~ Savory & Sweet ~

 Welcome!
This week has been a week of getting things done around the cottage. 
Cleaning, and organizing, and preparing for colder days.
In Utah, when Autumn arrives, it arrives with a snap! 
One day it will be hot, Capri wearing weather, and the next day it will be so cold you click on the furnace!
We've been working on getting the yard ready for winter
I've also been working on stocking up the freezer for winter.

 After our weekend trip to the farm stand and stocking up on produce, we had a great selection of vegetables, and it made perfect sense to make a big batch of savory, vegetable beef soup.
Fresh corn, fresh green beans, tomatoes, squash, etc...

  The sweet plum jam that was made earlier in the week, poured into these containers and ready for the freezer.


We are empty nesters~
Sometimes we make a meal that is large enough to eat a portion and freeze a portion for another day.
I bought these 'Deli Containers' from Amazon. 
These containers are freezer safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe (top shelf), reusable and PBA free. These containers hold 16 oz. and have proven to be such a handy thing to have on hand.
I mix
 up my own seasoning mixes and rub mixes for smoking meat, etc..
Oh, that I had thought to buy containers like this years ago!


~ Attitude of Gratitude:
~ Last night, we made it up to the lake to fish. The wind has been blowing like crazy here, making a fishing trip impossible. Just as my husband finished fishing, and the sun was setting, the wind kicked back up. I am so thankful that we had a calm, beautiful night to enjoy the lake. 
~Grateful that we were able to water our lawns. We are on water restrictions, and we are only able to water 2 x a week. I am so grateful that we still have two days a week in which to water, as some of the small towns nearby have been restricted to one day of watering, and worse yet, other small towns are not allowed to water, at all!
~

* Perfect*

 This day started out in a perfect way.
Six O' Clock in the morning, and the skies are ablaze with color
Sun rising over the mountains.

 Perfect Sunrise.

 Perfect gift received from Nancy @  http://nancy-jo.blogspot.com/
She had a giveaway recently, I am the lucky recipient of that giveaway. 
Everything is lovely, but that magazine.. Daphne's diary... it's perfect

Spencer came over, and we got busy making freezer burritos to fill up his freezer.
We made breakfast burritos, filled with eggs, sausage, hash browns, peppers and cheese.
Chicken burritos, filled with chicken, beans and cheese, wrapped in spinach tortillas.  Last but not least, we made dessert burritos: filled with cream cheese sweetened with powdered sugar, and apple pie, or strawberry pie filling.  The dessert burritos turned out very much like apple Danish, or  strawberry and cream Danish.
All in all, we made 60 burritos for his freezer.
He's happy, and Mom is very happy to know , he won't starve to death... *smile**.

            Yesterday, we stopped by "Home Again".  A fun store filled with all kinds of goodies for the home!{ Click link if you'd like to visit their site.  http://www.homeagainconsignments.com/}

There is a lot to see in the store, and something for everyone.

I loved these chairs... they were sold of course. 
Spencer bought a set of gorgeous green glass candle holders. I didn't buy anything.... this time.

On the way home:
See those mountains.... we have to go through the mountain pass, and still travel quite a few miles to get home.
 It amazes me how much traffic there is , especially in the middle of the day. 
I always wonder... 'where are all these people going'??? 
Growing up in Utah Valley, we never saw traffic like this, except on game days ...*smile* B.Y.U. vs. U of U.

When we pass the wind turbines, traffic thins out, and we are getting closer and closer to home.
Perfect.
I love living in the country!!


Attitude of gratitude:
~I'm so grateful for being blessed with safe travels.
~I'm grateful that Spencer's A/C in his car was fixed, and under warranty! What a savings!!
~I'm grateful we had a little time to visit the "Home Again" shop, go to the farm stand and buy fresh veggies, and go to the Salt City Candle Co. store and stock up on yummy scented candles.
~I'm grateful for the blessing of being able to live in the country.  It's nice to have cities close enough by to shop, or take care of dr. appt. , car repairs etc.. but.. it's always nice to come home
It's the perfect life for us.

Cooking with fire.. getting stuff done.

 Yep..
I'm cooking with fire.
Literally, and figuratively speaking.
Using our vintage Wedgewood range, I'm cooking up filling for homemade hot pockets.
I'm making Chili-Cheese hot pockets.
Another item to fill the freezer.
 Working on that Fall list.
I found a great inspirational post about homemade hot pockets here:
http://www.faithfilledfoodformoms.com/easy-homemade-hot-pockets/

 Also.. I'm making up a couple dozen Homemade Breakfast Burritos for the freezer.
Our family loves them.
Super quick to grab and go, especially for Spencer as he heads out the door to classes.
His college is about 10 miles away.

 And.. thanks tons for all the suggested names for our crooked beaked hen.
It was unanimous.. we named her Grace.
One of the reasons is in the movie "The Long Long Trailer" , Lucy and Desi go to visit her family, and Lucy comments on her poor old maid of a cousin.  'Poor Grace'. Makes us laugh, every time.
So, Grace, or Poor Grace it is.

Have you seen "The Long, Long Trailer"?
Hilarious.
I can so see me having ideas like Lucy.

I'm certain that I've given my sweet husband a look like this.

So..

I'm busy; cooking, freezing, cleaning and organizing.
I've already re-arranged the living room and the dining room.
Done some painting .... doors and trim , of course.
Planned some crafts.
Etc.. etc..

Plus.. I'm thinking a lot about one of my favorite Halloween movies.

"Ichabod". ..  the Disney version.

A classic favorite.

I don't like creepy movies, but I love "who done it" movies, like "Rear Window", and the movie "Clue" is always fun to watch.

"Hocus Pocus" is another family favorite.

My all time favorite Fall movie is "Summer Magic".... after all, the movie ends with a great Fall party in the old barn.

 

Hope you're all having a great week, and hope you have a great weekend.

 

Do you have a favorite Fall or Halloween movie?

 

 

Attitude of gratitude:

~I'm so grateful for the downpour of rain that we received last night.

Everything smells so clean and fresh this morning, and the lawns greened up quite a bit.

~I'm grateful for a cozy home.

~I'm grateful for the beautiful candle sticks that my Dad made for me.

They are on our dining room table, to enjoy each day.

Wish he were still here. How I miss him.



That time again....



Time for Fall cleaning, and making preparations for Winter.

My Fall Cleaning List includes :
~Cleaning out cupboards and sorting .
~Organizing the storage room
~Organizing the granary
~Cleaning out and organizing the garage
*** etc.. etc..

Also..
~Making freezer meals, and crock pot meals to fill the freezer.
~Making and freezing breakfast burritos
~Organizing my canning shelves.
***etc.. etc..

Need to :
~cut, split and stack some more firewood.
~have chimney re-lined
~winterize garden beds
~ finish painting a few things outside

Etc.. etc.. etc..

I'm diving into Fall cleaning and organizing today.
I'm hoping to get everything polished, and sparkling clean, and organized, in order for our home to be cozy and comfortable during the cold winter months.

*Does everyone do Fall cleaning too, or just Spring cleaning?

Attitude of gratitude:
~I'm so grateful for the desire that I have for making our house a home for my family.
It's important to me to have our home feel welcoming and peaceful.
Call me old fashioned.... but, it's a nice feeling for me to have everything clean and organized.
When the snow starts to fall, I like to light candles, and click on lamps and have our home feel cozy and warm and welcoming. 
For me.. it will have that feeling, once I get everything scrubbed, put in it's proper place and organized.