Daily Benefits

Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loadeth us with benefits..." Psalm 68:8

Meditation, by Elinor Polin, from Lovely Whatevers

(check the older posts at Lovely Whatevers, for more beautiful paintings)

With my 50 percent off coupon at Jo-An Fabrics, I bought this book. "Sew Pretty" has high quality pages that are nice to the touch. I'm very particular about books and if the paper is cheap and it sends me shivers when I touch it, I usually won't keep it around for long. This book is a pleasure to read, even if you aren't going to sew anything, because it gives so many good ideas for storage for the home, as well as how to use scraps of fabrics, for all kinds of useful things, from how to make yourself a pair of slippers, to wall pockets, place mats, wall pockets and cozies for coffee servers. My "staff" has moved away and I cannot figure out some things about the camera, or I would take pictures of the inside of this book for you. I haven't seen such a nice book in a long time. Well done, well done.

In my post about the first year at home, I did urge young brides to spend that year making things for their homes. There is a reason for it. Life just gets busier and busier. I am so glad I had that first year because, even though I have long worn out the home made place mats and matching curtains, it gave me the knowledge for future projects, which I did with ease, in later times. This book, I really, really think the woman at home in her first year, would enjoy having. It is mostly done in pink, but some projects make you think: ah, this would be lovely in sage green or lemon meringue.


And now on to something new, for me, at least. Before my staff (those next door neighbors you can read about at The Pleasant Times )
they introduced me to Netflix. I have often spoken of movies that were made many years ago that had bright color, good lessons and historical content. I found that Netflix has many of these movies and I gladly put in my order. Being frugal, I found this program to be much cheaper than the local video store rentals, and it has a lot more movies. Our first order was the series "Sissi," about the Empress of Austria. We enjoyed this colorful story, but were pleasantly surprised that included in the series was "The Story of Vicki," or "Sissi: Victoria in Dover, " a fictional romance about Queen Victoria meeting her Prince Albert. It was portrayed by the same actress, as the Sissi series, and we actually liked it better.

In this series, including the flick about Victoria, Romi Sneider stars with her own mother, Magda Sneider, who plays her mother in the film. Romi looks amazingly like the portraits that were painted of Sissi,by Franz Xavier Winterhalter in 1865. "Sissi" is entirely in German, with English subtitles. The man who plays her husband is the same actor who starred in the German/English film about Ludwig Von Beethoven which we saw as children, called "The Magnificent Rebel." This movie is in English, and features the music of Beethoven throughout the film. It is not available for American DVD players, but if you have a computer, it may allow you to play a foreign film.

Empress Elizabeth, by Winterhalter, from Lovely Whatevers

Another Netflix series we are immensely enjoying is the first season of Daniel Boone!! Remember the song? I think this is a good series for children, as it shows such resourcefulness. Daniel is in danger and finds ways out it, quite skillfully. He has a close bond with a friend from an American Indian tribe, who teaches him all kinds of survival skills. When the men of the fort are away and the women need to defend themselves, they really use their wits.


Zorro, the original, with Basil Rathborne and Tyrone Powers, is the last one we have seen and of course, enjoyed. It is in color, and while watching it I think I discovered an actor in the recent BBC film, "North and South." Remember Mr. Bell, Margaret's benefactor? The young captain in this film, is a lot like Mr. Bell. I loved the Spanish interiors in this movie and the wonderful costumes, and mantillas.

Having this system of viewing movies, ends up being about $13.00 a month, for people like us, and enables me to preview videos I might like to own in my library.



The Fallacy Detective 36 Lessons on How to Recognize Bad Reasoning

Before my staff moved away for the summer, I was privileged to sit in on some of the daily lessons that these young parents offer their home-schooled children. Mrs. H. has a lovely technique that reminds me of the description of the Dame Schools in early American colonial times. She sits in grandmother's chair (the one with the crocheted lace header on the back of it, also belonging to her grandmother,) while the children sit at her feet and the baby is in her lap. She reads aloud anything she wants them to know, and this is one of the books that she has been using. I'm utterly fascinated with it. Throughout the reading of any of her books, the children get closer and closer, until they almost have their noses in the pages.
This is a book that many serious homemakers could use, especially if they have children around, or, like some of us, get objectionable viewers who want to argue. The stories in it relate many examples that you will recognize: for starters, a father wants his son to do something, and the boy does not want to do it. The father reminds him that he didn't do his job, and the boy says, "You ought to be glad that I am not a criminal or an axe murderer!" Then, the story shows the techniques used today, of distraction, false reasoning, and accusation, designed to take attention away from the point. The Fallacy Detective

Apparently there is an entire series of these kind of books. If I had to do it over again, this is one book I would use with my children. It prevents them from taking you on a long, long trip around the block (or around the world) and makes them focus on the important tasks at hand. It prevents circular reasoning, a problem that besets many people, not just children, today. I can't help but think some of these bad conversation habits (faulty reasoning, distraction, accusation, focus on self) are habits formed in childhood.These books help parents teach their children about sound reasoning, and teach them how to use their minds.

I just wanted to share a site called Victoria's Rose Cottage. As you know I am very supportive of women in business at home, and love the way they love their homes! I personally don't have the time to have a shop but admire those who provide these lovely places.



I recently got two beautiful magazines in the mail. One is the new "Make Mine Pink" catalog, and it has the nice glossy pages that feel so good to the touch. While so many of our favorite magazines are using cheaper paper,(many which I've stopped buying for this very reason) this was a refreshing change. Inside, is a pictorial demonstration of how to paint an old coffee table, as well as a very good article about the history of braided trims.



Since our neighbors, the Bumpfries, moved away, (you know, that family from the hills that Lillibeth writes about on her blog), I've been missing Miss Pooh Bear, and her singing (she likes to hum the tune "Marie's Wedding" by The High Kings, one of that families favorite Irish groups.) Apparently they get their name from some legend of Highland Kings, as opposed to Lowland Kings, or something, but Miss Pooh Bear can hum this song perfectly. Her Daddy is Irish, you know. Oh Miss Pooh I just want to scoop you up and squeeze the sweet juice right out of you and kiss those fat cheeks, but while you are gone, I am going to try to clean up the mess you and your brothers made here. With your family absent, Papa and I are getting very fat, having to eat the entire Lemon Meringue Pie all by ourselves. But your other Papa and Grandma will be very thin, having to share the pie with all you children.