faith was at the center of all we did.  We also moved around a great deal and Steph grew up away from her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

We found another family similar to us in the pages of Sally's books.  She is Velveteen Rabbit real.  In her books and on her blog, she shares her wisdom and experience as well as her imperfections.  Having spent time with Sarah and upon meeting Joel, they are proof that Sally and Clay have practiced what they preached... good people... none of us perfect but all on the journey to become more like Him.

Just a few other blogs by people whose books I have read...

Karen Andreola
Karey Swan (with links to her other blog)
Susan Branch
Mary Englebreit
Nancy Lindemeyer (Victoria Magazine)

While blogs will never replace my love of books, they do bless us with opportunities to get to know those who write them.

Picture: A Good Book; allposters.com

Bloggy business and further decorative tweaking

I find myself doing a lot of decorative tweaking in the winter months, most likely... and this a no-brainer... due to spending more time inside.  I thought I'd share a few pictures after a "bloggy business information interruption" (say that three times fast).

I had a hic up in the Hotmail account a few days ago when a few e-mails just disappeared... poof... no idea where they went (not even in the delete folder).  So, if you don't hear from me... that is probably why.  One of them was from my blog friend who offered to loan me her copy of Marriage to a Difficult Man; The Uncommon Union of Jonathan and Sarah Edwards. 

Before I accepted the offer, I checked my library and found they actually had it!  I have already started reading it and so far think it is a wonderful biography!  Thank you, anyway.  :)

Speaking of e-mails (quickly), I get a lot of spam in my comments and e-mails.  Just recently, I found out a few reputable comments had been sent to the Blogger spam folder.  I know the same thing happens to the e-mail account.  So, if you don't see your comment listed here or get a response to your e-mail (although it can take awhile for me to respond)... that is most likely where they landed... spam folders.

Now, for pretty pictures...

I tweaked the bottom shelf of the china cabinet a little more after realizing it wasn't as pretty as the magazine picture.  I really like the way it looks now.  It needed a plate and a platter standing up in the back.  I just love getting inspiration from magazines.

The other shelves had plates displayed in the back so it also made the overall affect of the china cabinet more consistent.  The picture shown above is the middle shelf of the three.  I wish I didn't have to use a flash for it distracts slightly from the rich colors of the teacups.

When a blog friend, Margaret, sent me this cute wall quilt (along with a few other wonderful goodies), I was inspired by another decorating magazine picture to display it as shown.  All I did was lay it on top of a double mat and place it in the frame.  It took minutes and the mat wasn't harmed at all.  I love the way it looks in the living room.

That mat and frame was a thrift store find for just a few dollars long ago.  It has shown up in various forms in my pictures through the years, usually with a calendar page taped to the back of the mat... one could never tell it was not pricey artwork.  This is a new way to utilize it.

 While I'm doing a little "show and tell", this Victoria kitty was created, named, and dressed by my grandchildren at a Build-a-Bear in New England and sent home with Christopher and Miss M.  I enjoy the fact that they knew Grammie would love bunny slippers and a housecoat on her stuffed kitty.  Once again, the flash makes the stuffed Victoria more shiny than in person.

Her little friend is a bear my husband bought for me on a business trip to Germany eons ago.  He bought it in the airport on the way home and carried it, along with his briefcase, in the airplane, hehehe.  I can just see this tall engineer (who still looked somewhat like Harrison Ford back then) with a trench coat, brief case, carry on luggage, and a teddy bear tucked under his arm... airport security would probably get suspicious these days (that was just weeks after 9/11).

I'm sure there will be even more tweaking before I turn my attention to the outside come warmer weather.

Sunday Afternoon Tea

 

I understand music has been written about the Bleak Midwinter... as well as poetry and prose.   As the winter months are well entrenched, no longer is the snowfall delightful or the cold "brisk".  It is just awfully cold and dark and icy... the sparkle of the Holiday seasons are behind and the color of spring far away to those of us who live "up north".

My heart longs for color, maybe in the form of grocery store flowers.  In this case, money can buy happiness... or at least a little spring.  Perhaps I'll take my beautiful stationary my friend Sallie sent last year, there is enough of it left to write a letter to another who needs color.

Although not to any of my family who would faint at receiving a real letter from me.  My sisters are too old to risk their health.  Hmmm...I enjoy sending letters to my grandchildren, Elisabeth or Faith would love to receive pretty floral paper in the mailbox.

Thinking of Spring and Pooh sticks...

As much as I grumble about the snow... or rather how hard it is to walk or drive on it... I love the way the freezing temperatures and deep snow work together to give me permission to hibernate.  Much like Pooh on the Blustery Day, I make a place that is warm and comfy and also like my dear Pooh... tend to put on a little more rounding of the tummy by eating too much honey (or cinnamon rolls) while not walking through the 100 Acre Woods as one should.

But that's okay, for it is expected when the winds are blowing and the cold is felt even under the flannel sheets.  We use up more calories in cold, or so I tell myself when I'm reaching for the said cinnamon rolls.  They are the food of winter, as are the soups and stews and roasted veggies and hot chocolate with tiny marshmallows and Valentine's Day candy and chocolate covered marshmallow Easter bunnies.  In my part of the world, it is often still cold while eating the ears off the bunnies.

When my late sister, Alice, moved to Dallas (yes, really... that is not a limerick), the one thing she missed the most about the Midwest was having four distinct seasons.  She would tell us this as she called my mother on Christmas Eve by the pool.  With deep respect for my southern friends, as well as those in Australia... I can't wrap my brain around swimming and Christmas.  Just doesn't fit here to us who wear down coats with fur rimmed hoods to the Holiday concerts.

So... I will try to look on the bright side while sipping hot tea and reading biography and nibbling on sliced cheese, apples, and cinnamon toast.  When it is May and I'm planting or July and I'm weeding or August and I'm harvesting...  in rain and heat... I will think fondly of January evenings curled up on the sofa, made warm by a throw and hot tea and a furry cat... and wish for Winter.  Maybe...

Just as one may as well accept the season of the year one is living, how much more we must accept (or at least work within) the season of our journey through this life.   We do all we can within the limitations, for every season has its' good and not so good... boundaries in which we find ourselves surrounded... gifts given for just that day... grace for the moment. 

I always (at least often) ask the Lord what He is teaching me, what lesson He wants me to learn within each season of life... whether darkness or sunshine.  For this one thing I have learned from walking with Him... each day is to mold and shape us into the people He wants us to become.  The winter seasons are just as valuable as the spring and to be honest... in my life... I can hear more clearly in the Bleak Midwinter seasons of the soul.

There is something about that season which draws me nearer to The One Who Created Me, when I find myself running to Him just to take the next breath.  Not so much when the journey is a season of warmth and flowers and sand at the beach... He knows that. 

He, who knows we are but dust, is also well aware we cannot live in the cold always and He "leads us beside the quiet waters" when the dark chill of the journey has had its' intended purpose and our soul begins to feel the warmth of spring.

My ponder is frozen...

Waiting for... this!

I have many subjects of which I'd like to chat... homeschooling posts have been promised, more pantry posts, waxing poetic about good coffee and tea, not to mention books.

However, my brain is frozen.  It is unbelievably cold here.  I can't really complain as it is nothing abnormal for a Midwestern January day but that does not make me any warmer.  My ponder is frozen.

I'm in serious need of Starbucks but I will settle for brewing a cup of hot tea...

After a long wait...

I went to the mall yesterday and I can tell you how long it has been since I was there... I got lost.  Now, before you enroll me in the Alzheimer's ward at the hospital, I must tell you that 1) we have a huge mall, and 2) I have always been directionally challenged.

Anyway, thanks to those You Are Here signs, I made my way to the store to view the stoves on their 30% off sale.  Those being the discontinued models.  (Did you know January is the best month to buy stoves?) The guy we'd been talking to was off work but he made a special trip in to help me since that was the last day of the sale.  He had one in particular he recommended and I loved it, a very nice model whose sale price put it in my budget.

Almost all the pay my husband is bringing home from his two weeks "beginning of the semester" seasonal work at the bookstore on campus is going to purchase this stove... so I did want to be very careful when spending it.  However, he has been a Quality Assurance Engineer for most of our married life (before Disability) and he has always reminded me that cheap is not frugal so instead of really cheap, I bought the nice model which was on sale.

Many of you who have followed my stove challenges will rejoice with me that I made dinner on a working burner tonight... on the right side of the stove.  We knew the stove had to take priority for this income as the last working burner was beginning to show signs of distress.  Usually I would use half of this income to stock the pantry but if one cannot cook what is in the pantry...

The delivery guys were so nice, they lost me even with a working GPS.  That happens a lot where we live but they did have a good excuse.  We had fairly heavy snow all day today and the gravel road to our house was covered over.  They didn't know there was a road even though their GPS was telling them my house was nearby.  We're used to confused visitors.  Anyway, I had to talk them to our place (thank God for cell phones in delivery trucks).

When the guys were taking our old stove out, one of them asked me if I expected the new one to last as long as the old (we figure the old stove was at least era 1970s)... he said they don't make them like that, anymore.  I hope that is not an omen. ;)

I did make one more stop at the mall before going home yesterday.  I spent the amount I'd normally spend when shopping... $1.99 for a Mountain Lodge votive candle at Yankee Candle's store.  Although I almost always purchase my (non thrift store) candles at my favorite primitive country store (she makes the candles here in town and they are half the price... as well as pure soy) but I adore the Mountain Lodge scent.

I am very thankful that my husband diligently worked the two weeks in the midst of ice, snow, and having to stand by an open door in freezing weather all day (he works security for these two weeks).  He found the best sales and I decided upon a stove we both like.  No more excuses for scorched dinners.

Picture:  Sorry for the quality but with a snowstorm outside, the inside of the house was quite dark!

The many moods of Victoria

Victoria on guard duty...

I'm very busy today, running to and fro... well, driving to and fro.  No time to think and write at the same time and not thinking while writing can be quite, ummm... dangerous.

So, I thought you might like to see pictures of Victoria as I recently followed her with a camera.

Why, that is all I have to ask... why?

We still can't figure out how this is comfortable.

Victoria went wild over Wild America!

A little conversation

Blech... I think I'd rather have snow than this very cold, rainy, foggy day.  We're to return to snow by this evening so maybe this is just a day to teach me not to complain about slipping and sliding... at least snow is beautiful to look at... especially through the window when it accompanies blustery conditions.

I think all the "inside the house" organizing is finished, requiring constant vigilance to keep it looking good.  Some will be easy, those cabinets and drawers I rarely frequent.  Others such as my side of the closet require more thought and attention.  But now they all have "good bones" so to speak, making such vigilance quite a bit easier than before.

The garage has been receiving attention off and on as it relates to the inside projects.  I should work on it before the sub-zero weather hits this weekend.  You can place a bet in Las Vegas... should you be a betting type... I will not be in the garage in those temperatures.  I would say only an emergency load of laundry would get me out there.

One of the unexpected results of all this peeking into boxes and such has been to find long lost items as well as those I forgot I owned.  For instance, the missing cup to Grandmother's china as well as the coffee cups which match my wedding china were in a box in the garage which I thought only held items I was thinking of giving to Goodwill.

Oh, my... certainly glad I didn't give the box away without looking through it first!  All are now safely set onto their appropriate shelving and the remainder of the box on the "give to charity" table in the garage... no longer to sit in a kind of garage shelf purgatory where they are not remembered or appreciated.  Now I know where everything is... almost.

My reading has gone by the wayside as this overwhelming need to clean and organize has been taken advantage of, one should never let such feelings and leanings go wasted for once accomplished... sighs of relief and a slight hearing of the Hallelujah chorus in the background.  Life is almost ready for that time in which the lawn and garden will begin making demands... almost... not quite... more cozy reading days ahead.

How I wish I could respond to all comments.  I can do better once the garage has been organized.  I can respond about books, the Elizabeth Edwards book sounds very interesting.  I expect my library has it.  D., YES... write me at coffeeteabooksandme@hotmail.com.  :)

I was very surprised to see The Farm Chick's Christmas book on the New Nonfiction shelf.   I loved the cookbook but wasn't sure I'd like a book all about Christmas, especially since I had read it has few recipes.  However, it is a lovely book with great crafting ideas and lots of vintage decorating pictures.  I have it another week to peruse a few times.  Highly recommended for those who love to do Christmas crafting for home and gifts.

I'm continuing through Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God, although I won't try to read all of the chapters in this sitting.  I'll save some for later, perhaps putting it in my purse for my "waiting at McDonald's reading" and such.  After reading the chapter about Sarah Edwards again, I have definitely added Marriage to a Difficult Man to my "purchase someday" list.  I think I mentioned that a desire this year is to learn more about Johnathan Edwards and the affect his ministry had on pre-Revolutionary War America.  Anyway, 18th Century America is my favorite period of history to study.

I brought a couple tea books home from the library for quick perusal and once I have a little more uninterrupted time (that being what one is rewarded with when the children are grown)... I will immerse myself in The Lord of the Rings trilogy again.  That should be soon.  :)

Inspiration... china... beauty

Sunday found all three of us at home, our immune systems fighting off a bug of some kind.  A chicken had been defrosted on Saturday, transformed into lemon chicken orzo soup once again on Sunday afternoon (I do tend to get into ruts but it is delicious).  :)

As the guys watched football and kept up with scores, I retreated to fluffed up pillows and the flannel sheets of my bed... re-reading Victoria and perusing Beauty.  Then I saw it... inspiration... why hadn't I thought of this before?  Rather than hiding Beauty behind the doors of the hutch... let it be displayed to bring smiles.

So, this morning, further tweaking of the china cabinet took place and produced... this...

By the way, just for recent readers, most of the contents of my china cabinet were found while thrifting.  The set of Royal Albert china... the complete set (platters stored elsewhere)... about $60.00 found and purchased shortly after we moved to this house in the country.

Only the teapot sitting on the china (which was a gift from Stephanie) and the plates displayed on the top shelf (from "Grandmother's china", inherited from my mother-in-law who inherited it from her mother) were not purchased while thrifting or from garage sales.  Some of the teacups were gifts, too.

It truly does not take a lot to add Beauty and part of the fun is in the search.  :)

Oh... and we are all much better today.  Just as Jewish grandmothers have known for centuries... there is a lot of healing in that chicken soup.

Picture:  All may be enlarged by just clicking on them if you are as nosy as I am.

In case you are wondering...  The complete set of china displayed on the bottom shelf is the Lavender Rose pattern by Royal Albert.  It was one of those "God things" as I had the $60.00 to spend right then and lavender was the primary color of the dining area in our "new to us" house (it originally had purple-lavender curtains as well as wall paper but I replaced it with the lace).

Sunday Afternoon Tea

Do the opposite of what the enemy of your soul expects you to do.  That is what I was sharing with a sweet friend recently, as she and her family have been hit with a series of trials.  That is what I learned long ago and one of the Truths which kept me going... and learning... and growing.

I was thinking of this recently when walking onto my front porch after forging through snow on our lawn and slush on the gravel driveway.

The porch has kept much of the festive Christmas look about it albeit more winter wonderland than anything having to do with glitz and glitter.

Upon walking into the house, I smile at the combined scent of a cranberry candle and dinner on the stove.  Looking around, there are bookshelves lined with anticipation, cozy furniture, lovely artwork, and everywhere objects that make my heart sing... not the least of which is a Maine Coon kitty with nose pressed against glass watching for the neighbor's dog.

It took me awhile... years, actually... to live in loveliness without an audience.  We rarely get anyone out our way in winter so why dress up the porch?  Long gone are the days when I felt like opening my door to crowds (with the exception of the miraculous ability to cook and serve Christopher's graduation open house).

My daughter and granddaughters are too far away for tea parties and I no longer have the health to take part in women's ministries, ladies' societies, home book clubs, etc. where my pretty dishes were used for entertaining.  I never know if my husband is going to have a good day or a bad day and there is always the reality of the budget so tight we've squeezed it over and over for an extra couple gallons of gasoline.

So why?  Why create loveliness with just myself and a couple guys seeing it most of the time, why continue to collect tea things if only for solitary tea times?  Why decide to read good literature and biography and books about gardening and cooking when perhaps a cheap paperback novel would take me away from it all?

Well... it is all about that doing the opposite thing... and faith... and hope... and joy.   I have found that the decision to do the opposite and think the opposite and be the opposite of what the enemy of our souls expects in our times of trials and discouragement is... in itself... a form of spiritual warfare.

These lessons forged in the years when everything was falling apart and the reality set in that... God is allowing this journey instead the one I preferred, expected, and desired.   Yes, there were months and months and perhaps even years of stomping my feet, muttering, complaining, pouting, crying, sniveling, and generally giving up.

But there came a day when the realization that life would go on... different than planned... but in its' own way not so bad.  New ways of living were learned, how to purchase needs and desires really cheap, inexpensive but tasty meals, writing letters or e-mails instead of getting in the car to visit loved ones "in town", making instead of buying, work accomplished a little at a time, and most of all... that I didn't need an audience (aka: company) to live in loveliness.

I have learned I don't have to have a crowd... or even a couple... to have a tea party with lovely music and pretty china and girlie sandwiches.  If it were only myself who enjoyed the cozy feeling of a home which has been well thought out and pampered and prettied then it would be fine... but the menfolk like it, too.  As long as it doesn't have pink and ruffles except in the corner china cabinet.

Life is what happened when I had other plans and waiting to live while wishing for something different is to deny the gift of Today.  But that is what the enemy of our soul expects us to do, you know... fear, fret, grow bitter, give up, and never learn to enjoy this other journey.

Instead, I have learned to anticipate what the Author of this journey I'm on can do with these circumstances and within these boundaries... and He never ceases to amaze me. 

Organizing my way to goals...

If you remember, I said I do not make New Year's resolutions but use this time of year to do mid-course corrections to my journey.  Instead of making a new goal for the coming twelve months, I ponder on the process and the journey by asking for wisdom on how I'm doing and what needs changing.

For I have found, just making a goal doesn't mean anything if you have clutter in your soul... fog which keeps one from finding their way to the Light.  Hmmm... does that sound too New Agey?  That's okay, we know of Whom we speak.  Anyway... I use the beginning of the year to ponder changes (those under my control) needed towards any goal of living that journey as He would be pleased.

As I pondered, I told you the word which kept coming back to me for this year was... create.  It was time to knock down walls of fear and doubt to begin bringing new life to the journey.  I want to create this year and in the next weeks (and months, God willing and the creek don't rise)... I will further explore just what this means to the day-to-day gotta do's of living.

The other realization He brought to me was the need to... declutter.  Not that the house looked terrible (we will not even talk about the garage) but I knew deep within my very soul that I could not create until I decluttered... my closets, drawers, cabinets, and yes... my shelves in the garage... and more importantly.. myself.

So, I have been sorting and throwing and e-mailing my friend to ask if she wants dishes and I even began to tackle my garage shelves yesterday.  Stephanie and I were texting each other, she was laundering linens which had been thrown up on by a sick little girl and I was cleaning Rubbermaid containers from the garage containing mouse turds.  I think we both decided hers was the more icky job...  how wonderful technology allows mother and daughter to commiserate.

I cannot begin to tell you the freedom this project has brought.  It's not that I had so much to get RID of (it will end up being five or six small boxes and the china going to my friend) but in the process of decluttering, I found stuff.  Like the Christmas shortbread mold I was looking for at... ummm... Christmas.  Sorting through the large, deep green Rubbermaid box in the garage labeled "Crafts" inspired me with its' collection of past projects.

The process is providing clean space on the shelves and making them (like my closets and drawers and cabinets) a pleasant place for which my eyes to rest.. no more thinking of what I MUST DO but instead knowing what is within each box and feeling... rest and contentment.

Yesterday evening, after dinner was finished and the gotta do's of the day were behind, I started re-reading the chapter on Sarah Edwards in Faithful Women & Their Extraordinary God.  I have decided I want to learn more about Johnathan Edwards this year... the man who helped spark a revival and a revolution... and in the process, also learning more about Sarah.  In much the same way one cannot separate John Adams from Abigail, I am learning Sarah is the important central influence to Johnathan.

Soooo... all this to say I am continuing on the path to clearing out the clutter from house and soul.  I still have letters to write (for I want to give them the thought they deserve) and some promised baking to accomplish.  But I must admit my brain has been fixated with this need to purge out the unimportant and what remains will be all that is necessary to stay on that Journey.

Picture:  Blue Stove; allposters.com

Dapper in Boston

While visiting his sister and family in New England, Christopher and his honey took a train to Boston to see the sights and have dinner.  Before leaving, he showed me what he was packing to wear into Bean Town... I call this his Oxford look.

Of course, M. looks good all the time.

I would say Uncle Christopher has his hand's full here.  Ummm... is that your boss's iPad you borrowed?

Picture: Stolen borrowed from M.'s collection.

So, of course all of this makes me think of books

I used to often write more than once in a day, in the first months of this little blog.  I would even write three times a day since it looked so lonely.  That was nearly five years ago.  It is no longer lonely.  I thought I was doing pretty good when I went over 500 on Google Reader (not bad for a blog like this).  Then I saw where The Pioneer Woman has 65,000 and it took days to come out from under the covers.

Anyhoo, I digress (as usual)...

I was thinking of legalism and how I had a hard time understanding why people would not want to be around someone just because they were dedicated to Jesus Christ.  Come to think of it, why some people don't want to say that name unless they are swearing.

I still can't relate as I have had friends of all spiritual flavors since my teens... Christians raised in the church, homeschooling Christians (and we are a peculiar people!), iffy Christians, Christians hanging on by their thumbnails, atheists, agnostics, close Jewish friends, New Age, and really almost any kind of person you could think of at one time or another... except I've never even known a very devout fundamentalist type Muslim. But I smile at them in the grocery store.

I know that absolutely no one can talk me out of my faith.  It is not an idea... He is a person... my Best Friend.  Nothing anyone can say would draw me away from my Friend anymore than they could make me stop loving my husband or children with words.  So having people not like me in my world does not pose a problem.

As with most things, it was in the reading of a book which helped me understand.  I read Philip Yancey's book, Soul Survivor; How My Faith Survived the Church many years ago for two reasons... I really liked his previous books and how can you not be intrigued by that title?  In it, he shares his story of growing up in a legalistic and racist church and the affect it has had through the years in his relationship with God.

I read it at a time I had been deeply hurt by church people... pastors, friends, and leadership... people who should know better.  It wasn't the first time, either.  As I read this book, it helped me understand my mother and her aversion to anything having to do with the Church.  There was deep hurt and rejection in her.  I found myself much like Yancey, loving Jesus but realizing men and women in the Church are only human and one must continually "let it go".  Only the Savior is perfect.

I've seen it on many library shelves and as with all his books... don't be afraid of him.  He doesn't bite.  He just makes you think and once you read a Yancey book (Where is God When It Hurts, etc.) you will know what it means to "read to know we are not alone".  You may not agree with everything he writes but then again... that is just fine... but you will most likely read and realize someone else has the same feelings that you thought were only in you.

While I'm thinking about Christians who live in countries where walking with Christ threatens their life, my all time favorite book on this subject is Randy Alcorn's Safely Home, a novel about the underground church in China.  This is one of those rare novels which left me a different person after reading it and it is among my all time favorite reads.

I recommend both fiction and nonfiction from Alcorn.  Some may remember his book Heaven was listed as one of my favorite books for 2010.

I have company coming over for dinner on a day the weather has brought on a migraine headache.  Thankfully, I no longer expect perfection as a cook and hostess.  I made a cake using a cake mix and I'm putting together a casserole with Alfredo sauce from a jar as its' base.  Thank God for my Hospitality Pantry!

Thank you for your prayers and comments

I found it odd yesterday, how I reacted to my brother's death.  Normally when there is some kind of bad news, I go into Energizer Bunny mode.  On Saturday, we lost contact with Christopher and M. as they were on their way home from New England and no one knew what was going on. 

Probably a good thing as they were traveling through mountains in a snowstorm and the combination of the mountains and the heavy snow caused zero bars on his usually reliable smart phone (which never leaves his side).  M.'s parents called later that day to let me know she was able to get a text through that they were in a storm but well and about a half an hour later, Christopher was able to call.

In the meantime, I got a whole lot done!  I have heard Edith Schaeffer did the very same thing when under great stress.  Not that I would want to deal with that too often but it was remarkable just how much was accomplished during those hours... sheesh.

In some ways, my brother's passing was much like my mother's... they had suffered so much that it was a relief when they passed on.  But any such loss brings memories and feelings, those which we may have long ago forgotten come back to the surface as if they happened yesterday... bringing sadness and the inability to think, much less move.

Any such passing also reminds me of the brevity of life, that there is a beginning and an end and God's gift to us is the time in between.  When a friend or family member passes on, we so often think of our own days and reflect how we are spending our gift of life.

Thankfully, I was able to put away all laundry and have a clean kitchen when the guys arrived home last night.  I had to smile as Christopher brought a blanket and pillow to the sofa to veg out with a movie after a very long day (he has challenging classes one right after the other all day Tuesdays and Thursdays!).  Just like old times... some things never change... the teenage Christopher did the same with the History Channel and the little boy would get lost in cartoons.  :)

Once again, thank you all... you bless me.  What is on my "to do" list for today?  Well, I am organizing some drawers and the cabinet which the antique sewing machine sits on.  Nothing huge, not like the clothes and linen closets.  A steady list of easy to keep my mind occupied...

Sadness...

It started snowing here last night and snow continues, beautiful to look at from the dining room table but not so wonderful for driving.  Hubby and son are out and about in the classroom and marketplace as I pray for their safety.  Not to mention a son-in-law who commutes over an hour in New England.  Sigh...

I had great plans for today.  I was going to get caught up on laundry and make cinnamon rolls and sort through a couple boxes in the garage and clean the kitchen and read a few chapters in the Bible and read some of The Lord of the Rings and then read a chapter in Noel Piper's book after doing the breakfast-lunch dishes.  I really was.

But two loads of clothing are spread out on my queen size bed so they do not wrinkle before I get them to their permanent homes and the dishes are done.  Other than that... nada, nothing, just a lot of looking out into space and thinking... not even a good ponder.

Sad news arrived this morning as my sister called to tell me our eldest brother had passed away.  This is not headline news since he has been in ill health for years and I'm afraid my other sister's involvement in his last months (because she also lives in Florida) has become a huge source of disagreement between my (now) only two living siblings.  Family drama...

My lingering burden about my brother... I did not know his spiritual condition.  Sometimes you just don't know.  Sometimes it is better that way.  Regardless, the eldest is now gone.  We have not lived in the same state for most of my adult life but his presence was always there, the brother with children older than me... who sung me Elvis songs (he had, at one time, been a professional county and western singer) as a child and walked me down the aisle at my wedding.  The one I think of as I cover my food with freshly ground pepper as he taught me so long ago.

I didn't grow up with the others, their father having passed away when he and my mother were in their 30s.  I came along later, a yours-mine-and-ours from a second marriage.  Our history was not always the same but there was much affection and fun.  Then there came a day that changed it all... when I made a commitment to live a life for Christ... in a family who had for the most part clung to hymns and memories of mamaw but not the Person... a lot like Elvis whose songs he sung.

Their view of our Lord came through the lens of the legalism in which my mother had been raised and rejected.  She loved her mama and she loved her mama's music but she did not love her mama's God.  Thus were raised a hard drinking-hard living group of siblings.

Even as a few came to know the Truth and followed Him, it still was not the same.  As I believe my mother came to know Him, too... it was not the same.  A wall I didn't understand at the time was put up by the others after it became obvious my decision to Follow was not another teenage whim.  I felt their distance and was quite bewildered until I had lived enough years to understand... their fear, their lifestyles, their need to stay away from someone with the Light.

I am certain much of the sadness I feel today as my brother's physical body finally gave in to the years of illness has more to do with that loss so long ago rather than today.  There is a reason He tells us in the Book that we may give up mother and father and sister and brother and friends and others to follow Him.

It is not a popular message and rarely taught today.  It is easy to neglect the teaching for I live in a country where one may only have discomfort at family reunions and a rolling of the eyes when ordering coffee instead of Jack Daniels. But others face real hardships each day from their decision, their very lives are in danger.  There is no cheap grace among those who believe in such countries.

I am sure the burden and blues will lift as I meet a new day but just for today... as the eldest of eight is gone and three remain... memories of what was will prevail to be followed of what will be and a new list of that which needs accomplished.  Tomorrow.  The day after.  Soon...