Domestic Bliss...

Hi everyone.. 

Here we are beginning another new week and halfway through the month of January already..

I am enjoying these Winter evenings.. 

Are you? 

Our weather thus far has not been too bad and usually the evenings  are nice and cozy.. 

Cups of lovely tea and reading or searching the web for wonderful creative ideas.. 

We are hoping to have a Keepers meeting in a week or so and I find myself looking for ideas that will be interesting to the girls.. 

Now .. 

To change the subject. smile. 

I had asked this question in the questionnaire.. 

10.. Have you heard about the talk of the new trend  called "the New Domesticity?

No one seemed to have heard of it.. 

In my reading I came across this and found it kind of interesting and thought perhaps you would, too.. 

What they are saying is that in this scary world that seems to have lost it's way with the economy, environment and wars that there is a growing movement of smart young women and some men who are embracing what they call the new domesticity.. 

It seems they are getting back to basics like cooking, crafts, gardening and other domestic tasks.. 

They are enjoying learning to make jams and jellies, preserving green beans and crocheting or knitting hats and mittens.. 

I have noticed a change in the blog world where there are so many blogs now written by young mamas who are kind of  hippie like in their goals of creating homesteads and home schooling their kids.. 

They are making home made everything from yogurts, home cleaning products and even their toiletries... 

They may have decided to change from the traditional careers to writing blogs, growing their own veggies and starting Etsy shops on the Internet to sell their crafty goods or earning money by writing .. 

They are saying that there seems to be a trend of leaving fancy jobs and finding substitutes in traditional home making and selling wares on the Internet and having home businesses.. 

People are writing books about it and wondering how this is going to affect the future generation of young women who have during the past culture had goals of being corporate workers but are now putting home and hearth first.. 

They are wondering what role the media and blog culture are playing in making domesticity look very appealing.. 

They wonder how this has happened and if it bodes ill for gender equality.. 

They are calling it the New Domesticity and are discussing whether women can or should have it all.. 

So.. 

This is basically what I have read and took notes from a couple of sites so I could share it with you.. 

I found it all  a bit heart warming to tell you the truth..

I think it is a wonderful move and I think that families will be enriched.. 

Personally, I am not a bit worried about gender equality and whether women can have it all or not.. 

How about you?

I think children will be blessed to have their mothers there in the morning when they get up and still there when they come home from school if it is possible to do.. 

Husbands who come home to find their wives running home businesses and home schooling their children will no doubt be much happier with the end result..(Just my opinion) smile

I know that with the world's economy women need to work sometimes but just maybe with foresight and frugality there is a way for some to stay home and raise families..   

What do you think? 

Have you noticed this going on?  

I am happy if there is a move to place home, hearth and family first.. 

Of course, that is not always possible and I did read that lots of girls don't really want to give up their careers but spend their free time reading blogs about the ones who are doing this but as for themselves they just want to read about it.. 

Anyway..

All in all as far as I am concerned the main thing is that the home is Christ centred and by putting Him first in lives and hearts then whether the lady of the house works outside or not then it will be a happier home.. 

What say you...

I hope you will comment and perhaps we can have a little discussion going on.. eh?  

I do have a couple of recipes for you that are very simple and good.. 

I made this simple salad dressing tonight and loved it.. 

Of all the dressings I have made I don't know how I have missed this one. 

My new fave..  

Homemade French Dressing.. 

6 T. canola oil

2 T. wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. sugar 

1 tsp. Dijon Mustard 

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.. 

Whisk all together and pour over a mixed salad. 

We had this for supper, too.. 

I am not a meat eater so we always share a chicken breast.. 

That is my piece.. grin.. 

Lemon Oregano Chicken Breasts..

2 chicken breasts (I used the bone in and 1 big one)

1 lemon .. 

1 T. olive or canola oil 

pinch of dried oregano 

sea salt and pepper.. 

Rinse and dry chicken breasts.. 

With a sharp knife make a couple of slits across the tops and place on a plate.. 

Mix the marinade and pour over the chicken.. 

I let this sit for an hour and turned the chicken over halfway through.. 

Heat a frying pan on medium heat and when hot add the chicken and marinade.. 

Cook on each side 6 minutes or until done.. 

This would be good with something besides mashed potatoes but I made my husband eat an all veggie soup for lunch and was not happy that there were no potatoes in it.. grin.. 

Hence.. 

Mashed potatoes for supper.. 

Thank you, dear hearts.. 

So glad you dropped by and please leave a comment.. 

God bless.. 

Cold weather projects and gingerbread spoons...

Happy Weekend, everyone.. 

We are having a lovely cool sunny one here in New Brunswick.. 

Terry and I went for a little drive up to our old farm a couple of days ago just to check on the place as it was so cold and he wanted to make sure the heat was still going.. 

The drive there is very beautiful and part of it is along the brook which is where the place gets it's name.. 

Prosser Brook.. 

It was still flowing which surprised me as it was so cold.. 

What a lovely shade of green, eh?  

I could not even begin to get a photo of how beautiful it was.. 

This was actually almost like a small falls but I could not capture it with my camera.. 

Just imagine this old brook has run here for hundreds of years, probably.. 

I remember my uncle telling me that his Papa had moved to Prosser Brook and built the farm in 1907.. 

We checked everything out and Terry made a fire while I read since we were not staying.. 

Soon we headed home but stopped on our way at bee keepers who lives in a house which is tucked into a hollow...

Terry goes up to the door to knock and left the car door wide open.. 

Ok.... I am thinking ... 

He will only be a minute.. 

A lady comes to the door and tries her best to hold two big German Shepherds in the house.. 

One of them gets out and starts barking ... 

OK... the door is still wide open..

They are going to come out here and get right into the car, I am thinking..  

A man now comes to the door and tells Terry to come in out of the cold and he pushes the two dogs out and closes the house door.. 

The dogs look around and decide to come over and check out the car.. 

Ok... the door is still open.. 

They don't really stop but go back to the house and wait for them to open the door again.. 

Well... that is good...

Meanwhile..

 It is one of the coldest days we have had and my car door is still open.. 

I know .. I know.. 

Just reach over and close it.. 

Right?  

So.. 

I take off my seatbelt and kind of quietly lean over to try to reach the door and yes the dogs hear me and come to the car door and both of them try to get in at the same time and barking at me.. 

With huge teeth only about a foot from my face... 

Yup... just like I pictured it.... 

Lord help me.. 

Get out.. get out... I am saying.. sort of.. 

Then the lady comes running out and pushing at them to get them out and she is wiping off Terry's seat and apologizing.. 

She doesn't think they would hurt me.. 

No... No... that is ok.... 

I am fine .. no really.... I am fine.. 

My feet are numb and I might be literally shaking with terror but no... 

I am fine.. 

Out comes the dear man with a large bottle of honey... 

Oh honey.. are you ok?????

Oh sure... 

I am fine.. no really.. I am fine.. 

Gotta love him.. 

When we got back I made this for his supper.. 

Honey Glazed Ribs...  grin.. 

Some fried rice, egg rolls and our homemade dill pickles.. 

I love dill pickles with rice.. 

I do not know why.. 

Remember..  

I was making bread.. 

It turned out lovely and is so good.. 

We won't have it often but it was good until the last bite, believe me.. 

Michelle asked me if our flour is the same as the USA and the all purpose flour is the same.. 

As far as I know, anyway.. 

This is the bag that a Christmas present from our daughter came in.. 

The present was big and the bag ended up ripping.. 

I always recycle my bags so I couldn't bear to throw this one out.. 

Recycle, reuse and relove is my motto.. 

So while Terry was watching a movie (old cowboy ones) I cut the snowmen out.. 

Used my glue stick and pasted them onto a cereal box or such.. 

Cut them out and punched a hole in the top.. 

Tied a string for little hangers and then ran another piece of string through the loops.. 

Voila.. 

A winter garland.. 

Now I have to find a place to hang it.. 

Winter around here is for another 3 months abouts... 

And... 

I am working on my felted bed skirt.. 

I bought a beautiful red coat at the thrift store... 

When we were at the farm I found this old wool blanket and cut it up.. 

Terry brought up my big canning pot and into the boiling water they went. 

First the red then when they were boiled I changed the water and did the white one... 

While the white one boiled I put the red pieces into the washer and washed them more in hot water and then rinsed in cold and spun them out.. 

Placed them all on a rack in the guest bathroom to dry.. 

Next week, Lord willing, I will tell you the rest of the story... grin. 

And here is a pretty poor pic of my finished valance.. 

The colors are much prettier.. 

But you get the drift, eh?  

Now.. 

Quite a few girls commented on the gingerbread spoons on my last post.. 

They are wonderful dipped in tea or coffee and very easy to make.. 

(Or so my friend Dawn was telling me) heehee..

Here is the link for the recipe right Here..

To make the cookies you just roll out as usual.. 

Place a spoon face side up and with a sharp knife (you may have to try a couple to find the one that works the best) and cut around it.. 

Using a frosting spatula or long thin one put each cookie on a sheet.. 

I then just pressed the spoon area down with my finger and put about a half of a teaspoon of turbinado sugar on top.. 

I bought the sugar at the bulk barn and use it for my cider mix and such.. 

So, dear girls that is all for tonight.. 

Thank you so much for answering my questionnaire.. 

You guys rock !! 

If you have not done it and would not mind then just go HERE..

I appreciate all your help.. 

Tomorrow is the Lord's Day.. 

Looking forward to worshipping our God with some dear folks.. 

I look forward to reading your comments and if you have any questions then I will answer in the comment section.. 

Welcome to all the new followers.. 

Love having you all with us.. 

xo

Joining Stephanie at the Enchanted Rose HERE..

Come and join in.. 

A Little Questionnaire for you all..

Good Evening All... 

My ... It is a very cold day here in Maritime Canada... 

I guess the whole northern hemisphere is being blasted with cold.. 

So thankful to have a nice warm bed to crawl into later tonight.. 

And this lovely cup of tea with leftover gingerbread spoons that I made for Christmas for gifts.. 

I froze them and forgot to give them away.. grin.. 

They dip better then gingerbread men, Dawn.. lol... 

As I mentioned in other posts I was hoping you would answer a little questionnaire thingie for me if you have the time.. 

Here it is.. 

Just click on the Comments section down below.. 

Copy and paste the questions or just answer however you like.. 

You can even email me at houseofhenry@hotmail.com if you prefer.. 

OK?  

I am just trying to get ideas of how I can improve the blog.. 

You girls are great !!!

1.  What age bracket are you in? 

Up to 35

35 -55

over 55.. 

2.. What interests you the most.. 

ex.. recipes, crafts, decor, keepers of the home, frugality, my little chats or whatever.. 

3.. Do you usually read the comments section? 

4.. Would you like for me to respond to each comment?

5.. Do you usually actually read the post or are the pics more important to you?

Please be honest.. smile...  

6.. Do you ever share this post with Facebook, Twitter or Google 1 by clicking on it at the bottom of the post?? 

7.. Do you have any tips for me you would like to share on how I can improve the posts or the blog page itself? 

8.. Are you interested in the Christian aspect of my blog and the fact that I share Jesus on here? 

9.. Are there any subjects that you would like to see me post about? 

10.. Have you heard about the talk of the new trend  called "the New Domesticity?

And can you tell me a couple of your fave blogs... 

Well that is it, dear hearts.. 

I really appreciate your effort to help me out and look forward to hearing from you.. 

Take care of yourselves and your sweet families..  

Keep warm and God bless.. 

The days of January...

Hello everyone.. 

Welcome to the Blessed Hearth again today.. 

Are you experiencing this cold weather?  

I guess we expect this in Canada and we get along fine with it.. 

Terry just keeps putting wood in the furnace and I make soup.. smile.. 

Lentil Soup... 

the recipe is HERE...

It is also sprout week..

Love my sprouts and I told you how to do them HERE..

I guess this is a bit of this and that kind of post.. 

Today I was making curtains to replace my Christmas kitchen ones.. 

In the process I noted that the windows needed cleaning.. 

Terry had picked me up one of these cloths at the Dollar Store.. 

I have been using them for several months and they are great.. 

All you do is wet the cloth and wash your windows.. 

They really work.. 

We have lots of French doors in this house and they are great for doing quick wipe ups... 

Just thought you might like to know that.. grin.. 

We went on our town day yesterday and did a bit of thrift shopping.. 

I bought this great crock type container for three dollars.. 

It is for my bananas that I dried.. 

I told you about them last post and yes we really like them.. 

All you do is slice them and dip them in lemon juice and then place on your dehydrator.. 

I think next time I will slice them crosswise and a bit thicker.. 

The item I saw on the internet sliced them lengthwise into about five slices, though.. 

Also, I will not dry them quite so long.. 

After several hours then just start checking.. 

But they are good.. 

One reader in my last post mentioned she dips them in water and honey which I would like to try, also... 

If she reads this perhaps she will share the measurements with us in the comment section.. 

Thanks.. 

This is what I was doing today.. 

Making a valance.. 

A double one.. 

I had bought a sheet at the thrift store that had this tag on it.. 

Anyway.. 

I measured and started tearing the fabric.. 

After I tore two pieces I noticed that it was not tearing straight.. 

Oh great... 

It took me a few hours to finally get all of the pieces the right measurements and sewn... 

I love the colours and they look fine..

It was too dark tonight to take a pic when I finally got them finished.. 

Perhaps, tomorrow.. 

Step one in my kitchen little redo.. smile..  

What are you girls busy doing ? 

I bought a lovely red wool coat yesterday to do my felted bed runner... 

Hopefully, I will get that started tomorrow.. 

I still have my tree up.. 

Is that not pathetic??? 

I have everything else down and taken to the basement where I am storing them for the first time.. 

That will leave me with a whole double closet up here.. 

Tomorrow for sure, I hope.. 

When I get done here I want to make a loaf of bread for tomorrow.. 

The link for that is HERE..

Are you making this bread? 

 Tomorrow is going to be one of the coldest days so I think we will appreciate the smell of baking bread, eh? 

I guess that is all for today, my friends.. 

Hope you are keeping warm.. 

Next time, I will post a little questionnaire for you all.. 

Looking forward to hearing from you and glad you like the Anonymous being back on.... 

God bless.. 

A Stormy Sunday...

Hello there everyone.. 

We have had a stormy Sunday here today.. 

We woke up to snow which changed to ice and rain.. 

Just a mess in other words... 

We did not get out to church because of the roads but Sunday does not feel the same when we don't get to service.. 

It kind of turned into a lazy day which was kind of nice..

I just puttered around.. 

I had started my new year 2015 calender with my UK mags.. 

I am so cheap and will not buy the Country Living Uk calender as it costs so much with the dollar exchange and mailing.. 

So I just make my own.. 

If you have followed the blog for awhile I guess you know about this.. 

I cut out pics from my magazines and use a glue stick to paste them onto kraft paper book covers.. You could just use kraft wrapping paper, though.. 

I had to wait to buy a calender from the dollar store which I bought yesterday...

 I love putting little ideas that I like around the pages..

Last Fall when I came home I did up the last 3 month pages and glued a wee pic of the Chinese Lanterns garland on there.. 

Then I forgot that I had done that and when I finally got my hands on some lanterns I could not find the idea in my magazines.. 

I spent ages trying to find it and then ended up doing my own thing.. sighhhhh...

Today, I found it glued on October .... smile.. 

One thing I find I miss the most lately is my mind.. grin.. 

Anyway.. 

I also did this wee project from Country Living today, too.. 

And no, I could not find the idea but did my own thing once again.. I need to get a better plan for saving these ideas.. 

No such thing as paper pinterest,  eh?  

I should paste them in a scrap book, perhaps.. 

I saved these two pics of sweet birds from one of the latest magazines and glued them onto heavy paper.. 

Then cut them out and made a little tab on the back with a narrow strip of paper glued at each end... 

Then just slip them over the branch.. 

I think they used wires... 

Can't remember.. 

I have branches now in the front foyer as most of my Christmas is gone.. 

And a bird nest that Terry found me and just stuck the little birds on the branches..  

Kind of simple but I love paper crafts and this was easy.. 

Later in the week, I hope to rearrange this but at least you get the idea... 

We had quite a bit of seafood the last week.. 

We always do anyway but with the new year we did splurge a bit.. 

Bought some lobsters two times.. 

YUM... 

I know some people would not touch them but we love them.. 

Along with some shrimp and scallops.. 

We both love chowder so I just could not waste these briny lobster shells.. 

Into a pot with carrots, celery, onions, bay leaves and parsley and simmered for a couple of hours.. 

Mmmmmmm.. 

What a beautiful broth for fish soup or chowder.. 

You can freeze it if you like but I used it right up this time.. 

Now the holiday season will be over tonight and the kids go back to school tomorrow.. 

I sure hope I can keep a few of my resolutions  goals for the new year.. 

One of them is to get this house decluttered and organized..  

I would also like to accomplish more projects in the next few Winter months.. 

I would like to make a felted bed runner, a braided tea cozy, learn a bit of tatting and oh lots of stuff... 

What do have lined up for yourselves.. 

This was a pic I took early one morning last week...

I love red... 

The poinsettas will have to go elsewhere, though.. 

For me.. 

Once Christmas is over.. 

It is over... 

I read on someone's site that it is easy to dehydrate bananas and as Terry bought two bags yesterday I decided to try them today.. 

I will let you know how they turn out.. 

Well... 

I am probably boring you like crazy... 

We have had a great holiday meeting up and visiting with old friends and family.. 

God has so blessed us with dear people in our lives.. 

I am so thankful... 

Did you ever note this verse in Psalms 92:2

To declare your loving kindness in the morning 

And your faithfulness by night.. 

Love this verse.. 

Tonight I am declaring his faithfulness to our family.. 

Thank you, Lord.. 

My friend sent me this pic from her phone this morning.. 

Our daughter and her husband ... 

They are down in South Carolina celebrating one of their former pastor's retirement... 

I guess they must have made a little presentation or something.. 

They will fly back tomorrow and this mama is always glad when they get back home again.. 

I am sure they had a great time, though.. 

Well, dear hearts this is it for tonight.. 

One night this week I will have a little questionnaire for you all.. 

Hopefully, you won't mind doing it for me..  

Take care my friends.. 

I hope to hear from you.. 

I have put the Anonymous back on the comment form.. 

Hope that helps for a bit until I have to take it off again.. 

xo

Linking up with Stephanie.....