Upside Downton Abbey

A bit of fun for my Downton Abbey friends....




And this bit of fun....

Sorry!

I had a fun post here with some Downton Abbey parodies. 

They will be back as soon as I do a bit of tidying on my sidebar, and also figure out how to get them into the proper size - they were hanging over into the sidebar....

They are fun, so hopefully it won't be too long!

Refining

 

In this month dedicated to celebrating LOVE I thought that I would share a few verses on what God says about love.

 

 Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

1 John  15:12 This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

 1 Peter 1:22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,

I find that as I grow in Him, He challenges me to go deeper, and as I do we come to areas that He wants to refine...

Love is one of them.

 

Busy At Home

"May I a small house and large garden have;

 And a few friends,

And many books, both true."  

Abraham Cowley

I found this quote in a new to me book by Sharon Lovejoy called, "Trowel & Error."  This is such a handy book.  Lots of great tips about pest control etc, using natural products.  I had a gift card for Barnes and Noble and went looking for a Sharon Lovejoy book based on Vee's recommendation.  I had to order this one, but I am so thankful I did.  I'm enjoying it already.

Garden Prep

We have been reading and learning more about gardening.  We want to do things that will allow us to grow healthy foods.  

This year we decided to try putting paper down, then wood chips.  This will get rid of the grass and weeds and also help the soil.  We'd like to be able to plant without having to till.

 Of course the first nice day in a while, was also the windiest.  Not great for trying to place paper down.  But we got a system going.

 Here Kyle and Rachel are spreading the wood chips.

 Sarah and I both drove the mower today...She and Kyle worked hard - they are champion wood chip spreaders!

 We are blessed to have the hardest working man as the head of our family! He went to the township office and brought back three truck loads of wood chips.  He also shoveled them into the barrow and hauled it over to the garden area.

 Rachel and Sarah basking in the sunshine...

Here is the whole space seven rows of paper covered in wood chips.   I didn't measure the space so I don't know the dimensions.

We plan to grow tomatoes, peppers, squash, green beans, sugar snap peas, corn, lettuce, onions.  We are going to try for pumpkins again, and maybe melons.

We have quite some time before our last frost date which is May 15th.  Sometimes if the weather is mild we plant before then.  We are hoping the wood chips will break down well. We'll see.  It's all about learning new things.

Do you garden?  If so, what are your plans for this growing season?
Are you planning to try something new?    

My Boy

 

New Books...

Monday, January 28th, was the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.  Being big fans of Jane's here at the cottage, I have read her books, watched the movies - and have decided opinions about them, and have read many of the prequel or sequel books.

Imagine my surprise this past fall to find out about a new friend, after she and her family returned to Ireland, that she is not only a Jane Austen scholar but an author of two fantastic books about Mr. Knightley!

These books tell the story of Mr. Knightley, but it is not really Emma from Mr. Knightley's point of view.   These are books that tell his story.

I loved reading about his work as the local magistrate, his care for those in need in the parish of Donwell, his friendships with the new curate at Donwell, as well as his friendships that we already know  from the book Emma.

However, the author Barbara Cornthwaite develops the relationship between John Knightley - who is married to Emma's sister, and George Knightley, big brother of John and neighbor and friend to the Woodhouses of Hartfield, through letters between them to show their character, humor, and brotherly affection - which includes of course, some good natured teasing.  I really loved this part of the books.

The books are so well written that they really stand alone.  You do not have to have read Emma or really to know much about that story to enjoy these books.

You can follow Barbara on Facebook here.

You can buy her books on Amazon here.

You can find out more about the authors at Crown Hill Publishing here. 

If you love Jane Austen or if you simply love to read, I highly recommend these books by Barbara Cornthwaite to you!

If you read them, let me know!  

Delight Filled Weekend

allposters.com 

You Can't Take It With You

Have you ever watched the 1938 film by Frank Capra called 'You Can't Take It With You?'  We watched it Friday night and it set the tone for the weekend!  It was such a fun movie, great for the family!

Saturday we went to our friend Nick's basketball game.

Nick is number 30.  He plays on a homeschool co-op team.  They play against Christian schools. They had a great game, and to celebrate we went out to lunch for pizza.  Then we went back to their house and visited for a while.  We love this family and enjoy fellowship with them on Sundays mostly because they live about 40 minutes away.  While at their home they were talking about wanting to rearrange their living room but weren't sure how to do it.  A few minutes later we had a plan and were moving furniture!  

As you may know, if you have read here for a while, I LOVE doing this!  With their big boys and Tim and their Dad we had moved all the furniture in their small living room into a great seating area!  The flow of traffic is good still, too, as this is so important!

We came home to enjoy a movie with our friend Denny and our friend Sarah.  

Sunday was a nothing planned Sunday so we had invited a family to come for lunch.  I slow roasted at turkey overnight, and we had potatoes ready to go as well as green bean casserole and corn.  

We decided to invite a new family (a mom and 2 sons) over, as well, and then also to include another family, so we had 28 people here for lunch.  The others brought things to fill in the meal - rolls, applesauce, cranberry sauce, drinks, desserts.  It was perfect!

I love being able to share our lives.  Our friends are going through residency at Johns Hopkins and living far from their family and support system.  We love being able to be that support for them during this time.  The new family is sweet and there are big changes on the horizon for them, our other friends are dealing with the stress of an elderly mother with dementia who now needs constant care that the father can no longer give.  They live four hours away, also, so they are making frequent trips across the state to help get things worked out.  Their hearts are burdened and saddened.  

It was a joy to give them a respite from their cares, for a while, to laugh and talk, and then later to share and pray together!  

The kids played together beautifully all day - Lindsay even went out and did sword fighting with them, which the 10 year old son of the new family thought was awesome!  Emma played Monopoly and painting fingernails on countless girlies, and of course we had to have a bit of a tea party!  Sonja and Asher KNOW they can count on me for Chamomile tea, raw honey and milk for their tea in their wee teacups I keep just for this purpose!

allposters.com

I went to bed tired but so thankful.  It is a joy to care for others and to know that it is appreciated.  It fills my soul.

Was your weekend filled with delight?  Did you see the beautiful full moon last night? Sigh...such beauty!

The Work Of Her Hands

I've grown to love to work with my hands to create usable items when I have a few free moments or when we are watching a movie.  I've noticed that Emma does the same thing - she's always grabbing her knitting.

 I'm working on a baby blanket in navy and light blue out of my yarn stash.  I am hoping I have enough.  I like to make small blankets that are easy to use with a carseat.  Just big enough to tuck around them and make those wee babies snug and cozy.  Our church has three little ones due in April and May.  All boys.  I need to work fast!

 I also like this stitchery from Rhonda at the Down To Earth blog.  She posted this pattern to use several years ago, and I made it in a smaller version as part of a pillow for my sister in law, and now I am making it for a friend as a wall hanging.

 My friend Cheryl gave me a gift of her hands when we visited on Wednesday.  A beautiful homemade table runner for my large table!  It's perfect!  I have been looking for one, but not finding what I wanted, and I was contemplating making one myself.  Now I don't need to and I can be reminded of my friend's thoughtfulness and love whenever I see it.

I know that so many of you are talented, creating beauty for your homes everyday.  

Would you care to share what you're working on?

Kindred Spirits

What makes some one a kindred spirit?  Is it being exactly alike?  I don't think so.  Anne and Diana were not alike in many ways but they were kindred spirits.  They understood and 'got' each other.

I have always missed having sisters but it has been fun over the years to see the Lord bring sisters into my life.  You all know who you are - the ones who get me, and love me inspite of myself.

Today I got to spend the day with one of these 'sisters'.  Cheryl and I met online last year and it's like we have known each other forever!

We went to her beautiful home and had lunch - fabulous soup and bread! - and ended up having dinner too!  

It was a delight to sit in her home, that until today I've only seen online, sipping tea, laughing, talking, enjoying our daughters together....

    Her home is lovely and warm - just like she is herself - and her daughters are sweet!  Oh, and they have the most feminine bedrooms!  Sarah is so inspired and so am I!

Beauty abounds in their hearts and in their home!

Thanks Cheryl, Kati and Bekah for sharing yourselves with us.  We were so blessed.

40 Years

54 Million 

lives lost 

to abortion

in the United States

since 1973.

I pray we will come to value all life.