Ice Skating

 

The Trio's favorite activity in the winter is ice skating at a little indoor rink near the ocean.  I hardly ever take them, but the last day in January seemed like a good time.  I brought my knitting (I haven't given up my goal to finish my Song of the Sea cowl by tonight) and the tail end of my latest audiobook, Belgravia.  Keeping myself well occupied is key to a lengthy stay at the rink!

Living and Learning: The Week Ahead

 

 

 

Orthodoxy in the Home

This week is the feast of the Meeting of the Lord.  I've ordered a kit of beeswax sheets and wicks to create some pretty candles to get blessed along with our Lenten candle.

On My Bedside Table

I'm reading my second book D.E. Stevenson book, Miss Buncle Married.  It is such a great little series...  I look forward to my reading time each evening!

Listening

I am listening to Juliet Stevenson read Belgravia through my Audible app after enjoying Doctor Thorne and a re-watch of Downton Abbey.  It's a fascinating story and makes my time cleaning go very quickly!

In My Knitting Basket

Song of the Sea (part II) is going fairly quickly now that I have finished the first set of breakers in the cowl.  I have one more repeat of the second sized breakers, all of the small breakers, and the ribbed edging left to do.  I may be able to finish it by tomorrow!

Kitchen, Pantry, Table

Our daughter really enjoys baking and one of her favorite things to make is fruit and cheese galettes.  She made two for this past Sunday's coffee hour - raspberry and blueberry.  They were easily made before church and everyone happily gobbled them up.  I've already purchased the ingredients for two more for this Sunday! 

Pilgrimage and Renewal

Sketching

 

 

 For the past couple of days, I have been dusting off my sketching skills!  Though I was an art major in college, I am more crafty than artistic.  I've always wanted to do better at sketching and watercoloring and the only way to get better is to actually practice.  I'm trying to do a daily sketch with a bit of watercolor when I can.  I'll be using Liz Steel's Foundations course, blog, and instagram account to help improve my drawings.  Hopefully, there'll be a marked improvement in my work as time goes on!

January in the National Gallery of Art

 

 

 

 

 

 

March for Life 2017

 

 

 

 

 

January Sunshine

 

 

A Little Milo

 I made this darling little Milo Vest for the newborn baby of a friend.  It was such a quick knit (it only took two days!).  I used Plymouth Yarn Company which is the softest DK Merino Superwash in white.  I cannot wait to see the wee one in it! 

Living and Learning: The Week Ahead

 

Church in the Home

We're starting to gear up for the March for Life next Friday!  We're planning on joining our fellow  Orthodox Christians for Life on the National Mall in Washington D.C.  I hope to see you there!

On My Bedside Table
I began reading I Capture the Castle years ago (this blog reminds me it was 2012) and though I remember enjoying it, I never finished it.  I decided that it was time to begin again this past week and am enjoying the story and am in the last hundred pages or so.

Watching
A few weeks ago, my husband and I began watching Downton Abbey from the beginning.  I saw it as it was first airing on PBS, but he didn't.  We were between shows and decided to see what I thought...  we just wrapped up season three and he is enjoying it very much!


In My Knitting Basket
I finished up my first Song of the Sea cowl early last week and quickly whipped through a white merino Milo Vest for a friend.  I've already cast on to my second Song of the Sea for myself and though it's getting off to a slow start due to our busy weekend, but I should be able to get a good amount of knitting done this week.

Inspiration
One of my favorite features in The Wall Street Journal is Flower School, a monthly article where Lindsey Taylor takes a work of art and creates a floral arrangement inspired by it.  Luckily, Taylor has an instagram page where one can be sure to catch all of her work:

Inspired by the pale palette of Whistler in today's @wsjoffduty @frickcollection #jamesmcneillwhistler 📸 @stephenkentjohnson #wsjflowerschool

A photo posted by Lindsey Taylor (@lindseydtaylor) on Jan 14, 2017 at 5:31am PST

 

This Week's Menu

Dinners

  Chicken Stew with Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

Chef Salad

Asian Salmon, Baked Sweet Potatoes, and Salad

Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Cranberry Sauce, Peas, and Gravy

Auntie Claudia's Tuna Pasta Salad

Egg Salad Sandwiches

Why I March

I wrote the following on Facebook last night, explaining why I did not march with the Women's March on Washington on Saturday and why I hope to attend the March for Life later this month.

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There are many good reasons that people have for wanting to march and demonstrate, but I think that the only thing to keep in mind is to be sure that the cause that you are marching for is in line with (Orthodox) Christian teaching (and is, of course, non-violent). In the case of the Women's March, I felt that I could not support or attend an event that was expressly pro-choice. There were many good people there who had good intentions and it is not my place to judge them. Perhaps it is time to redouble our efforts to encourage our daughters and sons (both physical and spiritual) to use the gifts that God has given them well, practice Christian virtues and sexual morality, and help instill upon them the courage and strength to stand up for those being mistreated. The effect of children raised in a Christian home will have a more lasting impression on society than a day or two of demonstrating and marching... Meeting President Trump's vulgarity with the vulgarity of pussy hats, foul language, and the glorification of abortion won't.

(The above photograph is from the Orthodox March for Life Facebook page)

Tiny Green Shoots

 

Last year I was given a little clump of snowdrops that my friend, Autumn, dug up from a nearby wood.  After enjoying them indoors for several days, I planted them in the small garden outside our dining room window.  I've been checking the ground for signs that the snowdrop bulbs survived for the last few weeks and was rewarded this morning with the sight of tiny green shoots popping up!  It will be a little while before they actually bloom, but I am cheered by the fact that they are on their way.

Tea with Lila

 

I was given the wonderful gift of a day to spend with dear Lila today!  We met for tea at a  historical tavern (built in 1737!) that serves afternoon tea.  We decided to order what the tavern calls a Colonial High Tea.  It included an individual pot of loose leaf tea (I chose one called Buckingham Palace Garden Party, which was a "delicate Earl Grey with jasmine notes"), a bowl of the soup du jour (green tomato) and an assortment of savory finger sandwiches, tarts, tea cakes and pastries. Everything was simply delicious and both Lila and I were charmed by the decor and mismatched china that we used for our meal.

After our tea, we wandered around the city, browsed in a few shops (one of the highlights was a shop with a bookstore on one side and a yarn shop on the other), and talked, talked, talked!  It was a wonderful day to recharge my batteries and enjoy the company of an inspirational friend who I am very thankful for!

Extending the Liturgy

Song of the Sea, Part One

 

 

 

 

  

I was given some lovely Madeline Tosh DK yarn in the Pavement colorway from my brother-in-law for Christmas and I excitedly cast right on for Song of the Sea, a lovely lacy cowl.  It was a fun knit that I followed the pattern for exactly and I am happy with the result.  I have decided to give this cowl to my friend, which I hope she likes.  I happen to have quite a bit more of this yarn and have decided to cast on to a second one.  For this next iteration, I will be knitting a bit more of the ribbing (maybe in a 2x2, rather than a 3x1) to reduce the rolling that this first cowl tends to do.

Reading

I shouldn't think even millionaires could eat anything nicer than new bread and real butter and honey for tea.”   

I Capture the Castle

Dodie Smith

The Right Foot

 

 

Monday morning is off to a good start. 

Bright and Shiny Copper

 

 

I had to run an errand for my husband at Staples and wandered in to Marshalls the other day.  I found these gorgeous copper pots on clearance, with was a very exciting find.  There were many different sizes of saute pans and small saucepans there.  Copper pans have been on my wishlist for years and I have given a great deal of thought to the size pots I would actually use.  I was able to resist buying pots and pans that I don't need and will be on the lookout for two larger lidded pots in the future.

Goodbye, Tree

 

 

The children and I took down the tree soon after breakfast today.  They dragged it out to the Christmas Tree graveyard in the woods, while I tucked the ornaments into the attic and brought the stand to the shed.  Christmas has been put to bed!

The Mystery of Liturgy

Snow Tableau

Our middle son made a little snow tableau of Hoth, an ice planet in Star Wars, with his Lego figures today.

Wonderland

 

 

 

After two days of being snowbound, we were ready to get out today.  We had cleaned off the van yesterday while the snow was powdery, and so today we were able to take a little trip to the store for a few essentials and items to complete several projects. For the past few months, our dishwasher has been on the blink, so we also took a trip to choose a new one (which we found discounted 50%).  Mr. Miguel helped us cart the new one home, install it, and get rid of the old dishwasher.  We also fixed a bathroom fan and framed a picture for our daughter's bedroom.

Despite the busyness of tending to our lessons and taking care of all of those errands and projects, we were still able to enjoy the peaceful stillness that comes with a glorious snow day.  There was a fire in the grate, mugs of steaming cocoa, and wedges of cranberry crumb cake to accompany us with our knitting and reading.  Father John and I also started watching Downton Abbey together - me for the second time and him for the first.  I certainly hope that this is not the only stow we get this winter, but if it is, we took full advantage of these past few days!

January Nature Table

 

 

In a fit of frenzied tidying and cleaning last night, I put away the lovely Nativity set that graced our nature table in December and set out this pretty print of rabbits in the snow and the family of Ostheimer deer.  I spent a few minutes crocheting some scarves for the deer out of a little bit of scrap yarn while my husband and I watched a little Downton Abbey.  I love setting this little table up and surprising the Trio with a new scene every few weeks.