Home Inspiration ..

They had a cheery supper that night in spite of simple fare.. The mother was resurrecting all of her old recipe, plain wholesome food, cheaply bought and deriving its savoury taste and smell from the old deftness in seasoning, the trick of long cooking and careful preparation.. 

Bean soup made with tomatoes, potatoes and celery tops... brown bread, baked apples and cream, even bread pudding with a dash of chocolate to make it tasty, hash... 

It all seemed so good and they were so hungry from their work.. 

Grace Livingston Hill ( A Patch of Blue) 

Good Evening all.. 

How are you?

Spring has arrived here, finally, although we still have lots of snow.. 

At least it is melting.. 

Nova Scotia had a bad storm yesterday but we missed it this time.. 

Nevertheless, Winter is about done for.. 

Mild temps and fogs are getting rid of the snow a lot faster then one can imagine.. 

We live in hope.. grin.. 

I often read books that I find inspiring in the fact that they write about the role of the woman in the home and  describe her chores throughout the day.. 

Of course, these books are written about the 1800's era.. smile.. 

I love reading books that give me inspiration as the keeper of my home.. 

The plot of the story may be a bit mundane but as long as the writer describes the daily routines of the home I rather enjoy it.. 

I favor historical books and also books written about the World Wars period..

Yes, I am a history buff..smile..

I find it interesting how the ladies managed their homes during those hard times.. 

Do you? 

One thing I noted is that they always put the tea pot on during a  crisis.. I guess it helped to calm them.. 

It was also a daily ritual that began as soon as they arose and stirred the embers of the fire.. 

We still do that here..

Although, it is the coffee perking.. 

But I, too do need my tea.. smile.. 

Breakfast was an important meal.. 

It needed to be substantial as they worked so hard.. 

 And usually, after breakfast, the lady of the home mixed up a batch of bread.. 

I made this one the other day from my new cookbook.. 

Brown Eggs and Jam Jars.. 

It turned out beautiful and was called Sandwich Bread.. 

I noticed that the Hamburger Buns were basically the same recipe except for the egg topping and seeds.. 

So I just made the Sandwich Bread and instead of 2 loaves I made half of it into the rolls... 

These were made with whole rolled oats and whole wheat flour mostly.. 

I don't think I should publish her recipe without permission.. 

But her book is awesome and available at Costco and I did see it at Indigo but it was an extra $7.00

Back to the books... smile..

I also noted that a protein which was favored during those years was fish.. 

It was cheap and usually available.. 

Terry and I both love fish.. 

And although not necessarily frugal it is very nutritious.. 

Smelts are being fished here in the Maritimes and the fish paddlers are selling them at street corners in the city..

The last time we were in we bought a few pounds.. 

When they were cleaned I froze the heads and then later with some salmon parts I made a fish broth.. 

I covered the fish with water and then I added a bay leaf, onion, peppercorns, celery and some leaves and then let it simmer away for a couple of hours.. 

What a wonderful savory broth.. 

That night for Supper we had Manhattan Clam Chowder using the fish broth.. 

It was great along with the home made bread and was a  rather frugal meal just like in the books... 

Just simple fare.. smile.. 

A nice hot cup of tea and a slice of boiled raisin cake finished off an old fashioned meal... 

 I read something that I had wrote in my journal .. 

It was a list of items that was necessary for the larder many years ago.. 

It was in a book I read andI found it a bit interesting and wrote it down..

If I remember right it was for a new homeplace.. 

Larder Necessities..  

a sack of potatoes 

a sack of turnips 

a flitch of bacon to hang

salt pork 

tallow candles 

butter, cheese and eggs on a cold slab..

wheat and barley loaves 

a current cake and a block of gingerbread 

red and white marmalades.. 

As I read this I tried to imagine the meals that would be made with these few ingredients.. 

What do you imagine? 

Just for fun make up a meal menu and add it to your comment if you like .. 

Let's see.. What would I make?  

Hmmmm.. 

Fried Potatoes with bacon and some mashed turnips and butter.. 

A slice of a barley loaf and marmalade..  

Right.. 

A big pot of tea and perhaps the Gingerbread.. 

I think they forgot a few things.. grin.. 

What say you???

Also in my journal I copied another list from a book I had read... 

Household goods for a new home maker...

a set of iron candlesticks

blue and white china plates

pottery figurines

iron kettle

wrought iron chimney crane by which pots and pans could be moved into different positions over the fire...

potatoes would be baked in the fireplace..

Here are a few pics that I took at Kings Landing ( a historical village that we have here in New Brunswick which we visit nearly every Fall) 

hearth cooking.. 

home made napkins .

I posted a little YouTube on one way of folding them.. 

Click on...

Folding Napkins at Kings Landing..

dinner being prepared..

old dishes.. blue and white.. 

growing and using herbs..

And always.. 

Geraniums on the window sills.. 

Do you sometimes find inspiration in the books you are reading or are you hooked on Pinterest to provide inspiration if needed.. 

Personally, I love my books but Pinterest is a wonderful new tool that we can access... eh?

House work which includes cooking, cleaning, sewing, decorating, and frugal planning are part of my agenda daily.. 

Some days I need to feel creative and love it when I find some little inspiration that turns my crank.. grin.. 

Sometimes, I will record it in my journal for another day.. 

I need to remember this verse..

Colossians 3:23-24 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ...

Thanks so much for stopping by, my dears.. 

Hope you have a blessed week.. 

I will keep you in my prayers and please remember me.. 

I look forward to hearing from you.. 

God bless.. 

Linked to... HOMEMAKING MODAYS..

and 

Linked to... Roses of Inspiration... 

A little touch here and a little touch there...

Greetings to you all this evening..

Did you know the hockey playoffs are on??

Do you have a hockey fan in your family? 

I do... 

By the time they are over I will be quite tired of it all.. smile.. 

And to top it all off I have a famous cousin who plays for the Boston Bruins... 

He is a bit of a spitfire, I think.. Some says it runs in the family.. smile.. 

He is a good player, though.. grin.. 

Anyway.... 

I thought I would go around the house and take a few pics for you.. 

Just a few little quaint touches... 

Hope you enjoy...

Lots of old books in this house... smile..

And several bird's nests.. 

My husband brought this one in to me the other day.. 

Violets are one of my fave flowers.. 

If it has a violet on it then I usually love it... 

An olde pin cushion from my dear friend, Julia.. 

I wrote about her HERE...

 Remember...

Under Two Flags...

I bought this book for it's cover.. grin..  

This little book is called the Acadian Album..

It is an autograph album that belonged to a girl called Annie.. 

1888..

Several verses are signed from Mass. USA but then there  

 are verses written from Salisbury, N. B. where I grew up and some are from  Lewis Mountain which is about 5 minutes from here.. 

I forget where I bought this..

A $5.00 tag is still on it so it must have been a yard sale..  

oh dear...

Another beautiful little treasure.. 

So old...

See the blanket it is lying on.. It is on a window seat in one of the spare rooms.. My step father gave it to me.. 

His s first wife made it from a real sheep's fleece.. 

I treasure it, too.. 

An old french ivory brush and an alarm clock... 

I love old clocks... smile.. 

And an old letter from William..

Precious.. 

A little hand stitching I did.. 

Are you a kindred spirit?? smile.. 

If you love old stuff like this then I would say we may be.. 

I hope you liked these little touches... 

It's the little things that make a house a home.. 

Or so my Mom always tells me.. smile.. 

Thank you so much for stopping by ... 

I loved having you.. I hope you leave me a wee note.. smile..

Take care my dears... 

Old Books and Organic...

Happy Friday everyone..

I guess the day is almost over.. In this part of the world anyway.. I have been reading and didn't think I would post tonight but then I decided that perhaps I would after all.. smile..

We had a lovely day.. The weather was wonderfully Spring like although we still have snow.  For a few more days anyway.. 

Please note the pic above.. I have finally found a much easier way to sign the pics..

It's kind of neat doing it once in awhile.. 

Blogging is so creative..

 No wonder that I love it.. Then meeting all you sweet ladies is the icing on the cake.. grin.. 

Today Terry and I had a DATE DAY.. You can do that when you retire.. smile.. 

We went to the city for the afternoon..

He had to get license for vehicles and such.. 

We went for lunch and then stopped at a couple of places..

Some organics... 

As you know I love sprouting and their barley and such are a good price..

I love buying organic garlic.. Do you know that the garlic that we buy here at our supermarkets comes from China?  That drives me nuts.. Imagine.. Have I said all this before?

Pardon me, if I have but why can't we have Canadian garlic for heaven's sake.. 

No offense to China but it is garlic..

Anyway...

Speaking of organic... grin...

There were many deer in the fields on the way home.. On the road, too.. smile.. 

Here is some reading that I plan on getting started on this weekend.. 

I read everyday... 

It is a habit I started as a child..

We did not have a TV and I believe the habit was really established because of that.. 

I found Christ the Healer downstairs yesterday.. I scanned it and I think it is really a great book.. 

The other one I bought at a Thrift shop.. 

Cape Breton is part of Nova Scotia and I think it will be interesting.. 

The vintage cook book was only one dollar.. 

And the other one looks good, too. 

We shall see.. smile.. 

Do you ladies like to read and what is your favorite type of book? 

We came home and had supper.. The evenings are much longer, eh? 

Well, my dears I guess it is bedtime.. 

Have a wonderful weekend.. 

Enjoy your dear families... 

HUGS..