Wintering

 Hello dear friends!  Did those of you in the U.S. have a nice Thanksgiving?  As usual, we held our "feast"  when the turkey defrosted, about mid-November.  And can you believe it?! I didn't can any turkey this year, although my conscience bothered me greatly that I was passing up meat at forty-nine cents a pound. Ha! I did however take advantage of cranberries being on sale and canned several jars of relish, so we are good on the cranberry relish for for the next couple of years.  And I bought twelve pounds of butter at $2.49/lb., enough for a year. (I restrict our butter consumption to one pound per month.) Well, anyway, enough about bargain shopping!

We went from very autumnal landscape:

To winter:

In a matter of twenty-four hours.  How I love living where I can experience four distinctive seasons! I would hate to live somewhere that is perpetually summer and have no desire garden all year round.  I need my wintering time, a time to be creative.

November has been a very creative month.  I finished my cardigan from The Country Diary Crafts book, that I felt I was endlessly knitting. 

I know, it is not the best picture, and I hadn't blocked it when before photographing it.

Well, this picture wasn't supposed to happen. Ha!  Guess we're just stuck with it, as I can't seem to delete it.  Anyway, it's a nice cozy sweater and if you are looking for a practical shawl-collared cardigan to knit, it's a fairly easy and straightforward pattern. After I finished it, I was determined not to start any long-term projects, so I busied myself with what I call mindless knitting; little things such as  scarves and mittens and caps, things that can be made while holding conversations.  I quickly got bored with that! So I cross-stitched this holly sampler:

It was an awkward size and I couldn't find a frame for it, so I made it into a wall pocket to hold Christmas cards, not that I receive any. Ah well, I get too nostalgic this time of year and start longing for how things "used to be".  A sign of being old is when you start yearning for the past.

Speaking of old, this old dog was taught a new trick! I'm learning the old Germany craft of making spun-cotton ornaments.

I learned how to make the mushrooms from a tutorial on YouTube. It's a rather fun, albeit messy craft.  As if I need any new hobbies!  I had almost all the supplies on hand, so I figured I might as well give it a go.  

Whilst I was "creating" Ran caught the creative bug and made a cupboard for the top of our pot cupboard from an old window we picked up off the street.

I display some of my more prized antiques in it. It's a pretty good representation of the things I collect: mochaware, stoneware, redware, Bennington Pottery and treen. I was born in the wrong era.

My Christmas cactus is telling me it's winter.

Don't you ever wonder how they know when to bloom?  It's like clockwork. One of those wonderful mysteries of how the world was created, that I really don't care to hear the scientific explanation of, it's more fun just to be in awe of it all. Oh!  That reminds me!  A few days ago, I looked out the window just in time to catch a glimpse of a red globe, streaking across the sky.  Well, it wasn't exactly streaking like falling star, somewhat slower.  The next day, it was the talk of town about the meteor that fell into Lake Huron in my hometown.  I cannot believe I captured a sight of it!  

Well, that is where I've been this November; sitting by the fire knitting and sewing.  I do not lead an exciting life, there isn't much to say.  I love it.  It is peaceful.  I have a relative that complained that I do not share enough about my life with her.  She's convinced I'm holding out. But how many times can I say I worked in the garden and canned, made meals, cleaned and sat down to a few hours of knitting.  Went to bed and got up and did it all over again.  The most exciting thing in my life is finding a bargain. Ha! I had enough drama in my youth.  Now I work to make my home the most serene place this side of Heaven.  I don't even like to decorate in bright colors!

Everyday, sometime between two and three, we gather around the dining room table and have coffee and maybe a snack.  Today I made pumpkin donuts holes.  Warm donuts and a cup of coffee after being out in the cold shoveling seems just so New England-ly old-fashioned to me.  Just need a pot belly stove to warm our feet on and some old radio Christmas music in the background.  Do you try to recreate scenarios like that in your home?  Or is it just some more of my romantical nonsense?  

Pumpkin Donut Drops

1 1/2 C. flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 C. sugar

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ginger

1 egg

1/2 C. pumpkin

1/4 C. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

oil for frying

Combine the dry ingredients

Combine the egg, pumpkin, milk and vanilla. 

Pour into the flour mixture. Stir just until moistened.

Pour oil to depth of 2 inches into a heavy cast iron skillet.  Heat to 375 degrees.

Carefully drop batter by spoonfuls into oil. Fry until golden brown, turning once.

Drain well.  Roll in cinnamon sugar while still warm.

Or make a glaze of confectioners' sugar and milk and dip in that.

I made this with a wheat flour substitute and they turned out fine, but I had to add more milk to the batter.  The batter should be somewhat like a muffin batter. 

So that's it for November!  Hope this post finds you all safe and well!

Hugs

Jane