Sunset - June 2, 2020

Sunset - June 2, 2020

Monday, September 12, 2011

A Matter of Thyme...


Glories in the morning - this greeted me as I headed out to the garden - the newly opened flowers rival the color of the sky.

Later, as I stood in the potting shed sorting through just dried thyme, it occurred to me, why not just go to the store and buy one of those little cans? 
All those minute leaves to strip off the stems - so time consuming...but my heart wins out every time - the satisfaction of watching something grow, the harvesting and inhaling the fresh fragrance and later the taste in the kitchen - knowing the source and the fact that it had not sat on a shelf for months somewhere.  A lot of the time here at Taylorsoutback is devoted to DIY but that's okay. The pleasure of growing, sewing and just plain doing is reward enough. Living out in the country, we don't get many "drop by" visitors...I am happy you are here. So let's catch up over coffee or would you prefer tea? Forgive me if I tend to ramble today....


We attended a special wedding this past weekend. It was a blending of tradition and 21st century innovations. Do you get teary eyed at weddings? I didn't use to but find my emotions are closer to the surface as I grow older...
The bride was beautiful and her new husband, handsome. They rarely took their eyes off each other...
 Jena was Maid of Honor for her sister - and looked so lovely.
The Chapel was a renovated Old German church resplendent with original stain glass windows. 


Somewhere summer has left us behind and the first hints of a seasonal change are in the works...the grass is heavy with morning dew following cool nights and dots of colored leaves are revealing themselves along country lanes. Few hummingbirds remain and crows gather in the fields harassing each other. Our pond is strangely quiet - no geese remain - except for a few feathers and bones of the last young goose who was left behind. We wondered why a mature bald eagle had come to visit us 2 days in a row...a stroll over to the dock showed us why and gave us a lesson of how Nature balances everything.

In the garden, the raised beds are being emptied - onions drying, the last of the beans gathered and the summer squash have slowed! Some of the zucchini have been shredded and mixed into loaves of  zucchini bread for autumn and winter treats...


Working in the little herb garden, I gathered lemon balm and lemon thyme and added both to tiny lemon tea loaves. 
Soaking in warm lemon glaze
This older book by Emilie Tolley and Chris Mead was the start of my attachment to all things herbal. 

You can tell by the wear and sticky notes it is a favorite of mine. When I pull it off the shelf, it is as though an old friend has come to call. 

You didn't think I would go too long without bringing up quilting, did you? 
Blocks #35 & #36 in the Civil War series are done...
And another applique block for BTCT...
We just got the instructions and pattern for the outside borders...yikes! I really need to pick up the pace on the remaining blocks...those borders will fill many a cold, winter's night by the fire.


Told you I might ramble - thank you for taking the time to drop by...I really enjoy your visits and hope you will come back soon.
Wishing you a week filled with sweet moments and time for reflection on the goodness of life.










A quiet evening by our pond - a good place for reflecting...





13 comments:

  1. I love the thought of living on a farm - growing some of my own food etc, baking and eating it, putting some away for winter. Sounds just lovely! I can almost smell those lemon loaves from here! Mmmmmmm

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  2. Lovely post as always! What a wonderful time you must have had with the thyme! And the book is my favorite as well. The wedding looked lovely and it's going to get cool here by Thursday! Yikes!

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  3. The loaves really caught my eye - how I wish I had something baked to go with our tea tonight. I wonder if I could just show The Great Dane a photo of your lemon loaf?......

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  4. Your lemon loaf looks delicious! Ros

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  5. I very much enjoyed this delightful ramble; it gave me an excellent idea about the sort of person you are.
    I can see you bustling about and taking care and making provision for winter.

    Lovely, just lovely.

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  6. What a lovely time I was having reading your post. It took me back to when I had lemon balm in the garden alongside the lemon thyme. I love cooking with herbs too.
    Your farm life sounds so interesting. We are heralding spring in over here.

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  7. While I have not been doing a lot of baking lately, those little tea loaves with the Thyme are right up my alley. Something husband would see and comment that I would really like. I will soon be making my home-made pumpkin loaves (pumpkin from a can) that are made in 1-lb coffee tins. The longer they are in the freezer, the better they become. Thanks for your post and inspiration. Judy C in NC

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  8. hey Pat,
    I will have some tea, thank you.:)
    Enjoyed your post so much. We are supposed to get some of the cool weather down here in a day or two and I can't wait.
    Looks like a really good harvest for you. Yummy looking breads.
    I hope to have a fall garden. I have planted some seeds and they are sprouting. I am going to plant several different varieties of garlic this year.
    I do get teary eyed at wedding too especially when my boys got married.
    Great blocks.

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  9. I enjoyed sitting with you while you talked about your day to day life. It feels real. The side border for BTCT is daunting. I hope it has a rhythm that makes it move along in a pleasant way.

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  10. Lovely wedding and the lemon thyme bread is making my mouth water. I have Emelie Tolley books too. In fact I have them pictured on my A Table for Rue Blog.

    I also wanted to thank you for your visit to my blog. Now off I go to gather some lemon verbena and lemon thyme for bread.

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  11. Put the tea on! I'm coming to visit!

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  12. What a lovely post! I have been busy gathering the herbs and remaining tomatoes and beans from my garden - before the frost hits. Busy days, these! That lemon bread looks lovely - I'll have to find my copy of that book and check out the recipe. Hope we can connect soon!
    Chris

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