Hey guys! Here we are with another week down. We’re oh so close to Christmas and then finishing up the year. How was your week? Are you getting a lot done? I had a tough week over all. Mentally more than anything. I think I checked out for a couple of days. This year has been good but so so busy. I’ll do a final year recap before it’s all said and done but I think I was just to the point where I needed some down time. But instead of doing that, I just kept filling my schedule. But then I pretty much crashed. And that was good. I took a day to do nothing. Absolutely nothing. I watched TV and knitted (more on that in a moment). I did have some fun though. Let’s round it up, shall we?
First, we had our friends dinner, finally! There were 8 of us (we definitely missed the other 3 that couldn’t make it). We had oysters, homemade bread, a yummy salad with salt-cured eggs, kielbasa, leg o’ lamb, pheasant wrapped in bacon, and then there were desserts. If you read my post on the December pie along, then you’ll know what a disaster my pie was. But the friends didn’t care. They ate some anyway. But not only was my pie a disaster, so was my apple-cranberry skillet cake with rosemary crumble. I burnt the bottom. So as long as you scraped that off, which everyone did, it was fine. Anyway, cooking disasters aside, everyone had a great time! Me included!
I finished up my last class of 2019. It was a good year. I really enjoyed each and every class. I have some repeat participants, which always says a lot. All my venues are fantastic. I’ll be looking to expand in 2020. I can do private parties if anyone is interested. Just send me a note and let’s see what we can come up with. I’m also starting to book classes for 2020 so stay tuned for those details! I’ve added a couple of new classes so that’s exciting. I’ll also be finalizing the details of my Maple Syrup on the Homestead class so if you’re interested you might want to subscribe to my newsletter so you’ll be the first to know! Or send me a note and we’ll discuss the details.
I think for the next couple of weeks I’m going to spend some time away from the business. Not completely away, I mean, I’ll still be here. But I won’t be working behind the scenes as much. Come January though, I’ll be back to rockin’ it out.
I received some nice notes in the mail recently. One is from my dear sweet friend Brianna. I know Brianna from Instagram and she has been so kind and supportive to me. Always. Anyway, she sent me a sweet handwritten note. And if you know me, you know how much I love handwritten notes. I also received a sticker book from our dear friend’s daughter. She had a sticker book the last time I saw her and I was all googly eyed over it. So for a Christmas present they sent me one in the mail! I’ve already started using them in my planner! You guys rock!
In other fun news, my dear friend Shugunna nominated me for the Barnabas Award. I am so honored! I really am not very good at these awards and responding but I wanted to make sure I did this time if only to answer the questions and share a little more about me. And to recognize what an honor it is to be nominated. It’s very kind of Shugunna to think of me and to present me with this award.
The Barnabas Award is presented to bloggers who encourage and inspire the community.
How the award works:
- You must thank the person who nominated you, and share their blog.
- Nominate five bloggers that encourage and inspire you.
- List five things about yourself.
- Ask your nominees five questions⦠why five? Because it is the number that signifies grace!
Shugunna’s 5 questions:
1. How has blogging encouraged you to encourage others? I really, really like teaching which is why I teach classes and work as a librarian. So I hope that my blog encourages others to step out of their comfort zone and learn something new. Trust me, if I can do this anyone can (from blogging to making to gardening to animal husbandry).
2. How do you stay motivated to blog? that’s hard. Blogging is a lot of work but I love sharing with others. So I think reading the comments and knowing that people look forward to reading what I write is motivation.
3. How do you maintain consistency in a world thatβs ever changing and demanding you change with it? I don’t know if I really maintain consistency, per se. I do know that change is good sometimes, but I’m also pretty confident in who I am and what I want to present to the world. For example, I’m a homesteader. I’ve wanted to be a homesteader for as long as I can remember. I’ve worked towards that for years. So that’s what I write about. If I wrote about something else, say fashion, that wouldn’t be true to who I am. I can appreciate fashion, I even enjoy looking nice, but it’s not who I am. I hope this makes sense!!
4. What encouraging words do you have for future bloggers? Just do it. Just start writing. Reach out to other bloggers for help, ideas, encouragement, and to let them know you are there. I try to visit every blog that I can, especially if they visit mine. But just do it!
5. Your favorite motivational quote? Oh, that’s a good one. I don’t know that I have a favorite. Shugunna is really the QUEEN of motivational quotes. Every time I read her blog, I’m always like ‘yes, girl! That’s a fantastic quote”. She is so inspiring.
Five things about me:
Here’s the hard part! HA!
1. I’m an introvert. I know, you don’t believe me, but in social situations I get really nervous and anxious. I like to make a good impression but am afraid I won’t so I tend to turn inwards. I know. How do I teach classes? That’s a little easier than meeting one-on-one
2. But I like to talk a lot once you know me! Ask my classes! HA! I just like sharing what I know and learning from others. Just this past week in my class, I didn’t know how to pronounce jojoba. A student corrected me. We had a good laugh. I still can’t pronounce it correctly, but it was funny.
3. I love antiques and vintage everything.
4. I love gingham. And wellies (rain boots). LOVE LOVE LOVE them. Together. Separate. I wear wellies pretty much year round, unless it’s really hot in the summer. But if it’s raining in the summer, I wear wellies.
5. I’m from East TN and love everything about that. And love the Appalachian mountains (pronounced AP-puh-latch-in). I try to portray that in my photography and my style. (Don’t even ask me if I like Hillbilly Elegy. I don’t. He’s not from Appalachia and he can’t even pronounce it correctly. so there).
How about a little turn in the conversation now? Whatdya say about a cake recipe? The one you all have been asking me for (I’m looking at my 13 year old nephew here who promised me he’d make the cake if I provided the recipe)? Apple skillet cake with cranberries and rosemary crumble? Yes? Good. Let’s do it.
This cake is adapted from Hannah Queens’ Honey & Jam cookbook, which happens to be one of my favorites. The recipes, the photography. It’s just a nicely done cookbook. You can find out more about Hannah here.
For the Crumble:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon roughly chopped rosemary
To make the crumble:
in a bowl of a mixer (or using a handheld mixer), combine the flour, brown sugar, salt, butter, and rosemary and mix to combine until clumps form*. Place the mixture in a bowl and set aside.
For the cake:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk
1 large, or 2 small, apple(s) peeled, cored, and diced
6 ounces fresh cranberries
To make the cake:
Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 9-inch cast-iron skillet.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a handheld mixer), cream the butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Alternate adding the flour mixture and milk to the mixer bowl, beginning and ending with the flower.
Fold in the apple(s) and cranberries.
Pour mixture into the prepared pan and sprinkle the crumble on top.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40-45 minutes. Allow the cake to cool slightly before serving. Can be served at room temperature. Don’t forget to add vanilla ice cream and/or homemade whipped cream.
*my crumble hasn’t been clumping lately. If you find yourself with a crumble topping the consistency of sand, you can do one of two things. First, add more butter to the mixer and continue mixing until clumps form. The second thing, which is what I do, is to add pats of butter to the top of the crumble before baking.
Let me know if you make the cake and how it went for you! I don’t know what’s up with the crumble not clumping.
Okay. Another gear shift here. How about an updated yarn along? I don’t think Ginny posted the yarn along this month and I haven’t really been reading anything nor knitting until this week. I picked up Cold Storage Alaska by John Straley. I saw an insta friend was reading another book by him so I looked it up. I recently went down the rabbit hole searching for books since I’ve been in such a slump lately. I was pleasantly surprised to find this type of book intriguing. I am not normally a mystery, suspense, or thriller kinda gal. I prefer fluff fiction when my brain needs a break. Otherwise I’ve found myself reading a lot of non-fiction lately. So when I started reading Cold Storage Alaska, I was immediately hooked.
As for my knitting slump, I need something quick and painless so I decided to make another pair of toast by Leslie Friend. I’ve been wearing my arm warmers almost everyday. They make such a nice addition to any outfit. I might gift these so I won’t say much more about them. Except I love the color!
Has anyone watched The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel? I just discovered it. It is absolutely amazing! I love everything about it. The storyline, the characters, the setting, the 1950’s! Oh my. And I do believe this is the TV show that has shot scenes at one of the big resorts near me. I need to dig around the internet and find out. I was lucky enough to find some time to sit and watch Mrs. Maisel while knitting those scrummy arm warmers above.
And one final thought since no one seems to be joining me in the book discussion and I can only imagine it’s because of the book selection, how about we switch gears? I’ll admit that book is a lot more detailed than I originally thought. And we’ve had the suggestion of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Both Tracy and Bekah suggested the book so let’s do it. I’ll post the update tomorrow with all the new details and we’ll give ourselves a couple of weeks to read a little. If anyone really wants to continue with the bee book, we will. Otherwise we’ll start the Kingsolver book in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned.
Shugunna Alexander
You’ve had an amazing busy year, so glad I found your blog and I’m going to be taking a break soon as well. What a year!!
chickenlibrarian
thank you! I’m glad we found each other!! I so enjoy your posts and getting to know you. It will be a well deserved break. take good care and have a very Merry Christmas and all the best to your new year! ππ
xoxo
-k
Bekah
I will bring my copy of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle on our post-Christmas vacation π Looking forward to some time away with my guys…and now some reading time!
I’ve had to take a bit of a break from posting to my blog due to other commitments and some family health stuff. Hopefully I will be able to work back into it in the next month or so. But, I will be ready for the book talk!
How are your Christmas decorations surviving Corny?? Our tree seems to only be decorated from two feet up. Cookie has stripped all of the lower ornaments off. At least it is still standing!
PS Congratulations on the nomination for the Barnabus Award
chickenlibrarian
I noticed you haven’t been around on the blog. I check in periodically to make sure! We didn’t do a real tree this year. I have a small tree in the corner by the front door. Corny seems to have left it alone so far. He’s terrorizing in other ways (I can hear a cat fight now between him and Bobby. Well, it’s not really a fight but more loudly playing. hehehe). All the other decorations are up high. Except the mantel. He and Bobby seem to LOVE climbing up on the mantel to taste test the pine boughs I have as decorations. Of course, that’s where my favorite ceramic Santas are living this year. Hopefully we’ll make it through without any disasters!
Enjoy your Holiday and I’ll see you very soon on one blog or the other. And YAY to the book discussion. I’m really excited!
xoxo
-k
Tracy
*running through the blog room*
Congrats on the award, glad to read your update, LOVE your tablescape – glad you were able to get time with friends, and yes to participating in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle! (Awesome!) Have a fantastic Monday!
chickenlibrarian
I gotta say I’m a little sad about your fly-by! I always enjoy your comments and reading your thoughts, learning from you! But I get it. It’s a long post and you don’t always have the time for detailed comments. I hope you are having a good week! I’m looking forward to catching up soon!!
Tracy
Aw, please don’t be sad, Kristin! In fact, I was a bit proud of myself for not writing a dissertation in a comment! (Ha!) But I was on the run and wanted to at least squeak in an acknowledgement of your post. I have a sense of how long it takes you to put them together between your story and the photos. It IS a lot of work. I know you love to blog, but that doesn’t mean you don’t give up precious time to write and publish them!
The table you set for your holiday party with friends is just so pretty. I would have lingered there greedily just to soak it all up. I am a sucker for beautifully set tables. I learned a couple of years ago – and you might like this following our exchange about foil, plastics, and paper towels – that the napkin ring is supposed to help designate the napkin’s user so that it can be used for many meals throughout the week before washing. (Assuming it’s not totally a mess.) I never thought about that. We use cloth napkins from time to time, but truthfully, it’s hard to get away from the convenience of paper.
I had a chuckle about your learning how to pronounce jojoba – I had a similar experience with the pronunciation of the city La Jolla. (This was years ago.) My then employer had a client in La Jolla and when I was on the phone, I kept pronouncing it like “La Jah – lah.” Finally someone corrected me. (shrugs) But in my head I still like to call it La Jah-lah. π
Mental tiredness – I think this time of year strains the laziest of people, so YOU best take good care of your body and mind since you are… well, the opposite of lazy! I am a firm believer that this season – especially in the colder climes where we live – are a sign: take it easy, ease back, recharge. I am a firm believer in “tucking in.” It’s akin to a religious practice for me.
I read your comment to Daenel and how you were tempted to call your friends after the party to apologize for some perceived not awesome something. While yes, sometimes we do screw up and needs to say “I’m sorry,” my Tracy-sense (much like the ol’ spidey sense) tells me that you are probably ruminating on something you said or did that you wish that you didn’t say or do. But I bet you that: a) it’s nowhere near a big deal, and 2), no one really gave it much thought. But our monkey minds just love to crawl all over those situations in which we would have written out that scene MUCH better. π So be gentle with yourself. In fact, think about this instead: I counted 10 table settings in your photo. This means (not counting the Mister) that 8 people gave up precious time to come spend time with YOU because that’s how much they want to be with YOU.
I will get off my soapbox now! π
Someday we need to talk about Appalachia! I grew up in the little poke of Appalachia into WNY and my mother’s family hails from “down PA.” Appalachia and the lives of those who come from the various regions are definitely one of my interests. I have not read Hillbilly Elegy.
I am THRILLED that we are going to read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. In fact, I have already restarted it!
Alrighty then, NOW I must run! Mr. Gordon is getting ready to head out, and I am going to grab just a bit more time with him before the “job day” begins!
Have a FABULOUS day! π
chickenlibrarian
See…that’s what I LOVE about your comments! You always share things that I don’t know or am not familiar with…napkin rings, plastic vs. foil. I just blindly go through life thinking something is better than another thing without really knowing or researching. But you, my friend, take it to the next step by doing research and then making your decision based on that knowledge. I’m a pitiful librarian!! No research done by this librarian. It’s sad. But you inspire me to want to use the research skills that I possess to dig deeper and make an informed decision (good gravy, I’m always preaching that when I’m in librarian mode–‘make an informed decision’).
And have I told you what a gifted writer you are? Every time I read your comments I think to myself ‘that Tracy is so funny, witty, and such a gifted writer. I wish I could be more like that!’. SO there you have it friend…you are truly talented!
As for the napkin rings, I had no idea. It makes sense. I usually leave mine on the table for the day but then at the end of the day I throw it in the dirty clothes basket. Or on top of the washer since it’s right there. I’m loving the cloth napkins. Funny, but true story about them. I was a substitute yesterday and the kid I was working with spilled his drink. We were in the classroom so I casually pulled my cloth napkin out of my bag and handed it to him!! Yes I carry one in my bag!
As for pronouncing words…I’ll never be able to call Jojoba anything but “jo-jaba’ oil. Once something is in my head, it’s there for life. I walked around the rest of that class trying to say it. We had a really good laugh about it.
It’s funny that you mention that you think I’m the opposite of lazy. I see myself as lazy if I take time to sit and do nothing. I always think I could be doing something else (like..umm..walking so I can be healthier and more in shape…hmm…). So I see myself as lazy…well, not lazy per se, but well, I guess lazy?!?!
Thank you for your kind words about my table setting. And about the ‘overthinking’ things. I don’t know what I was thinking except that I think our friends are really cool cats and I want them to like me. So sometimes I try too hard. And then I feel guilty. I think part of it was that I was running on fumes and I couldn’t relax necessarily which puts me at a disadvantage, mentally. I overthink. I feel guilty. But then a few days go by and I realize that I’m just being silly and then I relax a little. The Mister keeps telling me to relax. I’m trying! Honestly!
Thank you for stopping back by to comment. You didn’t have to do that! But I always enjoy reading your comments. Sometimes it takes me a few days to comment back because I want to give them the time and effort they deserve since you are so kind as to leave a comment.
I hope you are having a good holiday season!
xoox
-k
Tracy
No need to reply to this, Kristin! (You have enough to do!) I just wanted to say thank you for your compliment. I LOVE to write. I’ve always written – fiction, stories, interviews, etc. for work and for pleasure. Anyhow, again, thank you. That means a lot to me. π
chickenlibrarian
I have to reply. I just can’t not reply! Anyway, you are certainly welcome. It’s the truth. You are a great writer.
Daenel T.
I donβt know how you do it. Actually, I think the quote {answer} is that you donβt until you do. Youβve been crazy busy. I envy people who have a real true passion. Iβm kind of doing a bar crawl through life: sampling everything but not really focusing.
Congratulations on the award. Iβm so like you. Small talk/social situations make me super uncomfortable but teaching/speaking in front of group is not a problem. I stress way too much and over analyze and call to apologize/clarify {yes, girl}…. So I avoid those situations as much as possible.
chickenlibrarian
Sometimes I don’t know how I do it either! Except that I think things finally clicked for me over the past couple of months. I like your description of the bar crawl through life! I feel like that’s where I’ve been but am slowly starting to find the focus away from the bar (hehehe). It took me a long time to figure out what I even wanted to do with my business. not that I have it all figured out. I don’t. But I like the direction I’m heading in.
And, girl, yes to those awkward social situations. I just had major guilt from our friend’s gathering last week. It took me a couple of days to get out of that funk. I almost called everyone and apologized. For what? I’m not sure. But that’s life as a socially awkward librarian homesteader. Sigh…
You can have cake and eat it too! – ChickenLibrarian
[…] and full of yummy baked goods. I’ve made some recipes from it before–mainly the apple skillet cake but I’ve also made the carrot and beet cupcakes and they are divine! But I wanted to make […]