Wednesday Hodgepodge for May 6

Yes, it's Wednesday again, and Joyce, at  From This Side of the Pond,  is again hosting the Hodgepodge for our blogging and reading pleasure.  Want to join in?  Just head on over to  From This Side of the Pond and get the questions, then answer them on your own blog.  You'll find it a wonderful diversion in these crazy times we are all living in.  Here are Joyce's questions for this week:

1.  Question day this week lands on Cinco de Mayo. Are/were tacos on your Tuesday night menu? Hard shell, soft shell or just gimme all the tacos? Are you even a fan of Mexican food? Do you like your salsa mild, spicy, or somewhere in between? Margaritas-Frozen, on the rocks, or no thank you? Have you ever been to Mexico?

Photo of Interactive Taco Dinner from Skip to My Lou.  A fun idea!

Lots of questions in this one.  I'll take them one at a time.  Tacos were not on our Tuesday night menu.  We don't tend to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, and I seldom think about Taco Tuesday.  (Though it might simplify weekly meal planning if I did!)  We like both hard and soft shell tacos, and yes, we're definitely fans of Mexican food.  We like our salsa mild, or medium at the most.  No thank you to margaritas.  And we've never been to Mexico.

2. What's something you may do this month?

I may get around to setting goals for the month.  Maybe.

3. Tell us what's happening in your state or town as far as restaurants/salons/parks/beaches/businesses opening up. How do you feel about it? Are you out and about or hunkered down? Do you wear a mask?

Again, lots of questions.  And I have lots of questions about it all.  As far as what's happening with the places Joyce mentioned, the restaurants, salons, and nonessential businesses will be slowly opening up this month, with lots of restrictions.  Ocean beaches remain closed but inland beaches at state parks will open -- again, with restrictions; though the restrictions are not as onerous as it first appeared they might be.  Most state parks are technically open in that one can go in and walk or hike, but they wouldn't open for the season until the end of May anyhow.  Some of the busier hiking trails are closed.  As to how I feel about it -- well, I know a lot of people don't agree with me, but I do feel it's time to begin opening things up again.   People are being seriously affected by this shutdown and yes, some are dying because of it, along with those actually dying of the virus.  Drug overdoses, child abuse, suicide, domestic violence, alcoholism -- not to mention those elderly folks dying of heartache or simply giving up because no one can visit.  We need to pay attention to the bigger picture.  Reopening is happening in a very slow, measured way here, easing into it, and I think that's as it should be.   I pray daily for God to give our leaders wisdom, and am thankful for our governor's approach.  I'm out walking every day, but I haven't been to the grocery store in 6 weeks or more.  For myself, I think it's important to be out in the fresh air daily if possible, without a mask.  We live in the country and our walks are on rural roads.  We do occasionally see other walkers, runners, or bike riders but none of them are masked either.

4. Mother nature, everybody and their mother, mom jeans, like mother like daughter, soccer mom, mother hen, mother lode, necessity is the mother of invention, stay-at-home mom...pick one and tell us how it applies to your life right now.

Pick one, eh?  It's a tough choice, as several of those could apply to me.  I'll pick "mother lode" because I recently found another stash of 1940s Christmas cards and 1930s Valentines.  Now if I could only find time to list them in my Etsy shop.

Many of the Christmas cards are designs by the highly collectible artist Marjorie Cooper!

Isn't this the cutest?  That's a real piece of cloth she is holding.

5. April showers bring May flowers...what's blooming in your yard or garden today?

A few mini daffodils, a small forsythia bush, a couple of stunted-looking primroses (one purple and one yellow), and some bloodroot in the wildflower garden.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

Let's see.  Most of my thoughts fall in the "random" category these days.  How about this other recent find from the old homestead?  Anyone ever seen a Popsicle Space Card before?  I found three of these, all different, just tucked into books here and there.  I wonder if my friend Sandy in Florida  remembers these.  I surely didn't.

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

Scenes of late summer

Just sharing a few photos I took on Friday.  I admit to having no photography expertise of any kind; these are just some pretty scenes I saw around the neighborhood on Friday morning.

The first few, including the one at top, were taken on the grassy bank of a brook, just as a heavy fog was beginning to lift.  I took these around 7:30 on Friday morning and got my feet very wet from dew in the process.

 In the photos above and below, you can barely see what I was hoping to capture -- pink joe-pye weed, white and purple asters, and yellow goldenrod.  The pink flowers are near the center of each photo, just down from the top.  The fog really prevented them from being seen well.

When I got back home,  the sun was shining brighter in a few areas around the yard and it beckoned me to snap just a few more photos.

 A pretty leaf on the patio walkway.

 Lush ferns by an old mossy stone wall.

Wooden steps over a stone wall, surrounded by green, green foliage.

All too soon, fall will be here.  In my limited way, I wanted to capture just a bit of the late-summer beauty while it is still with us.

This week's Friday five

Here's a quick post with my Friday five:

1.   A variety of wildflowers coming into bloom.  I've seen trilliums (just the red kind; not the painted trillium like the one above -- though those will be coming soon), coltsfoot, dandelions, purple violets, dogtooth violets, and bloodroot so far.

2.  Getting out to walk five days this week.  Last week was rainy and busy and it just didn't happen.  This week has been much nicer for walking.

3.  Time to blog!  It's been a blessing to have found time to blog every day this week and to work on some older posts I've had in Drafts for awhile.

4.  Supper out with my hubby on Tuesday night.  We had gone to Lowe's to pick up a screen door for a friend, and on the way back Mr. T suggested stopping at The 104 Diner.  I got a tuna melt and he ordered a turkey and stuffing sandwich with cranberry mayo and we shared the sandwiches, which come with homemade potato chips.  (Photo is from their website.)

5.  Mackays Lemon Curd.  I love being able to find imported gourmet and specialty products at a favorite discount store.  I found this wonderful lemon curd from Scotland: Mackay’s Lemon Curd at Ocean State Job Lot for $3.99!  It is truly scrumptious.  On a waffle with blueberry sauce on top ... simply amazing!

And there you have this week's very simple Friday Five!

Mid-May Hodgepodge

Here we are -- it's Wednesday again.  They sure do come around swiftly.  And since it's Wednesday, that means it's time for the Hodgepodge with Joyce and the gang at From This Side of the Pond.  Joyce asks the questions: bloggers copy and paste, then answer the questions on their own blogs.  It's an easy process, so why not jump in and join the Hodgepodge this week?   Here we go!

1. May 17th is National Pack Rat Day. Sidebar-should we be celebrating this? Hmmm...
Are you a pack rat? Even if you're not a full fledged pack rat, most people have one thing or another they struggle to part with. Tell us what's yours.

 To name a few ....

Cookbook I learned to cook with

Circus carafe from my grandmother's kitchen

Sugar and creamer just like my grandmother had at the family camp

Vintage cookbooklets I've acquired

The tooth fairy brought me this back in the day!

No, I'm not at all sure that we should be celebrating this.   I would have to admit that I am somewhat of a pack rat.  Vintage items and memorabilia are probably the hardest things to part with.  That said, I am actively working at decluttering and purging.

2. What are two things you know you should know how to do, but you don't?

 Changing a tire and reading music.

3. Do you crave sugar? 

Not sure that I really crave it, but I do enjoy sweets.

Strawberry Lovers' Pie

 Do you add sugar to your coffee and/or tea? 

No; I drink tea black, and coffee with cream only.

Do you use artificial sweeteners or sugar substitutes? 

No, I don't.

When dining out is dessert a given? 

No, it isn't.  We seldom have room for dessert when dining out.

Are you someone who has slain the sugar dragon, and if so tell us how you did it.

 I eat a lot less sugar than I did, but I wouldn't say the dragon has a stake through its heart yet.

Coconut Pudding Dessert

4. What's a trend it took a while for you to come round to, but now you can't imagine living without?

Hmmm.... now this is a long time ago, but probably a microwave.  I use mine quite a bit for cooking and for various steps in a recipe, not just reheating.

5. What's a song that reminds you of a specific incident in your life? Please elaborate.


The Gospel song "The Lighthouse" by Ronnie Hinson.  Here are the lyrics:

 There's a Lighthouse on the hillside
that overlooks life's sea.
When I'm tossed it sends out a light
that I might see.
And the light that shines in the darkness,
now will safely lead us o'er.
If it wasn't for the lighthouse
that ship would be no more.

Everybody that lives around me says,
tear that lighthouse down,
The big ships don't sail this way anymore,
there's no use of it standing 'round.
Then my mind goes back to that stormy night,
when just in time I saw the light,
Yes, the light from that old lighthouse,
that stands up there on the hill.

And I thank God for the Lighthouse,
I owe my life to Him,
For Jesus is the Lighthouse,
and from the rocks of sin
He has shone a light around me
that I can clearly see,
If it wasn't for the Lighthouse
where would this ship be?

I love this song and it reminds me of the decision I made to trust Jesus as my personal Savior at a very stormy, dark time in my life -- the most important decision I have ever made or ever will make.   This song says it all.

Light at Pemaquid Point

And just for fun ... three grandkids inside the Pemaquid Point lighthouse.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

The most exciting thing on my mind right now is that just  yesterday we finalized our plans for our trip to Nevada to visit loved ones.  This is a gigantic relief to me.  It was beginning to feel just like a logic puzzle ... you know, if Bill, Bob and Betty are all at the library, and Betty is doing research, Bob works 30 hours a week, and Bill replaces books on the shelves, what time is the story hour?  (Maybe a bit of an extreme example.)  Those logic puzzles that aren't very logical.  I used to be quite good at them, but I find myself getting more confused by details as time goes on.  In my case, the details involved choosing between 4 airports (2 on either end), whether or not hotels would be necessary on both ends, if a bus to/from Boston would be needed (and if so, would it line up with the flights), and how to do all this in the least expensive way possible.  I'm thankful, so thankful, that my hubby had the day off yesterday and that we sorted it out together and got great (nonstop!) flights at a great price.

Beautiful Nevada -- where we're headed

Happy Hodgepodge Day, everyone!

Taking a moment

Life has become very, very busy for me just now with eldercare responsibilities.  Still I wanted to take just a moment and share some pictures of one of my favorite wildflowers, which appeared in our wildflower garden again this spring.  This is fringed polygala, also known as bird-on-the-wing or gaywings.  To me it looks much more like a tiny airplane than a bird.

You can read more about how we happen to have this flower in our wildflower garden here: The bird-on-the-wing is back!.  And, if you would like more information about the plant, here is a great resource: Fringed Polygala.

I will leave you with a few more photos, the first two from this year and then some from previous years.

Hope you've enjoyed seeing this lovely little flower!  I'm always so encouraged when I see the wildflowers appear each spring.  They are such a reminder of the faithfulness and greatness of our Heavenly Father.

I am sharing today at Sandi's No Place Like Home and Bernideen’s Tea Time, Cottage and Garden Blog Party.

Completely random

View from my window right now

Okay, I am going to try for a blog post today.  I warn you, it will be completely random and helter-skelter because that's the state of my brain and life right now.  But here goes!

The above photo (from a previous year) depicts just what I am seeing from our bedroom window today.  A window completely filled with apple blossoms.  Glorious!  At the far right of the picture, you can just glimpse the road far below.

Our neighbor's wild cherry tree was in bloom this past weekend, but heavy rain and wind soon knocked the delicate blossoms off.

Let's see.  Some time back, I mentioned feeling the need for a getaway for Mr. T and myself.  My blog friend Arlene at Nanaland sent me this lovely card:

It refreshes me every time I look at it, so I keep it handy on the hutch.  It is slightly reminiscent of our one-hour getaway a short time ago:

which will have to do until we can book some time at the lake up north.  I so appreciate Arlene's thoughtfulness!

Speaking of Arlene, I recently won the May giveaway at Nanaland: a Vera Bradley makeup bag.Isn't it gorgeous?

You can't really tell the color from this photo.  The bag is a very pretty red.

Inside of the bag -- such a pretty print.  I love it.

It will be going along with me on that getaway whenever we can manage one.  Thank you, Arlene!

I wanted to show you a few of my recent crafts.  Simple, simple things and only a few, because my time has been so fragmented of late.

phone charger holder for my oldest granddaughter -- and a hook to hang it on

This is a gift card holder I made for my local daughter's birthday.  I got the idea from Gooseberry Patch.  You pull the ribbon and out comes the gift card.  We got her a Lowe's gift card to buy perennials with.

My granddaughter who turned 10 requested a Lego sack ... in her favorite color, of course.  This is how it looks gathered up and hanging from a doorknob.

And here is the Lego sack opened up as it would be used for playtime.  For those who are interested you can read about Lego sacks here: Lego Sack Tutorial.  I've made loads of these.  My grandkids love them.

I've managed to complete several of these-- love the color of this one.  The variegated yarn in the middle is called "Candy Sprinkles".  Fun.

I've completed two in this color combination and a couple of others as well.

You can find the pattern here: Scalloped Potholder if you should be interested.  I leave off the hanging loop and use them as hot dish mats on the table. 

And then here are a couple of scans of recent vintage finds, both of these from my parents' home.

This is about the actual size of this vintage card.

This is the cover of a coloring book published in 1970.  The designs look as if they could be from today, don't they?

 Pretty neat designs on that coloring book cover, don't you think? They are a combination of embroidery and applique.   I'd love to copy the snowman on something, and the other designs are nifty also.

Here are a few photos of spring wildflowers:

My dad's backyard abounds with these large white violets.

They even grow in concrete!

Painted trilliums are out in our back yard

Lots of violets about

I noticed yesterday that the clintonia, or blue bead lily, is starting to bloom.

 Spring is "birthday season" in my daughter's family.  They have one in March, three in April and one in May, so we have been at their home a lot these past couple of months.  One evening we saw this lovely sunset on the way home:

 Do you ever prepare chicken in a slow cooker? To my mind this is the easiest and best way to cook a chicken when you find a good deal on whole chickens.  They were 88¢ a pound at our local supermarket this past week, and I wanted to make chicken salad wraps to take to a get-together.  Cooking the chicken in a crockpot gives you meat and broth in one easy step.  Here is how I do it:

CROCKPOT “ROTISSERIE” CHICKEN

1 roasting chicken or young chicken (I have also done this with bone-in chicken breasts)
Seasoning of your choice

Remove the bag full of “innards” from the chicken and discard it. Rinse the chicken with cold water. Place the chicken in the crock pot. Sprinkle liberally with the seasoning of your choice. I prefer the Montreal Chicken ™ seasoning blend, but Greek seasoning or lemon pepper are two other tasty possibilities. That’s it -- you don’t need to add anything else.

Cover the crock pot and cook for 8 to 10 hours on low or 4 to 5 hours on high. You will have falling-off-the bone, beautifully seasoned chicken and nearly a quart of good broth. You can freeze the broth to use later for another purpose, or use it as a start on a soup with leftover chicken later in the week.

I want to quickly share another recipe with you.  I love these Al Fresco chicken sausages.  They are quick, healthy and delicious.  I find they are pretty pricey in our local supermarket, but very reasonably priced at Walmart, so that's where I usually buy them.  The Italian version is also very good.  I haven't tried the other flavors, but there are several more.

This would be a fantastic supper for those busy days.  It takes an hour in the oven, so you could put it in the oven and then go do gardening or yard work while it bakes.  I found a similar recipe in a magazine originally, but have tweaked it quite a bit, so here it is:

POLENTA BAKE

1 package of chicken sausage (fully cooked type such as Al Fresco) -- in the sweet apple flavor
1 large sweet onion
1 large apple (Honeycrisp is the best!) or 2 smaller apples
1 tube garlic and herb polenta
Olive oil
Salt & pepper (optional)

Have a 9 x 13-inch baking dish ready and just add the ingredients as you prepare them.  Slice up the chicken sausages.  I slice each one lengthwise and then cut them into about 1/4-inch slices crosswise.  Peel the onion, cut it in half and cut each half into wedges.  (Or cut them smaller if your onion is really huge.)  Wash, core and slice the apples into wedges.  Don't bother to peel them.  Then slice your polenta.  I cut it in quarters lengthwise and then slice it between 1/4-inch and 1/2-inch thick.  Now drizzle some olive oil (at least a tablespoon, but it's up to you) over the ingredients in the baking dish.  Salt and pepper to taste if you like, but it's really optional.  I forgot it last time and the dish was still wonderful.  Stir everything together well.

Bake at 375º for 1 hour.

I think you could make endless variations on this dish by using other flavors of sausage and including different vegetables like peppers, zucchini, etc. rather than apples.

When I take this to our church potluck, I bake it in the morning, timing it to come out of the oven just before we leave the house.  I cover it with foil.   Then when we get to church I place it on an electric warming tray where it holds just fine until we are ready to eat a few hours later.

And finally, have you ever eaten Fiddleheads?

Photo from UVM Food Feed

An acquaintance of my hubby's harvests fiddleheads every spring and gives bags of them away.  He gave Mr. T a bag at his job site.  We did some investigating online and found the best way to prepare them -- they need cleaning and blanching.  We then sauteed them in olive oil and garlic as his friend suggested.  Absolutely delicious.  Some people say they taste like a cross between asparagus and spinach.  Well, we enjoy both of those vegetables -- but honestly, we decided fiddleheads are better than either one!

Not the best photo -- I took it spontaneously with my Kindle.  It doesn't do these delicacies justice.

We had never cooked or eaten fiddleheads before, but wow!  We hope he gives us another bag next year!  (I think we will leave the harvesting to him, though, as many ferns are poisonous.)

Lastly, but it really should be first -- remember my word for 2016?  It was Faithfulness.  I never did get time to set or even think about any goals for the new year as I usually do.  Things have been utterly crazy with eldercare and accompanying concerns, not to mention other responsibilities.  I concluded at the time, in the post referenced above, that even if I didn't get to set any goals, that just being faithful in all that God has given me to do, and trusting in His faithfulness day by day, would be sufficient.  Has that ever been tested!  To remind me, I recently took this graphic, which I made some time ago, and made it my desktop wallpaper.  (My readers are welcome to borrow it.)

What a blessing to be reminded of God's faithfulness for every step of our journey, every time I log into the computer and when I shut it down at night!  This view of one of our local lakes, with scriptural truth imposed over it, just is such a great reminder.  Yes, He, our all-wise, all-powerful Creator, is faithful!

Sharing this motley post today with Sandi's No Place Like Home and Bernideen’s Tea Time, Cottage and Garden Blog Party.  Also with Vintage Charm and Share Your Cup Thursday.