The Ways of Her Home

Embracing the homeward call

Recipe Binders

As part of my summer organizing, I knew I had to get my recipes back under control. They were such a mess! I've had a great system for about 10 years, but it was time to clean it back up. I'm not talking so much about cookbooks today although I did straighten them and take out a couple to donate. Instead, I'll be talking about those loose recipes you tear out of a magazine, print off Pinterest, or have on a recipe card. When we moved to this house 11 years ago, I came with all my cookbooks and a big basket of those loose recipes. There were so many that anytime I wanted to use a particular one, I had to thumb through the entire stack. This hadn't been a problem when I first started the ... Read more

Prepping the Kitchen for Fall Cooking and Baking ’24

Summertime brings a huge cleanout for me each year. This summer, I reorganized a lot of areas of my house, but definitely spent the most time in the kitchen! My cabinets and drawers had really gotten bad. We do a LOT in there. It's more than just a kitchen, really. It's also our school, our science lab, art studio, gift wrap station, and much more. One of the benefits a of good kitchen cleanout is that everything I do in there now works a lot smoother than before and I'm already looking ahead and seeing how much more enjoyable it will be for fall cooking and baking. Last August '23 I posted 3 things I had done that month to prepare my kitchen for fall. You can read that post here. Today ... Read more

A Sweet Beginning to Wedded Bliss!

Back in April my daughter had the honor of being a bridesmaid for her sweet friend and I had the honor of making the bride's wedding cake and cupcakes! The mother of the bride is my good friend Missy, who can pull together an event better than anyone I know, and her daughter's wedding was certainly no exception! She has her own blog and I'm sure she will post about the wedding (I hope so!) therefore I don't want to share much here until she's had a chance to do so, so today I'm just going to share the cake. This was the same cream cake recipe I made for my own daughter's wedding two years ago and you can read about that wedding here and here. Ahh, sweet memories! The wedding venue was ... Read more

Summer Garden

I'm so happy to have a summer garden this year! I haven’t had a true garden (other than some herbs and flowers) for several years because I haven’t been able to get it planted early enough. We live in the Deep South, and it has to be started in very early spring so it will be well established before the heat of summer hits. My husband and son built me some new cedar boxes back in March and filled them with soil, ready for me to plant, grow, and harvest to my heart’s content. I planted everything (some seed, some plants) on April 1st and now I'm enjoying some homegrown veggies and herbs. My husband expanded the gated area on the side of our house to allow for more garden space while ... Read more

Spring Flower Basket

Spring is almost here! I've truly enjoyed the last couple of winter months so much, but my front porch has seemed dead for a while. Lately, I've just lacked motivation to tackle projects around the house, but I finally decided it was at least time to spruce up my front entrance. For a couple of years now I've been wanting a door basket, but everywhere I checked they seemed pricey. Last week I managed to catch the 50% off basket sale at Hobby Lobby so I bought a door basket, a few new flower stems, and a fresh roll of ribbon. This was so easy to assemble because I just dropped the flower stems in the basket and tied a simple, flowy bow on the side. No gluing or wiring required, and it ... Read more

Christmas Decor ’23

Good morning, friends! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas. I have truly enjoyed all of it this year! The baking, the shopping, the gatherings, the goodies, the movies, the music, the decorating, and the worship! I had to cut out a few things this year, like getting Christmas cards printed and mailed, but it's a balance, right! I always hesitate to share photos of Christmas decor because I never want to appear that I'm showing off (I just enjoy decorating!) but also because Christmas decor has become so controversial. Has anyone else noticed that? The right time to put up your tree, the right kind of tree, and the right color schemes for your tree. In fact, there are arguments about ... Read more

Fluff the Nest Friday: A Front Porch Ready for Company!

HAPPY FRIYAY, friends! (Are we still saying "Friyay" or is that out? I'll ask my girls.) Anywho, I'm taking our fluff post outside today to show you a couple of ways I've cleaned up my front porch. Late winter is when my porch really starts to look dingy and in need of some freshening up. It's tricky because it's not quite time to deck it all out with spring flowers and bunnies, but I need something to hold me over until then. I hosted a bridal shower at my house last Sunday for my nephew's fiancé (more to come soon!) and wanted the entrance to look a little more presentable. I couldn't do everything on my wish list, so I chose a few things that were the most manageable and affordable ... Read more

Fluff the Nest Friday: The Evening Report

Hello, again! I don't know that I've ever posted twice in one day but if you saw my morning post, then you know I promised a follow-up post this evening! If you didn't catch my morning post, we got new carpet this week which caused a huge upheaval all around the house and we set out to finish or at least make some big progress in putting things back in order after school today. So, here's how we did today, and I'm going to give the "after " pics first and then the "before" pics. We got the den back in order and even put out a few new purchases I made at TJ Maxx this week: a few fresh throw pillows, a basket, and a new blanket. Since the Christmas decorations are packed away, I've got ... Read more