~Monday's Daybook: October 19~

Outside My Window...a cold fall morning

I am thankful for...the fun time we had last night with our church family at our annual bonfire.

I am going...grocery shopping and to the post office.

I am reading...500+ Time-Saving Hints for Every Woman by Emilie Barnes and Blogging for Bliss by Tara Frey.

I am hoping...to get a lot done today! :-)

I am hearing...the hum of the fridge and laptop, The Baby playing.

One of my favorite things...toast and eggs and coffee for breakfast! This is my breakfast almost every single morning.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...mums in my garden:



For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.

~Sunday~

Psalm 47:6

Sing praises to God, sing praises:

sing praises unto our King, sing praises.

~Golden Oats~

This recipe is one that I remember from my childhood. One fond memory is having it as a special treat for supper, when I was six or seven years old, because my dad was going out for dinner with a future employer. I was quite distraught that my dad wasn't going to be eating dinner with us (or maybe I was upset that he was eating dinner out and I wasn't! LOL), so my mom promised me that she'd make golden oats for dinner.

If you don't like the consistency of oatmeal cereal, you will probably like this recipe. The oats separate and are a little chewy. This cereal is not gummy at all. If you don't like the taste of oatmeal itself, well then, you probably won't like it. :-P

1 1/2 cups oats
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup juice

Combine oats and egg in medium-sized bowl; mix until oats are thoroughly coated. Add oats mixture to butter in 10-inch skillet, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, 3 to 5 minutes or until oats are dry, separated and lightly browned. Add juice; continue cooking, stirring occasionally, 2 to 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates.

Makes 4 servings.

I particularly like orange juice, but apple juice works just fine too. I like to add thinly sliced apples - just saute them a few minutes in the butter before adding the oats mixture to the skillet.

Very, very yummy! I had this cereal for breakfast yesterday.

~Fall Decorations~

Yesterday I finally snapped some pictures of my fall decorations. I have been waiting for a sunny day and a clean house, but those two haven't happened together. :-P It has been overcast a lot lately!

I hung a fall garland in the doorway between the living room and dining room. Last time I hung it, I'm pretty sure that I put white lights on it. But I just kept it simple this time.


Two of my teddy bear friends, notice the matching candle and topper (a gift from my husband many years ago):


The coffee table. I've mentioned the doilies in autumns past, but I got them for either 5 or 10 cents each at a yard sale. They are just perfect for fall decorations -- the only time of year I use them.


The dining room table:


This year some of my decorations were quite dilapidated, and I ended up tossing them out. I'll have to hit Hobby Lobby's clearance sales on their fall merchandise and get a few new things for next fall.

~Walking in the Winter~

I do not like to be cold. Not even remotely. I'd far rather be hot than cold! This summer I got a lot of good walks in. The weather was far too cool to be called "summer" but that's what the calendar said! Anyhow...lots of walking.

And then came October. Brrrr...it's cold outside! Too cold to go out for long walks. What to do? I'm not a naturally active person, so I had to really push myself to go for those summer walks, but it got to the point where I really enjoyed them! Now that it is cold (and remember, I don't like to be cold!) I have a hard time wanting to go outside.

I have a small collection of Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds DVDs! I dusted off the cover and popped a one-mile workout in the DVD player. Fantastic! In 20 minutes I could "walk" a mile right in my living room.

This week during I've been getting in a good little workout in the comfort of my own home. I have several different walking DVDs as well as a few other workout DVDs, so I have some variety. If you've seen Leslie Sansone's DVDs, you know that she is a chatter box and has a cheerful attitude to go along with her workouts. It almost feels like a chat with a friend (if you have friends who do all the talking...LOL). If/when I feel the need for more variety, I plan on checking out some different workout DVDs from my library.

What do you do for exercise in the winter?

Image from Walk at Home official site.

~The Gentle Art of Domesticity: Book Review~

When Jane Brocket was writing her book, The Gentle Art of Domesticity, I was quite excited, and could not wait until her book was available. Well, indeed I did wait, because as per my usual style, I waited until the book was available at my local library. Which meant that I needed to wait for the book to be published in the United States (it was originally published in the UK).

I put a hold on the book at the library, and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally I got a notice telling me that the book was in. I checked it out, and brought it home. When I opened it, I was disappointed.

I had expected new and exciting pictures, recipes, and knitting, but instead found the same pictures and material that I had been seeing and reading for several years on Jane's blog yarnstorm. I thumbed through the book several times and then returned it to the library.

Last month I was at the library and spotted The Gentle Art of Domesticity on the shelf. I decided to check it out again. This time, after flipping through and enjoying the photography, I started at the beginning and read. It is true, most of the material was presented in some form or fashion on Jane's blog. But she has since deleted her blog yarnstorm, thus deleting all the knitting, crocheting, baking, beading, and quilting content. So since I knew I couldn't go online and find the same content, it was quite an enjoyable read.

Most of the book is not really how to enjoy one's domestic life. Rather, it is how Jane enjoys her domestic life. It is a fun read. The book lends itself to short reading bursts, which is all I seem to have anyhow.

After reading this book from cover to cover, I have been inspired to knit more, read more, and bring more beauty into my domestic life. Which, I am pretty sure, was Jane's purpose.

Image from Amazon.com

~Goofball~

I just found the blog Obsessively Stitching. Care has so many fun projects on her site--so many beautiful quilts and cute projects for little ones. As soon as I spotted her goofball tutorial I knew it was something The Baby would love!

So I dug through my scraps and ribbons, and put together my very own goofball:


I'm thinking a few more of these, in varying sizes, would be so fun. Maybe I'll even put a jingle bell in one of them! I have plenty of flannel scraps and ribbon!

~Monday's Daybook: October 12~

Outside My Window...a damp, cold morning.

I am thinking...about the fun time we had with Kevin's family this weekend.

I am thankful for...my salvation.

From the kitchen...a few leftovers from our "Thanksgiving" meal. I think we'll have turkey soup for dinner tonight!

I am going...to the grocery store and the bank.

I am almost finished reading...The Gentle Art of Domesticity.

I am hoping...we have a few more nice days this fall. The forecast doesn't look promising though.

I am hearing...the heater run, The Baby playing, and the hum of the computer...just a quiet morning here!

Around the house...my "To Do" list includes laundry and straightening my home.

One of my favorite things...pumpkin pie for breakfast - which is exactly what I had yesterday!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...my week doesn't look too busy, just the normal living stuff.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...flowers floating in a fountain.


For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.

~Sunday~

Philippians 4:4

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

Cactus Flower

~Hot pads~

I'm excited to share my latest sewing project with you! I followed You Go Girl!'s tutorial for the binding here. It was a little different than my normal method, and I liked the way it turned out.

My mom's kitchen is decorated with red and chickens. I didn't find fabric with chickens, but I think these prints will coordinate well with her kitchen. Each hot pad is the same - striped on one side, floral print on the other side.



One of my sisters is getting married in December. I wasn't able to attend her bridal shower, but I still wanted to give her a gift! I went to Target and picked out some towels that match her kitchen decor. Then I went to the fabric store and found fabric that matches the towels. I think the towels and hot pads match quite well!





I bought 1/4 yard of each print for front and back, and 1/8 yard for the binding (each binding strip is 2 inches wide). If I would have purchased 1/4 yard of the binding fabric, I would have had enough fabric for 4 hot pads out of each combination.

Is it just me, or is it really hard to find coordinating fabrics? I searched for an hour in a fairly large fabric store to find these two combinations.

I delayed in sharing these on my blog until my sister and mom received them. :-) I am hoping they enjoy them. I know I'm enjoying the one I made for myself (pictured here on my photo blog).

~Dinner tonight~

As I mentioned earlier this week, we have family in town this weekend! Tonight I used an old favorite for dinner: Everyday Cassoulet. I've previously blogged this recipe, but here it is again:

Cassoulet is a French bean and meat stew.

1 pound Polish or smoked sausage, diagonaly cut into 1-inch pieces (I used beef sausage)
1 can (15 to 16 oz) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 to 16 oz) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 to 16 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
3 medium carrots, thinly sliced (1 1/2 cups)
2 small onions, thinly sliced and separated into rings
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup beef broth
2 TBS packed brown sugar
2 TBS chopped fresh or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves

1. Heat oven to 375*.
2. Mix all ingredients in ungreased 3-quart casserole. Cover and bake 50-60 minutes or until mixture is hot and bubbly and carrots are tender.

Tonight I served it with rice and a side salad. After dinner we enjoyed Easy Swedish Apple Pie and ice cream. Yummy. Tomorrow we're having our Thanksgiving dinner, complete with turkey. {And I'm SO glad I decided to blog about our food because just as I typed the word turkey, I remembered that the turkey needs to defrost!}

Have a great day!

~Some Etsy Finds~

I just thought I'd share a few things I've recently seen on Etsy. Please note, I'm just drooling over these items, I haven't actually purchased them. :-) The link for each item is above the picture.

Mae Doll Pattern


I was searching for a PDF doll pattern and found this. The seller also has some other cute doll patterns as well, including ones suited for smaller babies.

Gold Branch Earrings


One thing I like in particular about this seller is that most of her ear wires are either gold or silver. I have tried to wear earrings that are for "sensitive" ears but my ears end up getting infected. This seller has a lot of bold, beautiful earrings!

Perfect Pearl Ring


I really would love to wear this ring! It is something out of my normal style range, but it would be a fun accessory!

It is so fun to look on Etsy! A way to find new shops is to look in the showcase for the day. That is how I found the ring, I believe. Another way is to watch the newly listed items as they pop up. That is how I found the leaf earrings!

~Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes~

I mentioned a week or so ago that I was making bread, using the method outlined in the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.

If you aren't familiar with this book, here's the description in a nutshell: you mix together flour, salt, yeast, and water. The result is a wet dough that you do not knead. It all goes in the fridge, and as you need bread, you take out enough for a loaf, prepare the dough (without kneading), and bake it. It's a little more complicated than that, but I did say, "in a nutshell". ;-)

The first loaf turned out ok. I didn't bake it long enough, so I stuck it back in the oven. Also, I don't have all the proper kitchen tools the book calls for, so when I went to transfer my loaf of bread to the stone in the oven, my loaf rolled and slid off, plopping top side down. So needless to say it wasn't the most beautiful loaf of bread I've ever seen.

This was my second loaf:


Again, not the most beautiful loaf of bread I've ever seen! :-P

Since I cut the recipe in half I had enough dough for two loaves of bread. This bread is good. I think that given enough practice and the right kitchen tools, I could make some awesome bread.

But. All that white flour...I try to use whole grains - I've even switched to whole grain pasta. And. I could eat a loaf or two of this bread daily. So. I think I'll chalk this up to a fun experiment.

~Couponing update~

I thought I'd do a little update on my continuing experience with coupons. In this post, I shared how I organized my coupons. So far it is still working very well, and even though I have read about different methods of coupon organization, I plan on keeping this method for now.

Besides getting coupons from the weekly Sunday paper, I also print coupons when I see a coupon I know I'll use. I try not to print coupons that I won't use, because it is a waste of paper and ink!

Since we don't eat a lot of prepared foods, my greatest savings is still on sales. I do try to combine coupons and sales whenever I can, and I take my coupon box into the store with me so that I can use coupons on unadvertised sales. I am still dedicated to not bringing home junk food. Free or cheap junk food is still junk food! :-) I love to find coupons for wholesome foods. They aren't as sparse as it seems when first starting out!

Overall, I am spending less on groceries than I was in my pre-coupon days. I am still shopping at only one store. Every once in a while I will hit Target or Walgreens if there are some great sales. If I need a lot of staples, I'll visit Aldi as well. But most weeks I just go to Meijer. Meijer's prices vary store by store, and ours seems to be on the lower side.

Another thing I have done is to slowly stock up on items as they go on sale. I have a lot of whole grain pasta in my cupboard, as well as spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, and mayonnaise. I don't have a lot of room, so I have to be careful not to overdo it.

I am pleased with my couponing efforts. It has been a blessing to our family for me to be able to save money each week at the grocery store!

~Monday's Daybook: October 6~

Outside My Window...a sunny, cool day.

I am thinking...of everything I need to do over the next few days!

I am thankful for...this coming weekend, anticipated time with family we haven't seen for a while!

From the kitchen...hmmmm, I need to go grocery shopping today. I'm not sure what we'll have for dinner yet.

I am creating...gifts for upcoming events!

I am going...to Starbucks to test their new VIA line. Of course, grocery shopping too!

I am still reading...The Gentle Art of Domesticity.

I am hoping...to find good deals at the grocery store!

I am hearing...Songtime Volume 1 by CBH Ministries.

Around the house...the heater is on, laundry is waiting to be folded, and lotsa chores to do!

One of my favorite things...Chocolate Hazelnut tea by Stash Teas.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...get ready for our family coming, ladies' Bible study, and some serious crocheting on my ripple afghan.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Toys, scattered every which way over the living room. I *love* it!

For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Late night sewing

~Sunday~

Proverbs 3:5,6

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

~Today~

Today was a drizzly day. It rained off and on all day long. It was a perfect day for staying in, which is what we did!

I took the opportunity to work on a sewing project this afternoon. I'll be sharing the results with you soon. It is a project that I'm happy with!

This evening I so wanted to get pizza instead of making dinner! It just seemed like the perfect day for pizza, you know? But I would have had to cut into next week's grocery budget to get the pizza, and I already had everything I needed for dinner. So I made dinner like a good girl. :D And since we had company last night, I planned ahead that tonight's dinner would be our leftovers for Sunday afternoon. So it is really a good thing that I stuck to my menu plan!

Next week we're having a little family get-together with Kevin's side of the family. I'm really excited about seeing everyone (my MIL, SIL and BIL)! We're planning a Thanksgiving dinner. I love Thanksgiving food. It is so good. You cook all morning and then you have leftovers for four days. It's great! And to top it all off my brother is coming for Thanksgiving this year so I'll be making two Thanksgiving dinners this year. You should see my brother's sandwiches from Thanksgiving leftovers! Everything (and I do mean EVERYTHING) gets piled between bread and eaten with great relish! Think Dagwood-style sandwiches and you're pretty close!

Well, that's about it! I hope you all had a great day, and blessings on the Lord's Day tomorrow!

All ready to sew

My projects cut out and ready to go!