Hodgepodging Fall-Turning-To-Winter-Way-Too-Soon

Near Ontario, Wisconsin

on our Driftless trip to SW Wisconsin

Join Joyce and the Gang

for

 

 She writes the questions;

we write the answers.

Plug them into your own blog post

and join in!

 

 

Barn north of Wausau, WI

last week

 

Thanks, Joyce!!

 

1. Just your weekly mid-week reminder that it's fall y'all and it's my favorite. I love nearly all the flavors of fall but let's weigh in with an either or today...pumpkin or cranberry? hot apple cider or pumpkin spice latte? cinammon or maple? apple or pear? ginger or sage? carrot or butternut squash? Yes you have to choose. What's a favorite dish made with one of the flavors listed here? 

 

Well, I feel like a traitor to my own Cranberry Morning name!, but if it's muffins or pie we're talking about, then it would be pumpkin. Neither cider nor latte, please. Cinnamon over maple. Apple over pear. Ginger and sage, a tie, depending upon what it's used for. Butternut squash over carrot. A favorite dish would be sage stuffing for Thanksgiving or butternut squash soup, but I rarely make that because it doesn't have any natural boundaries - a category of dangerous food, in my experience.

 

York Minster

 

2. Do you miss traveling? In this season of almost no travel do you think you've grown anxious or fearful about traveling again? Or has all this staying home not going anywhere made you restless to get out and see the world? What book have you read or what movie have you watched that has inspired you to travel? 

 Yes, I do miss traveling. And I'm not at all fearful about traveling again. I'm eager. I read Rick Steves books which always make me itchy to travel, but mostly just looking at photos from previous trips - like the two above when we've visited York. We tend to go back to the same places we love. And watching the live Enthronement of the 98th Archbishop of York on YouTube on Sunday made me even more eager to return. There's nothing like Evensong in York Minster or Canterbury Cathedral or Gloucester Cathedral or Durham Cathedral or... (I know, there's a theme here.)

Some weeks are just like that.

3. A time you felt like you were 'flying by the seat of your pants'? Explain. 

I'm just not a 'fly by the seat of your pants' kind of person.

 

4. Do you struggle with road rage or are you more of a 'Sunday driver'? Do you like to be 'in the driver's seat (literally and/or figuratively speaking) ?

I'm not a road rage kind of person. I actually prefer not driving at all, but being in the passenger seat, reading a book. I'm better at reading aloud than driving aloud.

Snow. Early Thanksgiving, October 14, 2018

Grandkids and daughter-in-law

at the farm

5. Something you've recently 'put the brakes on'? 

 

Well, something I'm always thinking about putting the brakes on: my sugar intake. Sometimes I do great. Then again, other times not so great. The other day I purchased this microscopic Nut Goodie (made in St. Paul, MN) to send to my brother, who lives in Denver. It's one of his favorites. But what caught my eye at the store was the fact that the Nut Goodie has shrunk in size, from about 4" across to about 2.5" across, and in my candy-eating years has increased from 10 cents to 79 cents. I decided it wasn't worth mailing, so I ate it myself. :-(

 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I thought this was pretty funny. It's a screenshot from my phone, when I was checking on the weather the other day.  Funny, because "Error. Something went wrong" is pretty much how I would describe winter in general. And by the way, we're getting snow today. That part isn't funny.

 

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!

Join me on Instagram: @cranberrymorning

 Judy 

Quotation from our church bulletin,

October 18, 2020

Zion Lutheran Wausau

(my photo taken in our neighborhood)

 

 

Bits of Life Wednesday - Hodgepodge

It's as though the mare turned and said,
'Stand up, Honey! Can't you see she's taking our picture?!'

Who? Where??

They're Percherons, I believe, such beautiful draft horses!

I found the following bit of information interesting: (from Wikipedia)

"The Percheron is a breed of draft horse that originated in the Huisne river valley in western France, part of the former Perche province from which the breed takes its name. Usually gray or black in color, Percherons are well muscled, and known for their intelligence and willingness to work. Although their exact origins are unknown, the ancestors of the breed were present in the valley by the 17th century. They were originally bred for use as war horses. Over time, they began to be used for pulling stagecoaches and later for agriculture and hauling heavy goods. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Arabian blood was added to the breed. Exports of Percherons from France to the United States and other countries rose exponentially in the late 19th century, and the first purely Percheron stud book was created in France in 1883." 

Join Joyce and the Gang

for

 She writes the questions;

we write the answers.

Plug them into their own blog

and join in!

1. What has been the highlight of your summer so far? (It's still summer people!)

It might still be summer in your neck of the woods, but it's looking VERY like fall up here in NW Wisconsin. Soybeans are turning yellow, corn is ripe, sumac is turning red, the petunias are very leggy, etc.  And are we ever getting the rain!

But the highlight of our summer would have to be the birth of our FIRST GREAT GRANDCHILD:

Sweet P

2. What do you wish you'd done more of this summer? Less of?

I wish I'd spent more time at any of Wisconsin's 15,000 lakes. I wish I'd thought less about sorting through books and downsizing and how I should be doing more of it but wasn't. We spent good times with our two daughters' families, one in Wausau and the other in Madison, enjoyed birthday parties for a couple grandkids, a big family reunion, and the week that two of our grandsons were here with us.

Two very special grandsons!

Lake Mendota

at

UW Madison

3. Something you're looking forward to on your September calendar?

There's nothing specific on our September calendar except for dental appointments, but September, if it can get this rain out of its system pretty soon, should be a beautiful month. It usually is, and we typically get beautiful sunrises in September. I'm looking forward to the drier air (my hair will be so happy!), the cool and crisp of fall, and of course the color of God's landscape!

 A September morning in 2014

And I will be planning our October 13 'Early Thanksgiving.' We're hoping to get the whole family together, here, for that.

4. Best/favorite book you've read this summer?

My TWO favorites (in this order) would be 'Four Witnesses' by Rod Bennett, which I would encourage everyone to read:

and...

'Olivia the Spy,' by Ian Falconer,  Kindle version purchased while visiting grandkids. :-) (which I would encourage everyone to read aloud to their grandkids!)

5. Share something positive, encouraging, or uplifting here.

There is nothing more positive, encouraging, and uplifting that I can think of, than knowing that God, the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe loves me, is merciful, forgiving, and in control of all things. And that Jesus is the exact representation of God (because he IS God). It is a great truth that we need to keep in mind when the world seems to be going crazy around us.

“Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:18-19  

  “'For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.  Do not be afraid, for I myself will help you,' declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” ~ Isaiah 41:13-14

The Lord is My Light and My Salvation
based upon Psalm 27 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the amazing Joyce for her dedication to Wednesday Hodgepodge for all these years! That was incredible commitment, Joyce, and we're grateful that you gave us something to write about with such interesting/clever questions. I jumped onto the Hodgepodge bandwagon quite late, but when I did, I found it to be a great place to meet other bloggers, read their take on the questions, and have that special Wednesday post we all loved. Thank you, Joyce! Enjoy your new home, lake, and that darling grandson!

Tommy & Smokey say HI!

enjoying the morning sunshine

***

Check out my natural, handcrafted vegan soap!
Buy any 5 or more, Get 1 FREE

Pumpkin Spice

(You knew it was coming, didn't you!)

Natural Vegan Soap

...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at
 
HomemadeSoapNSuch


and at


Our ETSY Shop

Have a great Wednesday!

Join me on Instagram: @cranberrymorning

Hodgepodging the End of Autumn

My lone fall decoration


Join Joyce and the Gang
for

She writes the questions;

we write the answers.

Plug them into your own blog post

and Join In!

Thank you to Joyce who always
provides this fun Hodgepodge for us!

1. What does/did Halloween look like at your house this year? Did you decorate? Pick pumpkins? Carve pumpkins? Expect trick or treaters? Wear a costume to a party or event? Make a costume? Feel glad you didn't have to come up with a costume? Cook a Halloween themed treat? Eat all the leftover candy?

Halloween is pretty uneventful at our house. I have one fall decoration (see photo above), not Halloween, didn't carve pumpkins, but I did pick the squash that was in the garden and brought it in so that it wouldn't freeze. Does that count? No costume, no Halloween-themed treat. We did get some bags of candy, which undoubtedly will be eaten this weekend rather than tonight (It's Halloween night as I write this, and usually no one shows up. I wonder why. Out in the middle of nowhere, long driveway, bats and lightning...), when the family is all here for our Early Thanksgiving.

An ancient photo of our third son (now 29 years old)

as we celebrated Reformation Day 

He was way cuter than Martin Luther.

The most ghostly photo I have in my files

Shaughan Seymour on a London ghost walk

2. What are you waiting for? Elaborate

Right now I'm waiting for ambition :-) The family is coming here for an Early Thanksgiving this weekend, and I have a lot to get done. And I know, waiting for ambition is not the most profitable way to go about it. I think I'll have a coffee and cookie and most likely things will improve.

3. Do you wish you were friendlier, braver, more creative, more athletic, or something else? Explain.

I wish I were more generous. I'm working on it. With lots of daily prayer. And practice. I used to pray for patience, but it didn't happen fast enough. ;-) I do think our prayers are answered, probably never as fast as we want or necessarily in the way we want. Praying for God's will to be done is a lot different than praying that our will be done and God set his stamp of approval on it.

Our wonderful Dragon Wing Begonias

hung on until the bitter end,

which came just a few nights ago.

They gave us almost five months of lush beauty.

I reminded Mr. C. of this fact because they're

also the most expensive plant we buy in late May.

But they're worth every penny.

(I'd rather you didn't ask his opinion on this)

4. When it comes time to paint are you a do-it-yourselfer or do you hire someone? What was the last paint job completed at your house? What room most needs painting now? How do you feel about wallpaper?

I'm a do-it-myselfer, which means that the last paint job completed at our house is in my distant memory. Almost every room in our house could use fresh paint. How I feel about wallpaper?? Don't believe it when you read that you can size your walls and later the wallpaper will peel off when you go to replace it. That is a LIE!!  I'm still not sure what I'm going to do about the wallpaper in our bedroom/bathroom, and if I could be certain that trends of the mid 1980s would return sometime soon, I'd probably do nothing (although it's hideous). I know that wallpaper will come off a speck at a time with great effort, so I'm tempted to paint over it. Or maybe wallpaper (shudder!!!) over it with something less obnoxious. Does anyone paint over wallpaper?

 Me in my painting duds

I don't dare disclose to you how long ago this photo was taken!

You might hate peppered red, but I love it in our library.

That board on the wall, by the way, is where we hang our huge set of roll-down world history maps.

 Most of that red wall is covered by white bookshelves now.

5. What is one specific thing you felt gratitude for in the month of October?

I've been grateful for many things in the month of October. Family, for sure. And then the opportunity to worship the Lord of the Universe in various cathedrals in England. They always put me in mind of how small I am and how great God is, and inspire awe for our risen King.

 Southwark Cathedral, London

6.  Insert your own random thought here. 

 Our nearest village (2 mi)

Photo from October of 2013

 And now I'd better get busy and declutter, clean, tidy, and get the food preparation underway. I'm definitely looking forward to the family being here for Early Thanksgiving!

 ***

CHRISTMAS 2017 COLLECTION SALE

 Now at HomemadeSoapnSuch.com 

and at

HomemadeSoapnSuch.Etsy.com 

$38 per eight-bar Christmas 2017 Collection

That's a dollar-per-bar savings off the usual price.
$6.80 Priority Shipping - US Addresses

All natural, vegan soap bars are individually labeled and wrapped,

ready for gifting.

...and more! Check out all my natural, handcrafted soaps at
 
HomemadeSoapNSuch


and at


Our ETSY Shop

Join me on Instagram: @cranberrymorning 

You might enjoy the video of Tommy. :-)

Photo taken last March

I miss this stage.

Now they're both acting like teenagers.

Hodgepodging Another Birthday and Autumn

September 4, 2017

Join Joyce and the Gang
for

 She writes the questions;

we write the answers.

Plug them into your own blog post

and join in!

1. When you think about your future what do you fear most? Hope for the most?

At some point, getting our farm ready to sell and moving is the thing I fear AND hope for the most.

2. September is National Chicken Month. How often is chicken on the menu at your house? What's a favorite dish made with chicken? What's something you're a 'chicken' about doing or trying?

Chicken is probably on our dinner menu at least twice a week. I love chicken stirfry, chicken penne pasta, chicken vegetable soup, baked chicken, etc. etc. I can't think of what I'm a chicken about at the moment.

It's starting to look very fallish around here.

I picked the wild catnip for kitty entertainment in the winter

The wonderful McIntosh apples from our persevering old tree

will become apple crisp by tomorrow night.

3. What are three things you don't own but wish you did?

A Tardis-style carry-on bag that totally packed weighs no more than 10 pounds. 2 ounces.

A refrigerator that's six feet wide and 1 foot deep.

A silent snowmobile.

Cute little calves and many calf hutches.

The other calves are off the photos.

4. Would you rather be a jack of all trades or a master of one? Elaborate.  If you answered one, which one?

I tend to be more a jack of all trades and master of none. At this point, I would like to be a master of one, but it reminds me, with a chuckle, of our oldest son who, upon hearing his younger sister play the violin (beautifully, I might add) said,

'I'd do anything to be able to play like that.

Well, anything but practice.' 

5. Ketchup or mustard? On what?

Coarse, dark, and spicy mustard - on a burger or chicken sausage. No yellow French's mustard, please.

6.  Insert your own random thought here. 

Over the weekend we were at another grandson's birthday. He is now seven years old and just started school yesterday. He's a fun kid, and made sure that I knew the names of his seven Angry Birds before I left to go home.

 7 little angry birds
and I can name them,
but I have no idea what they're angry about

 A sweet and fun grandson

***

Check out my natural, handcrafted vegan soap!
Buy any 5 or more, Get 1 FREE
 

Peppermint Tea
Natural Vegan Soap


...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at
 
HomemadeSoapNSuch

and at

Our ETSY Shop

Join me on Instagram: @cranberrymorning

Meet Audrey

 Meet Audrey

I know that I shouldn't name a cat that someone obviously dropped off at the end of our long driveway because they thought no one would notice until they were out of sight (which is true, of course), but this is such a sweet little cat, it seemed that she was at least deserving of a name. We think she is young, and we've already observed her hunting abilities, for she actually caught and ate a red squirrel, leaving only the bushy tail as evidence.

 I think the resemblance is in the eyes.

Do you see it?

(source)

Mr. Cranberry, the man who does not want to be tied down to animals, is the one who immediately started feeding her and giving her water. We're not quite sure what we're going to do about Audrey at this point. She rubbed up against the outside glass of the patio doors, and when Tuppence saw her, she became as a cat possessed, trying to kill the cat on the other side of the glass. I think there was enough reflection on that side that Audrey hardly noticed and went on being sweet natured as Tuppence went on trying to kill her.

At this point, we don't dare have the door to the screen porch open, or it's pretty certain that we'd have a huge cat fight and screen shredded to bits.

IF we keep Audrey (and you know it's harder to part with a sweet cat you've already named), we would have her spayed and then somehow, very slowly, introduce the two cats separated by doors and walls at first.

Anyway, that's the exciting news here at Lake Woebegone.

 Cornfields and bins

Other than that, it's been the beginning of the colorful northwoods for which NW Wisconsin is famous (among other things like serial killers, beer, and brats). I think peak color will be in a couple weeks, but we're getting a nice preview of coming attractions.

 Sumac and birch against a blue sky

What did I tell you?

***

Linked to Thursday's Favorite Things 

***

HomemadeSoapnSuch.com is open again!

Check out my natural, handcrafted vegan soap
Buy any 5 or more, Get 1 FREE 

 Enchanted
Moisturizing and gentle,
With a mild floral and oakmoss fragrance



...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at
 
HomemadeSoapNSuch
and at
Our ETSY Shop

Join me on Instagram: @cranberrymorning