walnuts.........

...........yesterday was a productive day.....not that everyday needs to be productive, but I feel a bit better if I think I accomplished something......I got up just a little later than normal and enjoyed a quiet cup of coffee and the computer.......normally, I would be dressed and doing something !!!  but, when the sun got to shinning, I thought, enough wasting this day !!! I almost hurried and  got dressed, made the bed, straightened out upstairs and proceeded to the basement and straightened out my storage room......done a load of laundry.......fixed some lunch.......made a pumpkin cake, which was awesome....then took a walk to gather black walnuts.......I think gathering the walnuts was the best part.......the weather was beautiful and the leaves are quickly turning......when I got to my walnut tree, a squirrel was busy gathering him some walnuts too.....I almost felt guilty taking some of his food !!!!  but there are plenty more trees......I even have a walnut tree in our front yard and my husband gathers the walnuts for the squirrel and puts them in a pile for him at the base of the tree !!! the walnuts look so pretty in an old wood bowl.....I found some corn cobs that a raccoon enjoyed too.....so, all of us....animals and I, get to enjoy what mother nature gives us.........till next time....smiles, Linda

pumpkin cake, a bit healthier......

warning, NO pretty picture, or photo shoot etc, just a piece of cake, lol...so...can pumpkin cake be a little bit healthier, I think so...or least in my mind I feel like it is.......in the current issue of A Primitive Place magazine (Fall 2015) there is a pumpkin cake recipe that I tweaked a bit.......for the cake the recipe calls for :
~16oz. can of pumpkin
~2 cups sugar
~1 cup vegetable oil
~4 eggs
~2 cups flour
~2 tsp. baking soda
~2 tsp. cinnamon
~1/4 tsp. nutmeg

...mix together well and put into a greased and flour 9 x 13 pan.......instead of the 2 cups sugar, I used 1 cup Truvia Baking Blend, it has 75% fewer calories.....AND, instead of 1 cup of vegetable oil I used: 1/2 cup applesauce and 1/2 cup sugar free apple butter....
......the cake turned out wonderful, not a light and fluffy cake but more dense......now if I could figure out how to make a healthier cream cheese icing that would be awesome........

for my icing I used:
~1 stick of butter
~1 large package of cream cheese
~1 box powdered sugar
~1 tablespoon vanilla extract
~and some milk, just a tablespoon at a time, until creamy and spreadable

enjoy....and until the next time...smiles, Linda

a good day, for a good day..........

........perfect fall day...cool and crisp & leaves starting to turn......the house is quiet and a perfect day to work on a project.......so I prepared my drink of choice, coffee......shut the TV OFF !!!.......gathered  my current rug hooking project, and oh yes,  open the windows just a crack, so I could feel the cool breeze and hear the birds, chickens and cows........what a simple pleasure,  creating and working with your hands.......enjoy your day...till next time...smiles, Linda

be it ever so humble..........

....there is no place like home......I was never one who like to travel very far and be away from home very long, and the older I get, the stronger that feeling is..........recently we went to Chicago to watch the Cubs play, my husband's FAVORITE team.......I enjoyed the trip more than I thought I would, Chicago is a beautiful city, love the Cubs, and that is the city I lived the first 10 years of my life.......even at that, when I stepped off that bus and we got in our car to go home, oh my gosh, I was one happy girl.........just the little things seemed so much better....I appreciated them more.......the small town where we live, our chickens and cows out the back door,  my own coffee and coffee cup...."my" seat on the couch, my books, my bed, home cooked meals, and my girls and their families........as Laura Ingalls Wilder said, "home is the nicest word there is"..........till next time....smiles, Linda

blues...........

.............the weather has helped me be productive the last few days...washed quilts, finished sampler (will show picture soon, after glass is cut for frame), made some coverlet pillows, and just finished these boxes......till next time..smiles, Linda

"Red Hill Farm" sampler............

..........greetings......just wanted to share a sampler I just finished...it is cross stitched in a primitive, early, school girl manner....stained and distressed with black walnuts.....I put it in an antique frame, which if I can find them, is what I like to use......I currently have this listed in my ebay store, if your interested.......now I am headed outside to gather some corn stalks and plant some mums.......till next time....smiles, Linda

can only get better.............

......................first of all, my youngest grand went to school today (kindergarten) without one tear !!!!!! in four weeks !!!!! and the day just got better from there........a MUCH needed rain for most of the day...........the last time we had any good rain at all, meaning measurable,  was over 4 weeks ago and with the temperature lately being in the 90's, it was getting DRY !!!!!!!!!!!  cleaned the house and settled in for the afternoon  stitching ........nothing like a good rainy day, clean home, and a good project...I had another antique frame to fill and a project was calling me.....I love this time of year and everything it brings.......you can slowly see the changes outside.....some leaves starting to turn, grasses with their beautiful seed heads, and some flowers with their final show, while others are already feeding the birds........the air smells better, days are getting shorter, and wood is being stacked for the winter.......I am not sure if I could live somewhere without 4 such differences in the seasons......each one having their own unique quality....... with fall being my very favorite....till next time....enjoy the season....smiles, linda

 wood ready........

 final blooms.........

 ornamental grasses..........

 fresh rain water for the birds............

 sorting cattle for market..........

 rains puddles for butterflies........

 a finished project and a HAPPY girl = a HAPPY Grandma !!!