A little giveaway

So today  my bible reading took me to Proverbs 3:9     Which seemed to just scream.... The 7 pillars home.  It made me remember how blessed I am to have all the things I have, home and family, and after my close call last week, even more so.  I'm thankful for the friendships that have been made with all you guys and so I thought I would get out some fabric and make up one of my aprons, and crochet up one of my dishcloths to use as a giveaway.  All you need do is leave a comment here or on the Facebook page telling me what one of the 7 home making pillars are (hint: you can see them here on this blog on the separate page).  If you share this on your own blog or FB please let me know so you can get a 2nd chance in the drawer.  The giveaway closes on 14th July 2013 and is open to everyone.

Hugs,  sharm

The soughdough Starter

If anybody watched the first episode of river cottage Australia, you will know they made a sourdough starter.  Well I've decided to fly with the idea of beginning a starter here to celebrate a fresh start ( and the gift of a lucky survival thanks to God looking out for me with that steel beam).  My starter is just a little different from the river cottage one which used whole meal, spelt & rye flours......... Instead I have used what I already have on hand........ Whole meal, buckwheat, and plain old white flours.  I expect it will take between 5 - 10 days to be ready, and of course it is winter down in this part of the world right now, with some very frosty mornings!  Why not join me in making up a starter so we can begin baking the odd loaf together.    You can head over to river cottage to get the full directions and the recipe for making the loaf, but basically you start with a cup of 3 lots of flour, mixing with enough water to form a soft dough, then cover with a damp teatowel and leave in a warm place...... You will need to add to it each day and I do hear that it is better not to use any metal when doing it, although I can't be sure of that.  Leave me a message if you plan to have a go at this with me!

A literal Hit over the Head!

After all the extra work I was called in to do at the hospital, I found myself slipping further and further behind on things here on our little quarter acre homestead.  Gardens are full of weeds, plants and trees not tended to, baking replaced by processed supermarket substances.........  I realised that my stresses and our costs of living have increased substantially during these past 3 months of close to full time work.  I took the dog for a lovely walk down along the river yesterday morning thinking I need to get back on track somehow........

Well, I did begin digging the front garden over when hubbie needed a hand to "hold this pole so I can see how this carport would fit"........  The carport that was purchased for a house we were renovating, but it didn't end up going in and made the 3 day move to our next house up in Townsville ( our lifestyle change which lasted 9 months), and then it came the 3 days back to this house.........where it looks like It will finally go up..........   Except it managed to come apart and fall onto my head yesterday afternoon........   I must have been blessed with a hard head.... No cuts, no fracture. And after a brain scan, there is no sign of a bleed either....... I did have quite the headache as you might imagine!

Well, the mighty bump over the head has made me remember my priorities and thank God for His blessings, to get back to turning our house into a home, using those 7 pillars, and making it a place that provides so much for our family.

The lovely steel beam that decided to land on my head when it fell from the pole......

The ripple is growing....

My very first go at making a ripple afghan seems to be coming along quite ok.  I'm using wool that has either been sitting in my stash or came via some swaps... The green is from my penpal group swap last year, the very lovely burgundy angora was from a yarn group swap & came from Alaska so I feel I am crocheting with friends :).  Anyhow though you might like a bit of a peek at it......

Some of my recycled treasures

I can't believe I haven't posted on here since January!  My apologies, as the 7 pillars also has a face book page & I guess at some point it became easier  and quicker to upload photos there!  In fact with it being so long, there might not be anyone left here still checking in. LOL. Am I just talking to myself then??? Perhaps, but oh we'll, that's ok too I guess.

I thought I'd pop in a couple of photos of some of the treasures around our house that have been rescued from old sheds and houses that were being demolished.  Pete was told he could burn, bury or take away......... So some stuff comes home and gets some TLC and becomes a useable treasure....

The pie safe which has all my preserves, soaps, seeds, spare jars.  The table was built especially for us from a large gum that Pete had to take down when roads were being built some years ago.  The chairs were also handmade by an old fellow in his 80's at that time.

This was being used as an old chicken incubators when pete found it, and fixed it up...... The blue bottles have also been finds from various times..... Now it lives in our bathroom.

This lovely old writing desk just fits into our tiny bedroom  and gets used for storage since I can't fit a chest of drawers into our bedroom.

What do you think of...................

Aprons!!    I have to say that I never, ever used to think very much of them.......... and then one day that all changed - years later I still love them to bits!!  I now make my own,  (Voila - the 4 there sitting on my clothes line) ,since it's difficult to find the kind I like - all cotton, large pocket in the front, comfy around the neck..... and not having a way too big price tag attached!!  I have quite a large stash of materials and I tend to use those to make up my aprons (hence sometimes the length may vary a little, as you can see in the photo LOL).  I've made quite a number of them over the past couple of years............... and yet here I find I only have 4 here for my own use!!!  As you can see........ all out on the line!  Not a spare one in the kitchen drawer.    Looks like I may have to do something about that!   I find them great to give as gifts.......... a bit like making pot mits and crocheted dishcloths............... I need to remember to ensure I get my own stash together LOL  However, right now, I'm busy working on items for Christmas giving..... since Christmas is but 39 days away!!

I find they really do save my clothes, especially when I just return home from work and have to start on making the dinner........ no splashes staining my clothes.

My aprons have been used for all sorts of things, because I wear them on home days when I'm busy cleaning or doing lots of household things.............. the pockets are great for holding eggs collected from the hen house - and yes, back when I had hens rearing young chicks, it was not unusual to find a baby chick or 2 in my apron  pocket whilst I fixed up the mother hen, or picked up straggling chicks to return to the mum!

What do you think of aprons?

The Hard Stuff.........

"She is loud and rebellious (wayward),  Her feet do not stay at home; Now in the street, now in the market, and lurking at every corner"   Prov 7:11-12    It's easy to skip over these couple of verses when reading the whole chapter.......... and no doubt thinking "that doesn't apply to me"......... yet when we pull out these 2 verses it shows a whole different picture!  This girl, woman - she likes to be the centre of attention (she is loud).......... in other words,  This woman is rebellious, wayward, always considers herself to be right - she does not want to be told anything, or listen to anyone else - and if she is in a marriage it's likely she wants (or is) trying to play the lead role!  If she's still at home - then I'm sure others in the family will recognise the rebellious behaviour (she rarely agrees on anything unless it is what she wants!).

from clipart

"Her feet do not stay at home"......... This refers to a woman who is not tending to the needs of her home, her family, her household. She is so "busy" being out and about she doesn't have time to achieve anything much at home!   How can you possibly be taking care of things at home if you are never there!!  Now before I hear the cries of the working woman, let me remind you that I work outside the home in a part time capacity.  My husband is not a christian and so his beliefs are a "little different" to mine.  He feels it is part of my responsability to bring money into the household.  I struggled with this to no end  early on, however God reminded me that regardless of where my husband is in his spiritual journey, I need to remember where I am in mine!  In my journey with God, I know that I need to follow God and He tells me to follow my husband. He also has given me prayer and wisdom to use as tools to work out problems.......... Hence I have what works for us at this point in time - My husband wants me to bring in money, He is also extremely happy when I have the home in order........... thus part time outside employment is a great compromise for our particular situation (provided I remember the reasons I'm doing it). I would be overjoyed to be able to be a "stay at home" wife and mother, but if I carry on about wanting my own way on this, then I ere on the "She is loud and rebellious".

So regardless of your "work" situation - we are really discussing tending to the needs of your home, family and household. "Now in the steet, now in the market (shops), now lurking at every corner".   Are you guilty of always being elsewhere - out shopping for the sake of shopping (we are not talking about the purchase of neccesary household items here), wandering the streets looking for "good bargains", or for filling in time, endless lunch and coffee dates with the girls, always on the phone chatting (or the computer)............. And then saying aloud those words we so often here "I don't have  enough time".    
If you use the time you have effectively, then you will be able to do these things, and probably more than you ever thought possible!  
I am definately no superwoman!  I definately do not strive to be one!  What I do strive to do, is to take care of my family's needs, to tend to my home and to the household tasks that are required in order to achieve much of this.
How you feel about this subject is central to what you will achieve.  It's one of our  pillars............ Any guesses which one.......