Live in
the sunshine,
swim in the sea,
drink the wild air~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
It’s a cloudy, cold day here at the Wabi-Sabi Ranch. The weather prognosticators are saying we might get a snow flurry here and there. It sure feels like snow, but I haven’t had a chance yet to step outside to find out if it smells like snow. I can’t describe the scent of snow possibilities to you, but can tell you that my nose is usually more accurate than the scientific predictions of the weatherfolk.
It’s also a busy, busy day, what with the unpacking and the laundry and the prepping and the cooking of food for the week. Have you heard of Once A Month Meals? M the Younger and his lovely wife have been giving it a try since October, and have been saving money and wasting less food. It’s also pretty efficient in that you do all of your cooking for the month in one day. Well. I’m not quite that ambitious, and since I don’t work outside of the home I don’t have the need to get everything prepped, frozen, and ready to reheat at the end of the work day. However. M and I did stop at a decent grocery store in Annapolis on our way home (we do not have a good grocery store near the ranch) where I picked up quite a bit of winter produce, and I need to do something with all those lovely vegetables before they start to age and wilt and become edible for nothing more than soup.
I’ll be back tomorrow, I hope, with more from our trip to Washington, D.C. Thank you for dropping by. Take a moment or two or more to float in the warm waters of the pool or walk under the bubbles. As always…
Be good, be kind, be loving. Just Be. And smile while you’re at it. 🙂
Today’s joys: The scent of various vegetables cooking, weaving and wafting through the house; the warmth of the oven on a cold winter’s day; morning meditation; thick socks to keep my feet toasty; all the smiles I’m finding as I sort through the photos from the trip.
breezes at dawn 
Ah, but vegetable soup is delicious. 🙂 Just be… with kindness. Great wisdom, Robin.
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So true, Eric. Thank you. 🙂
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I heard there was a big snowfall in northern Virginia on Tuesday morning, so I imagine snow is coming to you soon, Robin. Stay warm and enjoy all that winter produce. Hot soups sound perfect for the cold days!
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No snow for us so far, Cathy. I’m hoping for a good snowfall, but the closest thing to snow in the forecast is ice pellets on Wednesday. Hopefully it will be too warm for that, or cold enough to turn it to snow instead. Ice can be pretty, but it’s so damaging that it’s no fun.
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Ice is the worst of all weather conditions, isn’t it? I hope you’ll get some snow on the East Coast but not until my husband is safely in the air on the way here to China on January 17, and not again until after my son is on his way on January 31st!
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Your little mermaid made me smile too, Robin. 🙂 We have rain here, which I can smell before it arrives; I think it’s a gift of experience, smelling the weather. 😉
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She always makes me smile, Joanne. 🙂 I think you might be right (about experience), although it seems as though I’ve always been able to smell snow approaching. Maybe it’s my affinity to the cold, white stuff.
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Love that mermaid! I’m very curious about the “smell of snow”…I’ve lived in snow country for too little time to have smelled snow…plus I rarely go out when it’s that cold so I don’t get to smell it.. And thank you for the link…I was just last night commenting on another blog about cooking one day a month as she’s a single mom with a full time job and then some! Now I have the link to share with her!
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Thank you, Corina. 🙂 I’m not sure how to describe the smell of snow. It’s crisp, cold, and has a stringing quality to it.
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I simply love that little fish swimming around in your second shot down, bubbles and all. 🙂
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Thank you, Marcy. I love that little fish, too. 😀
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Beautiful photograph, Socks! 🙂
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Thank you, Slippers. 😉 I love that you’re wearing two different kinds. Yay!
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And the little fish is gorgeous, herself! 🙂 I love that one!
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Thank you, George. 🙂
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Oh, I am intrigued by the Once a Month Meals plan! Especially since I am essentially cooking just for me most of the time. I can see packaging them into smaller serving upon freezing. Thanks for sharing that!
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You’re welcome, Christina. 🙂 I can see how that would be a good thing when cooking for one. I tend to not cook when it’s just me (and that often leads to eating things I probably shouldn’t be eating).
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Hi Robin. This post is perfect timing for me. I have been trying to figure out how to prepare meals ahead for myself. Thanks for the link!
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You’re welcome, Marianne. 🙂 I hope it helps. At first I thought the cost was a bit much, but my daughter-in-law said they save more than that by being so organized in their shopping, prepping, and eating.
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I used to do once a month cooking using this cookbook. It was hard physically, but so nice to have food for the whole rest of the month, especially with the hours I worked. Once I got the hang of it, I didn’t have to use the cookbook but could adapt my own recipes. Hmm. . . that could be a good blog post someday.
http://www.amazon.com/Once—month-Cooking-Time-saving-Budget-stretching/dp/B007KD7FSA/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420689364&sr=1-6&keywords=once+a+month+cooking
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I often end up spending a good portion of a day cooking after we shop, Nancy. That’s why the once a month cooking appealed to me on some level. Thanks for the link to the book. Maybe a few of the other folks who commented about once a month cooking will be able to use it. 🙂
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I know what you mean about the scemt of upcoming snow! It is hard to explain, but when you know it you know it!
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