Simply Home by Beth

Simply Home by Beth

Gettin’ Down and Dirty in the Laundry Room

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My January starts with a renovation of my laundry room, refreshing and updating…. can’t wait!

Don’t you feel like you’re in the laundry room Alllllll the time?

I have to say that I’m enjoying the trend of taking a utilitarian room and making it a truly enjoyable space to “work” in! This IS my home, after all, and I do spend quite a bit of time in this room. Is it silly to want it to be pretty? To look like “me”?

NO GIRL, IT IS NOT! (Insert clapping hands)!

Other than paint and a few light fixtures, new kitchen appliances, and all new hardware on the doors and cabinets…. oh! and a completely new office built from a storage room in the basement…. that’s all we’ve done…so far. Inside, that is.

On the exterior, we repainted the cedar siding and all trim. We built a new cedar post light with a new fixture, matching the other exterior fixtures. We then tore out all of the overgrown landscaping, saved and relocated a few perennials, before adding all new beds of shrubs and a tree, new stone and mulch around the entire house. We stained the deck, for the first time in its’ 20-year life! and repositioned the opening to the lawn, adding steps and again, new landscaping.

We’re having a ball in this new-to-us house…. but yes, there is more to do, which is why I’m writing about it….

Putting this on “paper” makes it real…and you’ll hold me accountable, in a very polite way I’m sure…. if I don’t “deliver”!

Such is life.

OK, here it is, these are my goals, and my wish list…which are never the same. Wishing is often “out of budget”, and reality! Guess I should wish for a bigger budget!

January’s Goals for Laundry Room:

  • Choose the exact “finished look” I want for the room
  • Use exact room measurements to determine the number of materials needed
  • This is when I call for help, scheduling the professionals needed to complete my task.
  • Always use a professional for electricity, plumbing, or flooring!! Mistakes in these areas can be dangerous and costly. If you don’t know, don’t do, get help. It’s worth the money!
  • Once the “help” is scheduled, this determines the amount of time I have to gather all items needed. So… what is staying? This is what I’ll work around.
  • The countertop is Formica in a mottled white, which is neutral. My paint chips, flooring samples, tile samples or wallpaper will be held up to the countertop to determine compatibility
  • Once items are chosen, I’ll order or physically shop for all materials. THIS IS MY FAVORITE STEP!!!!
  • You can see that this won’t be a weekend project…maybe for some, but not for me. I truly enjoy the process of carefully choosing each item, marrying them together for one fab laundry room!
  • Please follow along…this is going to be fun for me, a bonus for the next Realtor, and a learning experience for all of us!

Love you guys!, Beth

Note: I am SO excited about doing this room, I forgot about the washer and dryer…we’ll be looking for sales, but in the meantime, I can have awesome walls and a floor:)

The Prosperous Cabbage

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Do you have a traditional dish you serve for New Year’s Day?

Well, my family does, and it isn’t even a whole dish, just a “side”…..

CABBAGE!

I want you to know that I Googled my “facts” before posting, should I upset or offend anyone. I also would not want to lead you astray….

The green cabbage is supposed to represent dollar bills, hence reflecting the prosperity of your upcoming year!

The first of January, every single January that I can remember, I was told to “eat my cabbage” so I would have a “prosperous” new year. Children don’t know what “prosperous” means, but will risk living without it, if it means eating cabbage!

Today, I chose prosperity for 2022, and chose cabbage as the way to “seal the deal”.

In very little time, and very little expense, I roasted assorted fresh vegetables as a “side” for our holiday dinner. Today is January 1, 2020….I’m expecting great things starting tomorrow!!

Roasted Cabbage

Here is the recipe for the Roasted Cabbage in the above photo:

Preheat oven to 425*

Line a baking sheet with Parchment Paper

Chop assorted vegetables into like sizes, so they will cook evenly

In this dish, I chose Brussel Sprouts, white onions, Red Cabbage and small carrots

Coat vegetables with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, about 3-4 tbls., sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder and Greek Seasoning

Place baking sheet on middle rack of the oven, set timer for 15 minutes, check the consistency, may add 5 more minutes to finish.

At this point, if you add Feta Cheese over the vegetables, it goes from a side to an entree.!

Enjoy!!

Wishing you all a safe, healthy and Prosperous year, even if you don’t eat your vegetables !

Hobo Stew Party!

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Hobo Stew
Soup’s On!

Man, I gotta say, I LOVE everything about FALL, AUTUMN, or any other name we could call it!

The warm sun, crisp air, deepening colors of the landscape, the energizing spirit of it all….with the heat of Summer gone, I really believe Fall is uplifting, both in spirit and body!

On my Instagram posts, I’ve been talking about, sharing and anticipating our Fall lake party, this is the 2nd year in a row…..and we refer to it as the “Hobo Stew” party. Originally scheduled for October, the month was so crazy busy for us, that we had to postpone to November, the first weekend. Fortunately, all of our friends, a small group, could still attend.

So…….what exactly is Hobo Stew? Ha! Several people have asked me that…guess I should never assume that everyone knows what I’m talking about.

When I first heard of Hobo Stew, it was at a church camp when I was in middle school. In a very large, heavy pot, each camper added an ingredient that they had chosen, primarily vegetables of all sorts. The counselors had already added a meat, cut into bite size chunks or shredded, broth, and spices. On a grate, over a campfire, the soup would simmer for hours, until the meat was tender. That’s pretty much it…..Hobo Stew!

The entire concept of the Stew was, at church camp,..that individually, we each had very little, not enough to feed ourselves, but coming together as a group, and each one giving all that they had, now we had more than enough to feed all of us! A simple lesson in giving to others.

This is how I made the Hobo Stew:

I started with a 4lb. Chuck Roast, that I put on high for 6 hours in a crock pot, to the roast I added 1 packet of Lipton Beefy Onion soup mix ,1-1/2 C. of water, sea salt and black pepper to the top of the roast, and about 1 Tbs. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, also on the top.

After the 6 hours, I removed the lid, and with 2 forks, shredded the beef . Leave all of the meat and seasonings in the crock pot. You will add this to the stew pot.

To the stew pot, add the roast, with the remaining liquid and spices, and add 3 boxes of Beef Broth.

Then I added 5 small potatoes, chopped, 5 large carrots, peeled and chopped into 1″ slices, 3 medium onions, diced. I lightly salted the raw vegetables. (optional) I always cook to taste, and that’s an individual preference.

I then added 1 large bag of mixed frozen vegetables.

Covered the pot and put it on the grate. After it boiled for about 1/2 hour, I took a spoonful to check the seasonings, I did add 1 more tsp. of salt.

Put the lid back on, simmer for 2 hours or so, then it’s ready to serve. As long as the raw vegetables are soft, and you like the seasonings, it’s ready to go!

Enjoy!

One more thing: I use old diner cups ( or a soup mug with a handle), because we were eating outside, and it was easy to carry/hold.

Soup's On!
Serving Hobo Stew in Vintage Diner Cups

Five Bean Bake

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Five Bean Bake

Beth Wood
This meat and mixed beans recipe, a one pot dish, can be served as a side dish or as the main course
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 12

Equipment

  • Stock pot
  • knife
  • ½C measuring cup
  • 1 tsp .measuring spoon
  • ¾C measuring cup
  • skillet
  • can opener
  • oven

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb. hamburger or ground chuck, fried
  • 1 lb. bacon fried or baked to crisp
  • 1 lb. Kielbasa Sausage sliced into 1/2" pieces
  • 1 15.8oz can of Great Northern Beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 15.8oz can of Red Kidney Beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 15.8oz can of Lima Beans keep liquid
  • 1 15.8oz can of Butter Beans keep liquid
  • 1 large can of Pork and Beans I use Bush's brand
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. yellow mustard
  • 2 tsp. Apple Cider vinegar
  • ½ C. ketchup
  • ¾ C. light brown sugar packed and leveled

Five Bean Bake Ingredients

Instructions
 

  • Brown hamburger or ground chuck until brown. Set aside to cool.
  • Fry or bake bacon till crisp. Cool then crumble into bite size pieces. Set aside.
  • Slice sausage ring into ½" slices. Set aside.
  • When cool, add all meat to pot.
  • Add beans to pot, and stir to mix.
  • Add salt, mustard, vinegar, ketchup and brown sugar to beans and meat, stir to blend well.
  • Stir on stove top till bubbly, let simmer on low for 20 minutes.
  • When simmering, preheat oven to 350*
  • When beans and meat have simmered for 20 minutes, remove from stovetop and insert into oven, covered with a lid. Bake at 350* for 1 hour.

Five Bean Bake Instructions

    Keyword Beef, Bacon, Sausage, Northern Beans, Kidney Beans, Lima Beans, Butter Beans, Pork and Beans

    October’s Here!

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    Welcome October…!

    Time for October’s News:

    How do I describe my favorite month of the year?

    Do I put all of my “favorites” into categories?

    Well, let’s see……

    1. If you haven’t found your perfect pumpkin to carve for Halloween, or to cut out the center, and use it for a vase on your table, and/or to add a candle ,for it’s soft glow..(.totally necessary if you’re lighting your steps for tiny trick-or-treaters!),…GET IT NOW!!
    2. Head to the nearest farm stand or farmer’s market, or a pumpkin patch near you, enjoy the ambiance while you still can!. Do NOT come home empty-handed!
    3. As noted in step 1., a pumpkin is not your average gourd, it has multiple purposes, enjoy them ALL
    4. Corn stalks, mums, apples and all apple products, are really Miss Runner Up’s to the Pumpkin (in my opinion),
    5. Octoberfest: Life beyond the pumpkin?…..yes, but a good Polka band, beer and brats, celebrating your German heritage, ( even if you’re not German, but a great beer drinker), can almost guarantee a good time…every time!
    6. Now, let’s talk Weather:
    7. Cooler temperatures call for bonfires, apple cider and smores , snuggly sweatshirts and cozy blankets, sitting in the dark, star gazing….all WITHOUT mosquitoes!
    8. Autumn’s Glory is painted across our landscapes: Leaves formerly green and yellow, have turned golden amber, reds and oranges, hues rich and warm. Our green fields of Summer have turned golden, anticipating the harvest to come.
    9. Raking fallen leaves is not a favorite past-time of mine, but I do like to “clean things up”, or exposing my “still green” grass beneath the leaves.
    10. Antique auctions and fairs, everywhere and anywhere, in the Fall, are the BEST ever!
    11. Barn sales are even BETTER!
    12. I collect vintage rakes, garden art, bushel baskets and cement statuary for my landscaping, aged clay pots (any size) are also a favorite find!
    13. Oops! I cannot forget this….my wedding anniversary, and 3 family birthdays are in October!
    14. Celebrations all month long!
    15. Finally, we end with Halloween, and I’ll end this post with a photo of our little Hoosier,…mad that we put a costume on him. He hated this. An 8 legged spider outfit with a hood with 2 eyeballs on it…….he ATE one eye off! At 16 years old, he refused to stand for his photo, you can see him pouting on his face……he was so mad, and so miserable, I HAD to take his picture! Please don’t report me….he understood me.
    October's Fun
    Hoosier’s Halloween

    Sweet friends, I hope you enjoy this beautiful month of October as much as I do!

    If you have favorite activities, crafts, or recipes that remind you of October, please share them with me in the Comments section below! I would so love to hear from you!

    Blessings, Beth

    Rag Ball Pumpkins

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    Easy 3 step craft, Rag Ball Pumpkins!

    Nothing heralds in the Autumn Season like a Pumpkin!!!

    Pumpkins are naturally dressed to impress, wearing multiple colors, stripes, warts, bumps and blemishes of all sorts, and yet, we find them “lovely” and “perfect”!

    Personally, I feel that the search for the “perfect” pumpkin takes so long, because it’s often the stem that determines the Winner. Again, the stems are as varied as their round companions! Together, the “ball and stick” combo cannot be beat! Joy was born in the Pumpkin Patch!

    This is how I made the pumpkin you see in the above photo:

    1. This little pumpkin started as a cardboard holder for a roll of Christmas ribbon for gift wrapping. I used the cardboard “roll” as support for the fabric. It’s a small roll, which I thought would be easy to handle. Note: a larger roll would give you a larger pumpkin, increasing the amount of material needed to cover the form.
    2. I cut 1.5″ slits into the edge of a cotton fabric flour sack, or seed sack, pulling each strip evenly to make the “rag” strips. I used about 1/4 yard of fabric, or less.
    3. I tied 2 strips together with a knot, pulled tightly, and put the knot in the hole of the roll. I pulled each strip tightly around and through the hole, until the entire cardboard roll was covered. When a strip was close to being used, about 3″ left, I would tie on another strip…and kept repeating until I was finished. Tuck in all knots, loose ends or frays that you don’t want exposed. Keep tugging to make sure everything is tight.
    4. Finally, anything loose can be glued down with a small bit of hot glue. Lastly, find your perfect “stem”, either a stick or an actual dried pumpkin stem. Insert tightly.

    That’s it! Enjoy!

    xx,