What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow. ~ Martin Luther

Thursday, August 08, 2013

{P,H,F,R}

{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real} time again.  Every week that I participate I always think about adding a yummy category.  Pretty, Happy, Funny, Yummy and Real.  This is because I take entirely too many pictures of food.  But still.  I might just surprise you one of these days.
~Pretty~




 It's been quite some time since I posted some flower pictures...like at LEAST two weeks!  (smile) These marigolds are in the midst of watermelons, nasterniums and swisschard in the garden.  They are some of the most beautiful marigolds I have ever seen.  They are enormous.

~Happy~






This is my first week canning for the year.  Up until now, I haven't done a lick. Thanks to the weather being unusually (dare I say it?) FALLISH, it has actually been pleasant work.  Nothing at all like canning in the mid-90's like I am accustomed to.  

~Funny~



Two most recent funnies from this girl:

1)  Setting:  Everyone was in the living room chatting and laughing and doing their own thing.  Matt and I were talking on the couch.

Adele' jumps up and rushes to us and says very seriously and very matter-of-factly "Andwoo dust said a wicked word!"  It was SO funny and SO cute.

The wicked word, I find out later, was HATE.  (gasp!)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2) Setting:  The children and I were driving home from the summer reading program at the library.  There had been a dump truck there and there were free construction hats and the children had made dump truck pictures of construction paper and bags of cheesey fish crackers. Since the little children had the cracker bags and not the big children, I asked them to share with the biggles.  From time to time, I would glance back and there was Adele' happily passing out fish crackers.  Then, all of the sudden- a wail from the backseat.

Adele', face red and twisted in torment, cries  "Mama!  I dave all my cwackers away and I didn't have a dingle ONE!" 

(How does one go about giving away all her crackers without realizing it until it is too late?)

~Real~


The pipeline is progressing quickly.  In one week they have cleared all the woods, laid pipe and began digging.  Three piles of timber, all piled up.  I am hoping this might be the thing that gets us over the splitting wood hump.

Up until now, we've split our wood for winter in the same year.  This isn't the best way.  It means the wood isn't terribly "seasoned" and bone dry.  It means that Matt has to split wood in the heat of summer instead of in winter when it really ought to be done.  It means sometimes not having ENOUGH wood and scrambling around about March.

I'd love to be able to split wood for NEXT year and burn the wood split last year.  With all the logs piled up and dragged from the woods, it might be possible.  There are plenty of trees to get started on that goal.

This is me looking for a silver lining.  ;-)

12 comments:

Bonnie said...

Oh no to the apple sauce! We grew up sterilizing jars in the oven, at about 250, for at least 30, minutes. I would guess the trouble was in the processing, how long did you process them?

Cute pictures, Adele is hilarious : )

Unknown said...

"This is because I take entirely too many pictures of food. "

And you're not the only one! I've been trying to put together Blurb books of photos because somehow having something tangible to flip through makes more sense to me than clicking on folders that might go poof someday. Anyway, as I add to it, it feels just odd to have more pictures of food than some members of the family!

Lindsey Gallant said...

I love your blue glass on the window sill! Very summery.

Rebecca said...

Chuckles when thinking about how it sounded when children talks that, so many years ago for me. I managed to get some B&B pickles canned, never have made dills. Can you share the recipe? I hope it is not the refrigerator pickles as I don't have room for that. Thanks is advance. BTW I did make the zucchini pineapple, haven't had it yet but it did taste like pineapple!

Terri said...

My dear, you are obviously doing a great job on your losing weight goal because you look fabulous in that photo on the steps!!! Great job. I love Adele's expressions. Too cute.

Julian said...

Ahhh yes, the little moments that make a life are all adding up to great memories.;). What a gift in a little girl, to share all she has with no regard for her own. (Until later;))May her cup always be full.
Blessings, christina

Rosie said...

That blue glass is so so beautiful! I love reading your blog and looking at your pictures - never fails to brighten my day seeing the beauty that others are able to capture :)

9peasMom said...

My favorite photo is you and baby all casual on the porch with that beautiful bowl of green beans - perfect capture on a contented life!

Rose said...

Your photos are beautiful!

Rebecca said...

Bonnie- it was the sterilizing I am quite certain. I thought I remembered you saying 175 and being the foolish girl that I am, didn't double check. My own fault. Now I know- I LOVE that we can do it in the oven, it is so much easier than boiling the jars! Thanks for that tidbit. I will remember the 250 this time around! (I hope)

Quinn- I am jealous! I used to be a scrapbooker and then I got a digital camera and a blog...since then I have been lazy and just blogged everythng. My second children don't even have any baby books, poor things! I HAVE to do this too. And I am glad to know I am not the only one. Food and flowers- it is ridiculous.

Rebecca- I made refrigerator pickles (for the first time ever!). If you are looking for a canning dill recipe: check out this one. I love this lady:

http://hickeryhollerfarm.blogspot.com/2013/08/hamburger-dill-chips.html

Terri- ahhhh. THANK YOU. I have kinda plateaued of late- I still have 20 pounds I'd like to see shed but not enough to want to exercise, apparently! Your comment was a much needed gentle nudge to keep keeping on. Thanks!

Abigail said...

(And here I've stopped even sterilizing my jars...for shame!)

I'm hoping that your canning days don't always look so stinking pristine because my house looks like its teetering on the edge of implosion after I start filling jars. Every day during pickup the girls and I marvel (no complaining, mind you, just marveling...) over how trashed the house becomes in such a short time during this season. Martha would give me an "F" for photo appeal. Thank goodness I don't know the woman.

Re.: Wood.

That is seriously awesome, wonderful, and all that. What a gift!

Rebecca said...

The kitchen has floor space so I can keep canning (every surface but the floor is covered)- it is every other room in the house that is shameful.

Even better, we have had several unannounced surprised visitors lately! (You understand.)