begin.

 

*

{c.s.lewis}

"... now at last they were beginning chapter one of the great story no one else on earth has ever read, which goes on forever; in which every chapter is better than the one before."

though the road seems long, twists, turns, laden with fog, unexpected obstructions, know that the Lover of your soul will guide .. leading the way back to Him. always. and always. and still always for evermore. amen ... sweet amen.

*

.. picture taken on a recent drive in my neck of the woods ..

plain.

 

i'm not a lover of leftovers. for as long as i can remember it's been that way. however, last night i realized something :: isn't it interesting how the 2nd night of Christmas dinner is better than the 1st Christmas dinner? same food except the addition of making ham gravy from the ham juicies and slopping it over the ham and a portion of the sweet potato casserole. seriously good. yUm.

i portioned and froze the remaining ham. six quart size baggies easily as many dinners

in casseroles with eggs as sandwiches. am still sleuthing ham meals to try.

i had two humongous sweet potatoes that i baked then cooled then used one for the sweet potato casserole and the other filled two quart size baggies for a later use. 

with most of the Christmas decor put away i've decided to leave up our main trees for a while longer, perhaps into february. we'll see how long i can stick it out before bringing out the ironstone and creamware. love the look of the trees in simple staging, along with a silver goblet, antique picture frame, a silver trinket thingie, and an antique square nail. why? well. the goblet signifies communion and the antique square nail of our Lord on the cross. He was born to die. his birth and the intent for his human birth is the reason for the season. a plain setting is fine.

a vintage piece of sepia cloth on top of the jelly cupboard..

i know it needs pressed but it's okay as is.

real life. life is real.

it need not be perfect

to be beautiful.

the hubs and i will take off a bit early in the morning

so early to bed early to rise. hoping your day(s)

are filled to overflowing with goodness.

love,

sherry

a {little} post Christmas.

 

*

as i type, snow is falling. large active flakes. the day *after* snowfall was expected. we'll take it. the weatherman is consistently inconsistent which consistently perplexes me and puts me in a 'tude. even though no snow on Christmas it was not a day for a 'tude. it was a day of quiet and time for thought. of both missing those dear to us in these turbulent times, and missing the dearest of someone's.. our daughter. yet even in this, He meets us where we are and brings forth His strength. His peace. that peace that passes all understanding .. ruling in our hearts. thankful. so. very. thankful.

George Winston's album *Winter* is playing .. 

just the right tunes for this wintery day.

Christmas dinner was simple ..

baked ham, sweet potato casserole, green beans

with vinegar and smoked bacon, fresh bread.

to top it off, pecan pie with whipped cream.

we have enough ham to last us to kingdom come.

any favorite leftover ham recipes out there i should try?

as long as it doesn't include peas i'm willing to give it a shot.

while snow was not to be found yesterday it was still chilly willy

so the hubs set to lighting a roaring fire. that and Christmas

instrumental music made for a fine mood.

and there he is .. my hubs .. my beloved .. my everything

Christmas Eve ..

i made a salad with super greens (de-stemmed), honeycrisp apple,

pumpkin spiced seeds, dried cranberries, and fresh cracked pepper.

with a good drizzle of Stonewall Kitchen's bacon vinaigrette

it was the right side dish to pan seared salmon .. partially burned

due to a distraction. sigh. still a delish meal even with a few

charred bits and pieces. this is life. life is real.

this little precious is a young fawn 

that happened upon our front property

along with her 5 family members. 

a most darling face.

"whatcha doin?" she asked.

'round these parts they're unafraid 

of humans .. for the most part.

skittish - but not terribly so.

so. six dear deer in all on the front property

though this picture shows three of the six.

and seven dear deer on the back of our property

though this picture shows six. the matriarch

was to the right out of the lens.

the buck .. i think it's tommy.

.. the Bethlehem Star ..

a local gal took this picture and i wanted to be sure

to share it with you. we drove to the perfect spot for viewing..

others were there as well, probably a dozen cars in all.

quiet and in awe.

last year this time we took a little drive while snow fell.

also last year .. goals for this present storm!

the hubs.. he's a kidder. wink.

do you leave your Christmas decorations up through January?

or do you begin tucking them away the day after Christmas?

i'm leaving most up but am ready for clean spaces even though

i put precious little out for the season. post Christmas finds

me ready for a bit of minimalism. i'm a *less is more* gal.

hoping now through the new year ringing in, 

peace will be at the forefront

of your heart and mind, 

seeking that which has lasting 

value rather than the temporal. 

"But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Joshua 24:15 (nkjv)

*

a {merry} little Christmas.

with the Christmas season upon us and Christmas day merely days from now, our time will be spent snuggling in, hoping for more snow, anticipating the Bethlehem Star come the 21st, thawing the spiral sliced ham for the 25ths dinner, and enjoying simplicity 

in hopefully every mode of our day to day life now through the 31st. 

*

while on a recent off-road expedition we encountered a snow berm where in other circumstances the hubs would have taken the berm and went on his way. at only 3 feet the snow mound still gave the hubs pause in attempting it even in 4wd as it could have had a decided unpleasant result for my back not to mention the possibility of high-centering the jeep and needing to dig out. but in the initial pursuit i filmed this little ditty of us briefly discussing the probability. or lack thereof. wink. the video cracked us up .. had a good chuckle.

*

living in the forest means finding a tiny tree to snip

and place in a pretty jar, setting it on the dining table

then adding a vintage deep pink ornament.

*

there's much concern in this great land at present ..

as well as enough *opinions* to fill the lacerations between

truth and deception and somewhere in between. 

just this morning we watched Pastor Jack Hibbs

and were both so blessed by his message entitled

The Weary World Rejoices.

perhaps you'd like to listen too...?

{click here for the sermon}

*

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Henry W. Longfellow - 1864 

alt. and v. 5-7 by Harlan D. Sorrell

2. 
   
3. I heard the bells on Christmas day
   Their old familiar carols play;
   In music sweet the tones repeat,
   “There’s peace on earth, good will to men.”
4. I thought how, as the day had come,
   The belfries of all Christendom
   Had rolled along th’ unbroken song
   Of peace on earth, good will to men.
5. And in despair I bowed my head:
   “There is no peace on earth,” I said,
   “For hate is strong, and mocks the song
   Of peace on earth, good will to men.”
6. Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
   “God is not dead, nor does He sleep,
   For Christ is here; His Spirit near
   Brings peace on earth, good will to men.”
7. When men repent and turn from sin
   The Prince of Peace then enters in,
   And grace imparts within their hearts
   His peace on earth, good will to men.
8. O souls amid earth’s busy strife,
   The Word of God is light and life;
   Oh, hear His voice, make Him your choice,
   Hail peace on earth, good will to men.
9. Then happy, singing on your way,
   Your world will change from night to day;
   Your heart will feel the message real,
   Of peace on earth, good will to men.
10. *
11. "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." ~John 14:27 nkjv
12. blessings,
13.  sherry 
14. ... comments closed ...

a bit of snow.

the first *real* snow of the season is always

a delight. seems the dear deer enjoy it as well..

tommy and a number of deer w/o names 

sauntered through our property leaving behind

footprints - probably a dozen today this morning.

there's one youngster with the sweetest of faces.

it was a good morning for a simple omelette,

served with fresh baked bacon

(do you bake your bacon?)

and the last of a little bread loaf,

toasted and buttered.

:: baked bacon ::

with foil covering a lipped cookie sheet,

lay the bacon side by side and pop it into

a 425 oven for 20-25 minutes depending

on your preference of "done-ness".

remove from pan onto a rack with paper

towels to soak up any grease. i save the

bacon grease in a jar marked *oink* then

into the fridge it goes.

i prepped bread dough and once ready

in my great grandmother's bread bowl,

 slipped it in the oven on the *proof* option .. 

an hour and a half later i poured it onto floured

surface of the hUge bread board the hubs made

for me, separated it into portions, and set to

make slider buns, a couple more pizza rounds,

and a large loaf of bread. the aroma....!

a bit of rain after the snow. sigh.

tonight we've planned to head to an area

for Christmas lights .. with the rain and freezing

temps it may not be a great idea. why? ice.

while waiting for the bread items to bake

i put together a simple meat sauce for lasagna

which is planned for tomorrow's main meal.

it'll be so yUmmy with the flavors coming together

overnight. but tonight is burgers... er... sliders

using smallish fresh baked buns. 

the cole slaw was made

earlier and it's in the fridge along with a 

selection of local romaine, tomato, 

and english cheddar.

thick slices of onion will be saute'd

just before plating. yUm.

last night we watched a wonderful movie

made in 1945 .. Christmas in Connecticut

starring barbara stanwyck, dennis morgan,

and a personal favorite old time actor,

s.z. sakall who plays the role of felix.

the hubs had never seen this film

and he enjoyed it as much as me.

on our dvd the movie Star in the Night

is included, also filmed in 1945.

i encourage you to watch the

film - you'll appreciate the

biblical truths shared

especially for this

most precious

of 

seasons.

one can be viewed using amazon prime

for a $2.99 rental in case you don't own

the dvd or plan to purchase,

and one on youtube.

click hErE for Star in the Night

click hErE for Christmas in Connecticut

until next time,

sherry

sweets.space.sustenance

***sweets***

baking has commenced.

cranberry bread :: 17 loaves

pumpkin bread :: 14 loaves

russian tea cakes :: by the pallet full

i'm getting the teacake dough ready this afternoon,

beginning with measuring out all the ingredients

and setting the butter out to soften. i measured two-cups

of pecans and set to chopping them using my father's 

nut chopper thingymabob. i bring it out once a year: Christmas.

experiencing a touch of arthritis doesn't make for ease

when grinding through the two-cups of nuts.

adding a food processor to my kitchen is tempting.

but. using this jar grinder contraption has offered

opportunity to think about my dad.

he was quite a cook...featured in taste of home magazine

a few times even. he was famous. wink.

flittering through my recipe papers i found my mother's

meat loaf recipe! i've been searching and found it tucked

away in a safe spot known only to whoever put it there. me.

but i forgot where. thankful to have found it and will

most likely put it to good use this week.

***space***

i kept our Christmas decor simple simon this year, like every year

really but especially so this year. we both love the *bits* of decor.

streamlined almost to minimalism. but not quite.

the roofline is a favorite of the hubs,

being a giant and all. i especially love

the pines in the front and how they're silhouetted

beyond the upper windows.

tommy, my pet teenage deer came by overnight

and used one of our front aspens to remove the velvet

from his antlers. he broke a few branches and carved

the trunk a bit but i don't really mind much.

i saw him in the afternoon and after exchanging

pleasantries he trotted into the woods with his

head held high. gorgeous creature(s).

the squirrels though.

remember a year ago me being tickled by their escapades

and how i'd probably think later they'd be the bane of our existence?

well it's here. chewing through electrical cords for Christmas

lights on our front deck. the nerve! bah! so the hubs placed

a pepper powder along the cord line and into the vintage 

bucket holding the majority of the cord.

so far so good.

the stinkers.

***sustenance***

made pizza dough then parbaked with loads of dried herbs.

didn't have fresh on hand and our tiny market didn't either.

in a bit i'll dress the pizza and the hubs will grill the round

which will leave the sides charred and the bottom crispy.

i cooked up a little bit of italian sausage and onions.

that along with mozzarella will be yUm.

and with a big salad on the side it'll be a feast.

and before i go, i also baked a

loaf of bread and when it was done i brought a buttered

slice out to the shop where the hubs was working on

my cutie pie {golf} cart. i don't golf. but i like toodling

about town. it's an old cart and he's basically 

rebuilding it. i'm sure he's thrilled with this

new project. really. thrilled. wink.

some of my ralph lauren charlotte fabric will find

it's way to pillows or bunting in adorning this cute thing.

*