Scents

We all know how important it is to be able to

smell, taste, see, hear, and feel.

Never have I been so thankful for my sense of smell and taste as these past few weeks!

For 8-9 days, while fighting a very nasty virus (that hung on for 3+ weeks)

I had completely lost my sense of smell and taste!!

I have to admit, it scared me and I prayed for healing.

Of course, the more I read about losing ones sense of smell the more worried I became.

It IS possible for a virus to have this happen!

I would rub peppermint oil on my hands and cup them over my nose, only to be 

disappointed day after day with not even a hint of smell.

I stuck my nose right into the lilacs and the lily of the valley - nothing!

I had no idea how much I missed being able to smell these beautiful flowers - even though

they would normally have been a touch too strong for me.

Thankfully, I slowly regained my sense of taste and then smell.

I was so thankful - and savoured every aroma of coffee, bread baking,

and of course the beautiful fragrances of all the flowers around this old farm.

They all seem to be blooming at once during this heat wave we are experiencing.

The Poppies and Bachelor Buttons

The soft scented Iris

The white Peonies that came with this farm - 38 years ago!

The fragrant pink Peonies from my Mother In Law's garden

My little love bug

Oh, how blessed I feel to have regained it all!

Thank you Jesus.

I truly never imagined how devastating this would have been.

This past weekend we had the privilege of attending our former neighbour's 50th

Wedding Anniversary celebration ....

I was so happy to enjoy the taste of these "flowers" made by their daughter.

Aren't they lovely?

Till next time ...... stop and smell the flowers and taste all the goodness this wonderful life has to offer!

Now to work on my slight loss of hearing and my short sightedness - eek!

P.S. - Today, June 13th, my dear Mom would have turned 101 years old. Miss her every day!

Mom with my brother - trying to get the horse to yawn so they could
get the bridal on - smile!!!

Family Picnic 2017

First Sunday in June is usually our Family Picnic time!

This is my side of the famjam and we are a very large group when 

everyone is together (upwards of 60 or so).
Our attendance this year was 37 - still a great turn out!

The old tent was up, the weather was holding and we were as ready as we could be

to welcome those who could come.

The theme was "let's celebrate Canada"

After all, this is Canada's 150th birthday year!!

The visiting went on during

the pot-luck picnic!

There was SO much good food and

of course, I didn't get pictures of the feast. There was pulled pork, pulled chicken, amazing salads, meat balls, croissant sandwiches, veggie trays, Kentucky Fried Chicken, baked beans and oh so much more ...

This bunch sure knows how to cook!

Sweet Kate was the youngest addition to the Gerber Family.
She's adorable!

Relaxing under the Apple Tree

Did I mention dessert? Oh my!!

There were butter tarts (of course), maple leaf cookies (of course),

brownies, watermelon, amazing pie, rhubarb dessert (recipe link below), and more!!!

Whew, we were filled to the brim.

Soon after dessert when the adults were FINALLY finished eating,

the farmer beckoned the children to a hayride.

All aboard!

And off they went - out the "bush lane" as we call it.

Noa came too and was greeted by some adoring cousins.

Sister with her daughter-in-law, looking at an old family picture album.

This is why we take pictures - so we can share and remember - right?

Nephew Matthew always entertains us - our very own "famjamboree".

Cousins doing some "catching up" and enjoying the little ones!

Bubbles!

She loves bubbles.

Dads teasing!!!

An absolute joy to see my siblings, their children and their grandchildren

on this lovely sunshiny day on the farm.

The farmer and I want this old farm to be a welcoming place and are so very 

blessed to be able to share it with family and friends.

This rhubarb dessert recipe was posted a few years ago on this post:

Till next time ......... celebrate!

In the Bulb There Is a Flower ...

It was our privilege to attend our nation's capital tulip festival

A special tulip bulb was developed to help celebrate Canada's 150 Birthday.

We encountered this amazing engineered bulb in amongst so many of the tulip beds.

Can you see the red Maple Leaf in the tulip? Amazing!

Painted tulip statues at Lansdowne Park

Canada Children's Tulip Garden - sponsored by Home Hardware. Delightful!

I was definitely in my happy place, tip toeing through these tulip beds!

Tulip time spent with good friends. 

We even found a tulip quilt - love it!

One of my favourite hymns by Natalie Sleeth

just seemed so fitting for this post!

1. In the bulb there is a flower,
in the seed, an apple tree,
in cocoons, a hidden promise:
butterflies will soon be free!
In the cold and snow of winter
there's a spring that waits to be,
unrevealed until its season,
something God alone can see.

2. There's a song in every silence,
seeking word and melody;
there's a dawn in every darkness,
bringing hope to you and me.
From the past will come the future;
what it holds, a mystery,
unrevealed until its season,
something God alone can see.

3. In our end is our beginning,
in our time, infinity;
in our doubt there is believing,
in our life, eternity,
in our death, a resurrection,
at the last, a victory,
unrevealed until its season,
something God alone can see.

Meanwhile back at the homestead - my favourite tulip of all!

Till next time ... it was worth the 6 hour drive to Ottawa, Ontario, Canada!!!

Face Time

I don't have much of a "beauty" regime but thought

I'd share a few of my favourite things ...

I need all the help I can get at this age 😎

For many years (starting in my late teens) I used a wonderful

facial cleanser from a company called Allouette.

The product had aloe vera in it and I loved it.

However, over time (quite a long time and into my 30s) I developed

an allergy to aloe vera.

My eye lids would swell up and get chaffed and it took a while to 

realize that the aloe vera was the problem.

To this day I need to be careful not to buy certain products and shampoos

that contain aloe.

After experimenting with some expensive hypoallergenic skin care

products I discovered this locally made skin care line

Cocoon Apothecary

and have been loving it ever since.

It's made with totally natural ingredients and can be purchased retail,

not through a consultant at a home party!

Also comes in small travel size containers - bonus!

I'm pretty lazy when it comes to any sort of regime (especially at bedtime),

but I use these products almost every day.

My make-up is bare minimum and hasn't changed much since high school - eek!

I rarely ever (probably no more than 5 times in my life) use overall base make up,

but I do like to give my eyes and cheeks a little help!

Marcelle eye shadow quad, Covergirl eye enhancers, Loreal mascara,

and Loreal felt tip liquid eye liner are my go to.

For the cheeks - a quick dab of Marcelle Cream Blush does the trick.

My lips need some help too and for that I make my own lip balm.

I posted about it here.

When I want to be a little "fancier" I like to use a dab or two

of lipstick as well.

This process takes me literally only about 3-5 minutes a day!

That's about it for this old gal.

Some time I should bite the bullet and have a make-up consultation at a 

beauty shop and see if I could change my old habits for some new ideas?

Perhaps they've developed an "airbrush look" technique by now!

Have you ever had your make-up done professionally and how did you like it?

My next "beauty" hurtle will be to make a decision about my hair.

To Dye or Not To Dye - That is the Question??

Till next time..... trying to keep it real.

Soggy May Days

In April I posted an "April Winter" post.

It seems that May has begun with a similar theme although

so far it's not snow.

It's just buckets of rain!!!!

Well, the good that has come of all this soggyness is that I hauled out my

sewing machine again and with determination, continued

working on that quilt!

I really had to keep my wits about me with this project!

It was a bit like a puzzle to put together once all the blocks were pieced.

As of an hour ago - IT IS PIECED and ASSEMBLED!!!!

So, I'm just a tiny bit thankful for these past few rainy days.

A chance to keep working on the quilt before I forgot how to read the complicated instructions.

I think I'm going to love it once it's bordered and quilted.

Till next time ........ longing for sunny skies and cleaning up all the loose threads.

Family Easter Traditions

Easter is a time for reflecting and remembering the

greatest sacrifice of all!

As a small child I remember my father calling us all

(8 children + my mom) into our living room.

There he read to us from the Bible, the Easter Story,

followed by having us all kneel as he said a very long prayer

(or at least it seemed very long to us at the time).

My parents would spend long hours at church where they

practiced confession, fasting, holy communion and prayer.

Us little ones usually stayed at home with one or two of our older siblings

during those services.

Even though I don't recall too much about those times I had a strong sense

that Easter was a sobering time as Christ's crucifixion and resurrection were

observed with much humility and honour.

Special food was prepared for Easter Sunday and the "Easter Bunny"

came to fill up our winter hats and toques with chocolate and small gifts.

Over the years we have made new traditions and added some new

foods to the Easter table.

Here are a few of my favourites:

Easter Dinner is usually a roasted "Bone In" ham with buttery scalloped potatoes, coleslaw, mixed vegetables, homemade mustard, fresh baked bread, and lots of desserts!

Onion skin dyed eggs were and still are a family tradition.

My mother's table usually included a red kidney bean salad with sliced hard boiled eggs on top. It was always served in a green glass bowl.

My Mom would often serve her freshly made donuts (fetkucha) that were served with the season's fresh maple syrup. Always a wonderful treat. Another favourite was Mom's yeast coffee cakes, sprinkled with cinnamon and coarse sugar. Several of my siblings still make these each year.

The last few years I have adopted a Russian Mennonite tradition of baking Paska Easter Bread. It is so delicious and has a very good chance of remaining our wee family's tradition for years to come, especially when we've added a Swiss Mennonite twist by dunking this delicious bread into maple syrup.

Another little tradition I've adopted is making a Polish Butter Lamb. My Mom ordered these from our neighbour for each of our wedding tables - a bygone Amish Mennonite tradition.

My sister and brother-in-law have hosted the Leis Family Easter dinner on Good Friday for many years. A delicious Easter Ham, bbq'd farmer's sausage, scalloped potatoes, pineapple rings, sweet corn, and a broccoli casserole is always served. The "pot-luck" salads and desserts are amazing and delicious.

Angela's adorable stuffed egg bunnies!

Our immediate family dinner was on Easter Sunday

and we had the joy of having them here for the very first Easter since 

they have moved back to Ontario!!

Daffodils were picked,

"eegs" were hunted and gleefully found - even during the meal blessing!

So much fun ....

Till next time ........ eating lots of left-overs and feeling blessed!

Whoopie Pies

Apparently Whoopie Pies are considered an Amish Mennonite dessert/cookie/cake

and recipes for them appear in many Mennonite cookbooks.

I don't recall my mom ever making these but they truly are delicious.

I was inspired to make some for our Easter gathering and for

an upcoming curling banquet - they sort of look like curling rocks, right?

Here is the recipe I used:

(It comes from the "Stack Your Dishes" recipe book published

by Conrad Grebel University College)

Whoopie Pies

Makes approx. 35 whoopie pies

1 Cup shortening

2 Cups sugar

2 eggs

1 Cup sour milk - I used Buttermilk

2 tsp. vanilla

4 Cups All-purpose Flour

1 Cup Cocoa Powder

2 tsp. salt

1 Cup hot water mixed with 2 tsp. Baking Soda

Blend the shortening, sugar and eggs. Add the milk and vanilla. Mix together the flour, cocoa and salt and blend into the wet ingredients. Dissolve baking soda in the hot water and add to the creamed mixture - beating till smooth. Chill the batter for a few hours (I chilled mine for 1 hour). Drop by tablespoonful (or use a cookie dough scoop for consistent size) onto greased or parchment lined baking sheets. Bake at 400F for 8 to 10 minutes. They puff up nicely into soft muffin top shapes. Cool completely.

Traditional Filling:

1 1/2 Cups shortening

6 Cups icing sugar

1 Tbsp. vanilla

Milk to moisten

My Filling:

I couldn't bring myself to make a filling with that much shortening and icing sugar so I found this recipe that worked great and tastes wonderful:

2 egg whites (I used pasteurized liquid egg whites since raw egg whites are not recommended for small children)

I will be using this for my Paska Spread as well.

2 Tbsp. vanilla

4 Tbsp. All-purpose flour

4 Tbsp. milk (I used light coffee cream)

4 Cups icing sugar - divided

1 1/2 Cups butter - softened

Beat egg whites till stiff. Mix in the vanilla, flour, milk, and 2 Cups of the icing sugar. Cream for 2 minutes. Add the butter and remaining 2 Cups of icing sugar. Beat until fluffy. When cakes are completely cool, spoon or pipe filling onto half the cakes, cover with the remaining cakes to make a "sandwich". They freeze well.

Today I also buckled down and finally baked the Easter bread (Paska).

I used Lovella's recipe from The Mennonite Girls Can Cook.

I think it's famous!!!

Post update - here are the finished "rocks" (I don't think anyone recognized
them as curling rocks - sigh...) I could use some decorating tips!

Till next time ........ preparing my heart for Easter.