On the Fourth Day of Christmas...

The last 2 scarlet Fiestaware pieces that I ordered 

(with 30.00 off + 2 more discounts) 

finally came last night! 

2 small casserole dishes, 2 medium serving bowls, 2 salsa bowls and 2 fruit bowls. 

I have used many of these for my epic Christmas baking 

and the casserole dishes, one was used last night, perfect size for smaller things!

 I love these so much! And that they are USA made! 

The sunlight this morning....

My super cute rose bag, a Christmas gift, was with me on my 

first outing on light rail for the year!

It's really a perfect little bag and I am just loving it!

I went to the local grocery store and, in wandering the cheese/bread aisle, realized

it would be so wonderful to make pizza for dinner!

Took me forever to find the pepperoni! 

I know just where it is in our old town grocers that we moved

away 3 years ago but had not looked for it here...

esp. as we often have groceries delivered...

So the pizza was really quite delicious!!! 

The pepperoni I bought (applegate) was really good,

and I usually don't like pepperoni! 

***

So, I did an 'oops' .... while I had a fleeting thought

about heat and glass, I put the pizza on 

my pretty very thick cut glass platter....

and the heat broke it clean in half!

I was so BUMMED.

But... (coming out of my spending $ for the year...)

I found a well-priced replacement platter,

the exact same one, on Etsy! 

So the one I broke we actually found (in perfect condition!)

at a 'free' stand at the side of the road a few

years ago near our far-away church...

so obviously the replacement was not free like that find was!

But I loved that plate

and it was perfect for serving various things...

clearly NOT for hot things like pizza out of the oven!

Lesson learned, again... 

***

Well, my day was good, in that I got a lot done

and went out and had a walk and did shopping by light rail.

That was great.

I am having a very small Christmas Lunch this Saturday.

I am preparing for that.

This day though I found a bit hard...

I was oddly anxious this morning...eventually I was able to

redirect myself enough to get past that, with God's help of course...

and this afternoon different times I felt well...

a lot of impatience I guess and tiredness.

I was feeling out of breath strangely and congested on Monday and now I felt it 

a bit again today; if I feel that again tomorrow,

I will talk to a nurse about it. 

I had felt fine yesterday...

***

Well, my Husband brought home cute flowers,

we watched a Little House on the Prairie Christmas

and ate salad, pizza and popcorn while doing this.

That was really fun and while I broke my nice 

platter, the pizza really was quite good!

***

So tomorrow is a cleaning day and doing some

Saturday lunch prep + other things.

Thankfully the laundry, other than bed sheets, is caught up!

I know I need a 'rest day' soon but for now feel

that I have to be more in 'go mode' so that I am sure

all gets done for Saturday.

But I will take pockets of rest too, 

I made that mistake early in my marriage, to not rest

and slow down, and then I got mono for months.

So I am more careful now....which is one of the reasons

I am having only a small Christmas lunch this year...

I am really excited to have this little lunch!

***

Menu:

~cranberry and cheese hor'dorves

~roast pork in slow cooker from this recipe

~special mashed potatoes (with garlic and shallots!)

~green salad 

~green beans or other cooked green

~cranberry sauce (?)

~bread and butter 

And I hope a chocolate raspberry torte!

And French Vanilla Ice Cream 

***

It will be so delicious and special!!!

***

Meanwhile, well... I've been struggling with the culture I live in 

and the same culture I see inside of myself... I love beautiful dishes 

and lovely things... but I have this love/hate relationship with buying things

and with the fact that I have such material blessings - so many beautiful dishes,

so much in terms of treats and food and tea, that I find myself either feeling

guilty or worse about it.... it's really not a simple thing in terms of what it means

to be a Christian and to be doing what Christ wants...

buying things can be a form of greed or even lust (for things, for more)

and I struggle a lot with this, have for many years.

I love beauty. I love dishes, come from a dish-loving dish-collecting family.

But well, it's just not simple.  

Ironic that I quickly replaced the broken platter when I am thinking on 

such topics; I just hope that I can keep sharing what I have

and be hospitable and make meals and special occasions a blessing for others.

***

I am grateful for my new fiestaware dishes; the red bowls

we are finding perfect for popcorn, the little bowls are used for cooking

(just perfect for putting measuring spoons in or using for cracked egg shells)

so it's not that I am buying what I am not using, that is the issue.

***

I guess I just know keenly how martially rich I am in my kitchen

and in all of my beautiful dishes.

my red kitchenaid mixers - I have loved these since I was an 

undergrad and spent time at my English Prof's house.

His wife had a one of these in red and I loved it and her home

and how she cooked and baked so well (and was a doctorate as well!) and

knew that one day I hoped for one of these mixers 

and now I have it and I just know that it is a real privilege to have one.

I do love mine and use it often, it's a real blessing.

***

So I guess part of my struggle is that

one one hand I *must* see all I have as a blessing and be thankful

but on the other hand still have to try to grow in the virtues of 

not-wanting-more... it's hard to know how to best see this.

And I am reading that book on Soviet cooking and the huge

lack of food that they had and well, it may sound crazy,

but I have a real fear of lack.  

I really think it is from my Oma (not her fault but rather that I read

a small blurb about how we can inherit struggles from our grandparents 

in our emotional-make up) and my Oma went through WWII in Holland 

and for sure went hungry to try to ensure her 7 children had enough

(she had 8 children, the youngest being my Mom, who was born after WWII).

My Grandma lived through the great depression as a child, and had 

to live with her Grandparents and maiden Aunt but she remembers this

as a happy time, though one when people had to do without;

she wishes she had her Mother's recipe for an Orange Cake with boiled frosting,.... 

I have looked for it before... when I do and find one with cream,

she is quick to say her Mom would not have had the money to buy cream...

***

Also I feel that the US is plunging towards more poverty and that

the division between rich/poor is growing rapidly.

No longer are factories providing a salary that one could have a 

modest home, a car and even a modest vacation.

And I see this in so many ways.

***

I grew up always having enough but it was rare to have new clothes,

until about high school age. 

And I remember my dreams when I was doing my library school degree.

I was not fully focused on 'things' but also had dreams of

a job and being able to go to a store and be able to buy things.

Of course I had no idea how hard those working years would be...

***

I remember moments of deep happiness in my small but tall celiinged

studio in London Ontario.

I had no oven, just 2 burners and a small toaster oven

I got at a garage sale and dishes that I got for 5.00.

My rent was just under 400.00 a month, believe it or not!

My fridge was just a bar fridge, I bought a mini-freezer...

which I think my parents had later but I am not sure who has it now!

***

It's hard to believe that my school days were just over in the summer of 2006,

just 12 years ago! I don't think when I was in my 20s that I knew that 12 years could be a real

life-time ago in feel... and in experience... in 2012 I got married, now in 2018 I have

been married over 5 years, we own a home (condo), I have a beautiful

place to live and don't have the stress to provide rent money for myself.

I never knew that would happen to me and it remains a mystery and miracle of God.

***

Well, I sure know one thing: I am so thankful for what I have

and know that with God's mercy, we 

can face tomorrow, no matter what unfolds...

I often feel that now I am in a time of 'plenty' but that a time of 'famine' may

happen like it did to the Israelites and with God's help,

we can face whatever comes.

***

Meanwhile, I hope to continue to grow in hospitality and 

having others over to enjoy tea, lunch, dinner or even breakfast...

***

I have been listening to this again today and yesterday, 

and most of it I find very calming.

Blue Willow and Other Blue and Whites

Mr. Husband and I had
a day that another person I heard that day
called a 'mental health day'...
*
We went to the sale went to a year ago,
I forgot how I had the table at that time
in blue for the Mother of God.
I will have to do that again!
*
So we went to the big rummage sale again!
I had been wanting to either complete or
get other dishes that would be blue and white
for the incomplete set that I already have
(that you can also see in the same post of
about a year ago).
*
It's funny,
I am so glad for my blog to remember my first year of marriage
and the wonderful first months of it!
So on to the dishes...
I got some Willow dishes for about 4.00 a piece.
8 bowls, 7 salad plates and 6 dinner plates.
More than half off the amazon price I found
and half the price of the replacements.com that
I looked up after the fact.


They are nice deep bowls...
I washed them up by hand and noticed that
one of the bowls had a slight yellow-orange stain
and I immediately thought of my vintage cookbooks
that I love for how they are used
and realized that this bowl with the sign of
it's use from the past would be my favourite of them. 

The plates have a really nice depth to them;
they would be perfect for a meal such
as a pasta meal or a meal
with a gravy...

The dishcloth underneath is one my Mom gave
me from Holland.
It's one of my special dish clothes that I like to get out
for special occasions. 

You can see the tea cups and creamer
with the new willow dishes and my
blue and white bowl...

Even my old set is actually two different sets
that were sold together for 5.00 at a garage sale
years ago down the street from my parent's house.
I used these dishes as my main dishes during my
graduate school year for my
Masters in Library Science.

I picked up that large flower bowl at that time
as well.

The new dishes fit well in my buffet,
as I knew they would...

My Dutch delft egg cups
that my Mom got for me some years back.

  

The tea cup to the right is an old one
from days when tea cups were still more normal
for everyone to drink from.
This one was a souvenir cup of the
Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City.
My Mom found it and gave it to me as she knew
Mr. Husband and I were going to have our
honeymoon in this city.
The other dishes you see in the above picture
are my Grandma's and I ate off them many times
as a girl...
later when my Grandma got a new dish set,
I inherited her old set,
which I love to this day.
*
This set is the one I used for Mr. Husband and I's first Pascha
and the day we got engaged.
I used it in Ottawa for Paschas before this and used it
for Mr. Husband and I's first Pascha as a married couple.
I hope for many more... 

Blessings and sights...

I have been wanting a copy of this book
by Madeline L' Engle for a long time.
I read it years ago
and it has to do with grief
and was really helpful to me years ago.
I was giving an amazon gift card
for our wedding and today
I ordered this book after long last!

I saw these at a store today
with my new friend.

Mr Husband:
if you got those, would you still
want the soup bowls for your blue and white
set of dishes?
Mrs. Wife:
(hating to be reminded of such practicalities)
Yes.
Realizes she needs to think on this more
but admits to loving the dishes.
In part because they are Asian and
she misses Chinatown in Ottawa and
she loves the soup spoons.
She also remembers the big bowl and 4 small bowls
that have been waiting for her in MI
for years now...

Sigh,
they are pretty though,
are they not? :)

I also saw these glasses...
I am on the hunt for water goblets
and have a gift card for this store...
*
Mr. Husband:
honey, we have limited space.
Mrs. Wife:
but women are magical and can find space for anything.
Mr. Husband:
I don't believe it.
Mrs. Wife:
Sigh.
I still have to convince my husband that
women are magical
and can find room for all things...

Tuesday - buffet pictures

The top of my buffet.

Margaret surprised me with the quick revelation that buffet

is not a word used for a furniture piece

across the pond.

So, to clarify:

from what I understand one would call a piece of furniture

on this side of the pond

a dish cabinet that does not have a top or hutch,

as a the top shelves, when glassed in, is called.

I got pretty much all of my furniture

including the buffet

from IKEA a few years ago.

*

I don't think they make all the pieces I have now.

So it is.

(The dishes shown are my Grandma's dishes who I mentioned in

my last post who was married to my Grandfather, John).

*

Thankfully my buffet has deep shelving

as I have a lot of dishes

and not a lot of kitchen cabinets.

Not to mention that this apartment's small

"kitchen"

(it is half a wall with enough counter space for a dish rack)

has no drawers.

Not a one!!

So my 5 buffet drawers hold not only my

pretty things,

like tea strainers, tea cozy, cloth napkins

and an extra tea pot,

but also my measuring cups, spoons and the like.

Here's the current look of my the other side of the buffet,

with my new delft egg cups from my Mom

(thrift store find, believe it or not! only in Western Michigan!)

tea cups, tea strainer,

and part of my white and blue dishes...

*

Well my friends, hope you enjoyed the tour. :)

If you wonder how I put on 8 people dinners with no counter space...

Here's how it's done:

1. Use kitchen table for food prep

2. Boss everyone around in a gentle fashion to ensure that only 3

of the 8 are in the kitchen area

so I am not tripping over people, etc.

3. When the food is all prepared and setting on the table,

and it is time to set the table with table cloth and my beloved dishes,

all the food has to be moved to the coffee table (!)

so that the table can be washed, clothed and set.

4. Put all food back and take picture before prayer and the 8 of us sit to dine.

*

Bet some of you never thought about that part of the

pre-dinner preparation for a smallish apartment!

It's fun though and I am really happy with my apartment.

And the 5 fit nicely 3 on my white couch,

the other two on my two arm chairs.

*

After a few days of relative quiet and it just being Cleo and I...

I must say I am almost ready to put on a dinner again,

though perhaps first for smaller numbers...

Cozy Cat and Dishes

When I am talking to my friends about my new apartment the themes are: books and dishes!

First a picture of my Cat and her first Cat Nap on my new sofa bed:

And my pretty dishes - the tray and tea pot, sugar & creamer my Grandma and I found last year when we went antiquing. Don't they look darling on my buffet? It is exactly what I was looking for - a darker colour with a 'old world country' look. The Royal Albert tea cup was from my dear roommate in my undergraduate days and her parents. Next to it is a humble little cup my Grandmother and I found on our first antiquing venture, for my 25th birthday 7 years ago.

The blue dishes are ones I found with my Mother (If I remember correctly) down the street from my parents house! All of them were selling for 5 dollars. They are beautiful, vibrant and I wish I could get a complete set!! They are an ironstone from Japan.

Lastly, a lovely small teaspoon holder, from Holland. It is real Delft; my Mother gave this to me for Christmas this year. A perfect gift; she found it at an estate sale! I love gifts like these the best. To add to the gift, she gave me teaspoons to go in it from her collection. A lot of these spoons her Mother, my Oma, gave to her years ago. And so it is passed now to me. Once I get more settled, I think I will put some of these spoons in another place, so it is not as crowded.

I will have to have another post sometime to show you my Grandmother's set of dishes that she gave me years ago! I had them stored carefully in boxes under my bed in my parent's house for at least ten years before I had a place for them. As a student I knew I could not afford to move the dishes and I was too transient. It is a dream come true to have a one bedroom apartment with space for a buffet with glass doors for my dishes!

I thank God for His goodness shown in this. I do not deserve such kind thoughtfulness more than anyone else (I wish everyone could have pretty things). So, I am thankful.