Plans and Projects

“Spring is the time of plans and projects.” 
― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Where to start!  The last freeze has ended and my yard is alive!  We have not lived here during spring, so I am waiting with anticipation as all the green wakes up in my flower beds.  I know there is one Iris and some lilies.  My maple tree is happily full of leaves.  The birds are singing.  But none have decided to make our birdhouse their home - yet!  I planted tomatoes and some Iris bulbs that I had forgotten about.  They had started sprouting in a bag on my porch.  So, I put them around the edge of the lake.  I have a box of heirloom seeds in the freezer.  My goal this next week is to plant them in pots and put them on the side of our home that gets sun.  Pots will allow me to move them around to the sunniest spot.  Not sure where that will be as we live in the woods!  But, our new neighbor has cut down a lot of trees, so hopefully that will help.  I will post pictures!  It is nighttime, or I would include some pics now!  Anyway...

We have been enjoying our meals on the screened in porch.  We have also had school out there.  The kids love it.  This afternoon, I was working on spinning my first sock yarn on the porch.  My plan is that it will be self-striping.  The trick will be to match up the colorways on the plys.

I have been watching a great knitting/craft  podcast - MandoCrafts.  She is into all kinds of crafts and her podcast is very organized.  She has different segments - What I Have Learned, Finished Projects, Works In Progress, Upcoming Events, etc.  And she has such a wonderful attitude.  She , Amanda Manus, has inspired me to work on projects for myself and family.  I have had such a hard time working on my projects.  I tend to spend that time on my ETSY shop.  Anyway, I have pulled out cross stitch, a quilting project, I finished my daughter's sweater, working on a messenger bag which has been on the needles awhile, and I have cast on a hat for my new niece, Viola, who will arrive in September.  I owe her a big thank you, so thank you, Amanda (MandoBug)!  Now to tackle my dad's Irish clan sweater!!  That will really be something.  Over 3 years!!  It is the monkey on my back!  I must restart it!  Here is MandoBug's Blog - http://mandobugcrafts.blogspot.com/.  Check it out.  You will love it!

Grace's Sweater
My niece's hat and a sweater will be in this same colorway.  I was about 10 yards short of enough yarn so I bought another skein.  I found the one I knew I had purchased with the original, so now I have plenty of this colorway!  What is this colorway?  It is Universal Yarns Classic Shades in Cool Blazes Colorway.

My Messenger Bag.  This was a free pattern from Craft Passion.  I goofed this up, but I think I can still make it work!  No way was I ripping out all of this work!

My Quilt Project - This is a set of 12 blocks called Butterfly Garden by Black Cat Creations.  I was in this block of the month club at a local quilting shop.  This was our first block.  The others are still neatly tucked in their packages, waiting to be colored!  You color each one with crayon.  Then set it with an iron.  Then you embroider around the pictures.  It will be beautiful when I finish.  I had intended to to this for my sister, Karen, who loved, loved loved flowers.  Unfortunately, she is with Jesus now and never even knew about this quilt.  It is hard to work on for that reason, but Amanda has inspired me to get it out again.

So, it is night and I have to help Ben finish a paper for composition.  Until next time, may God bless you richly!

Kim

Change Without Leaving Your Bed

Change is inevitable, as we all know, however, I have found it is how you embrace change that really matters. This is about a different kind of change - an inner change of thoughts and attitudes.   I can be lying in bed and a little thought can whisper something negative, i.e. "I'm never going to have energy in the mornings because I'm so old", ...then..."What if I'm so old my husband doesn't want me anymore"....then..."What if he finds someone else?"....then....more ugly thoughts based on nothing!  Then I am mad at myself, mad at my husband and this has colored my whole day!  Yikes!  All before setting one foot out of bed!  Nothing has happened except that I opened my eyes!  Has this happened to you?  The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 that we must take EVERY thought captive - "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."  Now, instead of getting all upset, I work my way back though those ugly thoughts and see the truth.  My husband has never showed any sign of wanting anyone else and has actually always been pretty loving, and once I set one foot out of the bed, energy comes.  I pray and ask God to help me to take captive EVERY thought and bring it under His Word.  How quickly I can get on the roller coaster of life without anything in my world really changing except my thoughts!   So, I've ridden this roller coaster of emotions all from one little thought about not having energy as soon as my eyes pop open!  Now, I replace that one little negative thought with one positive one and, volia!  Now my day is colored with a positive outlook.  All from taking thoughts captive and not allowing the enemy to whisper his little lies to me.   Now on to more creative avenues...

I have started the Charlotte Mason method in my homeschool and it is working out beautifully.  I thought Ben, my 7 year old, and I were going to have to part ways, particularly in math.  I started this approach a week ago and it has made a HUGE difference!  I am having to unschool me!  We are spending lots of time outdoors and alternating subjects like math and language arts with Art Appreciation and Music and Dance.  Wonderful fun and he is enjoying school again!

We are getting settled in our new home and are enjoying being so close to church and Gene's work.  I planted flowers and have made a little outdoor room on our porch.  Home!  More coming, but it's a good start.  Vegetable gardening with our neighbors this year and it is going to be great!  There is also a small orchard here so looking forward to apples, peaches and, I think, pears.  Lots of canning in my future!   Cabbage is already planted and growing.  My neighbor is going to help me can sauerkraut.  I love sauerkraut! 

Our garden spot and apple trees

Our Front Porch

Swing

Living Room

Ben and Grace having school

Cafe Table for Lattes and Tea

Gracie

As part of our homeschool now, we are having lifeskills classes.  Ben just made muffins:
1 3/4 c. Flour
1/3 c. Sugar
2 t. baking powder
1t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/4 t. ground allspice
1/8 t. ground ginger
1 egg lightly beaten
1/4 c. milk
3/4 c. Almond Joy Coffee Creamer by Int'l Delights
1/4/ c. vegetable oil

Combine the first 8 ingredients.  Combine egg, milk and oil:  stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fill greased muffin cups with batter.  Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes. This was based off of another recipe but we tweaked it and made it our own.  The original recipe called for 3/4 cups of milk and 1/2 t. cinnamon, 1/4 t. nutmeg, and 1/8 t. ground allspice.  We LOVE the Almond Joy creamer and it really gives the muffins a wonderful flavor!  The original also had you filling the muffin cups partially, adding apple butter filling, and covering with more batter.  However, I didn't have apple butter, so we are going a la carte!  You can also add the topping of 1/2 c. chopped pecans and 3 T. suger, but we left that off also.  No nuts!

My ETSY shop is doing great!  Not sure if I'm opening a physical shop here yet or not.  There is a really cute shop here, but right now it's full of stuff!  I'm now on Pinterest so you can follow me there also.

Until we meet again, may God bless you richly in all you do!
Kim