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Book Coupon Code!
Remember this book I had the giveaway for a couple of weeks ago? It's a collection of sermons from St. John Henry Newman, arranged according to the liturgical year. I personally find his sermons rich in content. I also find that they are a good and needed corrective to the therapeutic tendency of much of what passes for spiritual nourishment today. Newman always puts his finger on just the spot that one is hiding, that tender protection of ego, so inimical to real growth.
I wanted to let you know that I have a discount code for 15% off if you are still hankering after it! The code will be good this week!
If you are okay with waiting a bit for shipping from Dublin (or are not in the US), you can order it directly from Silverstream Priory‘s Cenacle Press, which helps them most. Use the code 15FestivalsofFaith.
If you are in the US and want it quicker, you can order it from Sophia Institute Press. Use the same code, 15FestivalsofFaith.
Kitchen Thoughts Corner
Things are crawling along over here! I'm still staring at a blank slate, but zeroing in on some choices.
To catch you up, here is the kitchen when we moved here 24 years ago; well, after Suki took down the 80s country wallpaper, many layers of it, and painted the walls. I snapped this shot just before we tackled the cabinets, when we realized we hadn't taken a picture of the actual before:
Shortly thereafter, Rosie painted the cabinets the same cheerful yellow (I do still love it!) and took off some cabinet doors, and we got things more under control.
We lived with it for many more years!
There are many things to love about our old kitchen, I think!
But finally, as the Chief and I thought about what to do about our Empty Nest Situation, it became clear that things needed to be redone. I mean, we would consider moving, but every time we looked at another house, all we could think was, “We like our house better.” But if we are staying for a bit (we think of it as our Five Year Plan, as we really are getting older for such a big house), the kitchen needed attention.
We don't move fast. This is no exception! For Reasons!
Anyway, since I have little to show you in the way of actual progress (there has been progress, but it's not photogenic), I thought you might like to ponder my plan.
Again, the first “before”:
My plan, not very well drawn (I have no idea how to do perspective and clearly am flunking Drawing 101, but for what it's worth):
You can see that the fridge and stove will swap. That will leave a few more inches free on the right, which is where you come in, usually, from the side porch, through the mudroom.
Notes:
• As you come in, you will be looking to the left into the room (you can see what we already did about the bottleneck there in this post. It changed things a lot. We will put that new shelf/wall back when we are done here).
But you will also be aware of the side of the fridge, in a cabinet, ahead and to the right. The way I have it planned now, that will have a sort of plate rack that can hold big cutting boards and so on, sort of like this — but picture a wall there instead of another room beyond:
Only the fridge will be built in (with cabinet panels) and the rack won't go all the way down to the floor, I think, as I will need a waist-high shelf. When you come in, you need to put a couple of little things down; when you go out, you need to pick a few things up. It might be a shallow little vintage shelf or just a wider shelf built in…
Here's another visual:
Old houses have lots of quirks. Ours just has a “friends and family” entry that is a little tight! That's okay.
• The window will be considerably larger. It will have casements on either side of a fixed panel. I'm excited about this!
• The troublesome corner will just be open shelves. I can put my little-used roasting pans and what have you in its darkest depths and still be able to reach them, and my everyday ones in front.
I am looking forward to not dealing with a door there or any sort of lazy-susan issue. It's just to0 crammed in on either side to make it workable (and yes, I did look into those fancy German pull-out thingies! Big bucks and I'd lose drawers in my work area because they need a lot of room to function.)
I have a sub-category on my kitchen Pinterest for this problem.
In the end, when I saw this picture on Instagram, I had a sense of peace about the whole thing.
Some people just accept losing the space entirely, and I feel them. It's a huge pain!
In this kitchen, they accepted losing two corners!
Again, my drawing:
If my oven could be shoved down more to the left, an actual cabinet could work, but then I'd lose the landing spot on the left of it (plus the pull-out beneath, in which I can store baking sheets). And there's a door to the dining room there, which I don't want to move — it allows for the Pattern of Flow Through Rooms and being able to see through to another room — the living room — which is a Pattern I can't find at the moment.
When I think of how I work, I would rather be able to set down something I'm cooking or a potholder or what have you, to the left of the stove, than eliminate this feature in favor of a cabinet door in the corner.
Next time I'll try to show you the plan for the other side. Maybe I will get a bit better at rendering!
Preservation Corner
The two of us aren't eating many eggs. But we do have six hens! I'm trying to store some for the winter. Eggs, not hens.
Last year, this method worked great:
It really does preserve your eggs so that they keep for months and months and can be used just like fresh eggs. I know it seems incredible! But it's true.
Some people use big plastic buckets. I like 1/2 gallon jars. I think the weight of the eggs will increase the likelihood of breakage if you put too many in a bigger container.
I highly recommend jotting down the date of the first egg you put in your jar. Things get moved around in the pantry as the year goes on, and you want to use the older ones first.
My only issue was that one of my hens lays eggs that are enormous, but have very weak shells. I give them all sorts of oyster shells and calcium; the others have strong shells, hers are weak. I didn't realize how weak when I preserved my eggs last year, so the breakage I had was due to this problem.
This year I am going to freeze her eggs by whisking them up and storing them two by two in small containers, which I will stack in the deep freezer. I find that storing more than two at a time isn't efficient for me! I hope I remember to add salt.
If you have lots of egg-eaters and often make big batches of cookies and so on, it would be fine to do four or more in one container! Defrost thoroughly and mix up in whatever you are making!
bits & pieces
This lady has lots of good reasons to use soapstone for countertops
Not to start a firestorm, but do read this article about the harm cause by shots in children. The author has a good deal of evidence which no one responds to. As I consider it, I think a good deal of controversy is caused by the term autism, which is malleable and hard to pin down. Instead, think seizures and brain injury. I'm not going to argue about it here — I personally believe that we need much more medical information on all fronts than we are getting. We need more than “it” — whatever “it” is — “is safe.” We have to do our own due diligence. I can't understand not wanting more information before receiving an injection or giving one to an infant.
A friend of mine here in our community, and her daughters, have some delightful products you might be interested in. Not sponsored, but Auntie Therese says, “I’ve been using their cream on my face since May and really like it. When I first put it on I thought it was going to be to oily, but it soaks into the skin and the skin feels soft all day. That’s saying a lot from a person who tends to have dry skin no matter what I put on it.”
Ever wonder about the houses in movies? Hooked on Houses has a whole series of posts about many of people's favorites! The one I wish she'd do (and I did message her a few years ago) is in Overboard.
from the archives
More and more St. Gregory Pocket members! Do read this post!
I know that everyone else is all pumpkin spice and back to school, but the days here are still hot and the produce is coming in. If I had a kitchen, this is what I'd be serving!
liturgical living
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Erica Mentele says
My eighth child died in the NICU within a week of his 2 month old shots. He was in the NICU while gaining weight to have heart surgery to correct a whole in his heart due to down syndrome. His shots were on a Tuesday (Halloween of 2017). He spiked a fever on Friday. They did a lumbar puncture and tested for various infections. Nothing was found. He was septic and on Sunday the 5th of November, he was on life support. We removed him from life support on Tuesday the 7th. There was pressure for us to remove him from life support on Monday soon after we arrived at the hospital.
Lisa says
I am so sorry for your heartbreaking loss.
Leila says
Oh I am so sorry. So tragic. May his memory be eternal.
Denise says
I am so sorry, Erica. How heartbreaking.
Donna L. says
Hello Erica~ I am so sorry to hear this… 🙁 There is nothing in the world as tragic as losing your child~ I will pray for you and your family–may God hold you close until you are all reunited once more…
Ashley says
Are you doing away with the island? We’ll be remodeling our kitchen eventually and we go back and forth on whether we should add an island.
What do you take when you’re taking a family a meal? I want to be the type of person who takes families meals but I never know what to take. We also have a few friends who will be having babies in the coming months and I’ve been trying to figure something out. I’m probably overthinking it….. 🙂
Leila says
No, we will still have an island! I definitely need it. It’s not a typical one in that you don’t belly up to it. It’s more of a worktable (but it needs storage too) and then I had stools at either end and probably will keep those because they seem pretty natural.
Meals: depends on the family and the time of year. Often you can make what you make YOUR family and just double it up. Round it out with practical sides (salad can be tricky and if you are one of many, you may find they have a fridge full of leftover salad which is … depressing… but you can ask or figure it out).
Include dessert (even bringing a half gallon of good ice cream is awesome) and maybe something for breakfast too:
https://likemotherlikedaughter.org/2014/07/blueberry-muffins-for-a-new-mother/
It helps to stash things in the freezer so you are not doing their dinner and yours from scratch.
I have several easy family menu ideas here on the blog… but yes, don’t overthink! Simple and generous!
Elizabeth says
All meals were appreciated, but some of the best things I received as a new mom (just had my baby a few months ago) were:
-a box of pasta, cooked ground beef in a bag that could be frozen, and good sauce…that way I had an easy meal that could be thrown together whenever I wanted it
-frozen breakfast burritos and egg casserole bites that I could heat up for quick breakfasts
-oatmeal energy balls..so yummy and convenient while nursing
-homemade granola
Auntie Leila’s Egyptian Lasagna would be great. We received a lot of enchilada/taco type meals which are nice if you don’t know about food sensitivities. Soup is good. A pot roast type of meal too felt so nourishing.
Dixie says
Ashley, when I can’t make a meal but there’s someone I want to support in that way I will call them on my way to Costco and say something to the effect of, “I’m going to pick up some muffins for you to drop by as nursing snacks. What else can I bring you?”
Often this is very welcome as the mom can’t get to the store and the dad is wiped out with doing so much more running to the store and housework and stuff than usual. Sometimes picking up the Cheerios and milk for them makes a big difference!
Maybe worth a try for a time when you haven’t been able to plan ahead! Sometimes women will say “no” if you ask them a week ahead because they don’t want to burden you but if you present it as “I am at Costco. I am bringing you muffins. What else do you want?” they will accept your help gladly!
Theresa Tucker says
I am an elementary school teacher in a small, rural, conservative town in California (shocking I know.) I am about to start my 20th year. When I started, autism meant something like a combo of Rain Man-style savants & nonverbal children but now it’s all that plus any-child- with-personality-quirks-&/or-any-social-awkwardness.
Leila says
It’s actually so many things, I think!
It can be seizures and severe disassociation/retardation.
And then yes, anything that doesn’t resemble a sunny, easy-going disposition.
Dixie says
Is the hen that lays the large, weak-shelled eggs old-ish? Often this happens as hens get older. The eggs get bigger (not sure why) and so the shells need to be bigger, but they still only make so much shell, so the shell is bigger all around but thinner and, therefore, weaker.
This is happening with our older hens right now and I never knew it before!
Leila says
Well, she’s the same age as three of the others. She has been this way for a couple of years, and her eggs were giant from the get-go. She is a different breed from them, though, so that might be why she is aging faster than they.
Dixie says
Interesting! With this round our Rhode Island reds got “old” before any of the others and I was surprised. They were such workhor– i mean workHENS until then!
Rachael says
Interesting article you linked auntie. I’m a little unsure about it as I find some logical facilities in it, but some of those studies are compelling. Some of my kids are medically free for different reasons (being prolife is one of them), but it was an interesting read. Thanks for linking it!
Are you sure your hen is getting oyster shells not the powdered stuff? My hens have to have the actual oyster shells, because the powder is just shells not oyster. You can also pulverize and feed back their shells too.
Leila says
Yes it’s actual oyster shells… and I have always given them their eggshells back. And they have a big run. I dunno…