I remember when

• when I was growing up
• in the fall we had a lot of hearty soups
• as there as so much to do
• bringing in the harvest=
• it was a basic vegtable
• soup but had a lot of interesting
• vegtables beyond potatoes and carrots
• mother mixed and matched with no qualms
• about how it all added up
• she was using all the small veggies
• that required little prep beyond a good wash
• as tthe tiny veggies were hard to keep during
• the winter but easy
• to use
• some times there was left over
• meat to add-
• mother did not have the extra time
• to fuss with any meat not already cooked
• we had a wood stove so it went out
• while she was cleaning up the garden
• and also on some of the nights when the soup
• was nearly done
• she would poach each of us an egg
• right in the soup=
• this was always a wonderful treat
• and we had home made
• bread to go with the soup
• no two soups turned out the same
• but they were all delicious
• huggles from Meme

so much to do

• lately as I have been busy catching up on last year's chores and this years chores and
• I am looking forward to limiting what I need to do- because
• this old gray mare is not what she used to be so I have to
• will try to find some new systems of doing things and keeping things
• also freeing my self of stuff so I will have less dusting and
• cleaning and make some space-
• to day I turned our coat cupboard into a pantry- with papa gone we have less need of the cupboard to hang coats and I can fit mine into my clothes closet-

I put in two shelves and moved all the canned food , boxes etc there so I do not have to get up

and down so much to find a can of soup or whatever- and the good things is that I can now see what we really have- cupboards down on the floor do not work well for food storage but it was all I had before.......

- now it is a new system for me-- I know that papa would be pleased with the new set up= I found it difficult and yet freeing- I left the hooks in there as now I can hang my non plastic shopping bags and find them easily - now I can start to eliminate plastic bags when shopping-it will also save wear and tear on my legs and back -

it is hard to make changes from the way things were when hubby was here but I also know that he would encourage me to do things to make my life better-he had a servant's heart-

hugs from Meme who will love some new ideas --

Simple happy thoughts

• tea is better hot unless it is iced
• teenagers cannot sit still unless they need to do a chore
• chips are good unless you have no teeth
• ice is bad for travel unless it is on the hockey rink
• two are better than one unless it is two medicines
• dishes are good to have unless they are dirty

simple things

1. the smell of oatmeal cooking with brown sugar
2. the south wind on a cool day
3. a walk through the leaves after they have dried
4. after eight chocolates
5. a song playing in the dark
6. a child's tiny hand reaching up
7. sunshine in my soul
8. a grandma's prayer
9. good character
10. word of mouth promise kept

huggles from our house to yours

food for thought

• I was thinking of the homeless kitchen today
• we used to work there before papa became sick
• it is in the city so now it istoo hard for me to go there
• but most of the meals we prepared
• were simple but hardy
• but the thank you for supper smiles were not
• there is nothing like watching some one who
• for some reason has no way to make their own supper
• come in and eat- it is a good thing
• and give back a smile
• I liked to watch their faces change from defeated
• to simple happiness
• I remember once finding a pair of socks for a man
• who had no socks and he was wearing boots a size to big
• I remember his smile--I remember his feet-
• broken down and old and tired but he
• still had a thank you - smile
• I wonder if perhaps I could smile more at the simple
• gifts that God gives me every day-
• smiles go beyond words
• give some one your smile today and ask
• them to pass it on,,,,,,,,,,
• :-)
• :-)
• huggles Meme

MY BIG LIST for thanksgiving dinner.......

I had a long list today but only time to get it on paper and I was able to scratch every thing off the list-
miss Ashley was a good help
now I am relaxing and recovering-I only have the roaster that is soaking to wash tomorrow and the house is back in order
- actually neater and cleaner than when we started out-
Miss Ashley stuffed her things in her room and shut the door......
now all we have to do is some how get miss Ashley back into her bed safely--LOL- it is her room and I never fuss about it to her- I just close the door too-- she is a good kid and her messy room is just her way of live --
we had a simple thanksgiving dinner with a lot of fun and kind of like a smorg and I found
that the simple gave me time to spend with the family-
simple celebration family meals is my new tradition .....as with out Papa David here; any more is too much for me.......
we missed dear Papa and laughed and cried about his kind ways- it was all good and he was missed -
huggless me, Meme

walking is simple

One of the simple forms of exercise is walking- and I am blessed that I can still walk.
As kids, my brother and I walked to our country school house nearly everyday
as the other kids in the district - we had a lot of fun on the way to and from
school and never felt unsafe=we also walked every evening down to the field and brought the milk cows home for the night. They were happy to see us as they were anxious to be milked and they knew that they
were in store for a small oat treat. We had 7 milk cows and like all farm animals we
had names for them- they knew the way and would give us a run if we were late- We were
not allowed to force them to go fast as it did something to the milk- It has been so long since I helped bring them home that I know longer remember what running did to the cows-
In this day of fast transportation we do not walk enough - partly because of safety and also the location of the stores- our downtown is nearly gone now and has only a few stores left that
do not supply all our needs- I do try to walk to them and do what shopping I can- but now
at my age I have to remember how heavy a bag gets with each step.
With gas prices so high I have noticed that there are more folks walking - maybe the government should give us a discount on taxes for walking --LOL --
Go for a walk today and look for blessings you can see and hear-

turkey lessons made simple

• today dear grand daughter and I bought a turkey for our Monday thanksgiving dinner
• d-gd found a seasoned turkey which she thought was a good idea to buy
• so we found a plain turkey the same weight and compared prices and also
• preparation- the seasoned also came with one of those plastic bags that you
• can cook in plus the seasoning added to the turkey
• but both preparation instructions were the same
• the difference was the seasoned turkey cost 38 dollars while the normal
• cook in a pan and add your own seasonings turkey cost 23 dollars
• I let her choose after explaining that we would be paying $15. for seasonings and one plastic bag-
• I was so glad she choose the normal-'' just put into the pan'' turkey and she was able
• to see why it takes time and some thought to compare before buying
• when we finished shopping we saved over twenty dollars by thinking before we bought
• she is a good kid and I pray that one day when she is on her own that these savings today will save her a lot of expense in the future-
• I am blessed that she wants to take the time with Meme to learn
• hope to be back soon and remember it is simple to shop and compare as some times the extra is extra :-)

cooking simple

I love recipes but seldom have the time or the money or the ingredients- I wonder what ever happened to just cooking a pot of potatoes and a pot of carrots and just sitting down and eating them just as they are........do we really need to add so many ingredients to everything that we cook in order to make it taste good to eat--
I enjoy spices and butter too but maybe if we did go back to simple cooking our health and our waste bands would feel better=

I remember as kids that mom never fooled too much with her cooking and yet her food was good
and wholesome - and there was no one over weight in the house- we still had things like butter and cream and salt but they were not used as condiments or additions to the pot-
if you check with your favorite burger joint you will notice that the condiments account for nearly half and sometimes more of the calories in the hamburger -
we learned to start asking for them on the side and then we had control over the meal and yes, they did taste as good and had less mess-
enjoy a simple meal tomorrow for your tummy's sake :-)

simple made easy

I love reading blogs and letters as well as articles on simplicity
but one of the things that I notice that often the simplicity is not simple=
I was raised with simplicity as a way of life rather than a life style-
Mother saved almost everything for another day and also used the
things she saved- dad did most of his farming the old fashioned way with out
radios in tractors and no holiday from milking the cows- if we had a family
crisis then the neighbors came in and did your chores and farm work for you
I learned how to slice bread because our bread was home made and not
pre sliced - gardens were automatic
we had school clothes and church clothes and then we had our everyday play/chore
clothes and we never mixed up which was which-
we did not have baths everyday but we never went any where dirty-
water came in buckets and not taps =
our grass was green and so were we- but we did not know that
there was any other color to be-
it was easy to be simple because that was the only thing we could afford.

SIMPLE KINDNESS

KINDNESS can be done in many simple ways that can warm some one Else's day-and return to you warming your day-----

• saying hello to a stranger
• soft voice with children
• pet the dog
• don't share gossip
• pray for the homes you walk or drive past
• and so on and so on......
• just look for ways to be kind.

It is easy to be kind even in a busy noisy world and the time it takes is good for your health=

You will lower your blood pressure- blood sugar and other health benefits and it will be good for your heart, mind and soul-

huggles me, Meme

Kindness continued..........

Kindness is more than just good manners--it is something that needs to come from the heart......it is medicine to some one's soul-
Kindness can be costly in time and money and yet it should be freely given-
How many times have we received kindness that in turn taught us to be kind ?
Kindness can be plain and simple- it needs no thanks=it can be not doing something as well as doing something-with practice it can become a habit-
-----
Because kindness starts in the heart - it becomes good medicine for the giver=
Kindness is gentle -

WHEN WE DO LITTLE ACTS OF KINDNESS THAT MAKES LIFE MORE BEARABLE FOR SOMEONE ELSE, WE ARE WALKING IN LOVE AS THE BIBLE COMMANDS US- (B JOHNSON)

BE KIND TO ONE ANOTHER--
Huggles me, Meme

Kindness

Kindness starts with me-and- you-today.
Kindness begins in our hearts.
Kindness spreads joy.
Kindness is a way to give blessings'.

In this world of speed and coming and going we often find our day to busy
to be kind to others. We need to take time to be kind in thought and speech
and deed- Kindness should be a big part of our day and should
be given to everyone=
Our
motive should be pure and filled with love with with no expectations.
Kindness should be free.

CARVE YOUR NAME ON HEARTS-NOT ON MARBLE-(C.H. SPURGEON)

Love other people just as Christ loved us==Ephesians 5:2 ICB

Huggles me, Meme

welcome

I hope that you will enjoy this blog-
I will share many things here-

• thoughts
• recipes
• ideas
• bible verses
• tales
• and other things

I will talk about simplicity in the home and in the heart- written in a plain and simple manner = feel free to share with others=

Huggles me, Meme