Feather your Nest Friday, 12th February, 2021.

 I am happy to be here looking over the week.  Thanks to photos and notes I remember things I would forget otherwise. 

Many of the things I did fell into the "putting things to good use"  category!  Over at The Tuesday Afternoon Club  this is a weekly theme.  It is amazing what we can put to good use.

My Aunt sent me a lovely present.  It came in a beautiful box from a department store.  I was planning to make some packs of cards for gifts and I had two rose books from op shops that I had saved just for card making.   So everyday I made a few cards and I covered the box with roses as well.


I love boxes to store things in.   When I was little Mum was always covering boxes with pictures.  I loved this.  Even now the girls baby things are stored in boxes covered in pictures from magazines back when they were tiny!  All that glue made the boxes last forever and they are so pretty.  

Cutting and gluing pretty flowers all week was very nice.  I made full size cards and also smaller little cards with tiny envelopes.


Then eventually I made them into sets of six and packaged them up as gifts and tied them up with ribbon.


This gives me a couple of gifts I need right now and some for the present cupboard.  Everyone needs cards, right?  

Some of the other ways I built up the home and got ahead were:

I cooked up two pumpkins and pureed them for Thomas.  I think it was 15 little containers of pumpkin. And he really likes it! 

Chloe asked if I wanted an old cupboard.   It is gorgeous and I said yes please!   Then I had to think fast where to put it and what to do with it.    My laundry has too much stuff in there.  Stuff I don't know any other place to put ... like piles of egg cartons and garden fertiliser and random things! 
So I had the cupboard go in our porch area which is mostly closed in and I keep my plants and a little table and chairs to pretty it up.   Because the cupboard is lovely it fits right in.   I now have all the garden stuff, egg cartons and other odds and ends in it.   This liberated my laundry and I spent so much time re arranging it.   As you know how it goes when you start moving things around.  It seemed like every item in the house moved one to the left.   But it is really so much better.

In the evenings I worked on crochet edgings on kitchen towels.  I sewed a few more pot holders.

The ham I cooked was all used up and the last of it went into two big quiches.

I had bananas to use.  So I made small banana cakes (12) for the girls for school, one for Chloe and Luke and a Gluten Free one to cut up for the freezer.




Chloe gave me a box of jars.

Everyday I picked tomatoes.


My neighbour gave me a beautiful old birdcage.  Andy hung it up for me.  I love it! 


I better include an animal photo.   My cows come up when I call them for a biscuit.  Laffie has a new hair do.  I think she discovered gel? 



I was given Rhubarb by Wendy and red apples from Chloe.   Today I filled the slow cooker with them together and then made two huge crumbles and portions of stewed fruit to freeze. 
The crumble is delicious!


I really added quite a bit to the freezer.  And gave my pantry a lot of thought.   I need to re arrange my freezers and have an inventory.    

I've said it before but here we go again...  I think we are all news tired and crisis fatigued.  Because of this I hardly watch any TV.   (I am a snoop and a researcher though. haha.)     But what seemed to be "just like that" there are severe and sudden lockdowns again.   Scenes of supermarket shelves emptied out and panic.   Reminders of why we keep our pantries well stocked and that things can change so quickly. 

"She looks well to the ways of her household.." Prov 31.27
"The wise see trouble ahead and avoid it."  Prov 22.3
This involves being watchful.   And time after time I have found to trust my feelings.  If you feel something isn't right, it isn't right! If you feel strongly to do something then do it.  I felt so strongly to build up my pantry and I still do like never before.     I pray all the time to know what I should be doing. 

I am also always quoting the old saying to do what you can, with what you have and right where you are!  
To take every opportunity.
To pray to have eyes to see opportunity.
To put things to good use.
And to have a beautiful time doing it.  
A lot of people are really having a very tough time.  We can try to add goodness and kindness as it is really needed.  Often very small acts of kindness count for far more than we imagine. 

I hope you had a good week. How did you build up your home or get ahead in anyway?xxx






















Comments

  1. Dear Annabel, what a beautiful post. How lucky are your girls and grandchildren that they get all this beautiful cooking. I truly thinking food is one of the best gifts. those cakes look so yummy and the puree would be so much better than shop bought (can't compare really). I love your cards. They are beautiful. Well done for getting so much done. I love the box too. I am slowly getting into a new routine. It is hard adjusting to a new routine. I feel a little lost really. But I will find my way, I just keep praying to God every day. I found some little shirts and kids audio books and Playschool songs on cds all for $1 each, so not reliant on internet/electricity. We have a battery powered cd player, so this will be god when the power is out, for rest time, etc. I have crocheted another dishcloth. I found some marked down bread rolls so bought 5 packs and my little seedlings are going well. In 15 minute bursts I got one kitchen cupboard cleaned and fans wiped down. I think I will keep up the 15 minute bursts. I hope to do some more baking and sew some cleaning cloths. Lots of love, Lily.

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    1. Dear Lily,
      Thank you! I think food is the gift of help, comfort, nutrition... security even. The fifteen minute bursts, even 5 minutes...achieve so much! You will get your routine and while you are working on it make it work for you really well! I have a whip around the kitchen before bed. This really helps as in the morning I glad to arrive in the kitchen and it is good!
      You had great finds and a battery operated CD player is good! It was great with the bread rolls and they freeze really well too!
      Have a lovely weekend and a bit of a rest! With love, Annabel.xxx

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  2. Good morning- it’s a chilly -24 below zero here with windchill’s this last week -45 to 60 below zero.
    Seeing all those beautiful cards with those beautiful flowers sure is wonderful.
    Annabel, do you have a tutorial on how you do this?
    I have also been wondering about how your little shed/guest house you have been fixing up has been coming along. It would be wonderful to see pictures I’m sure it is Cozy

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    1. Dear Tootles, Thank you! I was just thinking I need to do a post on the cottage. It is now a liveable and comfy little place. So I will do that.
      Yes I have several card making tutorials. These ones are just totally basic. Here is one:
      https://thebluebirdsarenesting.blogspot.com/2014/06/an-easy-card-making-tutorial-part-1.html?m=1
      and another:
      https://thebluebirdsarenesting.blogspot.com/2014/06/a-simple-card-tutorial-part-2.html
      Lovely old books are my best source for images. With beautiful images you cant go wrong! Plus it is a lot of fun. I hope this helps! With love Annabel.xxx

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  3. Debby in Kansas USA12 February 2021 at 07:15

    Those rose cars are beautiful! I cover boxes too, but I use wallpaper sample books that the paint store let me have. I've gotten so much use from those books. I cover food boxes to make drawer dividers, drawers liners, and even envelopes! My friends love them and one even pointed bout that they're waterproof! I use the lighter shades so the address is clear. I'm going to use some as picture mattes, as well. They are so handy.

    Not only has the pandemic grounded us from much but the central US is being pummeled by the polar vortex right now and it's COLD! I think the temp is 5 degrees right now and getting colder over the weekend. We have needed nothing at the store, which is great.

    I hope we'll get a peek at your shelf and I always love to see your farm babies! I think Laffy is going punk or 80's!!

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    1. Dear Debby,
      I love how you are using wall paper samples! Many years I got some of these and also upholstery fabric sample books. I know of somewhere I could ask... I might give it ago! Many wallpapers now are divine! I love all the things you are making!
      I saw about this storm! Its sounds so cold. In England the river Thames froze and this hasn't happened for over 50 years ! I cant imagine how cold that is!
      I am so glad you are well prepared. Well done!!
      Thanks so much Debby, With love, Annabel.xxx

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  4. I am always encouraged and inspired. Thank you!

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  5. The pictures are so beautiful and the food looks to scrumptious. Oh I want home grown tomatoes sooooo badly.
    Like you I snoop and research - but have cut out all national news. I watch local for weather and such in the mornings and that is it. Too much bad joo-joo!!!
    love hearing abut your week - you are so energetic.

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    1. Thanks Cheryl. Good point too... we should be ahead and know the coming weather as if its sever we need to know that. I might have another couple of weeks of tomatoes so I will be trying to make the most of them! Have a lovely weekend! With love, Annabel.xxx

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  6. Annabel, your weekly posts are so uplifting and something I always look forward to. I so needed a new picture of Laffie! She is adorable. Especially with her new "do". With your beautiful cards you remind me to get my supplies out and make up a year's worth of cards. I ran out last year! I long to sew and do "crafty" things but I have to concentrate on tax work for a while and I need to get some new EBay listings posted. The more I sell, the more excuse I have to go thrifting! That will have to wait as it is so damp and cold here we plan to stay hunkered down until the weather is decent.

    I planted carrots this week and we have two new pear tress to plant. We have two heaters going in the green house and hope that is adequate as they are predicting 11 degrees (F) and for us in central Texas that is unusually cold. In my spare time I hope to cut out some bowl cozies and scrunchies for the gift cupboard. I decided to make lightweight gift items this year that will be easy to mail, just in case. I darned some socks this week. Yes, we can afford new socks but it's good to stay in practice, just in case! Greg said when his mom used to darn his socks they always had lumps in them and hurt his feet so I took that as a challenge! I bought two new bed pillows and need to make pillow covers for them, using zippers from the old covers. Charcoal, our spoiled rotten cat, promptly claimed the old pillows so he will be needing new pillow covers, too. No rest in sight around here :-).

    One bonus about having a well-stocked pantry is being able to pick and choose and buy only what is on sale. That is besides having a great feeling of security knowing you can feed your family no matter what. This week I found canned yams for .48 cents and a large box of Oxi-Clean stain remover for $3.24. But my biggest savings of the week was in my Medi-gap insurance. By shopping around it will save us over $90 a month! We are blessed!

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    1. Dear Pam,
      Yes while it is so cold is it good to stay put! A good time to get your Ebay postings up.
      Its so good you have a green house! New pear trees will be a good addition.
      Scrunchies fit in the mail well. They flatten out! I am always looking for small things that will post in a normal card.
      You are right... once we are far enough ahead we can wait to buy things on sale. We just dont need it urgently so we can wait and get a heap when on sale. It is a great post to reach! Neve pray full price for anything!
      Well done and shopping around, that is a significant saving there!
      With love, Annabel.xxx

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    2. I should clarify on the "green house". It is a temporary, make-shift thing we put together with scaffolding and tarps. Pretty ugly but it's doing the job and hopefully will save the potted fruit trees and other smaller plants. We are shopping online for a real green house kit :-). Anyone had a good experience with those?

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  7. This is a very pretty post Annabel! Your card sets look so lovely all packaged up, and the box is lovely. That crumble looks beautiful, I think it can double as a breakfast food lol. So much cooking this week, I love how much of it you share.

    My son went back to school this week and is feeling so much better. The specialist we saw said his collarbone is healing well and to just keep doing what we’re doing. So that’s all very positive.

    I made some cucumber pickles using the 2 for $1 cucumbers and turns out everyone liked them so I need to make more lol.

    I also got tomatoes really cheap so am going to make soup for the freezer and chutney. I’m enjoying using the jars as for a while I felt like I was just collecting them but never actually using them! So that will keep me busy this weekend.

    Have a lovely weekend
    Jen (NZ)

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    1. Dear Jen,
      Well I had crumble and yoghurt for breakfast! haha! So we think alike!
      I am glad for you son. And you since it would be a worry. I think much of the time we worry and they bounce back! So this is good news.
      Last week you had the cucumbers this week the tomatoes! This is the way to do it! I hope you see more good deals and you have lots to fill your jars! With love, Annabel.xxx

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  8. The little cards are just gorgeous. Here in the Midwest U S we have five inches of snow on the ground and are in the teens and 20s F. This week I did rearranging in the pantry to tidy things up. Sometimes you get home from the store and just shelve things quickly without grouping all the varieties of canned fruit together etc. I also find sometimes substitutions are necessary. I wanted frozen broccoli, but had to choose cauliflower instead. No worries as I'm very adaptable now.
    Been spending time for evening fun going through some of my old magazines I saved looking for new recipes and craft projects to do with the supplies I have - challenging and fun .
    Your tomatoes are beautiful. The seed catalogs arrived this week so i am also seeing what seeds I still have from previous years that are viable and what I need to get.
    Hope you have a lovely Valentine's day. Blessings, Laura

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    1. Dear Laura, I do this... so much to unpack and the day is running out and I put things away fast.. After a while I have to get to it and straighten it all out.
      I know you will come up with some ideas for your supplies! Seed catalogues themselves are good for pictures, when you are finished with them! Have a lovely weekend! Love Annabel.xx

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  9. Hi Annabelle, Another encouraging post. You seem to have a special talent that everything you touch turns out beautiful! Do your Mom and daughters have that same special talent? I love the decorated box. What type of glue did you use and did you decoupage it? Your cards are so pretty. My kids don't seem to send out cards but I like too. I like the two Proverb verses that you included. I made a loaf of gluten free banana bread. I thought I would save calories and used Stevia. Then I thought I would save more calories and not put as much in. Well, it is not that tasty but with a little butter it tastes okay. I get the second covid shot next week. I was sick a week with the first one but the doctor thought that it was really helping my immunity and wants me to get the second one. I made up some gluten free chicken noodle soup today and will freeze some for next week and have some other meals frozen. I am really loving learning to crochet around the wash cloth. Thank you for the instructions. I got started before your instructions with a U Tube video. I have some tiny cards but no little envelopes. Did you make your little envelopes? I have used my tiny cards like gift tags. Have another good week. Nancy

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    1. Dear Nancy, Thank you! Both my Nans were very creative and passionate about flowers and making things. Mum has always been making things from sewing to knitting and crochet, preserving and baking. Lucy has a great eye for things and is a wonderful cook and loves flowers. Chloe can paint and sew and crochet etc. So I guess we are always at something!
      The chicken noodle soup sounds beautiful. Well done on the crochet edgings!! These are so useful and lovely to do.
      My little cards came with envelopes. I got them from a cheap shop. If you dont have envelopes then you can make them up as gift tags. Still lovely!
      Have a lovely weekend! With love, Annabel.xxx

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    2. My granddaughter made an envelope to fit a card she made for a friend. She found a pattern on Pinterest. Maybe check there?

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  10. I think Laffie may have a cowlick? Anyway, she looks stylish and cute!! Your bird cage is wonderful - and I see it's hosting some live plants plus a pretty bird.
    Oh, that crumble.....I do love rhubarb. I remember being introduced to it by my paternal grandmother in Missouri when I was very young.
    Ooo, new/old furniture, a chance to rearrange and repurpose! Doesn't get much better than that :)
    Chloe sure is a giver, like her Mama.
    Purdy velvet ribbon on those beautiful card pkgs - that's the vintage French velvet? I also love repurposing boxes. And we get so many from amazon nowadays. I've covered 2 or 3 lately and am using them for pretty storage. I love the idea you had of covering the girls' baby clothes storage boxes with magazines from the time they were babies. Haha - all that glue would reinforce the boxes :D
    Between you and the Tuesday Afternoon ladies and Cheryl over at her blog, I've gotten the dehydrate veggies bug. That's a fun bug to have, though. I've done mushrooms, chives and celery that had to be used somehow before they got wasted. It's such a nice feeling - knowing I can put them up that way and save them for future use.
    Next, I want to try dehydrating tomato skins....
    We are getting some more wonderful rain! and expecting some more over the weekend.
    Take good care. Lord bless you all❣️

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    1. Dear Mary,
      Yes these ribbons I think are pretty old. They are beautiful.
      Oh the boxes from Amazon could be really useful for all kinds of things!
      I am glad you have the dehydrating bug! It is a bit addictive! Thank you Mary! Have a lovely weekend! Love Annabel.xxx

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  11. Annabel, I started reading your blog about a year or so ago. I think I've only commented a few times at most. I want to tell you that because of you, I started some stock up before the pandemic and shortages hit, and thank you for that advice! It made such a difference. The gifts you make are always so lovely! I hope you and family keep safe and well. Celie

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    1. Dear Celie,
      Thank you for telling me this. It is my hope that some families do better because of being encouraged to stock up. I have had a few letters and emails to tell me this. This makes it all worth while! I am so glad for you. Keep up the good work. Take every opportunity! Have a lovely weekend. Love Annabel.xxx

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  12. Hello Annabel!

    Thank you for writing this blog, your cheerful attitude is so inspiring. Thank you for being positive. This is my first time writing but just wanted to say hello and thank you and to ask you whether you'd some day write a post on chooks for beginners! What to do and when. We are getting some this year for the first time!
    Thank you, Betty in Virginia.

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    1. Thank you Betty! And thank you so much for commenting!
      It is a good idea, I should do a post on chickens! Now I cant speak about how to manage chickens in sub zero temperatures that is out of my experience. But chooks are very simple and easy and lovely to keep. I think having a safe enclosure is the most important thing as it is predators that are the only real problem. I am not sure of the predators you have there but I would say if you can keep some chickens do so. They give up a great amount of joy plus food security! Many thanks. With love Annabel.xxx

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    2. Thank you! We have a lot of foxes, various birds of prey, and in some places, coyotes! Will make sure to have a good enclosure, thank you!

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  13. Lovely Annabel, what a glorious week you e had.
    I can just feel the peace and enjoyment you had making your stunning cards.
    They really are beautiful. You score the best books at the op shop. I look every time I go to one to no avail. I love the colour matching of the ribbons. You really are the queen of pretty packaging.
    Your cakes and rhubarb crumbles would gladden any heart and tummy!
    You have a special way of presenting everything beautifully.
    I LOVE your rose covered box. You will have it forever. I decoupaged a box at least 30 years ago with roses and other magazine flower pics and it holds my jewellery- I still love it after all those years.
    What a wonderful gift from your neighbour. I’ve never seen an old birdcage like that, it’s beautiful.
    This week I’ve had “The War of the Rodents”! We have a mice and rat plague in our area and some found a way up the gas pipe from under our home into our pantry. I shudder even writing this as mice particularly make my skin crawl.
    I loathe them. It took three days to get rid of them, they even ate through the silicone Jeff blocked the holes up with. Finally gone and all holes around pipes are blocked off permanently. I lost so many supplies as they ate holes in everything!
    Another good reason to store supplies in glass jars.
    I wrote a long reply last week to your post and it disappeared when I pressed the button. I nearly cried, so frustrating as you know it takes a while for me to write to you.
    So I’ll send this - hopefully- and write a bit more after.
    Fingers crossed 🤞
    Lots of love and hugs,
    Lorraine Wilby

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    1. Lorraine, I share your loathing of rodents. We have found the sound wave plug in devises will keep them out. I even had our electrician put an outlet in one corner cupboard where we figured out they were coming in and I have one plugged in there and near all the doors and one in my pantry. Since doing that we have not had any mice inside. (Now, bats were a different story, but we got that fixed as well. I cannot live with rodents!!) You can probably find those devises at a farm/feed store or on Amazon.

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    2. Thanks Lorraine. It sounds like you like the same kind of images as I do. I try and watch out for books for mens cards. I did some wildlife ones. But I would rather do roses anyway!
      Well as awful as it is now you found where the mice get in is a good thing. They are terrors for tiny gaps and pipes and following cords etc up and into a hole. We used to stuff these holes with Steel wool and a knitting needle to get it packed in tight to these tiny cracks or holes and that works. The silicone probably is the modern version.
      Yes... good storage is so important. Glass, tins etc are great. They cannot get into those.
      Thanks for persisting with commenting I am so glad to hear from you. I really hope the mouse problem is solved and this week has been easier. I had a mouse in my car if that makes you feel any better. They stink and I hate them!
      Mum always is sure to remind me wherever a snake can get in so can a snake. Oh great.
      Now it is almost the end of the week! You will see what I have been so busy with tomorrow! With much love, Annabel.xxx

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  14. Testing
    Xxxoooxxx
    Lorraine W.

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  15. Dear Annabel,
    What gorgeous photos. Another productive week for you And inspiration for us all. Laffie sure is cute. The birdcage is gorgeous and your baking looks so so good. I had a good week. I ended up stewing up the peaches and pears, some we ate straight away and some into the freezer. Next time I will try the combination jam you suggested. I also made blueberry muffins for the first time and they were a hit. I worked on my gardens a lot this week too. The weather where I live has been glorious this week, mostly days that were not too hot and not too cold. Today is the first day of a five day lockdown for our state. We are quite calm about it this time. I have been quietly, continually stocking up and we have plenty to do on our little patch of the world. We have declared today (Saturday) a Pottering / Tinkering day. We seem to get a lot done when we say this. Love Clare

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    1. Dear Clare,
      This week I have been stewing nectarines and apples! They are good! Also I am freezing some! Your muffins sound lovely. They are also something that freeze well if only they are not all eaten right away!
      I am glad you had good weather. it helps a lot with getting things done. By now your lockdown should be over so I hope that was lifted. The girls are not able to go to school this week for the same reason.
      I love pottering type days! I enjoy them so much. Sorry Clare the week is almost over but it has been so busy but in a good way! With love Annabel.xxx

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  16. Another very "Annabel" week, very productive as usual. Loved the cards so pretty. I guess our forbodings came to pass with yesterdays lockdown in Victoria. I have done a pantry stock a couple of weeks ago to rotate things a see what needed to be used up. On Monday I did an inventory of my freezers mainlyto see what I had, its easy to forget somtimes when you keep packing things in there ha ha. Now to make some menu plans. I have been making card and tag toppers from my scraps and bib s and bobs,this week after watching some you tube tutoials. Lots of fun and a way to 'use it up'. Cheers and hope you have a good week Kate

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    1. Dear Kate,
      I am doing a fair bot of rotating too. I need to. As I use up things from the freezer that need to be used and rotated I am re arranging and organising. I am a great one for needing a space and stuffing things in random places! eek.
      Bits and pieces can make the most beautiful cards and tags and each one is unique. Also very relaxing and fun! I am kind of doing a fabric version of thesis I have lots of bits of lace and trims and pretty fabrics. Its amazing what we can make with odds and ends! A fun challenge! With love Annabel.xxx

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  17. Annabel, I have to second that vote for your posts being so uplifting, encouraging and uplifting! Thank you so much for taking time to share all that you do to make your life not only productive and frugal but beautiful. It's the beauty that is the most encouraging thing of all, I think. At least for me it is. Beauty feeds my spirit and sparks my creativity which bleeds over into being more productive.

    We had a good week. It was grocery shopping week for us, which we mostly do once a month now. While in Aldi we saw toilet rolls that amused us but also startled. They were all about the size of a standard can of veg, only that big around! I was in my guest bath earlier and noted the roll of paper had been run down to less than half what the others in the bin were and realized that the 'new' toilet rolls at Aldi were half rolls!!

    I am looking long and hard at frugal things this month and trying to determine what is the biggest bang for our money spent? I repaired a fitted bottom sheet that the elastic had blown out on. I also ordered a new bottom sheet to replace one that was torn. I've found it pays to just have standard white sheets, much as I love pretty patterned ones. I can buy something that matches what I already have every single time.

    Today I worked more on my recipe notebook. I'm moving all the tried and true, use over and over again recipes to a dedicated notebook, rather than having to rifle through numerous cookbooks. All these recipes focus on our pantry staples. As I've found new ones in the books that might work well for us, I've put sticky tabs on them so I can go back and try them. If they do well, they too will go into my recipe binder.

    My joy this time of year has been the blooming houseplants that are thriving and feeding the birds. It's been so much fun to feed those birds and take a daily head count of types we can see from our window. It's inspired me to try and grown sunflowers next year to save seeds for the birds as they seem to be the most favored seeds.

    Thank you again Annabel!

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    1. Dear Terri,
      I like to have all my recipes in one place also. All the favourites and reliable ones I go back to again and again.
      Growing Sunflowers for the birds would be perfect. Double the joy really! I love birds and they bring me great joy also.
      Thank you for the most kind comment. Beauty is uplifting to me too. Someone brought me a box of Nectarines today. To me they are so perfect and beautiful! I am thrilled. Now tomorrow I will get using them!
      I had an urge to add more flowers to my garden and patio. The weather is against me as its pretty hot though! Thank you for your beautiful comment. With love, Annabel.xxx

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  18. Thank you Annabel for another uplifting post. When my children were young we painted then stencilled cardboard boxes. I still have one with craft things in it. They were treasure boxes for my children. I must look out for a good shaped box for my granddaughter. Where do you get your card stock from?
    I love rhubarb and I am inspired to cook some up when I am next at home. I put some apple and blackberry mixture in my freezer before I left home. I am isolating with my daughter so I can help her. I am sure there will be lots of things I can do to make life a bit easier for them.

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    1. I love the sound of the stencilled boxes too. They are true memory boxes! I think keepsake boxes could be a very nice gift.
      I get cards and envelopes from the cheap shops. It is usually $2 for 6. I watch out for colours I like. The little ones were quite cheap I thin they were 10 for $2. It works out pretty well.
      It is wonderful you are helping your daughter. I am sure you will be a huge help. that is lovely.xxx

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  19. Annabel,
    I just wanted to let you know that I have been snowed in for the last four days. At first I was having trouble getting motivated to do anything but then I thought about you and your followers and put my time to good use.
    I finished the most difficult knitting project I have ever done. That was a huge accomplishment for me. I then made a new set of pillowcases using fabric I already had. I actually went through my fabric stash and organized everything so now I can see what I have and I have more than I thought I did. Just seeing some of the fabric gave me some ideas for craft projects.
    I made sugar cookies for my neighbor children. I watched two really good movies-positive messages in both. I made beef barley soup and split pea soup both from scratch. Thanks to you and others, I had a well-stocked pantry and didn't have to go without. Thank you Annabel and all your followers for constantly being a positive influence!!

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    1. This is a lovely comment. I am so glad you. put the four days to good use. These times can be depressing. Or like you have we can use them! Well done on the knitting and such a challenge! And on the pillowcases. I love that you made cookies for the children. I am very glad you are stocked up well at this time too! Well done. xxx

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  20. Hi -Have been enjoying your blogs as we sit in a deep freeze! Been getting a few things done but we only heat with wood so that has taken up a lot of time. Getting food prepared for my 12 grandkids and their parents coming this weekend so I;ll be busy:) Wondering if Laine has a few more letters? Miss her writings also. Thanks Becky

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