Finding joy in the everyday

I have two sons and no daughters.  I am an only daughter with three brothers.  My mother taught all my brothers to cook, clean and to knit (not sure why the later was necessary, but they all learnt to make a mean bath mat, but I doubt they have used this skill in their adult lives??!!). I have been reading a number of blogs recently regarding the teaching of daughters to become homemakers and not much (nothing to be honest) on bringing up boys to also contribute to the home.  I think it is very important to teach boys the basics, you never know when they might need these skills. Cooking :  Both my sons have been taught to cook, not just boil an egg but to make a full meal including trying different recipes and test out ideas – Tristan loves making fish soups and casseroles whilst Caius is great with pasta.   They can both read recipes and I noticed that Tristan cut a recipe from the newspaper the other day as he wanted to make it.  They can bake (Tri...

Today is the Queen's Birthday and we celebrate it on the second Monday of June each year.  It isn’t really Queen Liz’s birthday - that occurs on the 21st of April.  So technically she has already had her cake and eaten it (and I wasn’t invited to share).  Up until 1936 it was held on the actual birthday of the Monarch, but after the death of George V it was decided to keep the date on the second Monday in June - I suppose it was easier to remember and didn't bump into Easter and ANZAC Day. How do I celebrate the Queen’s birthday - well sometimes I don’t even think about her all day.  I usually have a sleep-in and enjoy the day off from work.  * * *   Zucchini & feta fritters Ingredients (serves 8) 6 (about 700g) green zucchini, coarsely grated 2 tsp salt 3 green shallots, ends trimmed, thinly sliced 1 cup firmly packed finely chopped fresh continental parsley 200g feta, coarsely crumbled 75g (1/2 cup) plain flour 3 eggs, lightly whisked Fr...

Glory, Glory, Hallelujah (words by Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910) Mine eyes have seen the glory Of the coming of the Lord; He is trampling out the vintage Where the grapes of wrath are stor'd; He hath loos'd the fateful lightning Of His terrible swift sword: His truth is marching on. Glory, glory, hallelujah! Glory, glory, hallelujah! Glory, glory, hallelujah! His truth is marching on . I have seen Him in the watch-fires Of a hundred circling camps, They have builded Him an altar In the evening dews and damps; I can read His righteous sentence By the dim and flaring lamps: His day is marching on. (chores) I have read a fiery gospel Writ in burnished rows of steel: "As ye deal with My contemners, So with you My grace shall deal:" Let the Hero born of woman Crush the serpent with His heel, Since God is marching on. (chores) He has sounded forth the trumpet That shall never call retreat; He is sifting out the hearts of men Before His judg...

Breakfast in bed - don't get too jealous, this wasn't me this morning (above) - I got out of bed and made breakfast myself before climbing back into bed with crumpets and honey and a mug of Jasmine Tea.  I do this every Saturday and Sunday, it makes for a very relaxing start to the day. (and perfect on a very cold and frosty winters morning)  I usually eat my breakfast and read but need to be very careful not to get honey on my book or down the front of my nightie!!  Ruby curls up next to me feeling very content. After breakfast I set off on a journey across the border into New South Wales to visit Spotlight (they sell fabric, crafty things, Manchester etc..)  - I was hunting for fabric to be made into a pinafore for winter.  Found just what I was looking for which I was thrilled with (you will have to wait to see the finished product!).  I also wandered around checking out other stuff but becuase I was being frugal I only bought  a fitted bed sheet (...

Do not worry about tomorrow. Matthew 6:34 Don’t fret about the future Or be consumed by cares: Instead take all your worries And turn them into prayers. Wilpena Pound within the Flinders Rangers in South Australia Wilpena Pound is a natural amphitheatre of mountains north of Adelaide. The name for the Pound, is reported to be Aboriginal, meaning 'the place of bent fingers'; this might either be a reference to the mountains resembling the shape of a gently cupped hand, or the freezing cold of the ranges in winter. Another example of Gods glorious creations.

Following on from my brief study of Feminism — After achieving many reforms to protected women, the movement developed a more radical viewpoint that began attacking the very foundations of who and what women were.  This was clearly evident in a 1966 statement made by the National Organisation of Women (the biggest feminist movement in the USA) saying ” it is to take action to bring women into full participation in the mainstream of American society now, exercising all privileges and responsibilities thereof in truly equal partnership with men ."  They wanted women to have everything that men had. Writers such as Simone de Beauvoir (author of “The Second Sex”), Betty Friedan (author of “The Feminine Mystique”) and Germaine Greer (author of “The Female Eunuch”) argued that men wanted to maintain the power positions they had in society as it controlled, enslavement and oppressed women.  Women were “trapped” in the private sphere of the home whilst men were in the public sph...

Jean-Baptiste Greuze (21 August 1725 – 4 March 1805) was a French painter, who’s father (a carpenter) did not want his son to become an artist and would whipped him when he was caught drawing.  He ran away to Paris with another artist and found that no one wanted to employ him, as a result he became very poor. It wasn’t until his 30’s did things improve when he exhibited a painting at the Salon. He did finally become one of the most popular painters of his time, but it didn't last and fared so badly in his later years, dying in poverty.  Just like in modern times, he married in haste (to one his most famous models - Anne Gabriel) to save her reputation and paid for it in money. He had been in receipt of considerable wealth, which he had dissipated by extravagance and bad management (as well as embezzlement by his wife), so that during his closing years he was forced even to solicit commissions which his enfeebled powers no longer enabled him to carry out with success. His pi...