Making Do ~ Using it Up

To help provide lunch snacks for the kids, I baked banana bread two days in a row, using organic bananas.

I used some whole wheat flour I purchased from the stone mill, and mixed it half and half with the white.  I also had about 5 sun dried apricots leftover, so I chopped those up and added them to the bread.  It was pretty tasty.

Today, I am using a ham bone from the holidays, and making soup.  I'm taking several items from the freezer that I froze over summer (from the garden).  It sure smells good!

For dessert I dug through my cupboards and used one can of canned sweet potatoes to make a pound cake.  I didn't have the orange juice it called for, but made it anyway.  The chickens have supplied us with some eggs this week.

My daily reading chair has moved from the front porch, to the back yard, and now to the living room.

This is my favorite place to crochet, read my Bible, and write.  Today's it's a perfect chair to view the beautiful snow we are getting today.

I've been crocheting a few dishcloths in this chair.  Here are are few pictures of some of them.

 

I'm using up whatever yarn I have.  As for my cleaning updates, I am moving on the kitchen (gulp!) area next week.  I'm not sure I'm up for that yet, as our family computer is in the kitchen and that area is a mess right now.

Cleaning Up ~ Good Start to the New Year

It is funny how I thought that cleaning the living room would be a piece of cake.  It's been very productive and I found my lost Writer's Market Guide I've been looking for too.  In fact, I found to antique candle holders, which should be hanging on the wall. 

I bought these in an antique store in Michigan a few years ago, and they were tucked away in my breakfast bar.  Speaking of that.  I also found two new (bought on clearance) photo frames that should have been used by now.  I not only got rid of the broken, plastic frames, but put the photo's into the new picture frames, and added "buy 2 more frames" to my shopping "wish list."

I can't decide whether I should keep the coffee pot collection or do away with it yet.  I've had it for several years now.

What do you think?  Keep or get rid of it?  The kids say keep it, but it does collect dust in our country home.

So far, I've donated 3 bags of movies (DVD, VHS) and books to our library, a box of clothes and a garbage bag of used shoes to Goodwill, along with a bag of unwanted stuffed animals, two pads of partially used teacher stickers from homeschooling got taken to school for a teacher, 2 bags of clothes were donated to the school's "closet" for students in need, and two books given away.  I'd say I've started the year on a good note.