Tuesday Tidbits

The younger two girls really out did themselves for Christmas.  We said no gifts, and they didn't listen.  They gave us fun stuff, useful stuff and I got books from one of them.

I love books, but try to contain the collection with the space I have allowed.  Daughter E got me all of these.

I spent an hour on the computer, and finally located a pattern for a top for Daughter E.  Yarn has been ordered, but the kind I need was not available from JoAnn's nor Michaels (they were curbside only for some reason). The cost of shipping was horrible.

I did 2 loads of laundry and came to an abrupt stop.  Daughter K said, "um Mom?  Why is there water all over the floor and in the laundry basket?"  The seal needs replaced, has been ordered from a local business, and should be in today (thankfully).  Whirlpool direct, wanted $100 more than our local resource.

Daughter E locked her keys in her car.  The boys rescued her.

The wood stove continues to provide.  The temperature is starting to drop again, and now may make an appearance today.

I'm so thankful I made comfrey salve.  I'm applying it to my knee now.  The boot they gave me goes all the way up to my knee and weighs a ton.  It caused my knee to ache.  The boot is off, soaks continue today, and I hope that my knee feels better soon.  It literally hurts worse than my ankle.

 

Happy Homemaker Monday

My husband had to work all weekend, but we managed to get to the gathering regarding the loss of one daughter's boyfriend a year ago.  Oh my, we love those families/friends.  It was a good turn out, including classmates of his and daughter E's.  So many good laughs and good times and even tears, but so thankful we all got together.

Something I learned (although some of you may already know this). . .

I have never cooked with flank steak before (believe it or not).  I bought some last week and sliced it and grilled it for philly's sandwiches.  What did I learn?  Well, I was watching America's Test Kitchen (love that show) and watched them prepare a recipe using flank steak.

What did I learn?  I learned it has little fat and you must pound it before cooking, to tenderize it.  I literally did not know this until I watched the show.  

I will be buying flank steak again and giving it a try the right way. Ha ha!  It always makes me excited to cook when I learn something new.

I made a double batch of homemade taco seasoning.

I made a comfrey salve.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

The weather outside is  . . .

86°F/66°F, sunny

Heating up and we are finally drying out!  

How I am feeling . . .

Rested.  Ready to take on the week.  

On the breakfast plate . . .

Coconut flour waffles, bacon, coffee

Looking around the house . . .

I have some boxes I need to take upstairs for Daughter E, for her big move coming up, but the kitchen is almost pristine.  I spent quite a bit of time cleaning yesterday while my husband worked (really stinks because weather was great on Sunday for outdoor work, bike ride, cards on the porch).

On my reading pile . . .

Nothing last week.

On  my TV . . .

Finally finished the entire season of Heartland.  Ending wasn't exciting either.

On the menu . . .

-Baked walleye, steamed broccoli
-Meatballs with homemade teriyaki sauce, asparagus

-something on the grill 

-have no idea

-leftovers

From the camera. . . 

The rain brought us some new blooms, and one glady finally bloomed.

I am thankful for . . .

A few dry days to allow the garden to recover, and give me time to do more weeding (not to mention get the grass mowed). I had more handiwork time over the weekend, which was a nice change (everything outside this weekend was soaked and road still flooded).

I am hoping to . . .

Get to the "Big City" to get errands done this week.  Maybe.  Nothing I need is an emergency, but needed.  The list is growing.

On my prayer list . . .

No personal requests, this country could always use prayer though.

Comfrey Salve

It's time for some salve making to happen.  Ideally this would be much easier in the summer when the coconut oil is already melted in the jar.

I used my crock pot this time, so I didn't have to watch the stove.  I just put a dishcloth in the bottom, to make sure my jar didn't break.

Once the oil was infused with the comfrey, I strained it, added melted beeswax and poured it into the container.

(Some of the beeswax started to harden as I poured the warm oil into it)

I made a small batch - 1 cup dried comfrey and