Where has time gone?

Where has time gone?

It has been nearly a year since we made a post on this blog,  too long.  Life has a way of taking up lots of our time.  It doesn't change the feelings in our hearts but it does sidetrack us from the important things sometimes

We've been busy with so many things as of late.  Spring planting and chores.

The Summer garden.

Projects all around.

 

And just general stuff.

 

I hope to be more faithful to this blog, even if just to pop in and say hello.

 

God is so much more important than things.  He is time.  He is our Provider.  he is our Healer.  He is our Protector.  I will choose to lean on Him.

 

Have a blessed day!

 



Fall Bread Baking Day

On this beautiful Saturday.  Not too warm, not too cool, just perfect for baking bread.  Three of my grands are spending the night with us and I will make honey butter and Boysenberry jam for their bread.  They will fight over who gets to sleep on the old rope bed with a feather mattress and the losers will have to sleep on a down mattress with a well worn woolen quilt to cover them.  Neither group will mind.

Went to a yard sale and scored on a very old antique pine picture frame that we hung over Sister, a vintage oil painting. The plaster is falling off the frame and gives it a perfect deconstructed look that I strive for sometimes. I bought a white artificial punkin for a quarter so my day started out good.

Came home, baked a Spice Cake with Pecan Coconut glaze and some of my wonderful Amish White Bread.

It was a simple day, but a blessed day.  I love simple days, the first leaf of Autumn, low sun shining in the windows of my home, warmth in the slight chill of the evening and God in my heart, on my mind, within my soul.

Here is the reciept if you haven't copied it before. So easy and really foolproof.


Amish White Bread

2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C [I just use warm tap water, no thermometer]
2/3 cup white sugar
...1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour [I use regular white flour, sometimes self-rising even]

In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in the warm water and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.

Mix salt and oil and add to yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. [I use the bread hook on my Kitchenaid.]

Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. [I place mine in the microwave to rest.]

punch dough down, turn out onto floured surface and knead for a few minutes. Divide in half, shape into two loaves and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans.

Allow to rise for 30 minutes or until dough has risen above the pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.   Have a blessed afternoon and when you pray, say a quick prayer for me and Frank please.   Pamela

Let's See By Your Candlelight...

I love candlelight because it hides fat and wrinkles! I use mostly candles (electric/battery/real flame) during the Autumn and Winter for its calming effect and try to make a few in the Fall for my Winter use.

The glow is such a comfort and the world seems more at peace with a candle flickering in the room.  so,..how about sharing some of your candlelight pictures? I, for one, would love to see the candles in your home. Want to share? I'll start.

Punk in front of a three panel mirror.

A CANdle we manufacture.  Smells like the burning wood

in an open hearth.

Table pudding candle and oil lamp.

Small candolier hanging in the Settle bench.

I love using vintage candle molds as candlesticks.

A sweet rush light.  Sometimes I will burn real rush on occasion.

I love this candle that sits on its own candle table

by the Master's chair.

A special candlestick made by Georgia's Cleter Meader.

Display in guest bedroom.

Battery candle in a black wax crow.  I love it!

A gift from a special friend.

Electric candle on the washstand in guest bedroom.

It serves as the nightstand, too.

I hope you enjoyed your en'light'ening tour. Please post yours.

Hello Sweet Autumn!

I have been baking wonderful dessert breads with Carrots, Pumpkin and Sweet Potatoes. Got my supply of brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup. Flour? Check! Picking up Pecans already! I love baking in the Fall.

The air in Georgia is still a bit heavy but the cooler evening temps are inviting and I am anxious to build our first bonfire and sit around it eating boiled peanuts.

I have been decorating the house, too, for a ladies group from my sister's church, for Autumn Entertaining and just because I love the colors and the fragrances of Autumn.

This is a display I did last year for All Hallow's Eve.

I don't like a lot of spooky stuff but my primitive reenacting clothes work well in this display I think. Kids drop by at Hallowe'en and get to scoop a big dipper of candy from the cauldron. It is so much fun. I love the creativity of their costumes. We usually dress in period clothing and welcome them by candlelight. Nothing scary, but candles scare the daylights out of kids,...especially on all Hallow's Eve!

I am grateful for Fall and plan a big Thanksgiving Gathering each year. We all hold hands and pray. What a wonderful way to unify, to connect with family. Of course, prayer plays a huge role in our lives anyway.

I would like to ask you to pray for me and hubby right now. We have some physcial and other issues that need prayer. If you have a need for prayer please list it in the comments section. I will gladly place it in my Prayer Box.

The prayers of a righteous man (or woman) availeth much!

Autumn Homesteading Has Begun...

Wellsir, the Autumn bug has bitten me! And I intend to do something about it! Among going back to work part time at the school and building a new Children's Ministry from scratch you would think we'd have no time to think cooler temps but we do.

Just thought I would post some of our Dining Room and Keeping Room pictures.  Enjoy,...and think Autumn!

Good Autumn Tidings to each of you and your families, too!

Downsizing Sale at Shadetree Primitives...

Check out our Downsizing Sale at www.picturetrail.com/shadetreeprimitives

We will be closing out some of our collections over the next few weeks and months.

How We Became 'Civil Folks'!

This post is in response to Karen's blog request over at 'My Colonial Home'. Great idea, Karen, thanks for posting.

Our blog began in September of 2008. Hubby was recovering from open heart surgery and it was just a way for us to enjoy a bit of communication outside our family. Our hobby for many years has been reenacting the period from 1820-1865 with special emphasis on the Civil War years. We are active ministers of the gospel and so 'Civil' seemed an appropriate adjective for us,...and it denotes the time period we portray. We have collected prims since before marriage and find ourselves 'kin' to all the folks who enjoy the same things so,...'Folks' seemed to tell who we are. I guess you get it now...Civil Folks.

I suffered a double brain aneurysm in 1997 that has left me with severe short-term memory loss. Hubby and I work as a team at everything we get accomplished, he is 'me' and I am 'him'. We discuss each blog post and co-write them, the same thing with the forums and website. We cook together, do yard work, hobby, travel, do art work, write for a primitive magazine (APP), everything,...always together. We really need and depend on each other but we depend on our Father in every way.

We don't know what tomorrow holds but we know who holds tomorrow. Saying this we decided to adopt a scripture that would turn into a daily recitation for us. It will help you too if you are struggling with where you are today and what the future holds.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

This blog has given us an additional hope through good friends. May we ever be mindful that a blog post can heal or kill the spirit and we pray you are healed today!

Autumn is on its way...

Today was the first day of Summer where you could actually breathe around here. Oh, it was warm and a bit humid early on but later a cool summer breeze flew through the yard and it was wonderful. I've been doing a bit of Autumn decorating and thought I'd post a few pics. These are from my Keeping Room.

Downsizing....

...is a pain but I don't have to tell those of you who have done it before. We have decided that we need less space and fewer 'pretties' so we are selling some of our collection at www.picturetril.com/shadetreeprimitives .

Just for starters! Giving our blog and forum friends first shot before we go to eBay and then our sale at home in October. If you see something interesting, give me a shout. Items are listed in Newly Added Items Album. Fall is in the air, a bit, lots of good rain from Sir Isaac but anxious for Autumn breezes this way. Thanks for looking. Blessings~