* Santa's Green Gift of Heat *

Santa brought DH & I a Heatmor furnace for Christmas. We decided awhile back it was time for a cheaper heating source ( DH reasoning ) and I wanted to become less dependent on foreign oil/fuels.

This source of heat seem to be the solution to our problem. Dh didn't want an indoor wood heater. We live in a older home that is constructed of pine wood , our home would burn quickly if fire broke out.

Wood is a environmentally friendly , renewable resource that reduces greenhouse gases and doesn't produce extra carbon dioxide.
There are concerns about smoke pollution , but most of these units have emission controls that should help with that.

We will also heat our hot water with this , less electrial ( nuclear energy ) use is another plus for me.

* ~ * Something for the Birds * ~ *

The weekend before Christmas , Curious J and I made bird feeders. I was going to take pics but Curious J was wild with the birdseed , so I didn't get a chance. We made them for his Momma & Daddy , Nana (me) & Papa , Big Nana ( My Mom ) and his Aunt J and Uncle S.

We or should I say I , Curious J didn't like smearing the peanut butter on the giant pine cones ,so I had that job. He loved pouring the birdseed over the pine cones and playing with the seeds like sand. We attached a piece of yarn for hanging in a tree.

We put them in paper bags and I punched holes in the top and tied with twine and added a feather for decoration. Curious J didn't tell a single soul what we made , we just said they were surprises. I thought he would tell everyone what was in the bags , but he didn't.

We enjoyed making them and I'm sure the birds will like their treats. I hung mine outside Wednesday , but the birds haven't found it yet. Will try to take some pics , when they find it.

Everyone loved their bird feeders and Curious J looked so proud of his creation. His green and very messy gift ( birdseed everywhere , LOL ) was definitely worth that proud look.

* * * Green Gifts * * *

This year I gave Green Gifts to my family and friends. I stamped the plain bags with a Christmas tree stamp I made. I added some canned goods , all homemade and from the garden this past summer , Kosher Dill Pickles , Salsa , Jalapeno Peppers , Strawberry Jam. A couple of jars wrapped in tissue paper were tucked in the gift bags.

I recycled some of my past holiday cards for gift tags.
Each tag said ....

Help me
Help Mother Earth

Please reuse your jars or return to me.

Recycle your bag next Christmas ( add your own decorations )
and pass it along.

Merry Christmas !

I'm looking forward to next year , wonder how many will actually decorate their bags and pass it along. I know one of my friends was really thrilled about it and said her bag would be heavily embellished next Christmas.

I'm not sure if I should have asked them to return the jars to me if they didn't reuse them , but I will use them and don't want them sent to the landfill. My ancestors were called Indian Givers because of this practice , but they believed if you were given a gift and didn't use it , the gift should be given to someone who would. It wasn't considered rude to ask for it back , if they weren't using it or for the person receiving the gift to give it back if they didn't need it. This wasn't considered ungrateful or rude , it was handled in a respectful way.

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. I will be posting more about my Green Christmas in the days to come.

~ ~ ~ Merry Christmas ~ ~ ~

The Holidays are here and I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. I'm sending , loving , peaceful and happy thoughts out to all my friends and family this Christmas season. Love you all and hope your Holidays are wonderful.

Time to head to the kitchen and get some cooking and baking done.

Merry Christmas !!

Stellaria Media aka Chickweed ~ Lemony Chickweed Feta Salad

The herbal class I took ended Dec. 6th , I enjoyed taking that class and learned to identify several herbs. One of the herbs I learned about is Stellaria Media aka Chickweed or starweed , my backyard is full of this wonderful herb. It has a wonderful mild almost sweet taste and can be used like lettuce.

Sunday I harvested a basket full and made a lemony chickweed feta salad , it was delicious. My dh was hesitant about trying it but he did and actually liked it. My daughters loved it and I'm really impressed with the herb and salad. I will be trying more recipes with this herb.

I found the wonderful recipe at this website , Prodigal Gardens ~ Medicinal Herbs Aand Wild Foods , she has some great information and recipes on her site. Check it out if you're interested in herbs.

~ ~ Getting Ready for the Holidays ~ ~

I finally started decorating for the holidays this week. Decorated the tree Monday , I enjoy seeing the ornaments from the past and all the memories they evoke.
Strung the vintage lights around the front porch on Tues , those big bulbs have the most beautiful colors. I found some vintage replacement bulbs at the thrift store awhile back , I was thrilled. You can buy replacement bulbs new , but the colors just can't compare.

I'm planning to make goodie baskets for my family this year. Money is tight for everyone this season , so we decided not to buy gifts. I like the idea of giving something homemade anyway. I plan to start giving green gifts , so a goodie basket will be a perfect start. I will use items that can be recycled , the jars and shredded paper. The basket can always be reused.

The new babies are doing well , I will be keeping baby J today. Curious J is doing really well with his little brother , although there have been some moments of jealousy.

Hope everyone is doing well !

~*~ Christmas Stocking Swap ~*~

I joined a Christmas stocking swap that Peggy at Hidden Haven Homestead is hosting. I received my stocking last week from Kathleen at The Open Window. I've been so busy with grandbabies , sick dog and daily life that I haven't had time to post.
The stocking is beautiful and was filled with a cute pair of knit slippers , fall themed memo pad and recipe cards , Land of Lakes hot chocolate and a wonderful christmas card. Thanks Kathleen , I plan to curl up with some hot chocolate and watch a christmas movie one night this week.
I will be sending my stocking out by the end of the week.

~~~ It's almost time ! ~~~

It's almost time for the girls to have those grandbabies. My oldest daughter is due Nov. 23 , but they may induce her the first of the week. The youngest daughter will have some testing done on Monday to see if the baby's lungs are developed. They are planning to induce her next week too. It's looking as though I might be spending turkey day at the hospital.
Can't wait til these little bundles of joy are here. It's been kinda stressful this past month. Dr. appts every week , stress test for the youngest daughter and last Sunday I had to take the oldest daughter to the hospital. She woke up dizzy and feeling bad , when we arrived at the hospital , they checked her and said she was dehydrated. She has been feeling alot better since.
The youngest daughter had a ameo test last Monday , the results were negative , meaning the lungs are not mature. She has been miserable , itching intensely , mostly at night so she isn't resting well. It hurts me to see her this way , I'll be so glad when the birth is over and she is blessed with a healthy baby boy.
Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.



Hope everyone is having a wonderful , creative weekend !

Love & Hugs

Fall Planting & Preparing

This week I've been digging up my irises and daffodils and replanting them. I finished planting and mulching them yesterday. Can't wait to see the blooms this spring.

Garlic ..... I planted garlic Saturday and finished mulching it yesterday too. This is the first time I have ever planted garlic and I'm curious as to how it will turn-out. I love cooking with garlic , it adds such a wonderful natural flavor and is good for you too. The great thing about growing garlic is there isn't to much work in it. You plant , mulch and let it grow. It will grow until next June or July. I will need to add a natural fertilizer in the spring as the garlic starts to sprout up.

Moved all the tropical plants down to the basement lastnight. We're suppose to have a hard freeze tonight. I need to get busy and clean out the basement. There's a lot of clutter down there too. Maybe that will be my weekend project.

Hope you're having a great week !

Treasures

I haven't posted in awhile , been busy cleaning and decluttering. I've finished the livingroom , diningroom and the kitchen is almost done but I plan to reorganize my cabinets next week.
I still have two bedrooms , and the art studio to clean.
It feels wonderful to have a clean , decluttered home , if only I would clean every month and keep it this way.

The grandbabies will be arriving soon. My oldest daughter went to the doctor yesterday , her cervix has thinned 50% and her Dr. told her to feel free to have the baby anytime now.
My youngest daughter is having the liver problem again , they plan to induce her around the middle of Nov.
Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

I did want to share one of my most treasured pieces of art. My brother-in-law painted this indian chief for me Christmas of "98. He painted and etched the chief on a piece of plywood , I love his painting. He died two years later at the young age of 39. He was a wonderful person and a great artist and I still miss him.


Hope your week has been great and your weekend is even better.

~*~ Mermaid Swap ~*~

The Glitter Sisters did a mermaid swap over at Violette's Creations. The photos above are the mermaid and atc I received.
Kelly at http://kelskreation.blogspot.com/ created this mermaid type card , it has the backside of a mermaid looking inside , the caption reads " Beauty ..... Look Within ". This was her first glitter sister swap and I think her art is wonderful.

Now , I need to figure out how to download these photos to the Glitter Sisters flicker group.


Hope everyone has a wonderful blessed weekend !!

Clean Windows ~~~ Horray !!!

Yesterday I cleaned these 72 window panes , inside and out. I used white vinegar to clean them and was very pleased with the results. Vinegar is definitely better for the environment and cheaper on the wallet. I'm trying to go green as they say and I want to live a simple , self sufficient life.

Small things can make a difference to our wonderful Mother Earth , so give vinegar a try.

*** Fall Decorating ***

I spent the day decorating for Fall. I love falltime , time to show off the oranges , yellows and reds of the season.

I had to clean the front porch first , lots of spiderwebs and dust to get rid of.

Tommorrow , I will be cleaning windows , we have a large picture window with 72 small panes.
I love that window , but I sure do hate cleaning it.

* Making Pine Needle Tea *

I made my tea from the white pine tree , Judie I don't think it is as strong as other pines , although you can use them too.
Kelly I just picked the fresh pine needles and used my kitchen shears to snip them. I used a coffee filter to hold the snipped needles and then twisted the top of filter and tied it with string.
I boiled some water while I was preparing the needles , poured hot water over the tea bag and let it seep for 5 to 10 minutes. It didn't taste strong to me. I have been drinking a few cups everyday over the last week or so. I feel better , but I still have some congestion and it is helping to expel it.



Hope this answered your questions.

Pine Needle Tea ~~~ Congestion ~~~ Crazy

My hubby said , people would think I was crazzeee. I made some white pine needle tea last week when I was sick. Cherokee people believed it was sacred medicine , good for congestion and breathing problems. I had never tried it before , but decided I should , if it was good for my ancestors , it should be good for me. I was impressed with the tea , it definitely brought up the congestion and helped with shortness of breath.

My family has been looking at me strange lately , as I try these natural herbs.
I do believe the creator created these plants to help us and we need to get back to the natural way.

So , people might think I'm crazy , but I feel so much better.

I've been working on my mermaid swap this morning. I've got my mermaid completed , now I've got to make a ATC.

I'm headed to the kitchen to pickle some more peppers and make some white pine needle vinegar.

Just call me Crazzeee !!

O.k. , so Curious J started pre-school last week and I've been sick every since. I'm just starting to feel better. I missed my first Wild , Edible and Medicinal Plants class , the 1st class was last Thur and I awoke with a fever that day. The class is every other week , so maybe I can start next week.

The only thing left in the garden are jalapenos peppers , the deer ate the okra last week. They also ate the bell peppers , banana peppers and cheyenne peppers. I couldn't believe they ate the cheyenne , but they did. I saw a mother and two young ones grazing in the garden last week , I guess the young ones ate those peppers. I bet they were running for water. Hot ~ Hot ~ Hot !
I received my seed garlic last week. I ordered it from Hood River Garlic , you can check them out at www.hoodrivergarlic.com . This will be my first time planting garlic , I will start preparing the beds in the next two weeks. The garlic will be planted around the end of Oct. Hope it does well.

Wishing Ms. Judiemacawhead and Janet a very Happy Birthday !!!

This weekend we will be closing the pool up for the winter , good-bye summer - hello to Fall.

Hope your week-end is blessed with happiness !!

Busy Week ~~~ Need another Vacation !!

I started this post last week and never finished it. My oldest daughter and her husband have been staying at my house while they do some remodeling. It has been hard to find a quiet moment to blog. So I'm posting what I started last week , I saved it and was going to take some pics but my batteries were dead in the digital camera and I had to charge them. Then I didn't get a chance to take the pics or get to the computer.
It was a very busy Labor Day weekend. On Saturday , my daughters , sister-in-law and I went to some yard sales. We only found 2 , one was being held at The Performing Arts School , wish we would have got there earlier. They had arts and crafts items , very good prices. The second yard sale had plus size maternity , my youngest daughter got a few items there. We also found a great children's consignment shop called " Kid to Kid ". I bought Jake a pair of swimming trunks for next year , two outfits for the grandbabies that will be here before long and a little mermaid swimsuit for Ayla. I also found Ayla a halloween sleeper , it is orange with spiders and said " Silly Spiders " , it's very cute.

On Sunday we had a cookout for my Mom's birthday. Her birthday was August 28th , but we decided to wait and cookout the weekend.
Monday we went to a birthday party for my 2 nephews , they had birthdays on the 2nd and 5th of Sept.

Tuesday , I was up at 5:00 a.m. , I had to take my sister to the hospital , she was scheduled for surgery at 6:15 a.m. She had a complete hysterectomy. They found some cancerous cells on her uterus a month ago.
The surgery went well and they believe they got all the cells. Hopefully , she will heal and be cancer free. She came home yesterday and is starting the healing phase.
Mom and I cooked dinner for her last night. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayer.

~~ Seashells ~~

I picked up many seashells , while at the beach. I love their colors , different textures and natural beauty. I have a huge collection.

While we were browsing the antique store , I spotted a planter that had been tiled with broken china pieces , marbles and old jewelry , it was beautiful.
It inspired me ..... I decided that I would try one with shells , driftwood , sea glass and other items I've collected over the years.
But when I got home , I realized there was something else I wanted to do with the shells. I have an old wooden counter , that we've been using as a bar outside on the patio and I decided to tile it with the shells.

I had planned to redo the outdoor furniture this past spring , but never got to it. I'm hoping this project will give me the kick start I need. I have started gluing the shells in place , then I will grout it and seal it. I will show you some photos as I go along with this project.

Hope your day is great , full of creativity and love !!

Count Your Blessings Monday

On this Monday I'm counting my blessings. Check out Marci .......................at http://amazinggrazefarm.blogspot.com/ for more info on Count Your Blessings Monday. I wish I knew how to make the link clickable , feel free to tell me if you know. I'm thankful for the herb Echinacea also known as purple cone flower featured in the photo above. We had a birthday party for my grandson on August 5th and something flew down my swimsuit and stung me on the breast. I never saw what it was. I'm not allergic to bee stings , but for some reason I developed an infection. I started taking my echinacea about two weeks ago and it is finally healing. Last year I bought the herbal plant , echinacea and planted it. It didn't grow very well in the spot I planted it , so I moved it in the spring and it has did better. You need to wait 2 years , before harvesting. Next year I plan to make my own tincture from my plant. I'm so thankful for this special herb the creator has blessed us with.
We were blessed with some much needed rain last night also. Thank-You to the creator for these wonderful blessings !!!

** ~ Oak Island Adventures ~ **

I'm back from a much needed vacation. We left last Friday for Oak Island. My SIL , her BF , Ayla , Jake , hubby and myself , arrived Friday night , turned the a.c. on and went out to eat chinese for dinner.

Saturday we rode to Holden Beach to visit my brother , spent the afternoon by the pool and went to Joe's Barbecue for dinner. I had catfish and shrimp , it was delicious. Jake loves buttons (shrimp) , we don't know why , but for some reason he calls shrimp , buttons (LOL).

Sunday , I babysit Ayla for my SIL , so they could go to the beach for awhile. She's a very good baby. My SIL and her BF left for home that afternoon.
My youngest daughter and her BF came down Sunday evening . Jake was excited to see Mom and Dad. We went to the beach and enjoyed watching Jake explore the ocean and the beautiful sunset.

On Monday we took Jake to visit the Oak Island Nature Center. It is built near the marshes , so we explored some and went inside to see the animals. They take injured wildlife and pets that are no longer wanted.
After we left the nature center , we stopped for homemade ice cream. It was a gift shop , but outside they served ice cream from a small trailer. They had it decorated tropically and Jimmy Buffet playing all the time.
They called this little paradise * The Leaky Tiki *. Jake wanted pink ice cream (strawberry) and ate the whole scoop , then announced he was ready for chocolate (LOL).

My brother grilled a feast for us on Monday night , hamburgers , hotdogs for Curious Jake , ribs , garlic bread , peppers and onions , red potatoes all cooked on the grill. He's a great cook and it was all delicious , I bet I gained a pound or two.
We where going to go fishing Monday morning , but the ocean was rough from the storm.

Tuesday we decided to checkout the antique shops and thrift stores. We also took Jake to the small airport to watch the planes take off and land. Jake was fascinated with the airplanes.
Jake wasn't thrilled about shopping , but the antique store had a shop cat and she held his attention. He loves cats , I have two cats and he chases them and tries to torture them when he can. But they love him , when he was sick , they stayed near him , even napping with him. Most of the time they keep their distance.
I bought a 50's chicken motif bill/letter holder , my kitchen is decorated with chickens and vintage 50's items.
We took Jake for that chocolate ice cream he wanted the day before and to the beach that afternoon . I picked up some driftwood and shells.
Later that evening we went to play putt-putt , this was Jake's first time playing putt-putt. He was so cute , he would take the ball and sit it next to the hole and knock it in. Hole in one everytime (LOL).

Wednesday morning , my daughter and I went to the beach early and picked up shells. I will share more about what I plan to do with the shells this week.

It was wonderful to get away and enjoy some new scenery. I enjoyed the quiet mornings , when everyone else was sleeping. I did some sketching and reading. I started reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron w/ Mark Bryan , great book to help with that inner critic. Some of the glitter girls have spoke about this book and recommended it. I found it a couple of weeks ago at a thrift store , a great book at a great price.

Will share more about the trip and art this week.
Hope everyone is doing well and THANK-YOU for the wonderful birthday wishes.

**** Happy Hugs ****