A Primitive Place
www.aprimitiveplace.org
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Primitive & Colonial Inspired Homes
I have been the Keeper of our Home since marrying my high school sweetheart in 1975. I grew up learning those home-
making skills from the best ~ my mom. She did it all including making the best meals and desserts, to making our dresses and winter coats, to canning and preserving her home grown produce and making jams and jellies, to curtain making and upholstery. She even punched copper panels much like we see done to tin now and she bought old pieces of furniture to refinish and distress. When she wanted something, she learned how to make or fix it or redo it. She was the original DIY gal and she instilled
in me a love for all things domestic and for being creative.
Primitive Musings by Linda Rudman
Thankful Traditions
This page was last updated: November 2, 2009
Greetings Prim Friends! My name is Linda Rudman and I am the Contributing Prim Writer here at A Primitive Place. Each month
I hope to entertain you with my Primitive Musings.
Linda Rudman
Contributing Prim Writer
A Primitive Place
Along the way, I defined my style while reading about life in Early America and visiting historic communities such as Old Sturbridge Village, MA; Historic Williamsburg, VA; Old Salem, NC; Strawberry Banks, NH and many more. Many of the things I collect and decorate with are colonial inspired or are actual items from the past ~ antiques even! Like my mom,
I love creating things with my own two hands and learning DIY skills. When I wanted samplers for my home, I learned how to cross-stitch.When I want a picture hung, I get out my own tools. When I want a room painted, I get out my brushes and get on the ladder. In addition to those skills, I enjoy cooking, gardening, needle punch, wool appliqué and penny rugs, taking road trips with my dear hubby, and my newest love is babysitting for our delightful new granddaughter Liliana.
I love living in New England with its very distinctive four seasons. Decorating for the holidays and changing seasons is a way for me to change up the décor and add warmth to our home. I especially love making our home a comfortable and welcoming place for entertaining family and friends. And even though I LOVE autumn in New England more than any other time of the year, I always strive to find the best in each season, whether it be the changing landscape, seasonal foods, traditions or décor and even the weather!
I will share some of that with you each and every month here in Primitive Musings.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Until next time,
Prim hugs, Linda
Linda Rudman
Contributing Prim Writer
A Primitive Place
Thankful Traditions
After the brilliant show of color that we enjoy each October here in New England, the November landscape will soon become brown and drab. Right now we are enjoying the last of the foliage – the yellows and rusts of the late dropping maples and oaks.
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But there is also beauty in the starkness of bare branches against the ever changing sky, in the dark reds of the burning bushes before they too loose their foliage and in the golds and browns of the underbrush and leaves. The landscape is ever changing and always beautiful in New England and November is no different.
Submitted by Behind My Red Door 2009
Of course being the month of Thanksgiving in the states, the harvest is still on my mind. Like many others in New England, I keep out some of my fall décor out until after family has gathered for the annual feast. Pilgrims, Indian corn and harvest baskets replace the witches, jack o’lanterns and ghosts of Halloween. Now my outside time is cut short and I spend much more time inside as daylight savings ends. We will eek out time to clean up the last of the fallen leaves and clean up the garden beds and mow our lawn for the last time until spring. It really is time to move inside and nest!
Submitted by Behind My Red Door 2009
The Thanksgiving feast becomes the focus of my days later in the month. We now know that much of what we were taught about the first Thanksgiving is inaccurate, but some facts remain true. When the first colonists arrived from England, they survived by trading with the Indians for food and in this way they learned about the foods native to New England. Pumpkins became a staple in their diet. The hollowed them out and filled the inside with milk, honey and spices, replaced the top and cooked them over the hot coals of their fires until the outside was crusty and in the inside soft – and these were the first ‘pumpkin pies”. The recipe has changed much over the centuries, but it remains a favorite in the fall and it is a must on many Thanksgiving tables, including ours!
The first is called Five Kernels. We would take 5 kernels of candy corn and place them in a little bag and attach a tag with this poem. Each loved one at the Thanksgiving table would receive one as a favor.
The first winter in Plymouth was very cold
And hunger abounded as the year unrolled.
Some days each only had five kernels of corn.
Their lives were becoming sad and forlorn.
But then spring came and their harvest grew.
The pilgrims began to thrive and their spirits did too.
But they never forgot the bleak times after they did abate
So on Thanksgiving they'd put five kernels on each plate.
The first kernel reminded them of the autumn beauty.
The second one of the freedom that they held dearly.
The third reminded of their love and care for each other
And the fourth was for dear friends like the Indian brother.
The fifth kernel reminded of God's love and care for all.
So as you prepare and celebrate Thanksgiving this fall,
Remember to put five little kernels on each dinner plate
To honor the pilgrims and give thanks for our good fate.
Next we would mix up a batch of this Thanksgiving Blessings Snack Mix. It can be served as an appetizer on Thanksgiving Day or bagged up to share with neighbors and family and friends.
Thanksgiving Blessings Snack Mix
Mix equal amounts of the following ingredients:
Bugles Brand Corn Snacks – They represent a cornucopia, a horn of plenty.
Pretzels – They represent arms folded in thanks and prayer.
Candy Corn and/or Corn – They represent the corn that was
shared that first Thanksgiving
Dried or Candy Fruits – They represent that Thanksgiving
is the celebration of the harvest.
Peanuts and/or Sunflower Seeds - Seeds represent the potential of a bounteous harvest for the next season if they are planted and well tended.
Chocolate kisses – Represent the love we have for each other.
Another must have tradition in our household is serving our homemade Cranberry Relish. Both our children made it when they attended nursery school and we have been making ever since – for some 25+ years now. We use an old fashioned hand operated meat grinder that clamps on to the kitchen table but you can use a food processor.
Homemade Cranberry Relish
1 bag of fresh cranberries
2 navel oranges – washed, navel removed, rind left on
1 cup sugar (or more to taste)
Simply mince the cranberries and oranges, add the sugar and let sit overnight or longer. We love it as is or served on crackers. You can also add a peeled apple or a small can of drained pineapple to sweeten it up a bit, but we like the simple version. It's especially good on turkey sandwiches the day after!
No matter what your traditions and family favorites are, I hope your November is a good one. I wish you the peace of a happy home, the warmth of love and laughter, and the joy that comes from special times with family and friends.
I have always loved Thanksgiving not only because it involves a gathering of loved ones but also because it is a wonderful reminder of the many other blessings in our lives. When our children were young, we started several traditions to emphasis our thankfulness.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Next month:
December Musings - The Joy of the Christmas Season
