I was reading my Simple Abundance book the other day.......
A Daybook of Comfort and Joy.
My niece, Leah, gave this copy to my Mother for Mother's Day 1998.
My mother read it and then gave it to me and I have been reading in it daily ever since!
The following quote is for July 28.......
"What is your hobby? Every woman ought to have some pet interest in life, outside of the everyday routine which composes her regular occupation. What is yours?"
- The Mother's Magazine, January 1915
The next day's writing is 'The Home as a Hobby.'
And that is so true of me. I have loved all things warm and cozy and ANYTHING that looks pretty or smells good all my life! I can remember when I was about 5 or 6 years old and taking a nap on my Granny's living room floor. I would gaze at the lace curtains fluttering at the window and marvel at their beauty.
On her wall hung a much larger copy of this art print. I loved that picture. A perfect picture for a little girl to look at before drifting off to sleep! I knew when I grew up I would have lovely curtains at all my windows and pictures on ALL my walls! The pictures on the walls certainly came true! You cannot put your spread palm out on very many places in my house! The walls are FULL!!
'Highly occuppied' is one way to describe it!
Growing up I was the one who was in charge of cleaning and some of the cooking as well as doing most of the laundry. Something inside of me must have embraced this as my calling. My mother knew how much I loved CLEANING SUPPLIES and she would try to fit a few of them in her grocery budget.
You can SAY anyone can keep a home clean but you really do need the cleaning agents to make it possible!
Pine Sol, Fabuloso, Pledge, Lemon Oil, Windex, Comet......all products I love.
Joy and Tide! Air fresheners. I love the Glade plug ins!
When I was newly married I would unwrap bars of bath soap and pile them in a bowl just so I could SMELL them! My youngest daughter had a friend who loved to visit our home. Once I gave him some cookies in a Baggie and then dropped the bag in a brown paper sack.
I left this by the door for the next time he visited. Later Amber found the paper bag still in his car and he remarked, "Don't take that out!! It smells just like your house!"
So I suppose - other than my dearly beloved husband and my greatly loved children - the thing I am most passionate about is my home. I am a HOME maker!!
"Only a very exceptionally gifted mind could cope singly with all the problems which present themselves in the perfecting of a HOME."
- Arnold Bennett
I love this book. Mine is old and shabby and ear marked and heavily underlined!! It really is a day to day guide to getting the most out of your life.
ReplyDeleteI loved hearing about the memories you made at your grandmothers home, and how you learned to love the art of homemaking. My daughter loves cleaning products, too. We are always trying the latest and better smelling ones. But I still love the smell of good old Pinesol!! We are very much alike, Linda!!
XO,
Jane
This is so true! You have always loved to clean, sew, read and paint.
ReplyDeleteYou have always been good at it!
Wonderful memories! I love being a Homemaker!
ReplyDeleteI always loved the smell of my Nana's house...
ReplyDeleteWondering if you have ever read "Mrs. Sharp's Traditions," by the same author. It's quite precious. :-)
ReplyDeletePerhaps your library system has a copy of it.
Such a lovely post. I have to admit I woke up this morning thinking about the new natural shower cabinet cleaner I was going to use this morning. Ylang-ylang scent - it smells so good: http://www.methodproducts.co.uk/daily_shower.html
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful sentiments. I have a copy of that book somewhere and you made me remember how much I enjoyed it. I think it's time I pulled out again.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. I think we internet now but it's not wireless yet but will be soon but until I have to go upstairs to connect. Yippee.
ReplyDeleteLove the quotes. My mind is coping as fast as it can with the little issues around here. We had a new one that I hope to post about this weekend. Later