Author: Rhonda

Memories and Stitches

It’s a cold, rainy day here today, but no complaints. I love these kind of fall days. They just seem so cozy and homey to me. Although I do realize the fact I get to stay home and I don’t have to be out in it does make a difference. Although even when I was working full time, I still enjoyed these days. And I do have to go out and chore but it’s always good to get out of the house and get some fresh air and visit the chickens! Joe on the other hand is out in this weather willingly today. He took the day off to go pheasant hunting. He left the house at 5:00 this morning and we have no idea when he’ll be home. In the 30 years we’ve been married I don’t know that he’s ever gone pheasant hunting. I’m really hoping he gets at least one bird. I have never fixed pheasant but I remember Mom putting them in the crockpot and I remember I liked it. Plus, he has strict orders to bring me the tail feathers of any bird they get. I have wanted pheasant feathers for years to decorate with!

Pheasants always remind me of Thanksgivings as a child. We would always have Thanksgiving at my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Konnie’s farm. We are a small family so it was Grandma Ward, Uncle Jerry and Aunt Konnie (my dad’s twin sister), my cousins Terri Jo and Todd, Dad and Mom and me and my sister. Aunt Konnie was the best cook. Everything was homemade and just plain, simple, old fashioned cooking. Grandma always brought the homemade rolls and pickles. And the turkey was always a wild one Uncle Jerry had harvested. Then after we ate, the men would go pheasant hunting while the women would make a Christmas craft of some type. I can remember Christmas tree pins made from cinnamon sticks and fabric, or angles made from pasta. One year we made yo yo’s and turned them into Christmas trees on sweatshirts. Everything was homemade and simple. And so much fun. Then the men would come back and we would watch them dress the pheasants and we would go home with a meal for later. Such good memories of Thanksgiving as a child.

So back to today, Joe went to bed early last night and I stayed up and stitched. Then I was up early and started back up and finished this beautiful sampler. It was a fairly quick stitch and it turned out so beautiful. The designer is Falling Star Primitives. I had stitched a lot of her designs in the past and then she stopped designing for a few years. I was so excited to see she had started offering patterns again and this is the first one I stitched. I love her designs and I’m sure I’ll be stitching a lot more of her stuff. I was thinking I would dig around in my stash and see if I can find a frame and keep this one for myself but I’ve had someone ask about buying it so it will probably be shipped off to another home. And that’s fine too. I really, really don’t need to keep another stitched anything. And I can always stitch another one if I feel I just have to have it!

Trying New Things

Trying new ways of doing something doesn’t always work for me. Especially when trying shortcuts. I ran across a way to make beeswax candles by filling the jars with wax pellets and melting them in the oven. I fought the process the whole time and should have known they weren’t going to work. I had to add more pellets as they melted down, consequently they were in the oven double the time suggested. I couldn’t keep the wicks centered no matter how hard I tried. And even though they looked good last night, they had sunk in the center this morning. The only reason I tried this was to eliminate the mess of pouring them. And yet, hindsight, the whole process of melting, pouring, letting them set is what makes the process fun and fulfilling for me. Why would I want to eliminate the mess and bypass the fun? Though far from perfect, they still burn and make the house feel warm and cozy on this damp and chilly November day. And next time I’ll go back to the tried and true, old fashioned process. That usually works the best anyway!

Getting Things Done

Some weekends just fly by and this past weekend did just that. Joe was able to work from home on Friday (yeah!) which gave him some extra time in the afternoon since he didn’t have to drive and he called Dad and asked if he wanted help moving his building over the weekend. The weather looked like it would cooperate and since Joe is wanting to do some pheasant hunting next weekend he thought it would work out best to get the building moved now. That worked great with Dad and Mom’s schedule so we basically spent the whole weekend working outside and getting things done! I am so thankful Joe is able and oh so willing to help Dad and Mom around their acreage!

I spent Friday planning and ordering some garden seed while Joe worked. I know, it’s really early to be thinking about the garden, but I want to explore some different types of veggies and I have this fear that I won’t be able to get what I want if I don’t order now. I didn’t get a tremendous amount but I am excited about what I did order. Things like purple carrots and different varieties of kohlrabi. It never hurts to plan ahead!

We left the house Saturday at 7:00 and didn’t get home until 8:00 that evening. Then Sunday we left the house at 8:00 and got home around 5:00. We didn’t get much done around here but we did get things done for Dad so I would say it was a very productive weekend. Drew and I ventured down to the timber as Dad wanted me to see the lichen growing out of the cottonwood tree. This tree has always been my tree, my favorite tree, the one I always gravitate to when we’re in the timber. It is huge and ancient and full of growths and protrusions and nooks and crannies. The eagles love to sit in the very tip top branches and look out over the fields and timber. If only that gigantic and ancient tree could tell stories. I can’t imagine what all it has seen over the years.

I told Dad and Mom that the building should be moved down to the timber, at the bottom of the sandstone bluff where the fire ring is, nestled between the trees. We could clean it all up, put a couple of beds in there, a couch to sit on and set up a camp kitchen. It would be the perfect place to get away. But alas, they had other plans, which I knew they did. But a girl can dream right! So we moved it up to the lot and it will be used for storage and that is as it should be.

I finally got some stitching time in yesterday evening. Mom had gotten out her microwaveable heating pad to show us and Drew wanted one so bad. She got hers from the store but since we aren’t doing much shopping and I’ve decided to try and make what I can with what I have versus buying anyway, I stitched him up a rice bag. I found a pattern I liked on Pinterest and used it as a guide and he loves it! I let him pick out an essential oil he wanted and we mixed few drops in with the rice before we stitched up the bag and he hasn’t let it out of his site since. He slept with it last night and warmed it back up first thing this morning. I love it when something so simple and easy can be made at home and can make someone so happy. Now I think I’ll make one for me too, and use lavender oil. Oh, to have warm toes when I get in bed at night. And then Joe will want too, to put on his back when he’s hurting. I’ll definitely need to put rice on my grocery list. Another reason to get the sewing machine out of the box and teach myself to sew. How much quicker and prettier would it be to sew up rice bags on a machine versus stitching by hand!

Homemade

I’m slowly exploring the art of homemade products for the skin, health and home. There is so much information out there and so much to learn. I don’t plan to become an expert but it does fascinate me and I want to learn some of the basics. I have been using a handful of homemade cleaning products for quite some time. And I have a skin cleanser that I am really enjoying. I have made lotion bars, body butter and lip balms. I want to explore more of those too. I find so much joy in using products that are all natural and that I have made myself. To know there are no chemicals in them gives me peace of mind. My newest project is infused oils. I have calendula and lavender infusing right now. They look so pretty sitting on the windowsill with the sun shining through them! In a few days they will go into a nice dark cupboard for a few weeks. In the meantime I’ll be researching what all I can do with them. I know the first thing I’ll be making is a salve with healing properties and to use for fungus. Maybe some lavender lotion of some sort. The possibilities are endless. And then next spring I hope to plant some lavender and calendula so I can harvest and dry them myself. Now I need to break out the seed catalogs and start planning!

Football Saturday

I don’t do football but Joe does! Drew and I are home today being lazy while Joe is running the chains at the Uni Dome in Cedar Falls. Our high school football team made it to the State semi finals and are playing today. These four good looking guys run the chains for the the home football games and were asked to run the chains today at the game. They consider it an honor to be asked! My dad ran the chains for over 40 years for our high school and at some point during that time he recruited Joe to sub. When Dad finally had to give it up Joe took his place. I remember going to the Dome once when both Dad and Joe ran the chains together. These guys don’t give up their spots willingly – there’s a lot of combined years standing there. A good group of guys for sure who love supporting our boys!

While Joe is having fun, I’m at home with taco soup in the crockpot, his favorite chip dip chilling in the fridge, enjoying the afternoon warm and cozy in the house, checking in on the game as it’s being broadcast live on the Iowa High School Sports Network, and stitching up some cupboard tucks. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.

Our Fall Days Are Winding Down

We started out with beautiful fall weather this week and today it’s cold and wet. We enjoyed the last of the fall leaves on our Mule drive. We don’t have a lot of vibrant fall leaves around our property but I still find them beautiful. Joe was gone for the week again but hopefully will be home now for the foreseeable future. We’ve gotten so used to him being home that it just doesn’t seem right when he’s not here. Our last lunch and read picnic was Monday. We loaded up chicken noodle soup, jumped in the Mule and found our spot then ate lunch and read another chapter of Little House in the Big Woods. It was a great way to get Drew to sit and listen to the book. Now to brainstorm another way to get him to settle down and listen while we’re in the house!

We decided to try our hand at pouring beeswax candles and what a calming and fun project that is. Time consuming but fun. That beeswax takes forever to melt! I love burning candles but I don’t like all the chemicals that are found in the commercial ones. I had read how burning beeswax candles is actually good for the air in the home, had some beeswax here in the house from other projects, some yogurt jars I had been saving and we now have some beautiful little candles to burn. We tried putting essential oils in a couple of them but it takes so much to get any fragrance and the candles have a nice soft honey fragrance to them anyway, we’ve decided to skip that step in the future. We’ll run a diffuser when we want to scent the air. Since then I’ve found instructions on how to make the candles using the oven and/or a crockpot. A project to try on a cold winter another day.

Snowdays and Forts

Last Wednesday was a snow day, Drew was sick and we kept him home on Thursday, another snow day on Friday, and no school again today due to ice and cold. We went from warm, almost springlike days, to frigid cold, wind, snow and ice overnight. That darn wind even blew some siding off of the house. And so much ice. I love snow, but the ice is just plain hazardous.

I think it was Friday when Drew said he wanted to build a fort. I am all for fort building but he builds them in the living room, doesn’t want to take them down for days and I get sooo tired of them. So, I told him to build one in his bedroom. When you have a bunkbed and no actual bed on the bottom you have the perfect spot to build a fort! The only problem with that as far as Drew is concered is it will mess up his bedroom. When Eric moved out Drew asked to move into Eric’s old room. Which I was fine with but it has also brought on an interesting issue.

Drew has never been one to keep a clean room. He could destroy a clean room in seconds flat. No joke! So, when we started moving things into his “new” room, he surprised us when he decided to be very selective in what was moved and what was not. And he now keeps his room picked up at all times. He even goes in and cleans and vacuums it on his own. It is wonderful! But, the issue is, all of the things he didn’t bring into his “new” room are still piled up in the old room. He’s not ready to get rid of them yet but he doesn’t want them making a mess in his room either. So, after 30 years, I finally get a spare room and it’s full of Drew’s stuff. We did get a bed set up in there so we do have a place for Aaron or Eric to sleep if/when they stay. But the room is a disaster that needs to be tackled.

Back to the fort. Drew spent time building it and making it just the way he wanted it. It had room for him, his dad and me to sit in it comfortably. He built little cubbies for each of us to hold our things, phones, slippers, whatever we wanted to bring into the fort. We played games and took a nap in there and I thought yeah, he can play in this all weekend. It will give him something to do. And, I was wrong. It was fun while it lasted but it was messing up his bedroom and he just couldn’t take it. I went to fix supper, Joe headed out to do chores and down came the fort. Every single thing was picked up and put away so his room would be nice and tidy. I do wish this desire would manifest itself to the rest of the house as he really doesn’t care how messy he is everywhere else. I do love that he wants a nice clean cozy bedroom. And yet, I wish he could have left that fort up for a couple of days at least. It really was fun!

Pierre even joined us!

I finished my wee little Flower Witch by Lori Brechlin. I love how she turned out. A little more practice and I’ll be ready to start stitching for Bayah.


As much as I’m enjoying learning a new craft, it feels good to get back to making those tiny little X’s. Strawberries and bunnies and a beautiful new needle minder given to me by a dear friend. Doesn’t that dragonfly just scream out warm summer days! And yet here we are, the middle of winter and we’re supposed to be getting quite the snowstorm today. They canceled school as of last night already. According to my phone we’re supposed to get 3 to 5 inches of snow with ice accumulations of up to one tenth of an inch, wind and near whiteout conditions. We’ll see what really happens. Mother Nature always does her own thing! I guess I’ll head to town to run errands this morning and then plan on staying home the rest of the weekend. I love a good snowstorm!