what do you do with empty jars and cans and bottles and vases and containers and the like?

here's what i like to do with them:

fill them with grains and seeds and fruit. 

(and display them on the mantle in the kitchen)

fill with birdseed.

 (and use as a doorstop)

fill with paintbrushes and colored pencils.

(and keep within arm's reach for easy access)

fill with tea bags.

(to keep things organized in the cupboard)

fill with pretty flowers.

(and place throughout the house)

fill with ribbons and trims. 

(to keep the sewing room a little more tidy)

fill with leftovers.

more goods from the dumpster.
apples, oranges, potatoes, beets, bananas, broccoli, onions, bags of lettuce, jalapenos, flowers...
the second photo is all organic lettuce, seven containers worth, and that's not including what i have already opened.
all of this was pulled from a dumpster where it would have otherwise ended up in landfill, rotting.
now it serves as food and nutrition for us. and more money in our wallets.

as i was washing everything, it hit me.
there is no way jeremiah and i can eat all of this before it really goes bad so what to do with it?
what if there was a way to get this to people who really need food or just need help supplementing what they can buy at the store?
i know. this is no new concept. no big idea. it's already happening all over the place.
but does it exists here in little rural amelia county in the heart of va?
that's what i intend to find out.

please be in prayer for jeremiah and me as we explore this potential ministry for amelia.
if you have any thoughts or suggestions, please feel free to comment!

around here.

today i made a batch of these tasty cookies.

i used cranberry and strawberry jam and i bypassed the hearts.

just simple thumbprints.

here is a gourd birdhouse i purchased in farmville the other day.

i walked into a store that i thought would be up my alley and it definitely was not.

the minute i walk in, i see an older woman to my left painting a gourd birdhouse and then an older man to my right weaving a basket.

it's a small store and no one else was in there.

i tried not to panic and decided to just walk around for few minutes and pretend like i was interested in what they were selling.

unfortunately, there was not much there to peak my interest.

a lot of painted blocks of woods with different sayings on them and painted birdhouses.

just not my style.

and then i saw this gourd birdhouse for $4.50. 

simple and beautiful to me.

come to find out most everything in the store was made by their hands...and the gourds were grown by them.

i was impressed and glad to support them.

i am happy with my little purchase. 

come spring i might put it out for the birds but for now, i will happily keep it displayed in my kitchen.

easy little bread from 101 cookbooks.

yesterday i went in search of a hearty snack for jeremiah and me.

i stumbled upon this sweet little bread recipe on 101 cookbooks.

it's an easy recipe made up of simple ingredients and very little prep time.

i highly recommend giving it a try.

a quick note on yeast.

when i first started buying yeast, i would buy those little individual packets at the grocery store.

and then i learned better.

as far as i can tell, it's crap.

i discovered this when i recently bought yeast from the co-op in my hometown.

they sell yeast in bulk and when i went to open and scoop out what i wanted, the yeast was literally jumping/popping.

jeremiah was there. he can back me up on this.

it was alive.

and it looked like individual grains rather than the dusty stuff from the packets.

and when i used it to bake, it bubbled up beautifully.

i am pretty sure that is what yeast is suppose to be like.

so look for the good stuff.

i found some where i live at a mennonite market. 

any local health food store or co-op probably sells it. 

mix yeast with warm water. then add the honey. 

i always use a whisk to better mix the yeast with the water.

in a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.

once the yeast mixture is ready, add it to the dry mixture.

stir until everything is well mixed.

place dough in an oiled loaf pan and cover with a damp cloth.

place in a warm spot to rise for 30 minutes or so.

bake. 

to make sure my bread is done, i always check the bottom.

always give your bread time to "rest" (cool off on a rack) before slicing.

yesterday was cold, grey and foggy.

a perfect day for a cozy birthday spent sewing.

i have a new sewing project on my hands.
this is a photo of a project i worked on a few weeks back.
i made a patchwork bib for a new cousin of mine.
unfortunately i forgot to take pictures of the finished product.

now i am working on a making a dress for my aunt-in-law's wedding in april.
i am so excited about my new project that i find myself occasionally day dreaming about it.
with this new project, i am trying to teach myself how to custom fit a pattern.
sometimes a pattern needs some tweaking here and there to make it fit your body shape correctly.
adjusting the pattern to fit your dimensions will dramatically change the look of your finished product and probably save you a  lot of heartache and frustration in the end.

here are links to a video series and a few blogs that i find helpful and inspiring in the sewing department...

Gertie's Guide to Tissue Fitting a Pattern, Part One - this video series is my number one aid in helping me to custom fit my pattern

Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing

Adventures in Dressmaking

Tilly and the Buttons

i plan on posting pictures of my new sewing project throughout its construction.
it's a very simple pattern but will probably take me a while to create.
i hope one day to be a highly skilled seamstress like the women on the blogs mentioned above.
it won't happen overnight or without some trial and error so i will keep plugging along project by project and try to teach myself new skills and new techniques with each new one.

some lovely flowers rescued from a dumpster.
--------------------------------------------------------
anxiety sucks.
sometimes i just want to crawl into bed and not face the world.
but i am learning to fight it.
most of all, i am beginning to consider letting G-d have it.
for some reason, i won't trust Him with all my fears and anxieties when He is the answer to them all.
one day...
maybe one day soon...
i will let Him have that piece of my heart.