Saturday, March 31, 2012

What I’m Reading, Listening To, Etc.

I am finally starting to see the end of my high school career in sight, and it is a very welcome one indeed. This gives me a bit more time to enjoy being outside, writing, and taking pictures.

So, here’s what I’ve been tuning into, reading, and enjoying these last few weeks.

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I have totally fallen in love with the magazine “Mary Jane’s Farm". The recipes, ideas, and general how-to on being a farm girl no matter where you live has inspired me. I think that I might just use some of the grand party decoration ideas, simple country styles, and the many uses they find for Ball jars at my open house this spring.

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Yes, friends, I am going to learn to can this year. Even if I end up with 5 quarts of nasty pickles, I’m going to try. To get ready (and just have a bit of fun dreaming of tomatoes and pickles and strawberry freezer jam) I have started reading a few canning books: “Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving” and “Canning and Preserving” by Ashley English. The first book (Ball) is a bit overwhelming, and very thick. The one by Ashley English is perfect. It tells you step by step what to do, how to do it, and how to troubleshoot all the problems that might come up. I love her easy writing style and the way that she explains canning- and the great pictures!

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I have been meeting with a group of ladies now for the last year and a half discussing some good literature and enjoying fellowship with fellow Christian gals. These next few months we are reading “Kisses from Katie” by Katie Davis. She is a very strong young lady who left her life in Tennessee to serve (and adopt 14 children :) ) in Uganda. She is a great inspiration, and her stories have made all of us in our group cry. Powerful story.

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I’ve been listening to Audrey Assad a lot lately. I enjoy her new CD, but really only truly love about 3 songs :) as the rest are kind of slow and melancholy. Still, I love love love her songs “Sparrow” and “Even the Winter". These links will take you right to a video of each of these songs.

 

Enjoy!

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