"Eat it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
Or go without."
~A Pioneer Sampler, by Barbara Greenwood~

Pioneer Woman at Heart

One Flourishing, Frugal and Fun Family!

One family learning to live off the land, cut back on expenses, and to live a simpler and a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

Monday, January 27, 2025

Happy Homemaker Monday {January 27, 2025}

The recent cold snap caused some businesses to deal with burst water pipes.  Some busted water lines flooded streets, and some flooded University dorm basements.

The puzzle has been an addiction.   It is 24 x 30 inches.  Huge!

Meanwhile, I'm patiently waiting for the doctors hands on diagnosis (vs. a phone call diagnosis).  I am patiently waiting for a clear-all, so I can get back to doing regular work around here, and possibly volunteer where needed (and helping my husband's cousin, read below in prayer requests).  A community member is also in need of help, and I can't commit to anything until I am cleared of all/any restrictions.  If you know how active I am, you know it's taking a great amount of patience. **see prayer request at the bottom of the post

Homemaking tip:  how to remove a sticky note stain from a kitchen counter.  Hair spray. 

My husband got a sticky note wet, and it stained my kitchen counter.  Nothing was wiping away the stain, so I tried hairspray.  Not sure if anything else will work, but I gave it a try, and it worked.




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

I will link up when she posts.


The weather in our neck of the woods . . .

17°F with a windchill of 5°F.


Things that make me happy. . .

Books that make me laugh out loud.  The main character in one of my books kept talking about her pet, so I assumed a dog.  About 80 pages into the book, she mentions carrying it in a fanny pack, and it is none other than a recuperating (hit by a car) opossum.  Ha ha ha ha!  Living in the country, this made me laugh, straight up, out loud.


Book I am reading . . .


Yes, I have two books I am reading (in addition to my other morning three small readings).  One for the treadmill for slower days, and one for other times.  Might as well take advantage of winter days.  The "treadmill" book may be the last one, as my hamstring is healing now, and thankfully recovering from my injury.



On my TV . . .

We ordered some movies from the library, so those are on the way soon.  These are movies that charge a fee on all streaming sites, but cost us zero to borrow from our local library.


On my breakfast plate . . .

Sweet potato and black bean frittata (with added greens from the freezer/thawed)


On my lunch plate . . .

Not sure yet.


On my dinner plate . . .

Roast, and vegetables.


On the menu . . .

-Roast and vegetables (crock pot)

-Stuffed bell peppers (frozen with home grown bell peppers from the garden last year)

-Creamy chicken/rice soup

-Leftovers


On the to-do list . . .

Picking 3 things on my written home update/repair list (for the week)

-bake breakfast frittata
-dishes
-any laundry
-sweep and mop floors


New recipe I tried or want to try . . .

We tried the crock pot herbed flounder (a fix-it-and-forget it recipe).  We did not really like it.  It may have been the fish itself in this case, but the flounder did not taste that good.

We also tried a creamy parmesan sausage ditalini soup (several options online), and we love it.  I added extra seasoning. 

We tried an artichoke/mushroom egg casserole for one of our breakfast meals.  Most likely will not make it again.  We both didn't like the artichoke flavor in this.  Healthy, but not tasty enough to keep the recipe.  Do you have any good artichoke recipes?  Other than for breakfast?

We also tried (yes another) new recipe for an appetizer.  To keep this post shorter, I'll post it in a Christmas countdown post (it's a keeper recipe too).


What I am creating . . .

Finished the current lap afghan.  I named it "I love you a Latte" which gave us a chuckle (looks like coffee).

You can read about my "book" blanket HERE.

A community member is seeking crocheted prayer shawls, so I am now searching for patterns.  If you have one, please share in the comments (shawls approx. 30 x 50 inches)


No words needed (favorite photo). . .





Devotional, Prayers, Bible Verses . . .

Prayers for my husband's cousin Carol.  Christmas Eve she took a fall, fracturing her right elbow and left wrist, injuring her face, and was in a rehab/nursing home for 3 weeks (we just found out).  She has limitations of upper extremity movements. She is the main care taker for her sister and her sister's husband who live in an assisted living facility, but Carol takes them to appointments etc.

Prayers for those who have doctor appointments this week. Praying for good results, and praying for the hands and minds of the doctors and nurses involved.

 My husband has a regular check up this week, with routine blood work.  I do too, but mine is a combined appt with some more examinations that may be indirectly related to my fall back in December (at least fracture was ruled out). Please pray for good results for the both of us (I'm still on a "no lift restriction).  My appointment is the one that is taking me 6 weeks to get in for (God has a plan). I asked for prayers to get in earlier, but it did not happen.  Apparently, some people are having to wait 3 months to get into a specialist or even a doctor now-a-days.  It's crazy.


Happy Homemaker Monday {January 27, 2025} © January 2025 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart


16 comments:

R's Rue said...

Love the puzzle. Happy Monday.
www.rsrue.blogspot.com

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

R's Rue, thanks. It was fun to put together.

Jean said...

Hope you get all good news for your appointments. Pretty puzzle! I have a hard time thinking any fish cooked in a crock pot would turn out well but maybe that's me. Hope you have a wonderful week!

🌻 Debby 🌻 said...

The only way I eat artichokes is the way I have always eaten them since I was a kid—steam them until they're soft, and then we'd use either mayo, garlic, and butter, or just butter. Yum. Where I lived on the coast, artichokes grew wild. If I had a recipe that required artichokes, I'd buy them in a jar. To have to break them all down seems like a lot of work to me. But they are good. I do like Costco's jalapeno/artichoke dip.

Betsy said...

Neat puzzle. I do like farm trucks and red barns! And your blanket turned out beautifully and such a great name for it too. :-)
I'll pray you get great news at your appointment tomorrow. I have a CAT scan at 12:40 and I have to have contrast with it so that means an IV. I hate them. I usually get poked about 8-12 times by 3 or 4 different people before they get one in. Last time I was in the hospital for a week when I got my pacemaker, they had to restart the IV a few times. It was a nightmare. When I was finally released my both arms from the elbow down to my fingers were black and blue. Needless to say, I'm not looking forward to tomorrow. Apparently they saw a mass/nodule, something or other on my adrenal gland when I had my back MRI a couple of weeks ago. You go for one thing and they find three others!
But you're right about doctor appointments. On Jan. 4th when they made my appointment for the neurosurgeon, the soonest appointment was in May. Happily they called last week with a cancellation so I go Feb. 24. Hallelujah! I'm hoping something can be done about my back. We'll see.
Take care my friend and I hope to hear good news tomorrow.
Blessings,
Betsy

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Jean, we have made cod in the crockpot before, and it was fine, but the flounder did not taste great. Thank you. We are praying for good results, so we can get some plans in action again around here.

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Debby, thanks. We do love artichokes in a dip, and yes I bought them in a jar the last time. The breakfast recipe we tried with the canned artichokes tasted sort of on the scale of not-appetizing.

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Betsy, thank you in regards about the blanket. I'm hoping to have enough to do a donation drop off next winter. It's been slow going with home repairs/painting and the like (but needed done). I will be sending up prayers for you as well. That is great they called to get you in earlier. I too hate it when they do that contrast with the CAT scan. I've had that before, and it is definitely not fun. Sending prayers up. Thank you for the prayers too.

Sandi said...

Hair spray. What on Earth are putting on our hair?? 😅

Hand sanitizer does it too, I think. It removes markers from school desks, I know that. Probably the alcohol in it?

Monique G. said...

The afghan is beautiful. I love the puzzle. I keep meaning to order one online. Our local thrift store has some but I'm always afraid they'll be missing a piece.

collettakay said...

I love crocheting and have made the foray into crocheting plushies (stuffed animals). I love your lapghan. My daughter and I enjoy putting puzzles together especially in the winter. I hope you have the best week ever!

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Sandi, ha ha ha! I though the same thing and then looked at the ingredients. Man oh man. I used to make hairspray homemade, but didn't like it. I will have to try hand sanitizer next, as I see he has created another smaller pink spot on my counter. I need to buy white sticky notes, ha ha!

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Monique G. Thank you. Did you see the link to my granny square "book blanket" I am making this year? We thought the same about puzzles. We were going to go back to a used book store, and buy our next one, but thought we should buy new. I will watch for sales now.

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

collettakay, thank you. Do you have a blog? Where you share your crochet projects? I think winter time has been a great time to do puzzles. I give all credit to Far Side of Fifty and her blog I follow. She intrigued my interest by watch her and her husband put puzzles together. Thank you! I hope you have the best week ever too.

Far Side of Fifty said...

I hope you and your husband have good news medical appointments! I do have a pattern for a shawl that I love making. I will see if I can find the name of it:)

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Far Side of Fifty, thank you!