Mosaic Monday #133: Happy Homemaker

 

As I look back over the month, the photos suggest that I have been nesting.  Cooking.  Crafts.  Being spoiled for Mother's Day.  Celebrating a new creative space.  But inexorably, the days are lengthening, and I am returning to my summer habits - gardening, kayaking with Dear Neighbor Friend, strolls in the back forty, river walks in Whitefish, hikes with Man with Hat, and so much more.  So, before May becomes as faint as last year's tan lines, let's take a look!

May in Montana moves from brown to green in a matter of weeks, but frost can threaten anything that is not native, or particularly vulnerable specimens.  I have learned the hard way not to plant pots or driveway baskets until June.  Desiring a little color on the front porch, I decided to make a spring wreath.  With the exception of the peacock feathers, which came from DNF, all of my materials came from the thrift store.

I resolved to cook once a week to give Head Chef a break, and generally I am on track.  (I have cheated twice and opted for dessert rather than a meal!!!)  The Somerset Stew recipe is another meal from Jan at Low Carb Diabetic; we added sausage to our dish.

Mom crosses my mind frequently.  I've lost count of the number of times I reached for my phone to call her.  One day, I was moved to make a childhood favorite, Snickerdoodles.  I talked to Mom throughout the baking process.  So yummy!

In college, I started collecting recipes in a school folder.  Some were typed out on the family typewriter.  Some are newspaper clippings, long since yellowed.  A cherished few are in my Mom's handwriting, such as directions for the Thanksgiving turkey.  It has been a (mild) source of annoyance for Head Chef, since it clutters his kitchen, and it is falling apart.  So, it is now in my "office" (more later) and it will be put in order one day.  In the meantime, reminiscing as I held the innards that have come away from the folder, I decided to make Broccoli and Cheese Crepes.  

Spring always carries memories of rhubarb.  My Dad's garden had several plants, and we ate rhubarb in many forms from sauce to crumble to raw, the moist end of the stalk dipped in sugar.  (But beware that you don't eat the section too close to the leaf - my older brother did that once and he got quite sick!)  I was a bit shocked to find that Head Shopper had to search high and low to find enough rhubarb for this crumble recipe!  It was worth it!

Ever since we moved into this house, the dining room table and the couch in the great room have been my "office" and crafting center.  I had plans to create a crafting space in the dormer of the upstairs bedroom - big enough for a large desk, and with a view of the lake and hills.  I had envisioned a tall desk - think bar height - and something unique.  However, once #1 Son moved in with us, I began to realize it was not a practical solution since the area would be unavailable anytime we had guests.  Spousal Unit and I agreed that we could reconfigure the loft to accommodate me.  After lots of fruitless shopping for desks/tables at vintage stores, Spousal Unit suggested I look at standing desks on the Web.  Eureka!  

The design by Uplift is attractive and also fits the rustic industrial theme of our house with the dark wood and black metal hardware.  Without too much fuss, Spousal Unit and #1 Son assembled the two separate desks (each one raises and lowers independently).  The "L" shape configuration is ideal for the space and provides significant working surface for me.  And there is still enough room for the couch (we donated the cocktail table that used to be in front of the couch; we plan to buy two small ottomans and two small side tables).

Given the open nature of this set-up, it is important to both of us that my work space is organized and in keeping with the design of the house.  I was thrilled to find this wood top storage unit with three meshed metal drawers - it is an added bonus that you can see the contents of the drawers without opening them!

I am also endeavoring to keep all of my supplies within the footprint of the desks, so using this vintage crate for binders and placing the Pendaflex on top of it maximizes the space. And isn't this trash bin adorable?

Here is the current look with one desk raised to standing height.  (I wanted to show you the view, but the picture does not do it justice!)

On Mother's Day, Spousal Unit spoiled me with breakfast in bed, and also surprised me with a box of chocolates.  

I always shed tears when reading my Mother's Day cards.  It's like being wrapped in a warm blanket of hugs!

So, here we are, with one day remaining in the month.  Life is too precious to take even one day for granted, so I will not write that I am anxious for June to arrive.  Instead, I will leave you with more of May's bounty - lilacs along the Whitefish River, and reflections in our lake after a passing rainstorm.  Enjoy!

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Mosaic Monday #7 - Burlap and Bows

Oh, how I love decorating for Christmas!  When we lift the flaps on the cardboard boxes marked "Christmas", it is like a birthday, anniversary, and Valentine's Day all rolled into one.  Yes, we've possessed most of these decorations for two decades, but we haven't seen them for 11 months.  I experience a pleasing mixture of surprise and old familiarity that brings joy to my heart and (sometimes) tears to my eyes.

This year, it is the first time we are celebrating Christmas in our log home.  It means an opportunity to decorate in different ways.  To clean out some embellishments that just don't 'fit' the rustic industrial theme we have created.  To utilize gifts that have lain in wait until this moment.  So, come with me as we 'deck the halls'.

Do you decorate outside your house?  Our tradition in Ohio regularly involved some lights looped over fresh pine roping that festooned our porch and its pillars, aided by two short, artificial pre-lit trees on either side of our front door.  Well, it was time to fashion a new look, for many reasons: 1) those 'old-fashioned' bulbs have a sad, short life; 2) the stubby trees were blown over so frequently that most of the lights didn't work (and did I mention they didn't look much like pine trees anymore?) and 3) we strongly prefer a design that does not require banging nails into our lovely logs.

I am proud to say (because you know I am a planner) that we began this process last January when we snagged 8 sets of outdoor LED lights for the front of the house and the garage.  Are these cool or what?  They clip to the fascia - NO NAILS NEEDED!  And did I mention they were on sale?  Installing them was fairly efficient with the two of us; moving the ladder and ensuring its safety was the most difficult and time-consuming element.  At night, it looks like we have built a small landing strip …

We also purchased burlap bows last year, which we used to brighten the entry of our temporary home.  For this season, I wired the bows to branches of lodgepole pine (harvested from our back forty) to create home-made swags on either side of our front door.  (We also put a large swag with bow at the driveway entrance.)  Spousal Unit came up with the brilliant notion to 'plant' trees in our ceramic pots to add depth to the porch.  We took this occasion to thin a few lodgepole pines that were blocking our view of the lake, and used the tops for the pots.  Gravel to secure them, and a bow tucked into the front of each pot completed the look for the three 'trees'.  

As a finishing touch, I created a plant arrangement utilizing a vase I already possessed; all of the greenery came from our back forty, and a short stump elevated its position in front of the snowman and the bear.

This plain wreath has sported our Advent candles in some years; more often than not it was a cuddle spot for our furbaby Josie in the midst of our decorating process (I know; I don't get it either!)  This year, I decided it was time for a facelift.  I removed the bells from this old door decoration, and wired them to the wreath.  Collecting five Ponderosa pine cones from our woods, I added them to the wreath with floral wire.

Last year, we had purchased two different spools of burlap ribbon, and I chose this one for the bow on the wreath.  (This particular ribbon features stiff but pliable wire on the outside edges, so it is easy to shape.)

At this point in the process, I felt the wreath needed more color, so I gathered branches of grape holly.













Voila!  And when you open the door, you get a little jingle!!!  Next week, we'll go inside.

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.
Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.
The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Monday (U.S. Mountain time).
Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.
Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.
As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.
Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.
Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us.

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