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... 

Tea Cup Exchange..

Hello everyone.. 

Just posting today about a cup and saucer exchange I participated in with Stephanie at The Enchanting Rose ...

I was excited to mail one to Libby at The Whispering Cottage...

While I received this beautiful cup and saucer from Sandra at

 Ravenhill Cottage..

It was beautifully wrapped in pink tissue and in a sweet cup and saucer box.. 

Inside the box was a beautiful luncheon cloth with pink flowers and some English Tea.. 

So beautiful.. 

I so love roses and the inside of the cup has this one on it.. 

Lots of gorgeous gold trimming, too. 

Thank you so much, Sandra and to Stephanie also for hosting this sweet little party.. smile.. 

The little tea pot card was sweet too and even matched the cup and saucer.. 

Such an eye to detail.. 

As you can see it even matches our living room.. 

That was so much fun and I will enjoy this lovely gift ... 

Please go over to Stephanie's blog and see the other exchanges.. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, dear hearts.. 

Have a great weekend and God bless..

Hugs..  

         

A little trip to St. Martins to see all of their SNOW..

Hello everyone.. 

I want to wish you a Happy Spring... 

I know a lot of you have true cause to celebrate but as they say.. 

Meanwhile in Canada.... lol.. 

This will be my final post about snow.. honest.. 

We heard from a sweet friend that St. Martins which is where my little shop and our summer cottage is was covered in snow.. 

So... we took a little trip.. 

Want to come along? 

This is where we started out almost.. 

As you can see our area has some very high banks of snow.. 

Where it drifts sometimes there is really only about one lane.. 

Remember this is on a rural road and not our main highways... 

They are well cleared and mostly bare... 

I coaxed Terry into turning around so I could take these pictures.. 

When we went by it reminded me of a bunch of ladies at the supermarket waiting in line to get their groceries bagged up.. grin..

They are actually waiting their turn to get to the hay feeder.. smile.. 

Patience is a virtue, dear ladies.. 

They all were wondering what I wanted with them.. grin.. 

Another friend had said that West Quaco was closed and as we have some sweet friends living there we went there first to see how it really was.. 

But by the time we arrived it was all cleared out except for some really high banks.. 

We went down Lighthouse Road to check the light house.. 

It was still there but not very visible due to the high banks of snow..

Just for fun I have included a pic I took last Summer.. 

Same place.. Same station.. 

Different scene, though.. smile.. 

Soon... 

A quaint little cottage over there.. 

The lady who owns it bought her top window curtain from my shop.. smile. 

And our friend's house but they were away.. 

Then we went back to  St. Martins.. 

The sweetest little village on the Bay of Fundy.. 

I think so, anyway.. 

See that lovely house up on the cliff.. 

It reigns supreme over the village and my sweet friend, Gwen lives there.. 

She is an artist and she and her husband make jewellery..

She blogs and takes the most beautiful pictures of St. Martins.. 

You can find her HERE...

Well as you can see everyone is busy trying to push that snow back.. 

And it is a very real task... 

Oh good.. 

There is my little shop coming up.. 

It is right on Main Street.. 

And you can see the back of our old summer cottage.. 

My goodness.... you can hardly see the shop at all.. 

And there is the cottage.. 

Pretty well buried, I would say.. 

Hard to imagine that in a few months the snow will be gone and we will be there opening up the windows and doors and bringing some life back into the old place..

Making more memories for our heart's pages..  

This is the end of our street and another friend's cottage.. 

But this is what it will look like in a few months.. 

Worth waiting for, eh?  smile.. 

On with the story... 

The harbour.. 

The fishermen still go out and there were quite a few boats there.. 

The tide was in.. 

And here are the world famous St. Martins Caves... 

How I love the Bay of Fundy.... 

I have visited St. Martins since I was a baby..

My Mom grew up here for you new followers.. 

My Dad was a lumberjack and was working for my grandfather and met my Mom at a dance.. 

They married and my Mom was the only one of 12 to move away from this little village.. 

Sorry to bore you with a bit of family history.. grin.. 

One of the two covered bridges ..

And this is the second one.. 

Well my dears, it is time to head home and I was glad to be down and see it all... 

This road leads us home.. 

Another hour and half and we will be there.. 

I had to share this picture.. 

I saw one similar on the internet.. 

It is titled.. 

CANADA... WE WILL NOT SURRENDER !!!.. 

It has been quite a Winter but now it is officially Spring.. 

And even though the snow is coming once again to our Maritime Provinces over night and again tomorrow we do know that Winter will have to give up soon... 

It has certainly put up a good fight here in our part of the world but underneath the snow the earth is coming back to life and flowers are pushing their way up to greet us once again.. 

We must look forward because joy cometh in the morning.. 

Maybe not tomorrow morning but one of these days.. grin.. 

Tomorrow is the Lord's Day and once again we are getting snow.. 

Hopefully, not enough to cancel church but if so I can still talk to the Lord right here... 

Take care, my dears.. 

Enjoy your weekend and as I promised ... 

There will be no more Winter posts.. 

Looking forward to hearing from you all.. 

Hugs.. 

God Bless Our Irish Home..

Good Evening to you my lovelies... 

Just wanted to share a post with you of our little Irish celebration..

My husband is a Scott and so am I but there is a wee bit of the Irish in my bloodline which I am always happy to announce to the world.. grin.. 

So with that being said... 

Today being St. Patrick's Day was a sweet opportunity for Terry and I to have a special little dinner.. 

It was not a lot of work but a bit of fun to find some green dishes and such.. 

I am blessed to have a collection of Beeleek pottery which was made in Ireland.. I love every little piece.. Most of it was given to me from my husband's dear cousin, Marilyn and then Shonda gave us a lovely piece for our 40th anniversary.. 

I was happy to use a few pieces for dinner.. 

You will notice they have little shamrocks on their edges..

Then to find some green place mats, sheep napkin holders from my friend, Judy and such..  

Green is one of my favorite colors so it was not hard to find a few things to decorate the table with. 

Marilyn also gave me some little Irish ornaments as she knows how I love  the Irish.. smile.. 

I think it is important to take the time and make the effort to have little special occasions where we can celebrate, don't you?  

That is what home is all about.. 

Celebrating the life that Jesus has blessed us with.. 

The times we can spend together and the memories we make are precious and worth a wee bit of effort.. 

In the big ways and the small ones.. eh? 

St. Patrick was responsible for taking Christ to England from Ireland when Christianity was failing.. 

We have been studying church history at our Bible Study and studied about him last week.. 

It has been a very enlightening topic and so blessed to be a part of this Bible Study.. 

Anyway.. back to our dinner.. 

I made a little Soda Bread which was just big enough for two..

Along with some home made Blackberry Jelly ..

We actually had some left over for breakfast .. smile.. 

And a Colcannon Soup which was delicious.. 

I asked Terry if he liked it and he said what was there not to like.. 

Cabbage, potatoes and milk. grin.. 

(it was much more then that..grin)

I was talking to a dear friend this morning who is a faithful reader of the blog and I was saying what a wonderful motivation this blog is.. 

Because I want to put something on here to interest you it motivates me to put out a bit of extra effort and Terry and I both benefit from it.. 

He never complains about the time or effort I put into my blog and is always so helpful to me.. 

He waits for his soup while I get the perfect picture and pays for that old dish which is esactly right for a table setting.. 

He takes me for long drives and stops for pics and gets in ditches to pick me flowers and such.. grin.. 

Notice that picture above where he is sitting there patiently waiting for me to take a picture.. 

See that dear old hand there .. 

Well, that hand has held mine for almost 45 years of marriage next week.. 

Imagine!! 

I couldn't have found a dearer hand to hold.. 

Thank you, Lord.. 

God bless you sweet friends.. 

Thanks again for stopping by.. 

Hugs.. 

Linked to The Art of Homemaking Mondays....

and to The Enchanting Rose....