morning walk and news

I am so grateful that I now have the time for morning walks.

That I live in an area where there's still some open land.

This is conservation area just a stone's throw from my house ~

right off a road that gets a decent flow of traffic.

Walking gives you time to appreciate all the beauty that surrounds us ~

and clears your mind.

You see ~ almost two weeks ago, I finally left my job.

Yes, voluntarily. In today's scarce job market.

Some of you know that I worked three days/week in a government office.

I had been there for 6-1/2 years.

However, the stress of this job was making me sick ~

physically and mentally.

I had chronic migraines, IBS, and quite often was irritable,

exhausted, anxious, and lashed out at loved ones.

I had been talking about leaving this job for at least two years!

But it finally got to the point where I had to do something,

or I was going to break. The husband and I had a serious talk

about finances and decided that we'd probably be OK.

After all, we live pretty frugally.  There are some expenses

we've cut, and I'll talk about those at another time, in a new post.

 It is amazing how much better I feel already. I've only had one headache

since I've left my job (and that was from eating too much chocolate!)

and the IBS symptoms from stress and anxiety have nearly cleared.

I feel rested, at peace, have time to visit friends and family that I 

didn't get to see often, and time to work on projects around the house.

Oh ~

 and another good thing about living where there are still farmer's fields?

Free cornstalks and cat tails!

Good thing I didn't get shot by Farmer McGregor. ;-)

rainy days call for soup and bread

 This was the sight that greeted me when I opened the garage door today.

  Rain and wet leaves everywhere.

So I spent part of the afternoon making a pot of Mexican White Bean soup

and cornbread with honey butter.

It was delicious and perfect for dinner on a damp, cool evening.

Sorry I can't give appropriate credit for the original publisher of this recipe. I recently cut it out of a magazine, but I don't remember which one!

MEXICAN WHITE BEAN SOUP 

 8 oz. dried navy beans (1 1/4 c.)

1 lg. onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, sliced

2 med. carrots, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T. vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

2 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 - 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 14-1/2 oz. can vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 orange

1 c. salsa verde

{Light dairy sour cream (I used Greek yogurt)}

{Fresh cilantro}

{Cayenne pepper}

Rinse beans. In a 4-5 quart Dutch oven combine beans & 6 cups water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover & let stand 1 hour. Drain; rinse beans.

In the Dutch oven cook onion, celery, carrots, & garlic in hot oil until tender. Stir in cumin, salt, & cayenne pepper. Add broth, beans, & 2 cups water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until beans are tender.

Using a handheld immersion blender, blend mixture slightly. (Or let soup cool slightly. Transfer mixture, one-third at a time, to a blender. Cover; blend slightly. Return to Dutch oven.) Finely shred 1 tsp. peel from the orange, then juice the orange. Stir orange juice, peel, & salsa verde into soup; heat through. Top with sour cream, if desired, cilantro, & a dash of cayenne. Makes 6 servings.

(Each serv: 203 cal, 4 g fat, 653 mg sodium, 34 g carb, 12 g fiber, 10 g pro.)

I found the cornbread recipe on Pinterest, which linked me to this blog with the recipe:

http://sweetpeaskitchen.com/2010/09/corn-bread-with-honey-butter/

The cornbread was fluffy and slightly sweet and the honey butter

 only heightened the satisfaction level. :-)

 

Cheers and good eats, everyone!

creative touches with autumn decor

 When I start redecorating for a new season, I'm rarely done the first time around.

I keep moving things around and trying new arrangements 

until, like Baby Bear, it feels "just right" to me.

I hung this leaf picture next to the mirror using the 3M sticky strips.

They don't pull the paint off the wall when you remove them,

and it sure beats putting nail holes in the wall.

I also put a bell cloche with a copper leaf (found at Goodwill!) at the end

of the console table. 

As for this area of the living room, I added a gold runner to the buffet,

placed candles on one end (another Goodwill find is the tall, wooden candle holder),

 tiered bowls in the middle, and birch candles on the sconces.

I took the turquoise pillows off the couch and added a

horizontal gold pillow.

 I kept the kitchen table centerpiece simple, but warm...

And, lastly ~ I took the ironstone pitchers and autumn pitcher out of

the china cabinet and put them on top of the stove.

 Are you all done with your fall decorating, 

or are you still "playing", like me?

falling leaves and flowering plants

 The falling leaves make for a crunchy carpet underfoot.

I am outside every day, sweeping all the leaves off the porch and sidewalk

and using the leaf blower to blow the leaves off our little patch of front

lawn - though it seems my efforts are in vain right now.

The landscape only looks the same a few hours later!

 The weather is all over the place at this time of year ~

it could be sunny and 70, or rainy and cold.

We've already had two nights where it got down to 28 degrees F!

Despite these freezing temps, some of my outside flowers are still hanging in there.

The hanging basket of geraniums and sweet potato vines still look pretty good.

So do the begonias...

 

 and impatiens.

I enjoy my outside plants and flowers so much, that I get a little

melancholy when fall really settles in and most of the plants dry up

and turn brown and we have to dump containers of expired annuals.

We covered up the patio furniture this past weekend, too.

Those of you who live in warmer climates ~ do you enjoy your outdoor plants

and flowers year-round? Or, do you wish you lived where you could experience

a deeper sense of the changing seasons?

 

good books and comfort food

 I love library book sales.

I'm an avid reader ~ a bookworm, if you will.

I've had my nose stuck in books from when I was a wee girl.

The bookcases in my family room are overflowing, but I just

can't resist picking up books at a library book sale or even Goodwill.

I got this stack of books for just $13!

The Dispatcher and Soul Patch are for my husband.

Speaking of books, I ordered a beautiful new Bible book cover

from amazon and it came in the mail the other day.

Isn't it pretty? The old one was, well...old. And dirty and worn.

 

This was me out on the patio last Sunday afternoon when the 

weather was still in the 70's. Yep, my nose stuck in a book ~ where it's the happiest.

 

With the cooler temps now upon us, we all get in the mood for some

comfort food, right? Soups, stews, macaroni and cheese and other hearty dishes.

So when I walked into the kitchen the other day and saw my son's grocery

wish list on the fridge, I had a good laugh.

 

Food?! OK son, you got it. How about some Chicken Fried Rice?

This couldn't be simpler to make and it's both hearty and healthy.

I made a fresh batch of long-grain brown rice (leftover, refrigerated rice is better

in this dish, but I didn't have any). 

I chopped up carrots, celery, orange and red peppers, and green onions

and stir-fried them in a little bit of olive oil and sesame oil, until crisp-tender.

I then added some frozen corn and the brown rice.

Cooked/stir-fried that up a few minutes, then added leftover chopped

chicken breast, low-sodium soy sauce, and freshly ground pepper.

Another good thing about this dish is that it's a great way to use up leftover

veggies and meats. And rice - if you have leftovers!

 I found this delicious lentil and black bean soup recipe on Pinterest

and it linked to this blog:

http://www.cooklikeachampionblog.com/2012/01/lentil-and-black-bean-soup-with-andouille-sausage.html

Made it a few nights ago and it was a big hit.

Talk about stick-to-your-ribs heartiness and great flavor!

I found chicken andouille sausages at Trader Joes.

They're still very high in sodium, but I figured the little bit in this recipe

wouldn't hurt us once in awhile.

 Curling up with a good book and comfort food ~ what is better on a chilly fall day?

What book are you reading right now and what's cooking at your house?

whooo loves owls?

My latest obsession?

OWLS.

Check out this cutie that I picked up at World Market.

 This hand-painted guy was a Goodwill find a couple of years ago.

 These two miniature owls are Goebel (W Germany).

Won them on eBay.

And then I purchased this necklace recently on amazon.

It was a promotional item for $2 (and free shipping)!

I wore it last week with a plain black shirt ~ and got a lot of 

compliments.

I hang some of my longer necklaces over a lamp...

I am crushing on this owl cookie jar from Pier 1 Imports,

but at $40, I'll have to pass.

 

A wise old owl sat on an oak

The more he saw the less he spoke

The less he spoke the more he heard

Why aren't we like that wise old bird?

(Wisdom quote)

 

new vintage dishes

 While browsing in Goodwill a few days ago,

I spied these beautiful, vintage plates and cups.

I was immediately drawn to the clean simplicity of the white with gold trim,

but yet awed by the curved divots in the rim of the cups

and the curvature of the plates.

Each plate has the round recession for proper placement of the teacup.

Since I don't have a dining room (just an eat-in kitchen), nor a huge china cabinet,

and I don't plan on having a tea party...

I only bought two of these place settings.

 Do you collect vintage place settings?

Or, perhaps you still have your wedding china? (I do!)