Spring Ramblings...

Hello there everyone,, 

Glad you could stop by for a bit.. 

We are having a lovely Sunday here in New Brunswick.. 

We woke up this morning to rain falling outside the bedroom window and dripping off of the roof.. 

I thought I would lay in a bit and just listen.... 

My darling wind chime would do a little clang now and then but once my eyes are open I get thinking about that coffee and up I get.. grin.. 

Terry bought me a new perk for our anniversary and I am sold... 

We have been using a drip one or the Keurig for ages... 

I saw this one at Walmart .. It looked like one of the old fashioned ones with the basket inside and coffee splashing up on the glass cover..

The coffee is so much better.. 

Worth getting up for shall we say.. 

Sitting in my chair, the rain pelting the window and a nice hot cup of coffee in my hand started my day off right.. 

We were looking forward to church this morning..

We always look forward to it but a bit more shall we say..  

There was a concert and it was wonderful.. 

Southern Gospel at it's best and good preaching in between.. 

Matt Linton..

Felt blessed to hear it..

My Mom and Step Father were there and we all went out for lunch.. 

So all in all a lovely day... 

We were up to the farm the other day.. 

It is greening up there really well .. 

The brook is flowing and it is fishing season here.. 

I find it stays colder up there but things are beginning to leaf out.. 

The flag has had the biscuit so I have that to look forward to when Terry climbs that ladder and does his thing.. 

I am not going to write about it this time though.. lol.. 

I was so excited to see the garlic was spared this winter... 

We should have quite a few... 

Looking forward to the Scapes and making some Pesto with them.. 

The Lilac Tree is starting to leaf out, too... 

Aunt Eva loved this tree.. smile.. 

We are not moved up there yet by a long way.. 

So much to do in getting all the stuff from the cottages sorted... 

pray for me.. smile.. 

Here at home the Forget Me Nots are out and the White Violets.. 

Love little bouquets of them here and there... 

 A lot of my herbs came back at the farm and I am glad.. 

Here though I only have Lovage and Chives... 

This is my Lovage plant a few years ago... 

It is only half that size right now.. 

Perfect for making pickles.. 

I did these on Saturday.. 

Cut the stems and trim the leaves... 

Cut them up and put them in sterilized bottles with a bay leaf and half a tsp. of  hot chili flakes.. 

Make your fave brine and pour over... 

I used my Hot Pickled Veggie recipe.. 

Oh my.. they are good.. to me.. (I mean)  

As usual not for Terry.. grin... 

The leaves I cleaned off the stems were put in a dehydrator... 

They are all dried and ready to be blitzed tomorrow into a powder that I used in place of salt... 

And my Spring treat is the hollow stem in a glass 

of tomato or Clamato juice...  

A nice afternoon drink or whenever.. 

Spring to me means buying my Lemon Geranium... 

We always have one on the deck.. 

It is supposed to keep away bugs.. 

I like to stick a leaf or two in my vacuum bag, too... 

And of course we can't forget the Rhubarb.. 

It is just beginning but Terry brought in enough for a batch of 

Rhubarb Scones... 

I just used the recipe for the Daily Biscuits I shared with you a bit ago and added 1 cup of finely chopped rhubarb and a bit of cinnamon and replaced the white sugar for brown... 

He did like these.. 

Especially served with Rhubarb and Pineapple Jam.. 

From last year.. 

I need to make some more as soon as I can.. 

So much to do and so little time, eh?  

Oh well a bit here and a bit there... 

If I were to pick a fave Canadian season it would be Spring.. 

What is yours? 

We had some sweet company yesterday.. 

Trevor and Joel went to the woodlot and then stopped by for a few minutes... 

For you girls who follow the blog you no doubt remember me explaining about Trevor's love for Charlie saga ... 

Unrequited love, though.. 

It is so sad.. smile

The dear lad does everything he can to make Charlie like him.. 

To even be civil would be nice.. grin.. 

But before Trevor even got in the house I could hear Charlie growling in his kennel... 

I looked out and there was Joel so I knew Trevor was near.. 

Pretty soon the dog really starts barking and in comes Trev... 

"Hello Charlie Boy!"  

The dog just keeps barking.. 

I made him go get in his kennel and the whole time he keeps giving  a deep growl...   

Trevor as always goes to the fridge for a slice of cheese and begs Charlie to come out and get it.. 

As you can see... 

All Charlie does is poke out and growl.. 

Then he would lift his head and bark like crazy... 

Trev kept trying but what a stubborn dog... 

The pic is the last little piece... 

Trevor enjoyed the cheese.. lol... 

He is really Dustin's dog and has only one master... 

And one mistress.. lol.. 

It took him a year to warm up to Terry but just so so... 

Well, sweet girls I hope you are all having a lovely Spring.. 

Trials come and go but the One who holds our hand keeps us stable.. 

Life is what you make it... 

Right?  

Thanks so much for stopping by and so love your comments here and on Face Book... 

Thanks for following the blog and liking the page.. 

Really appreciate hearing from you... 

God bless you dear girls and enjoy your days... 

xo

Ten lovely ways to make your Winter home cozy....

Hello there dear hearts.. 

Welcome to the Blessed Hearth today.. 

This is to be a special blog post because the homegoods company called Wayfair.ca invited me to participate in a little campaign they have going on.

 I am to write a post giving a few tips which will help create a cozy home during these last several weeks of Winter.

Here in Eastern Canada we have been hit with two huge back to back snow storms this past week and it is hard to imagine an end in sight.. 

So let's talk about a few ideas that might help us to revamp our homes into cozy retreats for the rest of the season.. 

1.  The first idea of course is to have a nice warm fire... 

Either in our fireplaces, stoves or such.. 

But if you don't have a fireplace or don't want to bother with the work of fire making then make a mock fireplace with candles.

Grouping candles of different sizes on a shelf,  a coffee table or at the base of a fireplace is a great way to add a cozy spark to your home.. 

2..Candles just naturally cheer up a space.. 

3..  Throws and Blankets..

Throws are lovely but sometimes it does add a sense of warmth and flair to go with faux fur..  

Adding blankets to chairs and couches injects a touch of warmth to any room... 

4.. Plants.. 

Any room can benefit from greenery not only in the decorative sense but they are wonderful for your health.. 

This past year I have been trying to grow plants and place them about..

I think they add coziness, don't you? 

Making coffee and glancing out of the kitchen window on a Winter's morning with the snow piled high is somehow cheerful with the colourful Geraniums peering outside, too! smile.. 

5..Speaking of kitchens ... Copper adds such a touch of warmth to this centre of our home.. 

The lovely copper colour reflects the light.. 

Whether it is a wintry sun shinning through the kitchen window or the reflection of a candle burning on the counter or hutch.. 

Copper is classic and so rich looking, I think.. 

6..  Wonderful home cooked meals and lovely set tables.. 

Sitting around the supper table with a delicious meal definitely  makes a big contribution towards a cozy home anytime of the year but especially during the long evenings of Winter.. 

Tablecloths and dinnerware can make the food taste better, eh?  smile.. 

7..  Books...

Taking time in the afternoon or evening to turn the pages of a book along with a lovely cuppa makes for a cozy spot in your day.. 

Books and plants are in the same catagory to me.. 

They just emanate the coziness  of home and especially during the winter months..

I can never have too many bookshelves, if you know what I mean.. 

8..Bread...

Yup... 

You have to agree that there is no other smell as cozy as homemade bread and it is so comforting... 

It is very easy to make now with the many no knead recipes that one can find on the internet.. 

Here is the link for this one here..

It will take only 5 minutes of your day.. 

9.  Fragrance.. 

Plug- ins, candles, sprays or even homemade potpourris can make a stale home smell delightful.. 

Spices and fruits mixed with water and simmered in a pot on the stove or in the oven smell glorious.. 

Or even wrap some up in cheesecloth and tie with a string.. 

Dip into a potpourri burner along with a bit of cider...

Don't you think that anything that makes your house smell delicious is money well spent?

Me, too.. 

10..  Make a few cozy corners for yourself.. 

They will give you a quiet spot during busy days or restful place at the end of one.. 

This is my favourite spot.. 

Our water bed... 

So warm and cozy.. 

A flannel covered down filled duvet, an open window, a smelly candle and the book.. 

Heavenly.. smile..

and this one.. 

An old lazy boy, a pile of books and the electric fireplace in our sun room is another cozy spot for me.. 

And my plants.. smile.. 

Well, my friends this about wraps it up.. 

I hope you will find something inspiring here to help you cope with the rest of our Winter season and make a bit of cozy for yourself.. 

Looking out of our Family Room window the other night at this beautiful sunset gives us hope of waking up to a sweet Spring morning very soon.. 

Thank you so much for visiting and I look forward to reading your sweet notes that you leave.. 

Also... 

 I would like to thank Wayfair.ca for this honour of allowing me this opportunity to represent them even in this small way..

There are several links above in the post to Wayfair.ca and their cozy products.. 

Take care and God bless.. 

xo 

An ordinary day...

Hello my dears..

How are you all doing? 

What a beautiful day here in the Maritimes... 

Terry was out and about cutting down some limbs and gathering them up.... 

See how the grass has greened up ... 

Later on in the day he had the little tractor out doing the garden.. 

He generally has a lovely one.. 

Veggies galore ...

 Last year, the garden did not fare well because it was so wet and he was working away some plus we were at the cottage ... 

We did manage to get lots of tomatoes and such, though.. 

My main thing is to have lots of cukes, tomatoes and green beans..

And lots of herbs, of course, but they are my responsibility... 

Last year a sweet friend gave me a lot of basil which is my favorite herb to eat..

I really hope to get a good supply of my own growing this year.. 

It needs to be planted here as the beds at the cottage are not good for basil for some reason...

The canning season is almost upon us here... 

The fiddle heads are out so I have heard and the rhubarb is coming right along.. 

I need to make dandelion jelly then apple blossom and Queen Anne's lace jelly.. Oh my... 

Today, I cleaned my kitchen and family room ... The counters and cupboards all needed a through going over and the floors needed done again.. 

I also worked on some little prizes and such for our Keepers Meeting on Saturday... 

These two old cups are on their way to being pin keeps.. 

We are meeting tomorrow night and setting up tables and making a few favors and centrepieces for our Mother's Breakfast.. 

That should be fun... 

This afternoon some friends phoned and said they were dropping in... 

 I thought they would be here for Supper so I peeled and chopped these up... 

Potatoes, carrots, turnip, red onion and whole garlic cloves... 

Don't peel the garlic.. 

Dry the veggies well then sprinkle on some salt, pepper and dried Italian seasoning... 

Drizzle on some olive oil and mix well with your hands and spread in a tray..  Roast in a 350 degree F. oven...

Discard the garlic or save them and squeeze onto some toast...

We really like root veggies done this way..I  marinaded a few pork steaks and put them in the oven at the same time.. 

A nice salad and supper was ready... 

The only thing is that our friends didn't show.. 

I guess there was some miscommunication going on.. smile.. 

Oh well.. next time.. 

It is evening here now and the kitchen is darkening.. 

Time to make my evening tea... 

In my favorite cup.. smile..

Lots of things to work on... 

I was sitting beside my grandson the other Sunday and I noticed he was reading the book of Exodus... 

Now I am reading it through again.. smile.. 

Thank you dear friends for your sweet comments last posting.. 

I appreciate your concern and your lovely personal emails.. 

You guys are great.. 

And you who have blogs are such a blessing, too.. 

I find so much inspiration out there... 

Thanks for visiting tonight.. 

Talk to you all again soon.. 

God bless...