A Little Instagram for You

01 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest

Do you follow us on Instagram? If not…really…you should. It’s great fun. You can find me at alongthedirtroad. Can one be addicted to Instagram? I’m just kidding. It is super fun though. You can be a preacher, a farmer, a foodie, a decorator or all of the above and find something of interest on Instagram.

If you follow me there….these pictures might bore you. I’m sorry. I just thought that it would be fun to show the other folks some images from day to day life on Instagram. So…here it goes. A little less talking and a whole lot more scrolling.

I hope that Wednesday is being kind, Dirt Roaders! You’ve made is half way through the week!

The goats said to tell you “hi.” (Not really.)

Betsey, My Favorite Pumpkin and the Joy of Cooking

11 Wednesday Sep 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, fluffin' the nest, heart and soul

≈ 2 Comments

Did I introduce you to Betsey? Yes…I did in a quick post the other day. In case you missed it, Betsey is my version of the cow head on the wall thing that people are doing. I love it! Have you seen it? Miss Mustard Seed has one and has made it very popular. I love her. Don’t you? Anyway…one day I was a a yard sale and I found Betsey. She was lying there on the table….(Can one lay down if one is only a head?)….and it dawned “uponst” me….that I could have my own version of a cow head on the wall…for a smidge of the price. Now…that is not to say…that I wouldn’t love to have a big one…but for now…Betsey will do just fine. I am sad to say that I do not have a before picture, so get your imagination up and running. She used to be white with golden, glowing eyes. I believe that in her former life…she was a towel holder or something. Now she is just beautiful….watching me cook. (Btw: That is my very own preserved Boxwood. You can do it!) Betsey is a doll…in her espresso makeover. The other post about Betsey were pictures from my phone. We will call this Betsey’s glamour shot. 😉

So now onto my favorite pumpkin. I’m just throwing this in because it’s almost fall. The pumpkin, I’m thinkin’, was marked down last year because it was getting close to Christmas. I love it. It’s my favorite fake pumpkin of all time. Now the little bowl has a chip…so I got it at TJ Maxx (another fave!) for a song. (No…I didn’t sing and dance…but I would have…if they had asked.) It was a very thrifty price.

Last but not least….the Joy of Cooking. I found this little blue beauty at a yard sale the other day. I was in love. The color. The popularity of this book. The grease splatters from the woman that owned it for years. The notes left inside. The history of this cookbook. All of it. It was so worth the two dollars. I believe that this one is a third edition. There is something about old books that just grab me.

I don’t want to let you go without mentioning what today is. In my quiet time this morning, I thanked the Lord for keeping us safe since the dreadful day, twelve years ago. I was expecting our second child and it was a very scary and sad time. My heart goes out to those…that will never recover from that dreadful day. Not fully anyway. There are so many that lost so much and I pray that today they are comforted by those that care and hold them up in prayer. I am also very thankful for those that have fought this battle. I don’t ever want to take for granted those that serve to make this country what it is.

May God continue to bless America,

p.s. Thank you to all that commented on my last post! It was a joy to read what you had to say! I LOVE your comments!

Hydrangea Drying 101

05 Thursday Sep 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

≈ 2 Comments

Are you drying bushels of hydrangeas today? You aren’t? Well…you can. I am going to tell you how. Even though you could Google it…I will provide you with the info…free of charge. Yes…yes…I am sweet that way.

So….if you have a hydrangea bush…or a friend with a hydrangea bush, please don’t dress in all black and rob your neighbors in the night, (not very friendly) it’s pretty simple and amazing the way that dried hydrangeas last. Have you seen them everywhere? They are so pretty. Ours turn pink and green. What a pretty combo.

So…basically…the short of it, is this:

1. Cut your blooms off of the bush after they are dry and papery. (Not while they are still tender.

2. Cut in different sized stem lengths and remove leaves.

3. Bring inside…after debugging them…and put them in jars with water. Give each flower head enough space to breathe.

4. Set them out of direct sunlight and just leave them be…until they are dry. If they are still not dry after all of the water is gone, add more water and patiently wait.

I think that baskets of them are lovely. I also love the look of an old dough bowl with dried hydrangeas. They will last and you will have a beautiful floral arrangement in your home. Try it…you might like it. 😉

When mine are done for this year…I will try to remember to let you have a look. Why? Because you are Dirt Roaders…and you need to know these things.

Waiting on my hydrangeas,

Goings on at the Farmhouse

30 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

≈ 2 Comments

First of all….the internet has been down again. Thank heavens for Smarty Pants phones. 😉 (I’m still not sure that I can justify it. Put it under the recreation heading.) 😉

I have some exciting news for you though! Our Araucana laid her first egg this week! You can be sure that I’m crazy about the color!

Didn’t she do good? Easter eggs in August.

We also had a little kitchen project this week. I will give you a little sneak peek and then next week…do some blogging about it and give credit to our inspiration. I am in love.

Do you see it? 🙂

I hope that your weekend is second to none. Celebrate by doing no labor. You’ve earned it.

Eating green eggs and ham, (not really)

Here a goat…there a goat…

23 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, RaMbLiNgs

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It’s true. I was gifted two goats for my birthday.

Aren’t they sweet?

Their names are Peanut (baby) and Myrtle (momma).

They live out by the chickens. They add a certain amount of “farmishness” around here.

This…is some serious business. Goats, chickens and a farmhouse to clean. I believe that I can handle it. 😉

My computer is acting wonky today. I’m gonna have to figure this one out…but I didn’t want to leave you without saying Happy Weekend, Dirt Roaders! May your weekend be filled with all things fun and the time to stop and look around…in awe…of the blessings that God has put into your life.

The Computer Fix it Gal, (not really)

Kelli

Kitchen Backsplash: The Before

15 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, fluffin' the nest

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You have been in my kitchen, many times. Well…not really. Some of you have…really…but you know what I mean. You have seen it. You have heard me wee-wah about not knowing if I should go with all white or stick with the Russet Rose. You have heard me tell recently…that I have compromised for now and settled for a beadboard backsplash and leaving the Russet Rose everywhere else. I’m good with that. I’m a colorful person. I’m just not ready to totally give up my color. So today…I’m gonna share a few shots of what the Farmhouse kitchen looks like…now…before we start our new project.

I love my kitchen. They (whomever that is) say that the kitchen is the heart of the home. It must be…because whenever we have company, that is the first room that the gravitate to. I love that. Our kitchen just feels like us. We were blessed to build this home from the cow pasture up…so we drew our floor plan on paper and went from there.

Do you love your kitchen? If you don’t…there are all kinds of things that you can do to change it…that are very inexpensive. In the house that we lived in before this one (that we bought from the Mr.’s parents) we had red cabinets and black and white checked flooring. I’m talking…the big black and white squares. I loved it. That linoleum was beautiful…all.the.time. It had a glossy finish that was amazing. My MIL is quite snazzy that way. Paint is a wonderfully (thrifty) way to change the whole look of your kitchen.

Of all of the magazine pictures and Pinterest photos that I drool the most over….it’s the kitchen shots. What is it with that? Maybe it’s because I love to cook. It just feels cozy in the kitchen. I told the Mr., just last night…that I couldn’t wait to set our old kitchen scale on the counter, after the beadboard was up. He smiled. He knows me. He also knows that the scale has been in our marriage…since the mobile home days. Now there was a kitchen! 😉

Would you like to hear a confession? We have Formica. Are you shocked? I know…I know…it’s a bad word in Blogland. I’m just being honest with you. I see beautiful counter tops of butcher block and soapstone and granite and marble and they are beautiful. Someday…who knows? Right now…ours remind me of two “kids” trying to build a home with two little girls and a little boy in their future. They remind me of going to the cabinet place and picking out a color and then calling back and picking the lighter color…because I couldn’t live with chocolate brown leaf pattern. They are staying…for now. I’m a little bit in love with them…and their light leafyness. 😉

I am sentimental. I have passed it onto our son. We can’t change much in his room. I’m okay with that. I think that it’s a good thing to treasure what you already have…instead of wanting more. After all…these are just borrowed things. Blessings for…this time… to enjoy…and not nearly as important as the treasures that are being laid up for our future.

May your kitchen be cozy, Dirt Road Friends,

Diggin’ out for fall is almost like Christmas.

14 Wednesday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

≈ 6 Comments

Last night…I was sitting here looking around. Do you do that? Just gaze around and dream? I do. Then out of the blue…something popped into my head. I have a little twiggy pumpkin that I bought at the end of fall…on clearance. Just like that…I was super excited. (No…it doesn’t take much for a sanguine.)

I know that technically, it is still summer. We have just had crazy fall weather for weeks. It’s kinda messing with me. You know what? I think that I am fixing to cave. The only time that I have put my fall stuff out, super duper early, was when I was getting ready to have our son. That year, I put my stuff out at the end of August. It’s just that I love the pop of orange pumpkins so much…that I am having a hard time waiting. Don’t get me wrong…I grumble right along with everyone else when they put the next season’s things out too soon at the store.

Maybe I will just go down to the storage room and look though my stuff and dream. The good Lord knows that I don’t want time to pass any faster than it already does. Besides, I think that we are getting ready to start the beadboard birthday project. We may need all the room that we can get for a few days. 😉

Dreaming of fall…

A Little Fall Dreamin’…

06 Tuesday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

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Hey Dirt Roaders! Guess what? It’s rainy here. It’s rainy and cozy and I have an Apple Strudel candle burning…and Cider Mill warming in the Scentsy pot.

Now where did that come from? Ha!

Oh my. There is another one. My apologies to those that are squeezing the last drop out of summer. We are too…..I just LOVE to decorate for fall….so I can’t help but dream a little.

Are you feeling the brisk breeze and the warmth of a fluffy sweatshirt…right out of the dryer?

Okay….okay. I know that it’s barely August. I’m not trying to rush you. We all know that time seems to pass too quickly as it is. I guess we could look at it more like…I’m just giving you something to look forward too.

~~Autumn Wishes~~

Love from our dirt road to yours,

Happy Weekend!

02 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, heart and soul, sCoRiN' some JuNkItY JuNk, Simply...living

≈ 4 Comments

So tell me, Dirt Roaders. Are you going to go junkin’ this weekend? Junkin’ is fun. It’s relaxing and it’s a thrifty hobby…most of the time.

This little jar was a junkin’ find. If you follow me on Instagram (alongthedirtroad) you have already seen it. It came from the thrift store. It wasn’t as cheap as I would have liked…but I’m sure that it was way cheaper than I would have paid…if it had of been new.

I will not be junking. I have a wedding to attend and coordinate. Wish me luck. This is the first time that I have had this job in a wedding. Actually…keep the luck…just say a prayer for me…please. 🙂

Maybe you are going to pull out your fall decor? Is that jumping the gun? Maybe. My MIL and I were talking about this though…and we both love to decorate for fall. It’s our favorite. So…you know…it’s your house…do whatcha want. I may wait a while…but…that doesn’t keep me from picking up a few things here and there.

Whatever you do this weekend, I hope that you enjoy your home. I hope that you find little things to do that make you feel cozy and thankful to God above for His provision in your life. After all…we just borrow these things for a while. Isn’t it fun though? That ol’ Proverbs 31 gal…she had it right…making things cozy for her family. I believe that her bunch loved coming back home to her. By the grace of God…I want it to be that way for mine.

Smiles!

mmmMonday! on Wednesday (Pickled Beets 101)

10 Wednesday Jul 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, fluffin' the nest, Yum for the Tum

≈ 2 Comments

Hey Sweet Dirt Roaders! How are you? We are good…doin’ good. Life has been crazy…and summer has been super busy. Busy is good though. I missed mmmMonday! this week…because of some of the busy in our lives. Sooooo….since I was canning our beets from the garden yesterday and sharing on Instagram…I thought that I would bring a little mmmMonday to Wednesday this week. Are you down with that? I knew that you would be. You are flexible that way. 😉

Sooo…here I was laboring away in my farmhouse kitchen…and what to my wondering eyes did appear? My momma. How awesome is that? I know…pretty awesome. She came just in time. Plus, she brought our little cousin…to swim with my little one….so it was a win/win all the way around. She can peel beets like nobody’s business. Even hanging way over the sink…right Mom? 😉 AND…getting to visit with your mom…while you are having to work….makes it go super fast. I love you Momma….you are an amazing person. Thank you for teaching me the joy and satisfaction of raising a garden and putting up food for your family. I hope that your new wax pot worked and I hope that you are enjoying all of the goodies that I sent you home with. Plan that vacation….and get back up here….PRONTO…please. 😉

Okay…so….here is my “famous” pickled beet recipe…for all of you that want to know. It’s a little hodge-podge. Our friend Connie gave it to me a few years back…and I tweaked it (of course) to my own taste…..so…well….I hope that you enjoy.

Connie and Kelli’s “famous” Pickled Beets

3 gallons of beets

4 c. of sugar

4 c. of vinegar

4 c. of water

about 1 tsp. of allspice

sea salt (to taste)

Directions:

Cover beets with water in canner and boil until skins loosen. Drain and let cool. Peel beets and place back in (washed) canner. Add vinegar, water, sugar, allspice and sea salt (a couple of pinches) and taste. Just kind of go by your own judgement and tweak it to the way that you think they should taste. I don’t like them really spiced. Maybe you do. Just go wild. 😉 I love the way that the salt balances out the sweet. Cook them until they boil and then ladle them into hot jars. Seal…and wait for the popping sound to start. (My favorite part of canning.)

If you have questions about all of the steps to canning I will be happy to answer. Just leave me a comment. Canning is an art…and actually for me a heritage. It has been passed down from my grandmothers…to my mom and now to me. Even though it is a lot of work…canning is one of my favorite things about summer. There is a certain feeling in your kitchen and home…when you are preserving. Maybe it’s the essence of the Proverbs 31 woman….in the room. Whatever it is…it makes me thankful for this country life that I am blessed to live.

Smiles!

Along the Dirt Road

Category Archives: fluffin’ the nest

A Little Instagram for You

Betsey, My Favorite Pumpkin and the Joy of Cooking

Hydrangea Drying 101

Goings on at the Farmhouse

Here a goat…there a goat…

Kitchen Backsplash: The Before

Diggin’ out for fall is almost like Christmas.

A Little Fall Dreamin’…

Happy Weekend!

mmmMonday! on Wednesday (Pickled Beets 101)