Crock Pot Soap

I decided to make soap! We have been buying hand-made soap for well over a year now; it is not cheap, more like a little luxury for the end of the day. So, now that I'm an official Domestic Goddess, why not make my own? Recipes abound on the internet, plus I bought (and read) a nice soap making book. Being the rather impatient person I am, I decided on the hot process method that I could cook up in the crock pot and use right away. Here it is.



I am most happy with it, and so is hubby. I used olive, coconut, jojoba, safflower and sweet almond oils. The fragrance oils are clary sage and rosemary, not because I love those smells but because those oils are good for the hair and skin. I have used this on both hair and body and it is very moisturizing, leaving my skin smooth and soft, hair full and fluffy. The recipe yielded several pounds, or eleven good sized bars.

I can't wait to do it again. I have supplies on order. This time, I'm going for the yummy smells: patchouli, lavender/rose and vanilla spice. If you know me, expect a bar some time soon!

With the Saints' Assistance

I'm reading an interesting book, "The Saints Guide to Happiness" by Robert Ellsberg. Some of the saints doing the guiding are Augustine, Francis of Assisi, Teresa of Avila, Dorothy Day, Flannery O'Connor and Henri Nouwen; folks that are worth listening to.

Coming off the fast track of working outside the home requires a tectonic shift in thinking, at least for me. For so many years, my days were structured and purposeful. I may not have always held the most fascinating jobs (and there have been many!), but I knew my place and felt like a meaningful cog in the wheel of society. Now, not so much. I must find and appreciate the simple joys of homekeeping.

The word of the hour to me has been, "Be still and know that I am God." Maybe these saints will assist.

Living "Au Naturale"

Now that I'm not working, I want to do some volunteer work to keep me busy ... at least until (or if) I find another job. I'm looking at several options, but one that has appealed to me for some time is fostering a retired racing greyhound. I could not undertake this if I was working, and I'm not sure Callie will be cooperative, but we are moving forward with it. The greyhound rescue adoption coordinator was to visit us today, but she is sick so the weekend will have to do. Too bad; I was really looking forward to seeing her boy - she has FIVE greyhounds! If Callie could talk, she'd be saying, "And that's the way it should be ... we don't need his kind around here!"

As part of my latest incarnation as Domestic Goddess, I am hanging my laundry out to dry. Hubby put up one line, but I need more. I sort of enjoy this, even though until I get a softening system down, the towels come in as stiff as boards. Brings back memories. When I was a kid, there was no other option. No one I knew had a dryer. Clothes were hung out in decent weather and inside during the cold or rain. We had a 'furnace room' that was nice and warm with several drying lines rather close together. My mother insisted she always got sick during the winter from standing under wet clothes whilst she was hanging them. IDK.

We have had some really lovely days here. Breezy and warm, cool enough in the night for good sleeping. I have yet to turn on the air conditioning, even though the inside temp hit 83 degrees yesterday. For some reason, it feels good this year. Maybe it's another hormone change, maybe it's just what I've gotten used to. I never really loved AC, but for at least the last ten years, I didn't want to be without it. I think when you work in AC, your body just gets used to that cooler temp and it is harder to adjust to the extremes. Maybe part of it is that I just don't want to pay for it as long as I'm not working; maybe it's just one more thing we can do without and live au naturale.

Hubs is drawing the line at chickens in the yard, though.

Home - The Movie

Hubby and I went to see a movie this weekend. Our first choice was "Goodbye, Solo" but something was wrong with the projector and we ended up seeing "Home." It is an indie movie filmed locally. While it was an interesting story, it hit a little too close to my own home. Sitting there, watching and hearing the parents fighting as the young daughter listens, unseen, I was transported back to my own childhood where parental fighting was the regularly scheduled program. I felt my stomach tighten, my heart rate quicken. I really couldn't wait for the movie to end so I could get out of there, even considered leaving a time or two.

It funny how even after all these years, certain situations can still trigger such unpleasant feelings.

Lord, have mercy.

A Lovely Saturday

Gorgeous day, today is. The rains have finally subsided and we have blue sky! Just took Callie out for a walk, but she gets too warm in the direct sunlight. She keeps going from bush to bush to get shade cover.

This morning we went to the downtown market for our weekly supply of meat and veggies from the Amish. It is such an interesting place. Very old, inner city, not quite clean and spiffy, booths selling everything from flowers, baked goods and old gold jewelry to shoes. There are a few outside stalls selling caftans, more jewelry and household goods. Never know what you might find here. There are stands selling all things Obama and Martin Luther King, plether furniture and lovely paintings of African-American families. One booth sells incense, native African art and sculpture, natural haircare and textiles and is run by an older African-American lady with a nose ring and dreads down below her butt. Her sweet little grandbaby is sometimes there with her.

The food is an eclectic mix, too. You can get Indian, Thai, Caribbean, Italian, Chinese, organic vegetarian, American and soul food. The barbecue is yummy, made by Amish folks and has a long line of inner city African-American folks waiting to buy it. Now where else can you see something so wholly unexpected?

I got a wonderful chicken curry spinach wrap and a blueberry iced coffee. So good!

I've got some household chores to do first, but later, we are going to the bike trail that winds through a lovely spot between two mountains, just a few miles from us.

Peaceful, pleasant times.

I Am ... A Domestic Goddess

This blog is in need of some serious attention. I think I stopped blogging because initially I wanted to write about my EO conversion. But that no longer applies. After attending church for three years without my hubby, I've raised the white flag. We need to be united. From the time we first met, our mutual love for Jesus united us; it should not divide us now.

I write this for myself. I have nothing profound to say, just the happenings of my life in my little corner of the world.

And there have been a few since January. I ended up going full time with a place that offered me a job previously and although I liked the work, my body rebelled working FT hours. I have fibromyalgia and the stress of the job fueled the flare from hell. Pain and crushing fatigue were rather constant. I gave myself two months, hoping things would settle down, but it seemed that every week, some new area was affected ... a ridiculous and unnecessary way to live. So this week, I will work a few hours to help train the newbie and that's it. I'm already looking forward as to how to occupy my time. I'm signed up to do some volunteer work at the local public TV station and am considering fostering retired greyhounds.

Back to full time Domestic Goddess. Even as I write, hubby is putting up a clothesline for me out in the yard. All true DG's hang their clothes to dry, don't they? And cook everything from scratch and make all their toiletries and weave all their cloth to make all their clothes and clean every nook and cranny weekly and clip coupons and put in an organic garden and can the fruit thereof and and and

eat bonbons and watch TV! I can do that!

A New Dawn, A New Day

The changes have begun, thanks be to God!

I've had several job offers and have decided on the position of Development Coordinator/Administrative Assistant for a local county arts council. It is part-time, not great money, a farther drive than I had hoped, but I am very excited about working in the arts community. This is a very active council with lots of ideas and plans.

The full-time position would have been good, too, but I would have had to really make some changes in order to handle the hours. I'd rather still be able to have a life outside of my job, so the part-time gig is much better.

Hubby and I have been attending a Methodist Church. We both feel the need to be able to commune and serve together and that seems our best choice at the moment. God has graciously given us to one another to travel through this life. We will honor that commitment before the Lord and do our best to serve Him. Oh, I'll still attend noon mass at the RC every week, but I think my time in the OCA is coming to an end.

So tonight, I sit here content and thankful ... all is well with my soul.

Listen to the incomparable Nina Simone tell it.

A New Year, A New Look

Happy New Year! I'm changing the look of this blog (probably several times a week!) Maybe I'll write more :)

The holidays are over and were very nice for us. They began with an extended family party (23 people!!) Then for the next two weeks, my daughters and their families stayed off and on with us while visiting other family members in the area. My grandchildren, a 10 month old girl and 5 month old boy, kept the house busy and noisy. For that period of time, I'm very glad I was not working; it would have been hard. It was so good to have them here and I'm missing them already.

I sense change coming in my life. God usually gives me some inkling to expect something new. I look forward to whatever it may be; I believe it will be good.

Craftiness

In the meantime, I am making these paper globe tree ornaments. The photo does not quite capture the beauty and brilliance of the paper I used; it's very colorful and has some spots of gold foil, felt and glitter. They are a very nice addition to my Christmas tree which has not been updated in about a hundred years.

Waiting ... Advent

My first full week of unemployment ... or is it retirement? I hope not. I really hope to find a nice part-time job again that fits well. I remain optimistic.

This is not easy for me. I have worked outside the home for many years, albeit, part-time. I've been a church secretary, non-profit office manager, and a director of a crisis pregnancy center. I've temped as a receptionist and secretary in manufacturing, law, insurance, sales, and trucking. A long work history filled with lots of good experience. I've lived in several cities, moves necessitated by hubby's job choices, which is why I haven't been at anything for very long periods of time.

I have been known to take a job quickly, without really considering too much whether it's a good fit, just to end the feeling of uselessness and the "OMG, I MUST WORK!!!" thinking that comes from some deep-rooted place within me. My daughter wisely counsels me that I must just be content to "be", something that is difficult. God may have a purpose, here. So maybe it is fitting, that at this time of Advent - waiting - I learn to wait patiently for the next step in my life ... even if it is forced waiting and somewhat riddled with anxiety ... like the Advent of long ago.