Homemakers Heart and a new free pattern...

As I get older my mornings tend to begin earlier, and at least once a week that early is around 3am.

No matter what time I go to bed, these 'middle of the night' wake ups (as my husband refers to them) have become a regular rhythm to my week.

At first it used to bother me, but then over time I began to embrace the dark quiet hours before dawn and after filling a glass of cool water I'd slip into the sewing room with my Bible and close the door before turning on the light. This is a small home and a light on in any room will shed it's glow far and wide, disturbing the one who sleeps - my beloved husband in this case.

Early Sunday morning, after a rather restless night, I sat down and opened my Bible. I had not chosen any particular passage to read, just allowed the pages to fall open where they may and at the very top of the left hand page this is what I read...

"So we do not lose heart."

I'm not the most emotional person, and due to some deep tragedies, challenges and griefs over the decades I have learned to push through and move forward when new trials come upon me. It can at times seem as though I'm a little cold or distanced, that perhaps I should weep or show some outward expression of anxiety, but more and more as the years pass I can easily keep all that emotion under wraps and keep going - mostly because I have such faith in God carrying all situations in His care and in His overall plan, but also because wallowing in self pity or embracing fear does nothing more than exacerbate difficult times of trial. 

To have HOPE in the Lord is to trust that the plan He has for my life and the lives of my loved ones will be the best plan, and shedding off fear or anxiety when trouble comes frees me up to look forward and not be immobilised by circumstances. 

Sometimes this can challenge me, especially my mother heart when it involves the children, but only for a short while. Choosing Christ over others, choosing Him over the world, believing His word over man's...therein lies my confidence, hope, assurance, strength and direction. 

But Sunday night there was a restlessness in my spirit, a different discomfort, one which made me seek the Lord as I lay in the dark bedroom, only the sound of the whirring ceiling fan above me breaking through the otherwise quiet pre-dawn hours.

Father God showed me that even though on the surface I was very cool, calm and collected while this worldwide pandemic spread, continuing to affect more and more precious lives, underneath there was fear. It was subconscious, pushed down because I do not allow myself to entertain anxiety or fear anymore...but it was indeed there. And He made me face it. He made me bring it up to the surface and actually think about it...to deeply ponder the 'what ifs', the changes, the possible ramifications of this new normal most residents of our globe are already, or about to, experience.

I found this quite sobering, quite heavy, and then eventually quite a relief to have allowed myself to acknowledge the feelings deep inside which I'd been burying. 

You know, our Lord is incredible...He took me through those emotions for more than my own sake, but to give me a glimpse at what many of you are feeling right now. And if I could, my arms would reach through this screen and I would hug you so tight and pray His love would envelop you like a thick woolly cardigan and keep you safe and comforted and assured in the weeks and months ahead.

So when I opened my Bible and saw that verse it was God speaking directly to my acknowledged fear and bringing calm and assurance to my heart...and within minutes my fear was all gone. Still is.

Blessed assurance indeed.

That's when I drew up this little stitchery for you. I knew exactly what it should be, a brooch that you can pin to your shirt, or cardie or dress each morning to remind you that we should not lose heart. 

The design is 2" x 3" and I sewed a little safety pin at the back for pinning on each day. Quick, simple and exactly what we need to hold fast to. 

You can download the free pattern at the link below:

DOWNLOAD "SO WE DO NOT LOSE HEART"

As most of us will be home isolated these days I wonder if you have a friend who might benefit from having this little brooch as well? It would fit in an envelope (if you're still able to post) and be a blessing of love.

Can I encourage you to read the entire passage from 2 Corinthians 4:16 to 5:9?

May you find strength, hope, comfort and assurance. 

I have self isolated at home, and of course this means separation from my precious Blossom, Cully May and Rafaella. Because my husband is a high school teacher and schools in our state are not closing, we know that life is unpredictable and he could possibly bring the virus home at some stage and we must protect our daughter, her husband and family, especially as Ross now works solely from home. 

We chat every day and Cully May tells me 'everything' she has done; keeps me laughing that's for sure. Blossom and I are focused on honing our homemaker hearts during the months ahead and learning the art of doing with less, making do and mending, being extra creative with less ingredients, and bringing a new order to our daily lives. 

We stocked up on fruit and veg last week, our pantry will see us through for a while, and though one fridge died this morning and the hot water system broke down last Friday, life is humming along productively. 

I haven't tried this before but it occurred to me that storing peeled garlic cloves in olive oil would be wise as I've seen it done (on Pinterest) but never felt the need to try it. Until yesterday.

As we're vegan I spend a lot of time each day preparing meals and treats which are healthy and look for ways to tweak regular recipes to suit our needs.

I found this wonderful recipe for a blueberry crumble cake on Saturday and all I had to substitute was frozen blueberries for fresh, almond milk for dairy milk, and spelt flour for wholemeal (and I did not serve it with cream).

I enjoy my hours in the kitchen! Especially now that I use the dishwasher. 

Ha ha!! Confession time - I hated dishwashers, always believing it was best to wash by hand.

But then we had the plumber out a few months back and he was telling us that homes where a dishwasher is used have less problems with blocked pipes because the water from the dishwasher is boiling and clears the pipes.

So I begrudgingly decided to use the dishwasher twice a week. Then I discovered how much more fun it was to create in the kitchen when I did not have to wash all the equipment afterwards so now I fill the machine throughout the day and set it to wash after dinner. 

I tend to do a lot of food preparation and baking all at once now which in the overall scheme of things gives us better meal variety and helps with time management.

This cake was sooooo delicious that it will be made again and again. I've never been a real fan of pecans but I do keep some in the freezer, however this recipe has changed my mind about them and now I love pecans.

I wondered how long it would take my husband to like lentils after we went vegan in mid January. They've been a staple of mine for decades, but he was not a fan so I'd always make him something else. Surprise! He really loves dhal nowadays so we have it once a fortnight and I make enough to serve leftovers for lunch a couple of days later. 

On Sunday morning we went for a drive down to Pallarenda, a fairly deserted beach on the edge of town. Looking for somewhere we'd not be bumping in to people but could breathe the sea air and walk along the sand freely, this beach was perfect. Apart from a small family much further along the shore we were all alone, collecting sea shells.... 

...and cuttle fish skeletons for the wild birds who visit our feeder each day. It was a glorious hour in the sunshine, not too hot (finally), and we came home refreshed and invigorated.

Did you stitch the free Homemakers Heart pattern I shared in early March? I used it on the cover of my current home project, the Homemakers Binder. You'll find it here

On Monday and today I began gathering together all the things which I want to store inside the Binder so there's a great mass of ideas and printouts across the dining table at the moment as I fine tune what to use, what to discard and what to sit in the 'still thinking about it' pile.

I am hopeful of getting it all finished tomorrow...I do say hopeful but one never knows.

On the other side of the dining table is my desk and it is quite serene at the moment after a jolly good clean and tidy on Friday.

Friday is the most intensive cleaning day of the week as I prepare for a restful sabbath and I usually have a list to work through so that I stay on track.

Last Friday's to-do list included scrubbing the bathroom, the toilet, the front of the kitchen cabinets, inside the oven door, pulling the entire bedroom apart to vacuum, dust and polish, sheets were changed, four loads of washing hung and dried and folded, meals prepared and floors vacuumed and mopped. 

I was so tired on Friday night that I was falling asleep in the middle of stitching a new design so Mr E sent me off to bed where I fell into a wonderfully deep and restful slumber. Next morning I ached all over and realised my Friday to-do list was longer than it should be and this coming Friday I shall be a bit more restrained.

With regards to my health, I'm feeling really good. I chose not to find out what was wrong with my heart and just give this vegan lifestyle a chance to heal things naturally. What has amazed me most is the lack of migraines - I have gone from 16 to 20 a month, down to one a month.

And my energy has returned, I no longer struggle to breath easily, I'm not easily fatigued (unless I put my wonder woman cape on and do too much) and my digestive system is the best it has ever been.

Thanks for all those prayers...they DO make a difference.

This week's Homemakers Heart Task:

How long since you pulled the bedroom furniture away from the walls and vacuumed under and behind it? 

This week your task, should you choose to accept it (yes, I know, there's a definite Mission Impossible vibe here but let's call it Mission Possible), is to go through your bedroom and clean it top to bottom. Don't worry about inside the wardrobes or drawers this week, focus on the actual room itself - the window sills, curtains, floors, ceiling fans, lights and doors.

Change up the decor if you can for a fresh feel - add some flowers, candles, indoor plants, change the bedspread, make a new cushion for the bed, switch lamp shades, switch photos or pictures on the wall...in general, walk in the room with new eyes and see what you can do to give the room a makeover from what you already have on hand.

Our room is so much nicer now! It just took a bit of thought and a rummage through what we already had stored in the linen cupboard as well as some swapping of things from one room to another. 

For those who asked about Miracle Spray you'll find the recipe HERE

God bless you all, precious friends and readers across the globe.

May you be wise and diligent to follow the health guidelines in your country and remember to pray often...God hears. 

Loving hugs

A new season, letting go and The Homemakers Heart...

Peace in our home is welcome, and so is peace in our heart.

I recently had a long encounter with God which began around 3.30 am one morning and continued for many hours and on into the next day as He began to peel away things in my life as one would peel away the layers of an onion.

It's been quite a wild ride in many ways since we bought our first home in September 2018. A new experience for us, these past 18 months have brought many surprises along the way - much joy, muscle-fulls of hard work, a flood, a productive food harvest during our tropical winter, a string of house repairs, health challenges, and many other highs and lows scattered in between. 

To be honest, we never realised what owning a home of your own entailed, having previously been renters all our lives...and I doubt anyone could have adequately explained this to us as it's something which needs to be experienced to truly grasp. But we wouldn't have it any other way.

Sitting outside each morning to share breakfast before my husband leaves for work we marvel at the gift of having this small patch of earth to ourselves...though of course we do share it with a variety of feathered friends!

Yesterday we watched red backed parrots in the feeder, while a flock of cockatoos waited their turn.

The yard was full of over twenty cockatoos as one stage, the tree branches bent with their weight and the newly mown grass almost white with so many.

Once everyone had their turn at the bird feeder and filled their bellies the sky filled with the flapping of white wings and we bid them farewell for another day.

But I digress...back to my time with God that morning.

It was like watching a slow video of life, with all the responsibilities and exhaustion I sometimes feel becoming vivid in a different way...not the feeling of it, but the observance of it.

Little by little He led me to understand that it was time to peel away some of the things which have a hold on my time, time that for a homemaker and small business owner can be quite precious due to not having much of it to spare.  

A number of things are already been removed from my every day and business life, and the sense of release and freedom which is settling in my heart is indeed peaceful.

On Sunday I deleted my Instagram account, and tomorrow I will be deleting my Facebook business page. Over the next week I will also be deleting the two groups I run on Facebook - these take time because I must delete each member individually before FB will allow me to properly delete the groups, and one group has 3000 members...sigh, they make things hard. And the last thing is to delete my personal FB page which will then leave me totally free from social media...and my heart is so joyous about that.

You see, even though these avenues have been how I promote my designs and earn a living from them, I've not enjoyed being on social media. Now that I am almost done with their hold, I will be placing my trust in the Lord to bring customers to my pattern shop or to the new stitchery club...and you know, there is such peace in that.

This 'new' season of life will free me up to do what I love most - blog regularly, encourage homemakers, design for God, and share tutorials for simple projects around the home.

I an excited to focus more on my Faith in Hand Stitchery Club, bringing more of the Word of God to life as needle and thread pictures...and very excited to have extra time each week to devote to this blog where I can share so many home-inspired ideas, projects and topics with you all. 

I'll also cancel my regular free newsletter from Friday 6th March as with the $ exchange rate these days it's costing a whopping $72 AU per month and though I've enjoyed giving the 5000 subscribers who receive it every week or two an easier way to stay in touch with what's happening on the blog and access to my free patterns or tutorials, financially it's just not wise anymore. 

You can always find me here on the blog should you want to continue following along, and in the blog sidebar there's a 'contact me' button if you genuinely need to email me. 

(please note you cannot see the sidebar on a phone...you need to be at a computer or using a tablet)

The "Peace to our House" stitchery you've seen in photos above was completed as a door stop over the weekend, because I do love doorstops and once the sting of this long hot tropical summer passes around early May we'll have doors flung open until mid-October when it returns...and door stops are marvellous for avoiding door slams during the season of trade winds.

The stitchery is HERE in my Etsy Shop now, but I was wondering if you'd like me to share a tutorial for making a door stop?? Let me know in the comments.

How did you go with your task last week? Did you clean your washing machine?

I had a few people ask for the recipe to make the washing machine cleaner I showed in last week's post...

I fill a glass spray bottle with plain white vinegar and add 10-15 drops each of lavender and tea tree oil. That's all. Give it a shake before using. If you missed last week's Homemakers Heart post it is here.

This week around home I decided to tackle the pantry. I have one really great galley shaped walk in pantry and another simple white pantry cupboard. Both of them store slightly different things and once every six month I like to go through and check 'use-by' dates as well as wiping down shelves, emptying open packets in their proper containers, writing a list of items to stock up on, and generally freshening the organisation of everything.

I've purchased some large airtight glass jars recently as well as a set of small screw top jars for spices and over the next week a lot of my non-perishables will be transferred from plastic to glass.

When I first stocked the pantry after we moved here I chose cheap plastic containers because some of the shelves are quite high (I'm only 5'1") and I was worried that putting up and taking down heavy filled glass jars would be dangerous...but my husband got me a wonderful step-stool and after making sure I would be safe we've decided to switch to glass. 

Tomorrow night Mr E and I will drop in to see little Rafaella for her 2nd birthday, and then we're going to do a store cupboard shop of non-perishables. With the corona virus crossing borders and oceans it never hurts to replenish a pantry with everyday staples which can be made into meals. Honestly, this is so much easier to do now that we don't eat meat or dairy.

A friend of mine in Canada put me on to an MD who shares recipes for natural remedies and one she recently had on her IG account (before I left) was a cough mixture made by placing springs of fresh thyme and sage into the base of a glass jar and then filling the jar right to the brim with local raw honey.

So I made up two jars, one for us and one for Blossom. You leave it in a cool dark place for a few weeks at least and use as needed.

Nana always had a jar of honey and lemon on her kitchen shelf for sore throats, which is what we have used all my life, but this is apparently wonderful for coughs so am happy to give it a try should winter coughs arise this year.

NOTE: Sage should never be used in pregnancy as it can trigger a miscarriage.

Blossom gave me a couple of new recipes last week. It's been fun for both of us trying new vegan recipes and if they are successful we share them!

Tomato Pesto... perfect tossed over hot pasta or gnocchi.

Also delicious as a large spoonful dropped into a bowl of hummus and served with rice cakes - Cully May and Rafaella 'love' this.

recipe here

Banana Bread Cookies...these are soft, morish and a great way to use up very ripe bananas.

My recipe was tweaked because I chose to use rapadura sugar (you could use raw) and spelt flour (you could use white) because that's all I had and it's a healthier option. 

These are not crispy, they are like little handfuls of yummy banana bread with plump and juicy raisins throughout.

Here's my altered recipe:

·         1/2 cup (112g) vegan butter (or dairy butter if you're not vegan)

·         1 cup (200g) Rapadura Sugar (raw, or white)

·         1 cup (250g) mashed banana (around 3 medium)

·         1 tsp vanilla extract

·         2 cups (250g) plain spelt flour (or plain white flour)

·         1 tsp Bi-carb (baking) soda

·         1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

·         1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

·         1 cup raisins or sultanas

1.    Preheat the oven to 180°C (350 F) and line two cookie trays with baking paper.

2.   Cream the sugar and butter together with a hand mixer, then gently stir in the mashed banana and vanilla.

3.    Add the sifted flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and raisins, stirring with a spoon until everything is mixed well. (don’t use the electric mixer for this part).

6.   Spoon mounds onto the cookie trays. I made 24 of these cookies from the mix. 

7.    Bake for 15 minutes.

TASK:

Shall you take up the challenge this week and give your pantry a good clean and re-order?

Next week I have a great project to share with you that may make this Homemakers Heart year even more fun and will simplify a lot of what we're doing within our homes.

Before I go, I wanted to leave you with another way to follow my blog if you've previously relied on FB posts, IG or my newsletter.

Go HERE and follow this blog on BlogLovin - it's free and you won't miss anything. 

I pray you find your own peace of heart in the days and weeks ahead.

Letting go can often free up our hands and thoughts, allowing them to explore new and wonderful things, or simply giving us back the TIME we've been missing.

hugs

The Homemakers Heart and a little story...

Let me begin today by telling you how much I'm enjoying the theme this year, and that I hope as we share this year of practical homemaking you, like me, will increase your love for home, hearth and the gentle arts.

A little over nine years ago, right at the beginning of my journey as a designer and just as my years of being a homeschool mum drew to a close, I started publishing an online magazine which I filled with recipes, stories, patterns, book reviews, home hints, remedies and other such homely occupations.

It also became a fairly regular thing to write stories about my Nana and what I remembered most about growing up in her care. These proved to be very popular so I thought it might be nice to share some 'The Nana Stories' this year in my Homemakers Heart blog posts. Not every week, but often enough that you get to glimpse a little deeper into the home life and relationships which birthed my love for homemaking. 

Today I'll share a short extract from the July, 2013 issue of Elefantz Home magazine.

"Soxy"

Less and less movement is required these days than when I was a small child growing up in the 60’s. Back then with no regular public transport my walk to school was a good mile and half (about 2.5 kilometres) each way, and like all children of that era in Australia I had a heavy brown port (or school case as you may call it) with handles that wore callouses into my palms. So tough were the callouses that my friends and I would push needle and thread through them in running stitch fashion! We thought we were so brave piercing our hands and making those black dashed stitches that we often left them in all day though Nana was not impressed and quickly removed them at bath time.

My constant walking companion from the ages of 5 through 8, to and from primary school each day, was our very intelligent and faithful dog, Soxy.

Our Soxy was a bitsa – ‘a bit of this’ and ‘a bit of that’ - no true distinguishable breed to call his own. That may well be why he was such a clever fellow; he had the smarts of many breeds!

This photo of Nana and Soxy was taken in the laneway beside our little flat in 1964. I was five at the time, and Soxy was my dearest and best friend. In those days children roamed far afield during play hours, but I was never allowed out of the gate without Soxy to watch over me. 

1964 was the year I began Kindergarten and it was Soxy’s responsibility to walk me to school each morning. Once he’d safely seen me inside the school gate he would scamper home alone to wait out the day until Nana sent him back to school for our afternoon return journey. I was overjoyed to see him wagging his tail and giving a few gleeful yelps as my class streamed out in Indian file at 3 o’clock, because I loved our Soxy to pieces, but also because I was the only student being collected by a four legged family member. This daily event, stretching over three school years, ensured a small measure of admiration from my otherwise unimpressed school chums. 

Did you notice Nana is wearing an apron with rollers in her hair? I laugh now when I look back at this photo, yet when I was a child almost every woman in the neighbourhood would have her hair in rollers while she went about her morning chores, but when it was time to go out in public her hair was beautifully curled and stiff with hairspray. The strongest breeze could not move a single strand!

I'm sure Nana is the reason I love aprons (I have many) and you may be wondering if I finished my peg apron this past week?

Almost.

I just need to hand stitch the back of the waist band  and I can fill it with those new pegs I bought last month and finally toss away the old brittle and breaking ones which have lingered too long on the clothesline.

I looked all over Pinterest for ideas on making a peg apron, eventually choosing a simple style that I hoped would be easy to replicate. 

As with most things like this I made it up as I went along, correcting mistakes along the way until I was pleased with how it was coming along. I'd do a few things differently if I made another one, but as I only need a single peg apron for now I shan't dwell on the improvements but move along to the next sewing project on my list.

Last week I mentioned adding two little egg pockets to the apron for collecting Bess and Daphne's eggs each day but then it was pointed out to me (shan't name names) that I rarely hang washing and collect eggs at exactly the same time because our hens tend to lay any time between 7 am and 3 pm and washing is hung anytime between 6 am and 5 pm. Husbands do make wise observations. Oops, I said I shan't name names!

Yesterday Blossom, the little ones and I went shopping because Bloss needed a food processor and a good blender. Both our families have now decided to go vegan and these are two essential appliances for our style of eating because we pretty much make everything from scratch and rarely eat out. Can't tell you how exciting it is for me, as a mother, to watch my daughter embrace homemaking with such devotion more and more as each year passes.

After placing her appliances in the shopping cart Blossom noticed a breadmaker and mentioned that was the next big thing she'd be saving for because they go through a loaf every day and it would not just save $ but be healthier too. I love how God works because I'd not been using my large breadmaker lately as with only Mr E and I at home now, and not eating a great deal of bread recently, baking large loaves didn't seem to be worth the effort.

Well it's my birthday on Friday, and hubby has been asking me for weeks "What would you like for your birthday?" to which my only reply has been "I don't need anything"...which totally frustrated him. 

So having this breadmaker conversation with Blossom yesterday whilst standing in the middle of the home appliances section of Big W gave me an idea. I'd get a small breadmaker and give her my large one. Now we're all happy!

First loaf was a simple white because I needed to gauge how the measurements of various ingredients (yeast in particular) would affect the proving and baking of a loaf in our hot and humid conditions, something I knew easily with the larger breadmaker. 

First loaf in the new machine was almost perfect but I could tell I need to reduce the yeast by about a quarter teaspoon. My next loaf with be a pumpernickel because that is one seriously delicious loaf and lasts a few days. I'll be sure to share that recipe when I make it again.

Blossom sent me a text photo this morning of her first rye loaf which looked so delicious. It's a real blessing to be sharing another 'craft' with her.

Elsewhere in the kitchen I've focused on preparing in advance things like bulgur salad, coleslaw, miso tahini dressing, 'cheesy' tahini sauce (over roasted cauliflower this is delicious), pickled vegetables, almond milk, cashew parmesan 'cheese' and rice paper rolls.

Not sure why I never thought to do this before but I now keep the salads and the dressing I make separate in the fridge until we're ready to eat them. This way a salad, like the bulgur salad above, stays fresh for 4-5 days and all we need do for my lunches at home or for Mr E's work lunches is add some of the dressing just before serving. The remainder of the salads are undressed and stored in the fridge until the next time we want them.

Our favourite dressing is so simple and will stay fresh in the fridge for weeks (just give it a good shake before you use it)...

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

We use it sparingly because we don't enjoy salads 'soaked' in dressing, just adding enough for that zing of extra flavour.

Another addition to salads is the cashew parmesan 'cheese'.

This is made in the food processor from cashews, nutritional yeast flakes (they have the cheesy flavour and are loaded with B12 which is essential for vegans), garlic powder and a little bit of salt.

I make two cups at a time and it lasts about a month stored in the fridge.

Sprinkled over salads and sour dough lunches it's sooooo good...

A new recipe for something to serve with a decaf cappuccino or a cup of herbal tea are these Ginger Berry Kisses, which believe me are delicious.

They are vegan, gluten free, sugar free, grain free, dairy free...ticks a lot of boxes if you have a special diet which excludes those ingredients.

The recipe is inside "Whole" and I highly recommend this book by Australian Harriet Birrell. You'll find her blog here.

I used to make almond milk regularly but then we went back to dairy for a few years and it became an occasional thing during detox weeks. But now I make it three times a week (it's that easy) and Mr E told me the other day that he prefers this than any other 'milk' because it never makes him sick and it tastes good too. Big tick on my prayer chart cause men can be the hardest to move from what they grew up on to what heals their bodies.

I soak 1 cup of almonds in water for about four hours or overnight, then rinse them before adding to the blender with five cups of cold water.

My blender has a nut milk setting and it's made in 60 seconds.

Then I pour the blended almonds and water into a nut bag and squeeze all the milk out.

Store almond milk in the fridge and it will keep for around 5 days.

This makes just over a litre of almond milk which we go through in around two or three days as we begin each day with a bowl of fresh fruit salad and an iced almond milk latte (decaf).

My Homemakers Heart task last week was to clean out the cupboard underneath the kitchen sink. Did you do that too?

My timing couldn't have been better because after I pulled everything out I discovered water all along the back of the cupboard due to a leak in the dishwasher hose. 

As soon as Mr E came home he fixed it and I could finish cleaning and re-organising that area. Crisis averted!

I added an extra task to my kitchen clean up over the weekend by scrubbing the exhaust fan over the stove. Let's not even ask how long since the last time it was cleaned, okay? Let's just focus on how bright and sparkly it is now. LOL!

My task for this coming week is to sort out the laundry room. It's a tiny space and when we moved here hubby fitted some wire drawers for me because there was literally nowhere to store anything. 

Now it's become a big mess so I'll go through everything and make some changes. 

The other side of the laundry is just a tub and the washing machine. We recently gave the tumble dryer to Blossom because we don't use it and this has freed up space on top of the washer. I have a plan to utilise that space with a couple of  nice baskets where I can keep the new cleaning cloths and washing powder.

I have a friend who has the most beautiful laundry and when I visit her I love to walk through it. It's large, yes, and organised, but what catches my homemaker heart is the beautiful touches of homemade and other items which decorate the walls, bench and free standing cupboard. 

It had always been my intention to pretty up my little laundry when we bought this house in September 2018 but when the roof came down during the floods last February and then we had to wait months to have it repaired and the walls repainted, I think a lot of my good intention was redirected elsewhere. Over the next month I plan on bringing this little space by the back door to life.

Shall you join me this next week in the task of giving your laundry a clean and de-clutter?

Does your stove top exhaust need a scrub as well?

Hopefully in next week's Homemakers Heart post I'll have made some good progress on my laundry to show you. 

I'll leave you with a HAPPY photo today...

While Blossom and Rafaella were in the chemist yesterday, Cully May and I sat out front chatting away while we waited for them.

She sparkles, this little granddaughter of mine! Time spent with her and Rafaella always leaves me overflowing with love, and as they drive away later in the day I can hear them calling "Bye Nana, I love you!"

You know, I think I need to shout out to God "I love you!" more often, with that same delight and enthusiasm these precious little girls show me. He'd be just as chuffed as I am.

Bless you heaps, sweet friends, and may the days ahead be bright and hopeful no matter what trials you may be facing. Lift your eyes unto the Lord and worship Him with praise for in His strong and gentle hands you are held safe and sure.

hugs