Hese's my latest embroidery project......
Friday, January 11, 2008
Simply, Easy Oatmeal
Today's simple musings have guided me to think about oatmeal.
Oatmeal brings simple things to mind,
Like a morning breakfast table,
Set with mismatched china,
The everyday silverware,
Carnival glasses glistening.
A lovely, vintage tablecloth
Waves gently in the breeze
From the open kitchen window.
A hot bowl of steaming oatmeal,
To which you add a dollup of
Fresh, churned butter;
A scoop of Brown Sugar,
Dizzled with Maple Syrup
Topped off with
Fresh, hand-milked cream.
Easily prepared,
Easily served,
Easily consumed.
Simply, easy oatmeal.
Btw, I found a great organic oatmeal at Sam's Club. It's called Nature's Path Organic Instant Hot Oatmeal. It is certified organic by the QAI and is made in Blaine, WA. Go to www.naturepath.com
Also, you must try MaryJanes Farm Organic Outrageous Outback Oatmeal. It's also certified organic, has soy milk, currants, sunflower seeds, and is vegan. Go to http://products.maryjanesfarm.org/pfoshop/product.asp?dept_id=231&ProductID=43004
Oatmeal brings simple things to mind,
Like a morning breakfast table,
Set with mismatched china,
The everyday silverware,
Carnival glasses glistening.
A lovely, vintage tablecloth
Waves gently in the breeze
From the open kitchen window.
A hot bowl of steaming oatmeal,
To which you add a dollup of
Fresh, churned butter;
A scoop of Brown Sugar,
Dizzled with Maple Syrup
Topped off with
Fresh, hand-milked cream.
Easily prepared,
Easily served,
Easily consumed.
Simply, easy oatmeal.
Btw, I found a great organic oatmeal at Sam's Club. It's called Nature's Path Organic Instant Hot Oatmeal. It is certified organic by the QAI and is made in Blaine, WA. Go to www.naturepath.com
Also, you must try MaryJanes Farm Organic Outrageous Outback Oatmeal. It's also certified organic, has soy milk, currants, sunflower seeds, and is vegan. Go to http://products.maryjanesfarm.org/pfoshop/product.asp?dept_id=231&ProductID=43004
Look at the new Arrival in Taylor's Country Store!
Look at the new Arrival in Taylor's Country Store!
1950's Vintage Post-A-Notes by Current, Inc., Colorado Springs, Colo. with original Box & 33 Post-A-Notesi n 4 Retro designs:
3 - Victorian lady with poodle: "Always in the market for News"
10 - Victorian lady with cookstove: "Just to let you know what's cookin'"
10 - Victorian lady with ironing board: "Between my Pressing Duties"
10 - Victorian lady with clothesline: "Just a Line"
5-3/8" x 3-3/8" postcard-type greeting cards, vintage 1950's. Cards are in good, unused condition with varying amounts of foxing/age discoloration/spotting. Original box is a little rough and has ink marks.
Visit www.taylorscountrystore.etsy.com for pricing info.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Necessity Generates Simplicity
A childhood memory was triggered last night while lying in my warm, comfy bed. Following my nightly ritual of wiggling around and saying that I love my bed, I thought of a time when we couldn't sleep in our beds.
We lived in a lovely old house in Eden, Wy in the early 70's. My father worked at a coal mine some 50 miles away in Reliance, Wy. My mother was a stay at home mom and some of my fondest memories come from the time we spent in this old house.
The house, barns, and bunkhouse were built around the turn of the 20th century as a Wyoming State Experimental Farm. My brother slept in the bunkhouse with a woodstove to keep him warm. My two sisters and I shared a small bedroom at the back of the house. My parents occupied the only other bedroom in the house. There was no bathroom, so we used a nice outhouse located out behind the house. The house was heated with an old Stoker-matic in the living room. There was also a cookstove in the large country kitchen.
The winter of 1970 - 1971 was a long, hard winter in Wyoming. A particularly large storm hit in February of 1971. I remember my brother shoveling a path to the outhouse. The snow was over his head and he seems very tall to me. There was a snow drift on the side of the house that went from the roof to the ground. My mother put boards in the window to keep them from breaking.
The roads were drifted in to the extent that plows could not break the drifts. They had to clear the roads with big patrols, which took a considerable amount of time.
My father was at work during the storm and was unable to get home. We were getting low on coal, so he was planning on bringing some from work. After about 3 days, we were running seriously low on coal.
My mother asked us to drag out mattresses into the kitchen. We thought she had lost her mind, but did as we were told. My brother brought cushions from the couch for his mattress. Making a game out of it, she helped us make up our beds. She hung blankets on the archway going into the living room and also covered the windows. She used the remaining coal in the cookstove to keep us warm. We lived on the simplest of terms for a few days until the roads were cleared.
Taking care of the animals was especially difficult due to the excessive amount of snow. I am sure that my mother thought this chore to be overwhelming, but for us children, it was a great adventure.
I am not saying that I want to live under these conditions on a daily basis. I think that we might need to put ourselves in the mindset that my mother was in during this trying time. If we simplify our lives in general, then perhaps we will be better prepared to handle difficult situations when they arrive.
Going without might not seem like a trial, it may be more like an adventure. *S*
We lived in a lovely old house in Eden, Wy in the early 70's. My father worked at a coal mine some 50 miles away in Reliance, Wy. My mother was a stay at home mom and some of my fondest memories come from the time we spent in this old house.
The house, barns, and bunkhouse were built around the turn of the 20th century as a Wyoming State Experimental Farm. My brother slept in the bunkhouse with a woodstove to keep him warm. My two sisters and I shared a small bedroom at the back of the house. My parents occupied the only other bedroom in the house. There was no bathroom, so we used a nice outhouse located out behind the house. The house was heated with an old Stoker-matic in the living room. There was also a cookstove in the large country kitchen.
The winter of 1970 - 1971 was a long, hard winter in Wyoming. A particularly large storm hit in February of 1971. I remember my brother shoveling a path to the outhouse. The snow was over his head and he seems very tall to me. There was a snow drift on the side of the house that went from the roof to the ground. My mother put boards in the window to keep them from breaking.
The roads were drifted in to the extent that plows could not break the drifts. They had to clear the roads with big patrols, which took a considerable amount of time.
My father was at work during the storm and was unable to get home. We were getting low on coal, so he was planning on bringing some from work. After about 3 days, we were running seriously low on coal.
My mother asked us to drag out mattresses into the kitchen. We thought she had lost her mind, but did as we were told. My brother brought cushions from the couch for his mattress. Making a game out of it, she helped us make up our beds. She hung blankets on the archway going into the living room and also covered the windows. She used the remaining coal in the cookstove to keep us warm. We lived on the simplest of terms for a few days until the roads were cleared.
Taking care of the animals was especially difficult due to the excessive amount of snow. I am sure that my mother thought this chore to be overwhelming, but for us children, it was a great adventure.
I am not saying that I want to live under these conditions on a daily basis. I think that we might need to put ourselves in the mindset that my mother was in during this trying time. If we simplify our lives in general, then perhaps we will be better prepared to handle difficult situations when they arrive.
Going without might not seem like a trial, it may be more like an adventure. *S*
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Today's Tip for Simple Living
Control Incoming Paper!
One of the things that constantly takes over my life is the overwhelming amount of mail I get daily. This usually includes catalogs, flyers, bills, credit card offers (aaarrgghh). I often wish for a good, old fashioned, hand-written letter from someone who loves me.
It is difficult to take the time to sort out the bills from the junk, let alone to get them organized and paid in a timely manner.
I have made the following changes to our "system" and hope that by publishing it, I will actually follow through with it.
1. One designated person (probably me) will be given the chore of getting the mail and bringing it to the house.
2. That same person will be reponsible for placing it in a designated spot for sorting.
3. Daily, one designated person (me again) will sort the mail into the following four piles: Bills, Correspondence, Catalogs, and Junk Mail.
4. The following actions will be taken with the bill pile: Open and remove bill and return envelope and paper clip together; Add outside envelope to Junk Mail Pile; Place bill and return envelope in Bills to Be Paid file in filing cabinet.
5. The following actions will be taken with the Correspondence Pile: Open and read correspondence, Record return address in address book as needed, Add outside envelope to Junk Mail Pile; Post correspondence on refrigerator for family to see, if applicable; Remove correspondence from refrigerator weekly and file in correspondence file or add to Junk Mail Pile.
6. The follow ing actions will be taken with the Catalog Pile: Add to Junk Mail Pile, unless it is something you really want to look at. Put it in the Junk Mail Pile when you are done looking at it.
7. The following actions will be taken with the Junk Mail Pile: Place all items in a designated location for recycling. Take to recycling center monthly.
Well, that's my big plan. I'll try to report on my progress. If I don't report, I'll probably be buried in a sea of paper, somewhere near my kitchen bar. *S*
One of the things that constantly takes over my life is the overwhelming amount of mail I get daily. This usually includes catalogs, flyers, bills, credit card offers (aaarrgghh). I often wish for a good, old fashioned, hand-written letter from someone who loves me.
It is difficult to take the time to sort out the bills from the junk, let alone to get them organized and paid in a timely manner.
I have made the following changes to our "system" and hope that by publishing it, I will actually follow through with it.
1. One designated person (probably me) will be given the chore of getting the mail and bringing it to the house.
2. That same person will be reponsible for placing it in a designated spot for sorting.
3. Daily, one designated person (me again) will sort the mail into the following four piles: Bills, Correspondence, Catalogs, and Junk Mail.
4. The following actions will be taken with the bill pile: Open and remove bill and return envelope and paper clip together; Add outside envelope to Junk Mail Pile; Place bill and return envelope in Bills to Be Paid file in filing cabinet.
5. The following actions will be taken with the Correspondence Pile: Open and read correspondence, Record return address in address book as needed, Add outside envelope to Junk Mail Pile; Post correspondence on refrigerator for family to see, if applicable; Remove correspondence from refrigerator weekly and file in correspondence file or add to Junk Mail Pile.
6. The follow ing actions will be taken with the Catalog Pile: Add to Junk Mail Pile, unless it is something you really want to look at. Put it in the Junk Mail Pile when you are done looking at it.
7. The following actions will be taken with the Junk Mail Pile: Place all items in a designated location for recycling. Take to recycling center monthly.
Well, that's my big plan. I'll try to report on my progress. If I don't report, I'll probably be buried in a sea of paper, somewhere near my kitchen bar. *S*
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