December Days.

Hello dear hearts.. 

Here I am at last with a Christmas review post.  

I am struggling with my old lap top tonight even though I was gifted with a new chrome book.. 

This one I am used to and although it takes a lot of patience I thought I would use it until I get more used to the other computer.. 

This old brain of mine takes a little practice when it comes to techy stuff.. grin.. 

Anyway.. 

I hope you had a blessed Christmas season.. 

I worked away at decorating the house and making gifts.. 

Above are the Snowmen Buntings I made for a gift exchange and for Shonda and Tammy.. 

Made a valance out of old lace type curtains that I collect.. 

I always look for them at thrift shops as they can be used for lots of crafty type things... 

They were hung with some snowflakes in the kitchen windows...

Crochet ones and the bigger ones are plastic but look like glass especially with the sun shining in the mornings..

Made some bread.. 

The No Knead recipe of course.. 

Find it HERE

Another day I made some cinnamon ornaments for a wee tree...

I should have taken a pic of them hanging and dusted with cinnamon... 

It was Martha Stewart's recipe... 

Just posting a pic here and there of some of our meals..

Chicken and Rice Casserole... 

With a salad...

I have four of these sweet vintage cups that Shonda gave me several years ago... 

So sweet...

Then there is the mantel which always seems to turn out the same every year...

So love the Christmas lights around the house.... 

An old vintage cat I have had for years...

Really like vintage Christmas decor.. 

Do you?  

Well the days passed during the month.. 

Celebrated with different events and had a wonderful time.. 

The days wound down and Charlie was just enjoying the sun waiting for all the company to show up.. 

Another vintage decoration.. 

An old stable with the manger scene... 

This one is rather old, I think... 

One of our treat meals that we sometimes have ...

Fried potatoes and onions..

We didn't get the tree up and trimmed until a couple of days before Christmas... 

On Christmas Day Terry and I just had a slow day waiting for the grandsons to show up in the evening to stay over night with us.. 

They showed up in two different cars.. 

Drove themselves, of course... smile.. 

We had some treats and tried this one out.. 

They enjoyed them.. 

Terry and I had not had them for years.. smile.. 

We loved having the boys over night.. 

Talking and laughing.. 

They so enjoy each other's company.. 

Cousin love is a special thing.. 

I so love mine but a couple of days before Christmas one of my dear ones went home to be with the Lord.. 

We will miss her so much.. 

But some glad morning......

We put the turkey in the oven and it cooked during the night.. 

Terry got up and checked it from time to time.. smile.. 

In the morning I got up early and made Cherry Cheese Squares for the dinner.. This is their favourite Grandma dessert and Aunt Shonda brings the best Apple Pie .. Their Mom, Tammy brought her sweet creations.. That girl is a natural baker..

Then their parents arrived along with my Mom and Step Dad.. 

It gets pretty chaotic as you can image but just so lovely.. 

Shonda and Trevor both helped immensely with getting the meal on already.. 

I seem to get a bit overwhelmed now a days... 

I can get a lot of it done but when they all get here I can't seem to pull it all together but they help so much that it all turns out fine.. 

I forgot to take pics of the food but it was turkey and veggies like most Canadians serve for Christmas dinner.. 

The turkey was so huge that I didn't bake a ham this time.. 

Terry bought one  and it was in the fridge but we will have it for New Years, I guess.. smile. 

Actually there was only a small tray of turkey left over along with the carcass which makes a delicious broth to freeze... 

After dinner we had our gift opening and last of all our Yankee Swap which is a blast... 

Just so much fun and laughter..

Then it was picture taking time.. 

Our little grandsons all grown up....

So so thankful for this dear family that God has gifted us with.. 

We so missed our youngest son, Dustin... 

He could not get home for Christmas but he had a good day and we talked and he received his parcels .... 

As I always say but it is so true ... 

God is faithful... 

I am so glad I know Him.. 

Aren't you?  

Well thank you sweet ladies for being patient with me the last couple of months with my not so often blog posting.. 

I am hoping to do much better once I get my new computer up and running.. 

Thanks for your sweet messages of concern.. 

All is well.. 

I thought I would include this last pic of Shonda and her husband at their home on Christmas Day that she had posted on FB.. 

I thought it was so sweet and a lot of you sort of know her as she has always been a part of my blog... 

That is Ginger sitting there in the middle.. 

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year and may God bless you and your families abundantly in 2019!

Love and appreciate you all... 

Jeremiah 29:11

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas everyone!  

Hope you all have a blessed and wonderful day with your families! So happy to have you visit the past year. 

Hopefully I will soon get a new computer and be able to post more.. 

Take care dear hearts and God bless!

Love and Prayers

Terry and Faye 

xo

If you look for me at Christmas,
You won’t need a special star.
I’m no longer just in Bethlehem,
I’m right there where you are.
You may not be aware of Me,
Amid the celebrations.
You’ll have to look beyond the stores,
And all the decorations.
But if you take a moment,
From your list of things to do,
And listen to your heart, you’ll find
I’m waiting there for you.
You’re the one I want to be with,
You’re the reason that I came.
And you’ll find Me in the stillness,
As I’m whispering your name.

The Last Week of November...

Hello everyone.. 

So happy to finally get back here.. 

It seems to be taking me longer and longer.. 

I am not sure why.. 

Usually I feel like I haven't much to offer on here so just keep putting it off. 

But here I am for tonight anyway.. 

We have had such weird weather here in New Brunswick this month.. 

Getting lots of snow.. 

I do not remember a November quite like this one before.. 

I think we are going to have a long winter but really we are Canadians and we just go with the flow... 

I have been pottering along.. 

\Doing a bit of this and that.. 

Bought some pears and made a cake.. 

It will be prettier next time as I think I would increase the cake recipe but it was different and tasty... 

The kitchen windowsill ....

A few herbs growing and putting the roots of some green onions in water.. 

They grow very well and get more out of them...

We so enjoyed having our grandsons for supper the other night.. 

Made them a loaf of bread.. 

The no knead recipe to the rescue once again!  smile.. 

And a couple of toppings.. 

Olive Tapenade and Herbal Cream Cheese... 

Salad and House Dressing along with Pasta with Broccoli and Lemon.. (sorry I forgot to take a pic) 

And... 

Carrot Cake...

We had a lovely evening... 

One morning we went for a drive out to the farm...

We were wanting to pick some greenery and such.. 

First stop as always was for coffee... 

Charlie usually gets a timbit donut for being such a good dog.. smile.. 

By the time we were almost to the farm the weather had turned .. 

We only got one bunch of branches with cones on them.. 

The roads were so bad that we had to turn around ....

We will go another day.... 

But a bowl of homemade soup was welcome when we got back home.. 

One of our faves... 

Julia Child's Leek and Potato Soup.. 

Christmas is soon going to be here and I am hoping to get a few things made..

  

How are you doing getting ready for Christmas? 

So many people have their trees up and houses all trimmed... 

I guess I need to get at it.. 

Perhaps tomorrow... smile.. 

Well this is not an inspired post for sure but it was nice to touch base with you all again... 

I need to get my act together and get a few pics taken.. 

I do get around to posting a pic on Instagram more often..

You can catch me HERE.. on there... 

Take care dear hearts and have a blessed week.. 

Thanks for dropping by and I look forward to hearing from you all.. 

God bless... 

xo

Saturday Night Ramble and Roll.. ...

Well hello there dear hearts.. 

It has been awhile since I have been here.. 

Face Book informed me today that it has been 28 days since I had posted.. 

I could hardly imagine how fast the time has flown.. 

I have shared with a few friends something I had read in a book the other day.. 

The author wrote that time had just flown by while she had been  busy doing something else.. 

So true.. 

But anyway welcome to the Blessed Hearth tonight.. 

So happy to have you and thank you for being so patient with me when I seem to disappear at times.. 

Hope you are all well and enjoying the passing of the season.. 

Another little ramble and roll for you on this Saturday...

So to ramble on here a bit.. 

 Just when I think my preserving chores are through along comes another one.. smile.. 

We bought a fifty pound bag of lovely carrots last week.. 

So... 

Peeling, chopping and canning have been going on.. 

Such a satisfying bit of work.. 

I did a batch of Mexican Pickled Carrots just to see if we would like them.. 

Terry approved so I may do one more batch.. 

Link Here 

Our days are busy just like everyone else but we still have time for a bowl of homemade soup for lunch.. 

This is an Acadian Recipe called Chicken Fricot.. 

HERE

I put a teaspoon of summer savory in the dumplings, also.. 

I even made bread and apple turnovers one day.. 

I posted it on Instagram and explained how it takes me all day to complete something that should only take a couple of hours.. 

Awww ... the life of a senior .... grin.. 

We also bought a fifty pound bag of apples and squash.. 

The apples unlike the carrots are only half finished but they will keep for awhile.. 

A batch of apple butter is finished..

And... 

Our favourite roasted apple sauce... 

Thanks to Storybook Woods blog recipe.. 

This was the Apple Butter... 

It is an old recipe where you make jelly and then make butter from the puree..

I did not want to make jelly that day so just put the peelings in a cheesecloth and simmered them together.. 

Turned out pretty good..  

On another day I spent time with a sweet kindred spirit... 

It was such a lovely day.. 

She is so talented and taught me to do Needle Felting.. 

I so loved doing it.. 

This will be a sock with a snowman felted on it.. 

I just have to blanket stitch it and it will be finished.. 

Barb is an antique dealer with a darling shoppe in Sussex.. 

She is also a lovely cook and we had a delicious lunch together.. 

So thankful for such dear friends.. 

Then Mom and my Step Father were over for supper.. 

I so love making a meal for them.. 

Mom loves to come here for supper... 

She was craving a turkey meal and I had cooked one of our large home grown turkeys last week... 

She taught me years ago to freeze turkey or chicken in portions that are wrapped first in the skin of the bird and then put in freezer bags and freeze.. 

When you reheat in the over be sure to add some broth and cover.. 

It was very moist..

We still have zucchini so I am trying to make more breads like I posted a time or two ago.. 

I keep giving them away.. smile..  

I love making that recipe because you can do 2 breads each with chocolate chips, nuts or raisins..

Terry keeps encouraging me to make more.. grin.. 

This is what we woke up to this morning.. 

Very slushy snow.. 

And tonight the wind is whistling for sure.. 

Last weekend our province was hit with a huge wind storm and some people went for days without hydro.. 

We were fortunate that ours was only off for 3 hours.. 

Winter is on it's way here in Eastern Canada.. 

Not my favourite season for sure.. 

Rolling along... 

Enjoying my geraniums from Summer ... 

Do you bring your's in for the winter?  

Another little fall chore was drying a few pears... 

We will eat some of them but really I dry them for crafts.. 

I get about 3 slices per pear for crafts and then we enjoy the rest for a treat.... 

This was some packages I made a few years ago.. 

I have these ones glued on tea dyed luggage tags but I couldn't find my spray glue or glitter.. sigh.. 

Must be down in my workshop... 

I will try to finish them next week.. 

Rambline along here.. 

This is a bit of a page from a book I was reading.. 

I sent it to Shonda.. 

She is thinking of putting a tall tree in her vestibule as it reaches to the second floor... 

Isn't the author's description just so lovely and old fashioned  Christmas like?  

The author's name is Rosemunde Pilcher and she is one of my go to authors that I sometimes just need to read.. 

She is not a spiritual writer but she is an old fashioned home like author that I love.. 

I do not agree with everything she writes but love her descriptions of home and family.. 

Do you read any of her books?  

I love her short stories best.. 

The Blue Bedroom for example.. 

The one above is Coming Home..

Christmas is not too far away so am trying to get some ideas together.. 

Terry bought me a lovely thick steno pad from Staples.. 

It is so thick.. 

I love it.. 

You know me and my notebooks.. 

I decided to put a pretty cover on it.. 

Just glued a pretty page from Country Living UK on the cover with a glue stick then a swipe of sealer with a sponge brush... 

I am making a few journals for gifts which I will share when they come together.. 

Love paper crafting.. 

We are still rolling along.. grin.. 

I was tidying up the fridge yesterday and found a jar of green beans that I had fermented... 

Oh my goodness!!!  

Are they delicious or what?? 

Oh I wish I had done a lot of them but was not sure of the recipe.. 

Will be doing many more next summer, Lord willing.. 

Oh and one more food idea.. 

Sorry about so many ... smile.. 

But you will love me for this one.. 

Terry does.. lol.. 

Just looks like a pan of Rice Crispy Squares, eh?  

Wrong... 

These are the best Rice Crispy Square you will ever eat.. 

The difference is browned butter and salt.. 

Yup!  

Makes all the difference!  

Thanks to Smitten Kitchen for the recipe.. 

Salted Brown Butter Rice Crispy Squares

Perhaps you have been making them for ages but I just found the recipe.. 

Well, my dears I guess this is it for this time.. 

Hopefully, I will start posting some Christmas stuff.. 

Trying to get inspired so I can really enjoy the season.. 

I am not a person who puts the decor up before the first of December but I love making and doing for it all..

What are your plans.. Anything exciting?  

Would love to hear from you all.. 

Tomorrow is the Lord's Day once again.. 

Last week the hydro was out in Salisbury so church was cancelled.. 

There is a wind tonight but nothing like last week.. 

Looking forward to the service.. 

This is a pic I posted on Instagram last week..  

Romans 16:1 - 2

 16 Phoebe, a dear Christian woman from the town of Cenchreae, will be coming to see you soon. She has worked hard in the church there. Receive her as your sister in the Lord, giving her a warm Christian welcome. Help her in every way you can, for she has helped many in their needs, including me. 3 Tell Priscilla and Aquila hello. They have been my fellow workers in the affairs of Christ Jesus. 4 In fact, they risked their lives for me, and I am not the only one who is thankful to them; so are all the Gentile churches.

Can you imagine being referred to in the Bible as a "dear Christian woman".... She must have been a wonderful soul.... 

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

Welcome to the new followers of the blog here and on Face Book.. 

So glad to have you.. 

Also for  the sweet emails... 

I am wondering if some of you are having problems getting your email post? 

Please let me know if you are ... 

Thanks and God bless..