I took a bit of a blog break, and re-grouped. I felt like I was losing touch with my inner "pioneer." I had a lot going on and a lot of other stuff not going on. I am starting a new routine, climbing out of my "rut" and getting back on track with a positive mojo.
Since I was here last, I finished:
-cracking all of the 2nd bag of walnuts (only one more to go), it looks small, but it's a pretty good sized bag.
-swept off part of the front porch and got my two porch rockers out (and cushions washed and dried on the clothesline
- sent out one writing submission
-worked on cleaning up more barn debris (removing small boards and nails from the boards)
-cut and split wood (just another day at the "gym")
-got a some things out of the garage and into a box to deliver to the thrift store soon (making another dent in that area)
- finished removing all the homegrown popcorn, saving the ears for campfire starters of course. Our yield was 2 1/2 qts. Not the best year, but not the worst year either.
-finished a crocheted scarf.
Homemaking Tip. . .
Spider Traps - if you buy the cheaper brand, they are very difficult to peel the paper off the sticky side. Place them in the freezer for a few minutes, and they will peel right off. Sounds weird, but it works.
On the breakfast plate. . .
The weather outside is . . .
Much warmer than yesterday. Yesterday it was wicked wind (again), in the low 30's but felt like 23°F. Today, it is to be a high of 54°F and sunny. I guess we'll find out. It's dark out as I type this, but it was much warmer when I took one of the dogs out.
What I am reading . . .
Thunder Roads motorcycle magazine, Good Housekeeping magazine, a few books from the library. Actually, a lot of books from the library. I actually took my weekend mornings much slower, and looked through many books from the library.
On the TV. . .
McLeod's Daughters. It's our second time watching it. We also watched season one of Wildfire, and have ordered seasons two and three from the library.
My to-do list . . .
Self Care -
Afternoon healthy herbal tea break
Journal or work on articles
Regular Chores -
A few lingering dishes
master shower
Fetch fire wood if needed
Wipe down treadmill
Dust. Oh by dust everything.
crack walnuts
rake pine cones (we have a ton of them this year and they are everywhere! If you have a tip on what to do with them besides putting them back in the tree line, I'd love to hear it. They are loaded with sap.)
Weekly Deep Cleaning -
Wash front room curtains, dry on the line, scrub all woodwork
Weekly Homemade Stuff -
-made another container of homemade "lysol" wipes
-make calendula lotion
-make facial lotion
-make lip balms
-make a jar of Italian seasoning
-make a jar of "taco" seasoning
-make a few "cans" of condensed mushroom soup for the freezer
-make an inventory sheet for keeping track of what and how much I have stocked up on herbs/weeds/tinctures, extracts etc.
My "ta-da" moment is past week . . .
I lost another 1.2#!!! I'm so happy! I am doing a combination of changes, so I hope to have an update in a month. Here's hoping for another good weigh in. Keep in mind, this is winter weight, so I am not losing more than my lowest, it's simply getting the gained weight back off.
The menu this week . . .
Sloppy Joes, sweet potato fries
Sheet pan chicken, Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes
Salmon, peas
Chicken with home canned mustard sauce, wild rice and roasted rosemary asparagus
Pesto pasta and steamed broccoli
Chicken teriyaki with homemade sauce
Leftovers
New Recipe I tried or want to try this week. . .
Cauliflower Chowder. It's from "Damn Delicious" online, and they actually have two versions - crock pot and stove top. I used the ingredients for the stove top version, but used my crock pot (cooking 3-4 hours). I cooked my onion in the bacon grease before adding it to the crock pot . We love this recipe, and thanks to my mother sending me the recipe via snail mail, I now have another way soup recipe. Easy and delicious. Another way to get my cauliflower in the meal plan too. Oh, and I added one cup of bone broth, and extra thyme in it. I didn't puree it either
What I am crocheting, knitting, sewing or creating . . .
Well, a lot of things, but yesterday I worked on the hot pad/pot holder set while watching TV. It's still in the making.
From the camera. . .
Bible verse, Devotional or quote. . .
"Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking." Marcus Aurelius
Comments
Wow you've been busy, lots done :)
Hope you have a wonderful week.