Strawberry Freezer Jam

Dear blogging friends,

I am headed to Oklahoma tomorrow to help my 82 year mother get settled into her assisted living home and help her liquidate her extra belongings.  I hope to be able to use a computer where I will be staying, but I doubt I will have time to post anything new. I hope to post a few of the older posts that you may have not seen, starting with this one from last year on making strawberry freezer jam.

Summer blessings,

Gayle

California organic strawberries were in this week at the produce farm. A friend and I split a flat and I made strawberry freezer jam today. Several years ago I decided to avoid high fructose corn syrup and had trouble finding jam without this as the sugar. I started making my own and was surprised at how simple and easy it is to make. Following the instructions on the pectin package, just take the stem off the berries, mash them, put the sugar on them and let them set. Boil your water with pectin in it and then pour over the berries. Instead of canning them, you freeze them. The jam has a fresh taste and my family hunts the freezer jam down and prefers it over the canned. Tomorrow’s Sunday breakfast will be crepes, sausage links and a new fresh batch of strawberry jam!

Liberty

It is easy to take liberty for granted, when you have never had it taken from you. – Dick Cheney

This Independence Day, may each of us take a moment in our busy day to  pause and remember what a gift liberty is.  As we gather with friends and family enjoying good food and a day of recreation, may we remember our men and women serving overseas.  May we pause for a moment and thank God for the gift of being born in a land where even the poor have plenty.  May we ask for a blessing for our country, for forgiveness for the wrongs we have done, for divine guidance for another year.

Happy Independence Day!

Special K Cookies

I called a friend of mine yesterday to chat, she said she was making Special K Cookies for her teenage grandson who was coming by.  I had forgotten about how great these cookies are, and decided I should mix up a batch for my family .  You don’t have to bake them, so you don’t heat the stove or house up making them.  You can mix them up and put them out to cool in a just few minutes.  I think they are the perfect summer time cookie, especially good with a class of ice tea! Last night the family come home and everyone looked at the plate of cookies and said, “Oh yea!  I love these!”  I thought your family might love them too.

Special K Cookies

1 cup white sugar

1 cup white karo sugar

2 cups peanut butter

6 cups cornflake cereal, (Special K, Cornflakes, etc)

Bring the two sugars to a boil.  Do not cook after it comes to a boil.

Add the 2 cups of peanut butter

Gradually pour over the 6 cups of cereal.  Do not crush the cereal, but stir.  Drop by teaspoon on wax paper or a cookie sheet and let set.

The Music of Her Heart

Our small congregation gathers this weekend to say goodbye and remember our friend Janice.  When I first imagined the prayer shawl ministry, Janice volunteered by crocheting the shawls for those who had loss or difficulty in their life. She was always in the background of this ministry.  I was the one out front; talking, writing, and giving shawls.  But behind me, working in her tiny home, was the creator of the shawls. Stitch by stitch, one row at a time,  making each one an original creation.  We have given shawls for the most difficult of situations.  People who have lost children, who have fled abusive relationships, who have lost a husband.  And we have given them for joyous events; a retirement, graduation, to welcome a new baby.  Janice never put any limitations on who we could give the shawls to, she just quietly worked on them and then released each one.  It was her ministry, it was her act of worship,  it was her love and prayers made visible.  Janice loved music, she sang in our choir and led worship these last few months in our congregation.  But the silent music of her heart was the shawls.  We will miss you Janice, but your song lingers in each shawl, in each of the prayers that knit them together, and in our memories.

In Loving Memory of Janice Harrison

Portland by Train

Like all great travelers, I have seen more than I remember,

and remember more than I have seen.”

-Benjamin Disraeli

Last week I had an adventure by going to a conference and taking the train to Portland.  Since I went alone, I decided to take the train and explore the area through mass transit.  It was simply delightful getting away from responsibilities and taking a train ride with a great book.   I boarded the train early in the morning and snuggled under my blanket on an overcast day.  As the train pulled away, I watched the scenery pass by.  I saw the Puget Sound as we left, and then later fields and farms.

Train travel would not be complete without a book, so I opened the first page and started reading Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.  Oh…such a lovely book.  And where have I been?? I didn’t know it had been made into a movie!  I immersed myself into another time and culture, pausing to watch the countryside change.

Portland is such an interesting city, it is very “green” with a great mass transit system.  But the best thing about Portland are the gardens.  They have several but the two that are a must see, are the Rose Garden and the Japanese Garden.  Since I had been reading my book on Japan, I had to see the garden.  The attention to the smallest detail was what amazed me.  The garden involved the senses as well.  You could hear a fountain but not quite see it, the plants were symmetrical and the symbolism was everywhere.  Here is a peek at the garden.

They had a tea house similar to the tea houses in Japan,

and lovely Irises in a small pond.

Then I headed to the Rose Garden, the air was filled with the smell of thousands of roses and their beautiful blossoms.

It had just rained, and water clung to each rose.

I arrived home late at night after touring the gardens and attending my conference.  I had to agree with Lin Yutang: “No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.”

Thank you for stopping by friends from Kelli’s House on your Show and Tell Friday tour!  I just had to tell you about what I did last weekend!

Spirit and Life Banner

“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant-

not of the letter but of the Spirit;

for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

-2 Corinthians 3:6

I got home late last night from a conference in Portland called The Spirit Gives Life. This beautiful banner was created by fabric artist Laurie Bredehoft to celebrate the conference and I know many of you will enjoy seeing it.  It is such a beautiful work of art it amazes me.  If you look closely at the heart, you can see the cross in the design. The banner is symbolic in representing the Spirit present in our lives and working in our hearts.  The cross within the heart is a subtle reminder of Christ’s great sacrifice.  Acts 2:2 talks about the Spirit coming in as a “mighty rushing wind”.  I can feel the life, the wind, the love, in this beautiful fabric art banner.

Can’t you imagine this art hanging at the front of a church?  What an incredible work of art, and what an inspired artist!

Saying Goodbye to Spring

Every spring is the only spring – a perpetual astonishment. -Ellis Peters

We are now in the last few days of spring, with summer officially beginning  with the summer solstice on  June 21.  The summers here are mostly mild, so we look forward to them. They are celebrated, welcomed, and enjoyed, with most people outside basking in the sunshine.  Most homes don’t have air conditioning, so the windows and doors are always open to the summer breeze. Before we welcome summer and the long warm days, I want to take a moment to remember spring.  This year, spring came in struggling with winter, with winter shaking it’s fist blowing  snow over the tender buds.  Eventually spring triumphed gently and warmly, filling the earth with a parade of ever changing foliage.  Here is a look back at a small portion of her beauties…we have a whole year to wait for her charms to bless the earth once again.

The White Picket Fence

The flowers and roses are blooming here at Cottage House.  They are so charming  peeking out  from behind the white picket fence.  Several years ago, an acquaintance had a lot of old wooden crates he got from a store that used them for storage .  I was longing for a picket fence and he thought these crates would make an excellent one.   He came over one day and told me he wanted to give me the crates to make a fence with.  I was sure he didn’t understand what I wanted. I didn’t want a rough country fence, I wanted something nice. There were nail holes in the wood, they were rough not smooth, but he kept insisting that the crates would make a great fence if you just put some work into the wood.  Finally he ask me what kind of fence I wanted, and I explained how I wanted one with a bit of a drape to it, with posts.  He went home, pulled all the nails out of the wood,  sanded it and then painted it, building a panel just as I had envisioned. When he brought it over, he ask if that was what I was thinking of.  Naturally I was surprised and thrilled!  He went on to build the entire fence.  We had to buy the posts with the decorative balls, but he built the rest.  He was a sensitive soul that suffered from a mental illness.  When I tried to pay him, he shyly said building the fence helped him cope a little better with life.  I have always loved our white picket fence.  I had to repaint it last year, but it still amazes me what he built out of cast off wood.  His wife divorced him,  he moved away, and I have long since lost touch with him.  I always wish he could see the fence in June with all the flowers peeking out from the white pickets.  I think of him this time of year, wishing him health and healing  wherever he may be.

Welcome friends from the Inspired Room. I hope this inspires you to be open to using things you have to create something of beauty.

Here Comes the Sun

“Little darling, it’s been a long and lonely winter,

Little darling, it feels like years since it’s been here.

Here comes the sun, do do do

Here come this sun and I say, it’s all right”-George Harrison

The warm sun finally returned to the pacific northwest  last week breaking all the old heat records.  Being originally from the south, I had to chuckle when they issued a heat advisory when it was expected to be in the low 90’s.  But the spirits of man and animal are happy as the sun returns. The rain, cold and snow of winter days is now a memory.  We are digging  into the back of our closet for flip flops, sleeveless shirts, and fans that we know have to be here somewhere!  I suppose it’s natural that we treasure what we don’t have all the time.   With the sunny days so few,  they are enjoyed and celebrated.  So bear with with me in celebrating the return of the sun…it just seems like years since it’s been here.

It’s a Porch Party!

Last year I  had more fun over at Rose Colored Glasses visiting porches and seeing how everyone decorates their porch and welcomes friends and family to their home.  I am  sooo excited to join in on the fun this year!

Welcome to our cottage home!   I love our large old fashioned porch on our craftsman style home.  It  brings a warm welcome to friends and family as you enter our house.  I enjoy decorating  it for the seasons and changing it throughout the year.   It’s a great place to read a novel on a summer afternoon,  cuddle up with a blanket and a cup of tea on a chilly fall day, and is always a warm winter welcome at Christmas time.  Thanks for stopping by, here are a few pictures of my porch through the seasons.

Spring Porch

Autumn Porch

Christmas Porch

But the best thing about our porch…are the people inside!