Cabin Fever

 

Hello, Dear Friends! 

I hope that you are staying warm and dry, and finding safe haven

from the storms of life. 

xx

While trying to keep up spirits 

during these short, cold winter days,  

I made a list of favorite things ... 

xx

Morning coffee

Crocuses peeking through the frosty ground

Moonlight on an empty road

Sharing a dream

Fog rolling in

Hearing someone say, "You're Welcome"

Sending thank-you notes 

Fresh sheets

The sound of popping corn 

Shadows at sunset 

Singing to myself

The last page of a good book 

Hugs from loved ones

Little birds 

xx

I hope these make you smile and encourage you to 

make your own happy list! 

xx

I've finally finished putting the last of the Christmas things away!

I kept finding little things that I forgot :) 

It encouraged me to do a lot of cleaning and organizing, too. 

And a bit of redecorating. 

I started putting out a few things for Valentine's Day. 

I sewed this applique runner years ago. 

I kept a few things from Christmas, like my plaid thermos's.

  

My Scotty dogs stayed, too. 

My sweet sis-in-law sent me this pretty tole tray. 

xx

The 'family' sign, wooden heart and 'bushel and a peck'

are sweet gifts from dear loved ones. 

I kept the plaid pillows, matching drapes and plaid throw 

from Christmas. 

The rest of the pillows were sewn by me in previous times. 

I like to mix and match. 

I've learned to make pillow covers with zippers so that I can 

remove them and store them flat, as I've accumulated quite a few!

My dear Mom gave me her whole fabric stash in her later years. 

She made dolls and quilts. 

xx 

We have a new houseguest. 

This is Lovie. 

She is my daughter, Jennie's long-haired dachshund. 

I am pet-sitting her for a few weeks. 

Kai has enjoyed the company and has been a perfect gentleman. 

But they both hate the Dish TV, satellite technician who 

came to upgrade our system. 

I had to hang out with them in the back yard 

to keep them from being mean to him. 

They just wanted one little bite. Haha! 

I did get some yard work done, but

 when it grew dark, I had to drive around 

with them for a couple of hours until he left! 

I couldn't go inside the house with them because 

the technician was going from room to room. 

(We have multiple TV's to watch our favorite shows, 

like 'All Creatures Great and Small' on PBS

and 'Home Town' on HGTV)

They were well-behaved in the vehicle, 

until I drove by a man walking his dogs

under the streetlights in town. 

Yikes!

I had to keep to the back roads, and it was very dark and spooky.

A large raccoon ran right out in front of me at one point, 

and when I jammed on my brakes, poor Kai slid off the seat

and had a hard time trying to get back up. I had him tethered to the seat belt, 

so that he couldn't climb into my lap:) I usually have him in a harness, 

but due to the chaos, wasn't able to put it on him. 

 

Then I almost hit a deer - and that's when 

I pulled over and texted Ramblin' Man that he needed to tell the technician 

to go home. I had enough adventure for one day!

Turns out he was almost finished anyway, and I actually passed him 

at the bottom of our mountain road when I was coming home. 

Going the wrong way!

Poor guy. 

Luckily the roads are all dead ends, so he couldn't get too lost!

 

Ramblin' Man told me later that he overheard him calling 

his boss and explaining that he was in the 'middle of no-where, 

in some kind of cabin in the forest'.

x 

I set up a small area to do some sketching

while dealing with a bad case of cabin fever. 

One of my New Year's resolutions was to keep a nature journal. 

So, a work in progress, obviously. 

I've always loved to sketch. It's something I've done since I was 

a child. I haven't taken much time for it in the last few years, 

and my skills are a little rusty, but I am enjoying the process. 

It is the one thing I can do anywhere and doesn't require 

much, other than paper and a pencil. 

I finally cleaned my sewing room, too. 

It was a repository for wrapping paper, boxes, 

and other Christmas paraphernalia. 

Once it was all neat and tidy, 

I had the urge to sew again, and 

made a couple of laundry bags, 

complete with lavender sachets, to hang 

on the back of the bathroom door. 

xx

I made some Irish Brown Bread to go with 

some home-made soup, 

and the recipe always makes two loaves. 

Usually I freeze the second loaf, but 

this time I tried something new. 

I was browsing through this little cookbook that I helped 

create for our local PTA fundraiser when I was vice president, 

when my children were very young. 

It is filled with recipes from the women of our small

community, and I found a recipe for French toast 

that looked delicious. 

xx

It was bittersweet seeing these recipes from the women 

that I once knew and worked with during my 

time with PTA. 

Many have moved and some have even passed away. 

This little cookbook is a snapshot in time, 

back when we were young, life was always busy,

and full of family dreams. 

Now our children are parents, and some are even 

grandparents!

Three of my own grandson's go to the very same school! 

xx 

MAKE-AHEAD FRENCH TOAST

This is refrigerated overnight, then baked

in a 350-degree oven for 45-60 minutes.

 

Generously butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. 

1 long loaf French bread, 

or other unsliced rustic bread. 

6 large eggs

2 cups milk

4 tsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 Tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces

syrup or honey

Cut bread into thick slices and place in 

casserole dish in single layer.

Beat together eggs, milk, sugar, spices and vanilla.  

Pour evenly over bread, cover and refrigerate overnight.

The bread will absorb any excess.  

Heat oven to 350 degrees. 

Dot bread with butter. 

Bake uncovered, 45-50 minutes, until bread is lightly browned. 

Serve with syrup or honey. 

Delicious! 

xx

Despite the cold, Ramblin' Man has been working outside

nearly every day, weather permitting. 

He has been putting the finishing touches on 

the grandboy's play-cabin. 

The ground slopes here, so he built 

a nice stone wall and put down gravel. 

And he made a big chalk-board for playing 'school'. 

The red cupboard was my Mom's. It was in 

bad shape, so we repaired it and I gave it a new 

coat of paint. 

It holds plastic dishes for impromptu picnics. 

xx

An icy morning. 

Sunlight illuminates Angel's lanterns. 

Early morning fog. 

Crocus

Home-made preserves from daughter, Heather

and husband, Eric, from their own garden, complete with beautiful labels.  

Maple syrup hand-tapped from Sis-in-law Donna's 

trees in New Hampshire. 

Precious offerings. 

The sky before a storm. 

Blooms in my indoor garden. 

Varied Thrush on my fencepost, taken from my kitchen window. 

They have a one-note, reedy call that always prompts

a reply from another, all at a different pitch. 

It's wonderful to hear on a quiet morning. 

Aren't they pretty?

Tree mushrooms - you can see how large they are in comparison 

to Lovie, who is to the right in the first photo. 

I believe these are called 'Sulphur Shelf' mushrooms. 

They are growing on a dead cottonwood. 

Thick moss indicates its shady location. 

Our little grandsons came for a visit. 

They are twins. 

xx

A frosty spiderweb. 

xx

We are almost halfway through winter, but already 

the days are getting a little bit longer. 

We've had a mild January here in western Washington state,

after a very cold and snowy December. 

xx

So many in this world have no shelter in the storm, 

and those of us that do, realize it is only through grace that 

we can even experience such a thing as 'Cabin Fever'. 

So while I wait for spring, I count my blessings 

while making the best of every single day. 

xx

"There are two ways of spreading light: To be 

the candle or the mirror that reflects it." 

- Edith Wharton -

xx

"Grace is available for each of us every day - our spiritual 

daily bread - but we've got to remember to ask for it

with a grateful heart and not worry about whether there will

be enough for tomorrow." 

- Sarah Ban Breathnach - 

'Simple Abundance'

xx

Linking with Saturday's Critters

Won't you join the fun?