tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post698821316820474653..comments2024-03-26T00:26:19.756-07:00Comments on The Bluebirds are Nesting...: Joy in the simple things.Annabelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-17164028522209482152018-01-14T02:53:47.786-08:002018-01-14T02:53:47.786-08:00Dear Alexine, Thank you! I would have loved your ...Dear Alexine, Thank you! I would have loved your Great Grandmothers garden! And your Great Granddad and his fishing for crabs! What lovely memories.<br />I am the same with a cup of tea and a pretty plate. Beautiful. Well done on your quilt! That is an achievement! Many thanks! With love Annabel.xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-18136185907140653872018-01-13T22:07:38.838-08:002018-01-13T22:07:38.838-08:00Hi Annabel,
I enjoyed reading about your visit wi...Hi Annabel,<br /><br />I enjoyed reading about your visit with your fun aunt, and I am impressed with all that plum picking! I haven't seen a plum tree where I live, and fruit trees aren't around. My mother remembers that my great grandmother's yard had plenty of fruit to pick, and there were nuts too. She would make ice cream and sometimes make snow cones to sell nearby, and my great granddad would go to the bay and bring home fresh crabs. <br />Something simple that brings me contentment is using my tea kettle on the stove and preparing a cup of tea, and also using a pretty plate. Today I had a quiet, very satisfying time completing the last strips and binding my very first pieced quilt block. Not bad for starters. I will try and improve the next one. Best wishes to you and all your reading visitors. Alexine in MarylandHartslovehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05071061000392088617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-51300532733804127602018-01-11T08:19:06.138-08:002018-01-11T08:19:06.138-08:00Hi Annabel and everyone,
What a wonderful day - t...Hi Annabel and everyone,<br /><br />What a wonderful day - the plums are beautiful and I love the jam that you made with them. Annabel, I am also a "pearl girl" and am wearing my earrings right now! They really do go with everything and are so pretty.<br /><br />Simple things that make me happy: a hot cup of tea, sitting in front of the fire on a rainy or grey day, baking - I love the entire process, how meditative it can be, and how it makes your whole house smell good, walks in nature, reading a good book, knitting, planting and harvesting, watching birds at the feeders or going about their bird business in nature, spending time with my husband just talking or going for a walk, grooming the horses (sometimes dusty, but very satisfying!), and, perhaps weirdly, organizing things. I love when my fridge/pantry/bookshelves/craft supplies/etc. are neatly arranged and I can find everything easily. It brings such a feeling of contentment and relaxation. <br /><br />I hope everyone has a great day,<br />Kathy<br /><br />Kathynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-45353195773709253212018-01-10T15:00:40.372-08:002018-01-10T15:00:40.372-08:00Dear Jen,
I love your dinner by candle light and ...Dear Jen, <br />I love your dinner by candle light and sun dried sheets... and teenager kisses. So beautiful. Life is good when we think on these kinds of things! With love Annabel.xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-4847458834821988762018-01-10T14:58:13.772-08:002018-01-10T14:58:13.772-08:00Thank you Countrynana. So true! xxxThank you Countrynana. So true! xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-23517631383233346082018-01-10T14:56:49.852-08:002018-01-10T14:56:49.852-08:00Dear Christina,
Thank you! I am just reading &qu...Dear Christina, <br />Thank you! I am just reading "The Long Winter" as part of one of Patsys classes. I have a feeling this one will also improve my love of picking up kindling. Being able to provide warmth is a blessing. I have heard f people so cold they end up buying furniture and anything at all to survive. So to me a good weed heap and lots of basket of kindling is better than money in the bank! I also love the look of it! And who needs a gym when we are out doing al these kinds to things! On top of this the last few years the home stores have sold little bundles of sticks tied up as they look so nice! I laughed at that one as who cant pick up sticks! Thank you for commenting! With love AnnabelxxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-60675634215644972442018-01-10T14:51:11.881-08:002018-01-10T14:51:11.881-08:00Dear Joy, Your list is full of gorgeous things. I...Dear Joy, Your list is full of gorgeous things. I agree with you that being out in nature is a very good and restoring thing. And peaceful. It does me so much good. And once I loved shopping and now I hate to go into the mall or crowded spaces and department stores etc. Just the same! I enjoy a fruit and veggie shop or an op shop but thats about it! We are very much the same! With love Annabel.xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-64568862984183173392018-01-10T13:50:12.991-08:002018-01-10T13:50:12.991-08:00What a wonderful post about your Aunt and your Nan...What a wonderful post about your Aunt and your Nanna. Gosh those plums--could they be anymore perfect? It is wonderful to find joy in the simple blessings--which actually are really special blessings. I find joy in the morning sky when I go in my kitchen each morning. I also love to see sunshine pouring through the windows, the good smells of home cooking, looking at full faces of children (when they still have that baby fat/chubby cheeks), or touching a baby's skin, holding a baby, smelling roses that the scent takes me back to when I was a child and we had red roses growing on a trellis that held up our clothes line. I like a cozy clean bed, the quietness so that I can think, I like watching an ant crawl around, I love watching birds in the trees, hearing birds sing, morning coffee, a good visit with my sister in law who is also a great friend. I like spending time with my 3 brothers and talking about our growing up days. Oh, there are so many 'simple' things to be thankful for. Like the old hymn says, "count your blessings, name them one by one, count your many blessings see what God has done..." I would rather be home creating something whether it be a craft or jam, or a good meal than doing something 'exciting'. Observing and being outside in nature make me the happiest. I used to only find happiness in shopping--now I hate to shop--refuse to go to malls! And I've never cared for golf either!Joyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15471639876072617577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-43676865903618027952018-01-10T06:45:41.865-08:002018-01-10T06:45:41.865-08:00What a lovely day you had. Your Aunt and Nanna se...What a lovely day you had. Your Aunt and Nanna seem like such sweet ladies. Very respectful and mannerly too. Thanks for sharing. (It has encouraged me to look at things a little differently rather than being a sour puss when I have to pick up kindling....one of the chores I don't enjoy.)Mama to 12, so farhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17759055814570254094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-56249408511048095322018-01-09T23:55:49.424-08:002018-01-09T23:55:49.424-08:00I also love the 50's style! In fact I have a 5...I also love the 50's style! In fact I have a 50's dinnette table and chairs. I have several red handled utensils and a hand beater that is fully functional. I also have some canisters and love most kitchen items from that era. I do however like my modern conveniences as you do. We used to have a beautiful wood stove that I could cook on in our old home. Unfortunately we don't in this home. We are hoping to again have one someday. It would definitely help in case of electric loss. I hope the rest of your week is wonderful!<br />❤️ Melody in ORAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-85309294877634889652018-01-09T13:16:16.733-08:002018-01-09T13:16:16.733-08:00Dear Annabel,
What a bounty you brought home, and...Dear Annabel,<br /><br />What a bounty you brought home, and sounds like you had a lovely time with your Aunt! I giggled at the "hates golf" bit. Also at the story about your Nana and the doctor changing the light! :)<br /><br />I love weeding in my garden...it sounds weird, but it is so relaxing. I also love seeing my shelves of canned goods in my pantry, smelling freshly baked bread, climbing into a freshly made bed of sun-dried sheets, giving my girls kisses good morning (when they're still asleep...and even though they're teenagers, their cheeks are still just those of my little babes when they're still asleep!!:)), and having dinner by candlelight, which we do every night! I also love the smell of old fashioned roses...taking the lid off a jar of dried rose petals in the middle of winter: it always smells like honey and summertime.<br /><br />I am smiling just thinking of all those things! <br /><br />xx Jen in NSAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-19344189072134025152018-01-09T04:40:14.618-08:002018-01-09T04:40:14.618-08:00The plums are beautiful. I love to can jellies an...The plums are beautiful. I love to can jellies and jams also. Your Aunt sounds like a lovely person. It truly is the simple small things that bring the most happiness!<br />countrynanahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817527820879530579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-44723488998170143542018-01-08T19:06:42.970-08:002018-01-08T19:06:42.970-08:00Loved this! You are my kinda girl, Annabel :). &q...Loved this! You are my kinda girl, Annabel :). "Rather be home making jam than on a jet" -- so cute! And true. Man, you girls worked hard! You're so blessed to have family members still living that connect you to your past. Talking about how your Nan loved simple things, and your dad remembering. That priceless. Reminds me of two yrs ago when I saw my last living link to my dad....I cried. Joyous cry, ya know?<br />I love what you wrote about your Aunt wearing her pearls! for the ambulance guys ;) Really makes me want to wear mine -- it will remind me of you and your Auntie :)<br />Well, much love and kudos on your gorgeous plum jam!Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15895877653972323599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-30273119405699269972018-01-08T18:12:22.752-08:002018-01-08T18:12:22.752-08:00I too am sending prayers for Alli and her family. ...I too am sending prayers for Alli and her family. Fi Fionanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-90925386641731920102018-01-08T15:12:11.845-08:002018-01-08T15:12:11.845-08:00You must make plum syrup! It's heavenly! My ...You must make plum syrup! It's heavenly! My college roommate lives in Montana (NW US) and has plum trees. She has sent me her plum syrup several times and it's my very favorite. <br /><br />Your aunt sounds like someone I would just LOVE to spend an afternoon with. The comment about the pearls and the ambulance set me off in a fit of giggles!Debby in Kansashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09545875556174022019noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-12826935598393844522018-01-08T14:24:40.886-08:002018-01-08T14:24:40.886-08:00"Enjoy the little things, for one day you wil..."Enjoy the little things, for one day you will realize they were the big things." Oh how true.<br />So wonderful to hear you were building memories with your aunt.<br /><br />My fondest times are with my Grandchildren or Son when we are out foraging or thrifting. It seems standing under a tree picking that the most wonderful conversations occur, or when in a field picking flowers. My Son to this day loves telling his children of foraging with his Mom and how he would look forward to the pies or jams that were produced.<br /><br />It is the simple things in life that form our memories, I cherish ones of my Grandmother mushroom hunting while we were out on a picnic, my Aunt letting me know it was time to walk across the street and pick hickory nuts from the woods together. <br /><br />Now I try to build memories with my Grandchildren, foraging, gleaming, baking and canning. I feel more secure knowing they will have basic skills others their age do not and may never have.<br /><br />I can sit and crochet and let the world slip away, it is so calming, well until I hit a complicated pattern and get frustrated. But then when I overcome it, I am jubilant. My husband thinks I am a tad bit off because I get excited seeing elderberries blossoming beside the road, or mullein, a field of dandelion. I think herbs, food, he thinks weeds.<br /><br />Thank you for sharing your day with us.<br />Love,<br />Rosanne<br /><br />(PS: Sorry I have been AWOL, I have been down ill and am just starting my mend to recovery.)Rubieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13386788915862035566noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-59238558025468800362018-01-08T11:42:38.974-08:002018-01-08T11:42:38.974-08:00Dear Annabel and lovely bluebirds , this is a love...Dear Annabel and lovely bluebirds , this is a lovely post Annabel about your day with your aunt . I loved reading about her pearl wearing while picking plums . I don’t feel so odd now ,with how I dress ,being home based .<br />My aunt in a home (because she is sick not senile) still manages to wear her own style with a funky edge ie big necklace, colour patch in her hair to match her outfit . She is the best inspiration for being oneself no matter that her body is failing .<br />I had a lovely birthday with my family around and fish n chips at the beach as they didn’t want me to cook . <br />Although I haven’t replied to all of your recent daily posts I have appreciated them and been inspired. I’ve had family and little ones around and less time , a little one is here now with me for the day ,we have the timer then it’s off to get ready and go out .<br />Lana -what a gorgeous pear story ! <br />Prayers said for sweet Alli and family x<br />With love Maria xxxAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-92201398964089445012018-01-08T09:48:12.727-08:002018-01-08T09:48:12.727-08:00What an uplifting post and comments! I, too, love...What an uplifting post and comments! I, too, love being at home and cannot understand women who say they would be so bored if they had to stay home. Maybe it's being dissatisfied with "small things". If you can enjoy the small and simple, you can be happy pretty much all the time.<br />I love going to bed on fresh line-dried linens, waking up to the birds singing, making a meal that is completely home-grown, making jam to have for the winter. Last summer, we discovered a big patch of black raspberries out behind our garage. They had never been there before, but I guess birds had dropped seeds and now we have another fruit crop. <br />I also like going garage-saleing with my husband on a Saturday morning and finding something to use in our home, then coming home, washing it all up and putting it in its new place.<br />I could go on and on! So looking forward to these posts. Thankyou so much Annabel!<br />Blessings, Marie<br />Mariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05391322618950623162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-69836060351007635542018-01-08T06:56:24.200-08:002018-01-08T06:56:24.200-08:00The simple joys are the best. How wonderful on al...The simple joys are the best. How wonderful on all that lovely fruit, and that it is available to you. What precious memories and your Aunt sounds like a lovely lady.<br />Have a blessed day.Cheryl Kimbleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06485771676254429681noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-5471500990552987652018-01-08T06:50:28.790-08:002018-01-08T06:50:28.790-08:00What a sweet day with your aunt! Truly a simply jo...What a sweet day with your aunt! Truly a simply joy! I'm with you on the pearls...... I love that she wears them to bed!Little Penpenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01374048900216199298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-79458503343259515442018-01-08T06:06:19.014-08:002018-01-08T06:06:19.014-08:00Thank you all for praying.Thank you all for praying.Lanahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09380649410508372279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-37332794225793273242018-01-08T05:08:30.469-08:002018-01-08T05:08:30.469-08:00Annabel what a lovely post, I smiled at your story...Annabel what a lovely post, I smiled at your story. What makes me happy is time at home also. Something I love is having a stash of newspaper already separated into two sheets and folded into a stack in my cupboard and peeling all my scraps and waste into that and walking it to the compost bins. Stupid, but I love it. I feel connected to the earth somehow. I take simple pleasure sitting outside with my hens. I adore them. I love wiping down the benches after cooking. I love folding up and ironing the tea towels I made (yes I iron them). I love fluffing up the donna on the bed. I love sweeping the floor. I love planning my meals and trying new recipes. I love being away from negativity and hatred. <br /><br />What I also really love is finding you and this group, because I'm not weird, I fit into this group of people who interestingly have very very similar ideas on how the world should be run, how bureaucracy has gone mad, how the simple nurturing ideals from times gone by when there was no computers, mobiles, face time and information overload, how those times were easier and kinder and safer and that is where I like to be. I'll probably never meet you all but I love to belong. I have absolutely loved the week of posts, and wish it was like that every week. Imagine each day having and Annabel post (I know you are shuddering at this Annabel, but to me it would be bliss). <br /><br />In my own little patch I'm trying to re create the ideals of the past, but with the nice things like dishwashers and steam irons and computerised sewing machines but still striving for the simple life. It's the only way to be.<br /><br />Bless you Annabel from the bottom of my heart, and the other ladies who so generously contribute too. Fi xxFionanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-80890166899773623512018-01-08T04:52:22.013-08:002018-01-08T04:52:22.013-08:00Dear Sewingcreations,
I think a garden of fruit an...Dear Sewingcreations,<br />I think a garden of fruit and veggies is added food security, health and savings. Also I think something more as working in the garden, harvesting, it is all good for the heart and body too!<br />I love pickling up kindling too! When I was at the farm I walked in the cool of the evenings. I took a bag each time and collected chloe kindling and pinecones for next to her fireplace... thinking well ahead until winter. To me this was lovely!<br />Yes wrote a series and your comment reminds me of it. It is called The Joy of Work I think... It was glorious. It described that good feeling of accomplishment and enjoying how nice things are. I think this is so true.<br />With lots of love, Annabel.xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-29760622888694954332018-01-08T04:47:38.215-08:002018-01-08T04:47:38.215-08:00Dear Cath, I am loving the baseball bat as well. ...Dear Cath, I am loving the baseball bat as well. Good "security system" !<br />We are kindred spirits as I know you love a fruit tree just as much as me. I think apples may be the most useful fruit of all since they can be used with mains or deserts.... just so many good things. We have an apple tree but it is only a couple years old, it has about 12 apples on it though!<br />I would like to make mint jelly that has apple in it. I have tons of mint....<br />Yes this world is full on trying to suck the joy out of us at times. We have to keep our eye on the prize and I keep reminding myself that we know how things turn out in the end. How would like be without faith I don't know... <br />I hope you have a great year Cath, with love Annabel.xxx<br />Annabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5879795385972045418.post-18334175663805609262018-01-08T04:42:57.123-08:002018-01-08T04:42:57.123-08:00Dear Patti, I love pearls and jeans! That is kind...Dear Patti, I love pearls and jeans! That is kind of my style. Thank you re my house. My mixture works out in the end and I like old style things too. I jus think they are better, have character ... At first Andy couldnt figure me out. Especially re rust. I really like rust but he always wanted to de rust and fix things so this confused him greatly! haha!<br />I better check out the going rate for plums for my Vicky Challenge. I made a bit more jam today and will use some for little gifts too. It is delicious! Thank you Patti, with love Annabel.xxxAnnabelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027539528156492413noreply@blogger.com