Till June....

Trena Constance and her Memere

I had a bit of leftover yarn from Sam's hat, so after seeing the sweetest headband made for Ang's sweet little Amelie by her auntie Victoria, I knew I would make one for Trena.
I actually finished it while they sat and visited so we could get a perfect fit.
Warm and cozy, and perfect for those cold Montana winters.
I think I want one for myself!

Trena, her daddy, and her reflection

Trena and her Pepere

The kids were here this evening for final goodbyes.
Their plane leaves early tomorrow and Jon's folks will bring them to the airport.
It's better this way.
They weren't out of the driveway before the tears began.

Till June....
Cause June is when I'll next get to hold my baby girl.
Missin' her already.

xoxo,
Cindy

I HATE goodbyes

My Favorite Things...

Unexpected package from HomemakerAng

Ang and I have been friends for a few years now, and tho we don't typically exchange Christmas presents, this year was to be an exception.
I was tickled pink to find this sweetly wrapped box of goodies...
check out her "wrapping"....a Christmas tablecloth!!!

Chicken with stock...just add barley and simmer for 1/2 hour
Cherry pie filling...
Zucchini marmalade...
Canned breakfast sausage...(their own piggy)
And other wonderful homemade goodness!
(Ang canned over 500 quarts of food this year!)
LOVE the vintage santa tray!

Handmade/Homemade goodness from dear Joy

Joy and I exchange gifts every year, and this year was no exception.
Here is my favorite....
HOW SWEET IS THIS?
Perfect for my sofa

Can a girl have too many cookbooks?

Books from kids
Books from friends
They are all at my bedside table and every night I pick one up and read.
Little sticky post-its are everywhere, with endless possibilities!
(I plan on getting to be good friends with "Julia" this year!)

For now, tho, I am in super house cleaning mode, knowing that all too soon I will not be able to do much around here.

With knee replacement surgery scheduled for Jan. 8., and most of the kids off living their own lives, it will likely be Pete who picks up the slack....
and the laundry...
and does the cooking...
and cleans the toilets....
and lets the dog/cats out...
and helps me shower and get dressed....
and feeds the chickens...
and...
and...
HEY!
I'd do it for him!
Wait a minute....
I ALREADY do all those things!

Poor Farmboy...wonder if he really knows what he is getting into?

We'll talk real soon,
xoxo
Cindy

SOUP and a HAT and a WINTER STORM WARNING

Bleak and dreary

Today we are housebound as the snow just keeps on coming.
Not a bad thing, per se, as I have no where to go anyways!
And it's nice and cozy inside, with soup simmering on the stove.

Winter garden with hen house
(poor chickens!)

Thankfully, Pete has taken care of the chickens today.... feeding, watering, and collecting.
He opened the coop door for the morning to get some fresh air circulating, but went out this afternoon to lock them in.
A few handfuls of cracked corn tossed on their straw strewn floor will keep them busy and give them some much needed fuel for warmth.

Leftovers soup

With the weather all blustery, soup seemed to be in order.
I had some stock I defrosted along with a small bag of organic cauliflower from July's CSA pick up. Tossed in a couple of cups of leftover cheesy potatoes, a few chopped scallions, top with a bit of freshly grated parmesan... and lunch was on the table.

Sam's Christmas hat

I started knitting a hat a couple of weeks ago, not sure if I would be able to finish it in time for Christmas. And...not sure if it would come together as easily as the pattern suggested.
Cause when it comes to knitting, if it's not easy-peasy, I won't be there.

This is 2 simple stitches....knit and purl.
No circular needles.
No trying to decipher a pattern.
That's it!
And don't you just love the ribbing on it?
That comes from knit 2, purl 2...over and over and over!

This came thru as promised, and Sam loves it.
Find the pattern HERE.
And make sure you get Chunky yarn like the pattern calls for.
While recuperating from surgery I plan on knitting a couple more.
If "I" can do it, really, anyone can!

We'll talk real soon,
xoxo
Cindy

There's got to be a morning after...

Memere and Trena, Christmas afternoon

The day after Christmas and all thru the house, no Trena was playing, it's quiet as a mouse...

Today the kids packed up and headed for Jon's family, about 15 minutes from us.
They stayed here for the 1st half of their vacation and now they will be over there till they leave on Friday.
We will see them once more for sure, but we have had our time and now it's their turn to dote on her.

Trena and Auntie Gina

She loves books and Auntie Gina was glad to have a chance to hold her.
She actually warms up to folks quite easily, which has been a real blessing since everyone wants to pick her up!

Trena and Uncle Sam

Even Uncle Sam got into the act, with Trena and he both making the same funny faces.

Kaylee and Trena

Christmas eve was spent with some dear friends who have a granddaughter just a wee bit older than Trena. Both dressed in red, they had a fun time exploring one another's faces!


I am so glad the festivities are over, and I can sit back and relax just a bit before surgery on the 8th. I am trying to figure out what will need to be moved around so I can maneuver a walker, and planning some very simple meals that Pete will be able to pull together without much fuss.
From the sounds of it, I will be out of commission for a while and the more I prepare ahead of time, the less frustrating it will be when I really CAN"T do for myself.

We did get our old laptop up and running, so I can bring that to the hospital and also blog from my bed when I get home.

I am most anxious to get the tree and the little bit of decorating I did all put away and cleaned up so at least it will FEEL normal again.

Wishing you the warmest after-holiday weekend ever!

xoxo,
Cindy

A MOST Blessed Christmas to all!

Christmas tree 2009

At this time when most celebrate His birth, we remember He
was born to die.

But much more than that.

He was born to be resurrected!

He came from heaven to earth, to show the way.
From the earth to the cross, my debt to pay.
From the cross to the grave,
From the grave to the sky,
Lord, WE LIFT YOUR NAME ON HIGH!

Farmboy and Trena Constance

We are so in love with this little one!
What a blessing from the Lord!!!

Happy Trena!

We are spending our days playin', cuddlin', smoochin', and lovin'.
And we wouldn't have it any other way!

See you after Christmas!

xoxo,
Cindy

Can you feel the love tonight?

Story time with Memere

THIS is what I've been waiting for!

My heart is full.

xoxo,
Cindy

Farmhouse Kitchen Goodies

Cranberry Orange Liqueur

Years ago I made a homemade version of the Italian liqueur, Limoncello, but this year I wanted to try something a bit more festive looking. I came across this recipe HERE, and began the process 3 weeks ago. This morning we strained out all the cranberries and are left with all this!
Not too sweet, not too tart, it is just right!
A few sips of this will be the perfect finish to our gathering this evening.
The rest will be gifties for a couple of dear friends.

Rosemary Maple-Glazed Cashews

This was so simple it'll make your head spin!
They are a bit sweet, a bit salty, a bit spicy, a bit herby, and nice and crunchy!
Did I mention addicting?
You'll see for yourself.
I have to tie my own hands behind my back to keep from "testing" them!
Find the recipe HERE.

Fleur De Sel Caramels

I have long wanted to try my hand at homemade caramels, so this morning I gave THESE a try.
There is just something so..., so... incredibly wonderful about the combination of these soft caramels and sea salt.
Not too hard to do, but you definitely need a candy thermometer.

Parchment paper wrapped caramels

Wrapping these caramels in the parchment paper was far more time consuming than the actual candy making!

I am now down to counting the hours before we see our daughter Giselle, her husband Jon, and our dear grandbaby Trena!
They arrive tomorrow at 4pm and we can hardly wait to see them!
Trena is nearly 10 months old and hasn't seen us since the first of July, so she will have to spend some time getting re-acquainted with her Memere and Pepere.
Not a problem.

We'll talk real soon,
xoxo
Cindy

Farmhouse Fresh

Farmhouse Fresh Soap

I've been making soap here in the farmhouse kitchen for a very few months now, and it has just been piling up in the basement!
(most everyone on my Christmas list is getting some!)
I gave a few as gifts today along with a handmade washcloth/dishrag and the girls were so excited!
I explained that I don't have a real system per se, so the soap is cut in rustic chunks, not shaped all neat and pretty.
They LIKED them that way and thought that was part of the "charm"!
Who knew???
One of the gals liked it so much she placed an order....
MY 1st ORDER!!!
For 8 bars!!!
Whoo-hoo!
So, there they all are, sitting pretty in a basket, getting shipped out in the morning!

Peppermint Bark Candy

This stuff retails at $30 per # at Williams Sonoma.
Geez-Louize, who can afford that?
And, even if I could, I wouldn't do it, cause I can make it so much better myself!
And, YOU can too!

I found a recipe a couple of years ago and finally got around to tryin' it this morning.
I promise you, it's easy-peasy!

Peppermint Bark Candy

16 oz. bittersweet or dark chocolate
16 oz. white chocolate
4-6 candy canes, crushed coarsely
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Line a cookie sheet with foil

Carefully melt dark chocolate in microwave, stirring often
OR
melt in the top portion of a double boiler
Add peppermint extract to dark chocolate after it has melted
Let cool a few minutes in bowl
Pour into foil lined pan, spreading carefully with an offset spatula (or whatever you have)
Set in fridge to get cold, 20-30 min.
Melt white chocolate (microwave or double boiler)
After dark chocolate is {{{cold}}} to the touch, pour the white chocolate over it, spreading carefully.
Quick, before it starts to set up, sprinkle crushed peppermint over the white chocolate.
Refrigerate till very cold, then break in pieces.
You may freeze, or keep in fridge till ready to serve.

How easy is THAT???

What's next for this farmgirl?

I'm knitting my very 1st hat!
Most all of my knitting has been the easy-peasy variety and this hat is no exception.
I'll post photos and "how-to's" real soon.

Meanwhile, I've got lots of housework to do, as we are having very special guests arriving this Sunday.
Our daughter Giselle, her husband Jon, and our darling grandbaby Trena are flying in from Montana for Christmas!
I can hardly wait to get my hands on that baby and love on her.
Haven't seen them since the 1st of July so we have a lot of catchin' up lovin' to do.

We'll talk real soon, tho...
xoxo,
Cindy

HOMEMADE/HANDMADE

Yeast, salt, flour

The humble beginnings of a wonderful loaf of artisan bread.
Add warm water, stir, cover, let set for 10-20 hours, bake in a wicked hot pan.

New York Times Easy No-Knead Bread

Crusty, chewy outer crust, tender, airy, yummy inside.
If you've never tried this recipe, you have no idea what you are missing.
It is requested here on a regular basis, and an easier bread you could not find.
Google it.
See for yourself.
This particular loaf is meant to be broken over a bowl of Spinach soup.
Yum.

Handmade glasses case

Re-purposed, felted wool sweater from Goodwill...$2.99
Cut the sleeve off at the cuff.
Blanket stitch one end closed.
(I wanted the "cuff" side closed)

My retro case

I cut the label out of the felted sweater and re-attached it to my case with a few simple stitches.

I think I am going to make some matching mittens!

xoxo,
Cindy

Farmette Happenings...

Bing & Rosemary

I love old Christmas albums and am always on the look-out at garage sales or thrift stores for anything gospel or Christmas.
I found this one a couple of years ago for $1.00, and it is my favorite.
I have the album cover leaning on a vintage plastic santa on top of my Crosley record player.
I'm not all that into "santas" but I DO like an old one!

Stromboli

I came across a recipe for Stromboli over at Linda's Cooking Tip of the Day and printed it out, knowing it would be perfect in place of the typical Friday night pizza.

Very easy to put together, and tho I made homemade pizza dough, (recipe for the dough is also on her site) it could have been made with store bought dough as well.

And....Bing & Rosemary kept me company while I put it all together!

Layered with the stuffings of your choice, I pretty much followed Linda's recipe verbatim.
It was SO delicious I have decided it is VERY company worthy and will be making it when our daughter Giselle, her husband Jon, and our darling grandbaby Trena come for Christmas next week!!!

DISCLAIMER: Lest I give anyone the wrong impression, I do NOT have it all together and most certainly do not live a "charmed" life.

We have experienced hardships and heartaches this last year that, had I not taken shelter in the shadow of the Most High God, would surely have crippled me.

He is my strength, my life, my love.
And all that I am, or ever hope to be, it is only because He lives in me.

And tho, at Christmas, we remember Jesus as the babe in a manger, let me remind you....

He's not a baby in a manger anymore.
He's not a broken man on a cross.
He didn't stay in the grave, and He's not staying in heaven forever.
He is coming back soon.
Are you ready to meet Him?

Keeping Christ in CHRISTmas,
xoxo,

Cindy

Blizzard Busy!

Sam and Farmboy

With bitterly cold weather and a blizzard warning in effect, we went to chop down our tree yesterday.

YIKES!
It was cold!
But they got 'er done!

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

At 5pm I finally had a chance to think about supper.
I knew beef was on the menu as we had found a couple of cheap center cut chuck steaks and had them marinating for a couple of hours.
I had bought a butternut squash with the intentions of making a squash risotto I saw on Barefoot Contessa, so even tho I had a late start, I got to work peeling and dicing the squash.
It was worth every second.
I'm a big fan of rice of any kind and a risotto is so creamy and tender and yummy and...
I think I have a new favorite risotto.
Don't be afraid of trying it.
It is time consuming, but easy-peasy!

Here's Ollie (aka Chunky Monkey) just lookin' so darn handsome!

Cranberry Orange Walnut/Almond Granola

1st thing this morning I made a double batch of Amazing Grace soap.
Smells divine and I can't wait to cut into it tomorrow!

Then I made a pot full of hot oatmeal and brought a big pan of it out to the chickens.
They will truly be "cooped up" for the next couple days as temps are too low to open their itty bitty door.
And I felt sorry for them.
Who wouldn't like a steamy bowl of hot cereal for breakfast???
(I had leftover risotto!)

Then....this afternoon I went into baking mode.

For gift giving I had thought I would make a double batch of granola and package it in those little cellophane bags you can get at the dollar store.
This recipe is SO easy and so very adaptable to anything you might want to add or subtract.

I would LOVE receiving a bag of this, wouldn't you?
That's what I thought!

Double batch Granola

8 cups old fashioned oats
4 cups sweetened, shredded coconut
4 cups chopped nuts, your choice ( I used walnuts and sliced almonds)
3 cups dried fruit (I used cranberries, tomorrow I will try dates and apricots)
1 cup oil (I used a combination of coconut oil I melted in the microwave, and sunflower oil)
3/4 cup honey
juice of 1 orange
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teas. cardamom ( my choice as I love the smell of it!)
zest of 2 oranges

Preheat oven to 325F

Toss the oats and nuts together in a large bowl.
Combine oil with honey and juice of the orange and pour over the oat/nut mixture.
Add the spices and stir with a wooden spoon until all the mixture is coated.
Pour onto 2 sheet pans or large roasting pan.
Bake, stirring every 10 min. or so, until mixture turns a light golden brown, 25 to 35 minutes.
At this point I add the coconut and the orange zest and bake another 8 min.
When I take it out of the oven I add the dried fruit. (if added during the bake time the fruit has a tendency to dry out or burn)
Let cool and package in individual cellophane bags or a large ziploc.


Till next time....

Keepin' Christ in CHRISTmas,
Cindy

Mission: Accomplished

Wonky crocheted tree

I had the whole weekend before me, and amazing things planned.
So...what did I actually get accomplished?

I got my teeny crochet hook out and whipped up a few of these wonky trees, found on Dottie Angel's sweet blog!
Easy peasy, and that's saying a lot when it comes to ME doing handwork!
Now a little forest of them are scattered around my nativity set.

English Toffee Candy

Last week I made Seafoam, one of my favorite candies.
This weekend I tried my hand at toffee, and oh, my, word.
So easy, and SO good!
But be careful! The stuff is so dang hot!
Stop on over to Faithfulness Farm for the easy-peasy recipe!

2 cups leftover heavy cream from Thanksgiving

I had all this cream in the fridge, and it only stays fresh for just so long.
I had read on someone's blog (sorry, for the life of me I can't remember where I saw this)
that you can use your food processor to make butter.
So...that's what I did!

Buttermilk

After the cream "seizes", the chunk of butter will separate from the buttermilk.
Pour it off, then add 1/2 cup ice water to processor to "wash" the butter.
Process for a few seconds.
Drain, then repeat till the water pretty much remains clear.
Mine took 3 "washings".

Sweet cream butter!

I ended up with over a cup of butter, to be used on only the finest toast or to fry a couple of our farm fresh eggs in!

So, all in all, I got quite a bit done, and managed to watch White Christmas, Christmas in Connecticut, and a myriad of other silly, made-for-TV Christmas movies.

It was wonderful!

Now I am off to the grocers to stock up for what is predicted to be the WORST winter storm of the entire season.
Starting tomorrow night and moving right through to Thursday, we are expecting freezing rain, then lots of snow, then 40-50 mile per hour winds with sub-zero temps, then more snow!

YIKES!

How is YOUR week shaping up?

xoxo
Cindy

Hunkered down in West Michigan

Beau, waiting to get chained up

We woke yesterday to a foot of snow on the ground.
Our very 1st snowfall of the season and it was a whopper!
Continued to snow nearly all day long, so you can only imagine what I did!
I hunkered down.

Shrimp Fried Rice

1st...I began suppers meal preparations by cooking up a mess of rice and then spreading it out on a cookie sheet to cool and dry out.
You want cold, dry rice for your fried rice...otherwise it becomes a soggy mess.
Took the shrimp out of the freezer.
Defrosted a bag of carrots/peas.
And sent Farmboy to the grocers for some scallions! (cause I don't go out in this stuff)

I have been using a recipe for Fried Rice, from Pam over at For the Love of Cooking for several months now, and it is the BEST!
Not at all greasy, and easy-peasy too!
Yesterday I took it up a notch and added some raw shrimp as the main protein and it was SO good!

There WAS a nice sized container with leftovers that were SUPPOSED to be my lunch for today, but son got into it in the late night hours, and all I have left is the empty, dirty container in the sink.

Cranberry Orange Scones

It had been ages since I had made scones, and quite frankly, many of the recipes I have tried have been a bit on the too dry side.
Not these!
Moist and crumbly with just the right amount of sweetness, they were wonderful with my morning coffee yesterday.
I got the recipe out of my Cooks Illustrated Family Cookbook.
The down side of these scones is the recipe calls for 1 cup of heavy cream.
YIKES!
So....I only ate one of 'em.
And....I picked the smallest one.
So righteous of me, right?

Once again, my day is full of endless possibilities, and I am chompin' at the bit to get going.
Maybe today I will bake some Christmas cookies?
Or stitch up another apron from a doozie of a skirt I got at Goodwill?
Or make some chai tea concentrate I got the recipe for over here at Noble Pig?
Or make another batch of lye soap?
Ha!
Maybe I will just do it all!!!

Then again, maybe I will do one or two of these, then spend the afternoon watching White Christmas and Holiday Inn!

What are YOUR weekend plans?

xoxo
Cindy

By the dawn's early light...

7AM, cozy by the fireplace, His Word in my hands

What a glorious new day, full of possibilities and challenges!
Mine for today will be to make a double batch of soap, using some new fragrance oils I just received in the mail.
Mmmm....Amazing Grace, patterned after Philosophy's fragrance, and Beach, which smells like the Bobbi Brown fragrance.

For supper tonite, some homemade beef and bean burritos with guacamole and salsa.
I found a recipe for guacamole from Rick Bayless that is our family favorite, and with avocados on sale for $1 each, I worked the burritos into the weekly menu!

Today, December 3rd, just chock full of great things!

What's on your agenda?

xoxo
Cindy

Mama said there'd be days like this...

Prego....it's what's for supper tonite

If mama never told you there'd be days like this, mama was a tad negligent!
I've had 3 very busy days in a row, and this mama is too pooped to do anything but pop the lid on that sweet jar of spaghetti sauce, add 1/2 cup of red wine and a couple of links of chorizo sausage all chopped up, heat, and serve with some pasta.
As much as I am an advocate of made from scratch meals, there are times when I simply cannot bear the thought of another 15 minutes on my feet.
That is when Prego or Kraft somethin' or other comes to the rescue and I simply sit back and relax.
I don't do it often, but I am ever so glad for the back-up.

What are YOUR "go to" easy-peasy meals?

PS....I draw the line at corn dogs....YUCK!

xoxo
Cindy

Christmas at the farmette

Christmas Mantle

I usually go all-out with Christmas decorations and lights and garlands, etc,
But....this year is going to be a bit different.
With knee replacement surgery coming Jan. 8, I want to be able to get thru the holidays with as little time on my feet as possible.
And since I am the one who does the majority of the decorating, that means I had to decide to pare down a bit.
The mantle is NOT where I began!
I put my itty bitty elves here and there, strung my twinkly white lights and created a brand-spankin' new garland for it!
Made out of cast off wool Goodwill sweaters and felted in my washing machine, I cut out rectangles and strung them on cotton yarn.
I then crocheted trees, snowflakes and rounds inspired by The Royal Sisters, and stitched them on the rectangles.
That was not enough.
I got out my ample supply of granny-chic buttons and found just the perfect "ornaments" for my work.

In the next week or so we will head to the "farm around the corner" and chop down the perfect (in OUR eyes!) tree.
And I think that will be about it around here. No garland strung willy nilly around the porch columns or stair rails.
No snowmen or santa collection displayed.
Just the tree.
The mantle.
And the nativity.
And that is enough for me.

Here at the farmette things are not as they usually are, and tho I typically keep my private life sorta private, I would ask that if any of you are prayin' folk, that you would keep our family in your prayers.
We are facing some very difficult challenges here (no worries, Farmboy and I are just fine!!!) and would greatly appreciate prayer from the Body.

xoxo
Cindy