Howdy Sugar Pies! The old farmhouse has been bustling with lots of  activity the past couple of weeks! Some delightful as you will soon see, and others called for lots of prayer. My dear hubby was bit by some kind of spider on his wrist.  At 4:30 in the morning he woke me to pray for his arm, which I proceeded to do. We turned on the lights so I could see it. His arm had swelled up, was hot to the touch and there was also a red streak running up the length of his arm toward his shoulder. Not good.  I insisted that we take him to the emergency room at the hospital. The Doctor said that hubby’s red streak was just inches away from a major medical problem. Thank the Lord we caught it in time (and for waking my hubby up in the wee hours in the morning!) Within 24 hours after taking a batch of anti-biotics his arm was back to normal. He is fine! God is good! Life has gone back to normal. Normal is a good thing and something to be thankful for!

Once all was well again I got back into the delightful routine of  happy domesticity! With the Holidays just around the corner, I’ve been organizing the nooks and crannies of my home. One big project that I’m still working on is getting all of my books (my hubs says “too many books”…he may be right, but don’t tell him I said that) organized into  catagories….library style. I’ve been weeding through my assortment, making piles to give away and piles according to subject matter.

Although they were somewhat organized a few years ago when we moved in, things have gotten a bit sloppy. When I tried to find a book that I knew I had, it would take me for-evah to find it! It was such a waste of precious time. Not anymore!  Now they are in groupings of similar subjects and so much easier to find. I love the feeling of getting the old homestead back in order!

I’ve also been spending time with a certain adorable boy named Johnny!

My Oh HOnEy Johnny boy is my little dream-boat! He’s four months old and quite delicious! His mama…my daughter Ashley, is a wonderful devoted and happy mother! And everytime he comes to visit his Grammie is very very happy!

His beautiful blue eyes are always filled with wonder…all the world is facinating! Oh HoNey!

My Johnny-boy is a butterball of joy! Oh HoNeY!

We also had sweet Peggy come for a visit. Peg is my daughter-in-law Kimmy’s mama. I just love that Peggy travels with her favorite recipes!

She cooked a scrumptious meal for us and treated us to three pies for dessert…two kinds of chocolate pie and one blackberry…it was pie heaven! She lives in Austin, Texas and let me tell ya, that gal’s a real hoot ‘n’ holler as they say down here in the Ozarks! Everybody needs a friend like Peggy…so full of joy and the love of the Lord!

Since Fall is one of the best times to visit Silver Dollar City (an amusement park set in the theme of the 1800’s, just minutes from my home) I just had to get out there for their Harvest Festival!

I brought along my adorable, hilarious, ( did I say adorable?) friend Marla Jean, a sweet ‘n’ spunky  Oklahoma girl . We decided it was a great day to go to the Silver Dollar City Culinary School to enjoy a fun cooking show presented in this darling farmhouse…

We got there a bit early so we sat on the rocking chairs and chatted like a couple of happy hens until it was time to go in…

Come take a peek inside!

The large kitchen has room for 35 students and the show is one hour.

The teacher is so friendly and perfectly chatty…she makes you feel like an old friend sittin’ at her kitchen table. Each day she prepares a different dish. On this day she made a mushroom sauce for steak and also sausage gravy for her amazing biscuits. Biscuits and gravy is a staple here in the Ozarks. You can find it at most restaurants in town. Back in Californy, where I’m from, we’ve never heard of it! West coast folks don’t know what they’re missin’!

After the show we strolled through the 1800’s park to enjoy the delightful harvest craftsmen and women. Miss Phyllis and her family came down from Kansas to demonstrate how to make Apple Butter. Oh my! It was the best I’ve ever tasted! Her secret is to add some “Red Hots” cinnamon candies to the mixture of  apples and brown sugar!

Here she is rolling dough for a crumb top apple pie that she’ll be baking in the wood stove behind her…the old fashioned way!

It was facinating to watch how she handled the dough and crimped the edges in her own quaint style!

Her daughter sat in the mellow warmth of  a honeyed afternoon sunbeam with an enamel pan in her lap as she peeled and cored the crisp autumn apples. I can imagine that it was quiet moments like these that the brave and hard working prairie women would look forward to. A time to sit a while, catch their breath,  pray and count their blessings… and even sing a hymn or two. With the aroma of fresh cut apples,  a cool breeze and the gentle motion of peeling and slicing, I can see how such a simple task would bring a warm feeling thankfulness and well being. It fills a homemaker’s heart with tender joy doing those things that she knows will nurture and bless her family.

Some of the apples that have been prepared will be for the pie, but most of them will  go into the old copper kettle to make several batches of farm fresh apple butter to spread on homemade biscuits and toast.

I could have chatted with Phyllis till the cows came home! She was so happy to answer all of  my many questions. She told me that back in the olden days many farm folks in the midwest and south had a “Summer Kitchen”. It was open to the outdoors like this one here, because it was too hot to cook in the house during the heat of summer and early fall.

Canning jars, scrubbed clean and shiny, just waiting to be filled with apple goodness!

Phyllis’ hubby, John Dale, looking quite dapper in his straw farmer’s hat I might say, pitches right in preparing the apples to put into the steaming kettle.

If you would like a copy of Phyllis’s Favorite Recipes, send $5.00 to:

Phyllis Schrock

122 Kingsway                                                                                                                                                 Hesston, KS 67062

(the $5.00 includes postage)

Her little booklet has recipes for her family’s favorite meals, homemade noodles, cookies, pies, breads and of course apple butter. I have a bowl of apples waiting for me to simmer up a batch of apple butter later this week.

The old Wilderness Church is one of my favorite stops at Silver Dollar City. There is such a calming feeling when you walk inside.

Everyone is welcome to come and sit and gaze out at the view of the Ozark mountains.

At certain times during the day they have delightful, old timey sing-alongs! It is such a heartwarming experience!

There are of course lots of rides, activities and events going on throughout the park, but I always seem to veer off to the quaint little cabins and barns nestled snuggly in the woods.

Doesn’t this look like a vintage photo? It’s actually one that I took–turned it Sepia— of one of the cabins you can go in to see how life was lived in the 1800’s. Every day a full meal is cooked on the wood burning stove and the folks who work there (the fiddle players, story tellers and cooks) get to sit down and enjoy the homecooked supper together. Guests can walk right in an act like a fly on the wall and watch them eat their vittles.

Fresh sorghum canes are crushed, extracting the juice to make sorghum syrup.

Here’s granny cookin’ up a batch of sorghum. It’s like a light molasses. They use it in cookies, breads, baked beans, and it’s drizzled on pancakes, biscuits and rolls. Scrumptious!

It was so wonderful breathing in the delights of fall at Silver Dollar City that I had to bring sweet Summer Rose back with me! Our first stop was this darling bakery for a hot cinnamon roll, dripping with sugar-milk icing! We kept saying “OH MY GOODNeSs! This is soooooo yummy!” and then we got the giggles!

Instead of mama and daughter we look like two little kids in this giant rocking chair!

As we were leaving the park we were walking behind this cute little family and we overheard the conversation between the daddy and his son (who looked to be around 7 yrs. old)…the daddy was talking about all the fun things they still had left  to do that day and the boy exclaimed “We’re gonna be wore out by nightfall pa!” Okay is that not the cutest thing Ev-AH! What little boy says “nightfall”?? That is so stinkin’ adorable! Summer and I kept saying that phrase the rest of the day! It sounded like a line right out of Little House On The Prairie!!  Oh HoNeY!

I hope y’all are enjoying WoNdErFuL FaLL! Keep them home fires burnin’ Sugar Pies…get your home all comfy cozy before the chilly north wind starts to blow! (Brrrrrrrr! ) Fill your home with joyful music, yummy smells, and lots of love to bless your family!

“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galations 6:9

Well, it’s apple butter makin’ days here at the farmhouse! I’ve got to get to peeling them apples! Y’all come back now ya hear?

May the good Lord bless you and keep you real good!

Hugs!

Aunt Ruthie

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Autumn Greetings Sugar Pies!! It is officially Fall at my house! Yay!! I know that y’all love this time of year as I do! There is so many delightful things to look forward to and to be thankful for!

A Few of my favorite Fall things are…

1. Sipping hot spiced cider on a blustery, apple-crisp afternoon.

2. The way my house smells when I’m baking Grandma’s Gingersnap Cookies.

3. Hayrides with my family at the pumpkin patch.

4. Feeling joyfully domestic as I cozy up my home listening to the Little Women Movie Soundtrack (an instant mood lifter!).

5. Delighting in simple things like little orange pumpkins sitting in a neat little row.

6. Tasting sliced green apples dipped in warm ‘n’ buttery caramel sauce.

7.  Feeling the soothing warmth of a crackling fire.

8.  Eating pumpkin pie with a dollop of fresh whipped cream.

9. Candy corn and peanuts.

10.  The sweet aroma of wood smoke in the brisk evening air.

11.  Watching the leaves swirl and twirl in a gust of wind as I drive along a country road.

12. Gazing in awe at a big butter-yellow harvest moon.

13.  Apple picking with my family

14.  The way the light turns a golden-honey color at the end of the day.

15.  Warming my family’s tummies with a steaming bowl of my mom’s Chicken soup with fresh grated Parmeasan Cheese.

16. Going to hometown craft shows with a friend.

17. Wearing my Ugg boots and colorful knitted scarves.

18. Looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas!

19.  Antique Road-trip adventures with my sister-in-law Linda.

20. Decorating my house for Fall!!

I so enjoy decorating for the seasons! It brings such cheerfulness into our daily lives. It revives and awakens our hearts to the glory of God’s creation and His faithfulness. Little touches of seasonal beauty placed thoughtfully throughout our home adds a sense of celebration, warmth and welcome to our loved ones.  Galations 6:10 says ” Be mindful to be a blessing”,  as homemakers, making our home feel cozy and delightful blesses our family! Every home needs a woman’s nurturing touch, it sends a message of love and care to all who enter it.  It’s a troubled world out there and that’s all the more reason to make  our homes a place of comfort and joy. Oh girls, we must never underestimate the significance of  our role as a homemaker…we set the stage for our family’s sense of belonging, safety and well being.

Ever since my hubby carried me over  the threshold, 31 years ago, my passion was to make our home the sweetest and happiest place to be. That is still my passion. Decorating for the seasons is a tradition in our household, it’s something that my four children always looked forward to. I have found that even when I didn’t feel like it, once I got started and began changing things around, festooning the fireplace mantle and staircase, my creative juices starting bubbling up like soda pop! It’s such a refreshing feeling to stand back and see the delightful transformation that just a few touches can make. It’s because beauty inspires!

When we make the effort to cozy up our home and fill it with an atmosphere that glows with the celebration of the season, it is a gift to our family and those who come to visit. It’s those extra little things we do, to create a feeling of warmth and whimsy, joy and goodness, that communicates a message to our family that says: you are loved and it is my pleasure to make  you feel nurtured and cared for. It’s a message that hugs the hearts of those we love and it gives them a delicious affection for home. Remember we are planting seeds in everything that we do…plant happy moments and harvest a lifetime of happy memories.

For all of us, today’s experiences are tomorrow’s memories. ~Barbara Johnson

“Every change of scene becomes a delight! ” ~ Seneca

“It is the soothing predictability of traditions that make kids feel secure.” ~ Jo Ann Paris Leavell

It’s harvest time on the farm, the “frost is on the pumpkin” , the apples are ripe for pickin’, and there’s a pumpkin pie freshly baked just for you! Y’all come on in now and take a peek inside Sugar Pie Farmhouse….

Come on into my kitchen and see how I gussied up my little lamp shades by hot-gluing a strand of pom-pom fringe around the  bottom edge.

“The cheerful joyous season,

The Autumn time is come.

With song and shout we welcome

The Golden Harvest Home.”

~Author Unknown

“Afterwards, they always had tea in the kitchen, much the nicest room in the house.” ~Flora Thompson

Freshly Baked Pies: This is a favorite sign of mine that I love to bring out each Autumn. Pumpkin pie and Fall just go together! I attached a small white plate on the top of my two candlestick holders to support the pumpkins. Just a loop of duck tape…sticky side up…was all I needed to hold each plate on. I just wanted a temporary fix, that way I can use them another time to hold candles again.

When all the leaves are off the boughs,

And nuts and apples gathered in,

and cornstalks waiting for the cows,

And pumpkins safe in barn and bin,

Then Mother says, “My children dear,

The fields are brown, and autumn flies;

Thanksgiving Day is near,

And we must make our Thanksgiving pies!”

~Author Unknown

My chalkboard…which is actually an old twin size headboard…comes in handy all year long to declare the change of the season! This year my theme is “Harvest Home”. Everything in life is based on sowing and reaping. We will harvest what we plant. So girls, let’s be careful to only plant goodness, kindness, love, mercy, forgiveness, joy, peace, blessings, faithfulness, honor, patience, creativity, and thankfulness!

Harvest Home

Come ye thankful people come,
Raise the song of harvest home!
All is safely gathered in,
Ere the winter storms begin;
God our Maker, doth provide
For our wants to be supplied:
Come to God’s own temple, come,
Raise the song of harvest home.

I’ve been using chalkboard markers for a couple of years now and they are so fun! The best way that I have found to wash the board clean is with Mr. Clean Magic Erasers! They work great!

Dear little pie pumpkins (from the market) sitting on a shelf, are such a simple and sweet way to add a festive holiday feeling to your country kitchen. It’s a very clean look!

A few weeks ago, I squealed like a little pink piggy at feedin’ time when I found this old sign leaning up against the front of a local antique mall.  It was old and chippy, and the letters were hand cut and homemade. EEEEEK!  And how cute is this name? Cedar Hill Farm!  The cherry-on-top was the owner came way down on the price! Woo hoo!!

When I was dragging it in the house my hubby looked at me like Ricky Ricardo looks at Lucy! (He actually calls me Lucy…a lot…especially when I’m bringing in junkin’ treasures or getting myself into pickled predicaments.) Happily he loved the sign! I’m am so thankful for a hubby that allows me to express my decorating ideas throughout our home! He loves me.

Helpful Junkin’ tip: Before I put the sign in my car to bring home, I asked the Antique store clerk if I could use their broom to sweep off any cob webs and critters. I’m so glad I did! There were two BIG spiders, and  a fuzzy caterpillar (in the loop of the “a”) plus a lot of dirt. Actually keeping a small broom in the car when you’re out junkin’ is  a good idea! I also had 2 small blankets to protect the  trunk of my car. Anti-bacterial handwipes for grungy hands are a must too!

Cedar Hill Farm has a new home sitting above my great room fireplace mantle. I added a few more farm-y things…

Galvanized pails…one spilling out pumpkins and the other sprouting branches. I mixed some natural branches from our woods out back with some lighted ones that I got at Target last year and this year at Kirkland Home. Adding the lighted branches was my daughter Ashley’s idea…it really brightens up the mantle with a oh-so-festive glow!

Eggs in a bucket of golden straw…

Now I’m just waiting for the weather to cool down enough to light a blazing fire!

“Thus simply as a little child, we learn a home is made from love. Warm as the golden hearthfire on the floor.” ~Anonymous

The dried corn in a vintage feed bucket was found very inexpensively at the local Feed and Farm store. When I change my decor to Christmas I’ll bring the corn cobs outside to feed the squirrels a lovely and bountiful Thanksgiving feast!

Barn shutters, a farmstand scale, a bucket of corn and a pumpkin-topped milking stool greet my homefolks, and friends who come a-callin’, with a big  Ol’  farm-style “Howdy!”

This weathered milking stool was a sweet find right here in Branson, Missouri! It’s sturdy and heavy and looks like it was well used milking Ol’ Daisy the cow!

Harvest Home, harvest home!

We’ve plowed, we’ve sowed,

We’ve reaped, we’ve mowed

And brought safe home, every load.

~Old Harvest Song

This “Old Kentucky Home” scale was just $12.oo at a flea market in Springfield, MO. It’s mounted on a worn board and was probably used at a farm stand where it would need more support when weighing those heavy baskets of fresh picked peaches and apples for Grandma’s preserves and pies! (That sounds like a good story to me!) That reminds me…do y’all ever look at a darling rosy-cheeked-snow-haired-grandma and think  She looks like an Emma Pearl and I bet she makes the best peach cobbler EV-AH! Or am I the only one that does that? Lol!

I like to mix fresh pumpkins with pretend ones, it’s easier on the budget ( the faux ones I only buy once, where as the fresh I have to buy every year). Mixing the two makes them all look fresh picked.

Pumpkins in the cornfield,

Fodder in the shock,

An ear of yellow-golden grain, Hangs on every stock

Blackbirds flying here and there, The yellow corn they spy,

But I’m not thinking of the corn,  I’m thinking pumpkin pie!

~Adelaide Blanton

My living room fireplace mantel during the day….

And at night! Adding white twinkly lights always makes a room feel festive.

Pretty leaves are falling down,

Green, orange, yellow brown.

Here comes one colored red,

It landed on my head!

~Author Unknown

I tucked vintage sheet music (cost $2.50) inside my hurricane lanterns and filled the base with straw, mini pumpkins and dried pomegranates. The graphics on the front cover is darling, the colors are fall-ish and the title is way too cute! “Way Down in Arkansaw” (note the funny spelling on Arkansas!) The words to the song are just as adorable! (Side Note: I live just 20 minutes from Arkansas…it’s gorgeous there!)

Way down in Arkansaw

Way down south where I was born

Amid the cotton and the golden corn

There’s the place I long to be

In the land of hospitality

Where the jaybirds sweetly sing in the winter

Just the same as spring

Guess I’ll grab a southbound train

And go back to my old home again

Way down in Arkansaw

You’ll find the turkey in the straw

And the rooster crowing at the break of day

On an old oak stump amid the new-mown hay

First met my great grandma

And there they settled down together

Because they loved each other

Way down in Arkansaw

This one is “Little Brown Home On The Hill”

Little Brown Home on the Hill

There’s a little brown home that is built on a hill

A dear little home like a nest

Where the great elm trees sway

and the turtle doves play

and it faces the gold of the West

Oh little brown home that is built on the hill

Oh little brown home like a nest

at the close of each day

then my heart wings it’s way

to you for  healing and rest.

To the eyes of the world

it looks crowded and small

but it’s only that they cannot see

In its tender lights glow

all the joy that I know,

and it’s more than a palace to me.

When the frosty north winds begin to howl it will be time to curl up with a mug of hot cocoa and good book! In this little cozy nook…an armoire turned book shelf… I created a mini library.

Books for browsing stacked high…glowing lamplight…a vintage clock sitting close by with a soft and soothing tick-tock sound.

A few of my favorites:

Little Women

Papa’s Wife

Mama’s Way.

A yummy candle brings instant cozyness!

Well gals, the very best thing we can decorate our homes with is our cheery Farm-girl smile (with or without red lipstick!)  Let’s honor our family by taking care of our home, keeping the “Home Fires Burning”, and looking for ways to be a blessing with a loving, joyful attitude! Being joyful is a choice. When we make our mind up to think positive and count our blessings the feelings will follow! A thankful heart is a happy heart! (I’ve never seen a grumpy thankful person!) Set the stage for happy results by turning on endearing music, put on a cute apron, simmer cinnamon, cloves and orange peels in a pan of water or light a scented candle to get the house smelling delicious, fill the cookie jar, clear the clutter  and make room for your own unique and nuturing womanly touch to brighten every corner of your dear sweet home.

May the good Lord bless you and keep you real good!

You are in my prayers and you are loved!

Warm hugs from my Ozark home to yours,

Affectionately,

Aunt Ruthie

 

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