A New Week in a New Month

Daylight Saving Time ended this weekend. Were you able to get all your clocks set properly? Including the one in your car? My computers, tablets and phones all updated themselves, but I had to change the clocks on my oven, microwave, and bedside analog clock myself.

Now’s also the time to replace your smoke detector batteries, check flashlight batteries, vacuum and flip your mattresses.

Here in Seattle, we’re having unusually warm (55, 56 and 58 degree!) sunny days. It doesn’t quite feel like autumn yet – I walked around downtown Seattle’s shopping district last night without a coat on! We’re grilling hamburgers outside for lunch, and not quite cooking soups, stews and casseroles yet.

I feel weird taking a “reading day” hiding in my bedroom when it’s not cold and rainy. I’m promising myself I’ll venture out of doors and get some sunshine on my skin on a long walk with the dogs today.

QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:

Pay bills, rent and/or mortgage as needed.
Create menu plans for the week; write up your grocery list; shop as needed on the way home from work if necessary
Look over the month ahead – what book are you reading for your book club? Which doctor, dentist, salon or spa appointments do you or members of your household have coming up? This morning I missed a cooking class I’d paid a lot of money for, and I wouldn’t have missed it if I had checked over my calendar more thoroughly.
Check over upcoming birthdays for November. Make time to write cards, purchase and send gifts, or plan a party.
What’s your plan for using up Halloween candy, or spiriting some of it out of the house so your kids can’t actually eat that much of it?
Book your travel for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas if you haven’t already
Need to catch up on laundry you didn’t finish over the weekend?
Make socialization plans for the week ahead and the upcoming weekend. I have a girls movie night, a cocktail date with a friend, a cooking class with another friend and a weekend movie date on the horizon so far!
Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? Time to get writing!

TODAY’S PROJECT: Fire Safety

Kidde Kitchen Fire Extinguisher, on AmazonI take fire safety very seriously” I have been in a hotel that was on fire before. Though it was a small fire in a part of the hotel far from us, and I was in no real danger, it’s made me extra cautious. I’ve also had a kitchen fire due to stupidly leaving a pan of oil to heat up while I ran upstairs to check email.. boy did I learn my lesson!

I burn a lot of candles, and I use my fireplace quite often. Most of autumn, I’ll be burning a wood fire every evening, since it’s cold, dark and rainy in Seattle usually.

Safety experts suggest that we test our smoke alarm batteries twice a year, when we change our clocks. They say we should replace them once a year, during the fall clock change. That would be now – let’s get it done!

Let’s replace our batteries in our smoke detectors (whether they need it or not) just to be sure we have fresh new ones. Put batteries on your shopping list if you use up your stash during our safety exercise this week.

Empty and clean your dryer lint trap. Clean behind the dryer and around the hose if you can. Inspect the hose for wear, and see if you need to have a professional come out to clean the hose. (Chimney sweep companies often offer this as a service they provide as well).

Vacuum or dust all the smoke detectors in your house while you’re at it. Is your smoke detector more than seven years old? Toss it out and get a new one. You can pick one up at RiteAid, Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Target, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and even at some grocery stores.

Do you have a carbon monoxide detector?

See if you need to replace your existing fire extinguishers. If you don’t have any, now is the time to think about getting one for your kitchen, bedroom, hallway, garage, and for each vehicle used by your household members.

Do you have a flashlight with working batteries next to your bed? Test it tonight in the dark. Can you reach it and turn it on quickly from a lying down position? Is it bright enough?

Do you keep a flashlight in your car? If so, have you tested it in the last week to see if it works?

Spend some time tonight with your family, especially if you have small children, discussing what to do in event of a fire. Practice your fire escape route.

Related links:

Fire Safety Tips at SafeKids.Org

Home Fire Safety (American Red Cross)

Keeping Kids Safe from Fire

LOVELY BLOGS: Cardamom and Tea

Kathryn blogs about Assyrian-inspired food. I always enjoy visiting out-of-the-ordinary food blogs, so I’m delighted to have stumbled upon this one. Recent posts include Frosted Orange Blossom Pistachio Brownies, Za’atar Cauliflower (I’m making this one tonight!)a refreshing sounding Grapefruit Fennel Salad with Za’atar Dressing and a Za’atar Chicken recipe I’ll skip since I’m vegetarian.

Check out the darling pics of her beloved grandmother making pickled vegetables, too!

https://www.cardamomandtea.com/

LOVELY BOOKS: The Mary Frances Cookbook

I thought you might enjoy browsing this charming vintage 1912 cookbook by Jean Eayre Fryer. The colorful illustrations inside were very unusual at the time, being expensive to print and produce. The book is subtitled “Or, Adventures Among the Kitchen People.” It’s actually a storybook, not a cookbook, with recipes sprinkled within the text.

The Mary Frances Cookbook, at The Internet Archive

LOVELY CANDLES: Paddywax’s Homestead Collection

Paddywax Homestead Candles, on Amazon

I’m a huge fan of Paddywax candles – their scents are enjoyable and not cloyingly strong, and the containers they come in are darling and clearly designed to be used for other things after the candles have burned up.

Their new “Homestead” collection comes in galvanized metal tins, perfect for the urban farmhouse look so many people seem to be going for right now.

Paddywax’s “Homestead” line includes “Vetiver Fig,” “Verbena and Lemon,” “Coconut and Amber,” “Orange Blossom” and “Thyme and Olive Leaf.” Some of these scents seem more summery to me, and I don’t care for coconut, so the ones I’m buying for fall are the Vetiver Fig and Thyme and Olive Leaf.

LOVELY CRAFTS: Grateful Hearts Wreath

Grateful Hearts Wreath, from Paper-Source

This might be a nice fall craft to do with your kids or grandkids, if you have any who enjoy making crafts. If done with the right approach and not too much bossy lecturing on being grateful, this might be a nice way to remind kids of your family values. Let everyone write something they are grateful for on a leaf. Display the wreath proudly. I might not put mine on the front door since it’s so rainy here, but it could hang from a nail in my dining room.

Sometimes I have “Craft Night” cocktail parties at my house too, inviting a bunch of ladies over to drink wine and cocktails, do crafty things, draw or color in adult autumn coloring books, enjoy the fireplace, etc.

LOVELY SHOPS: Maggie Louise Confections

I wanted to show you my current favorite online chocolate shop! Maggie Louise Confections makes the most darling seasonal-themed chocolates I’ve seen in a long time. I’m going to be gifting several boxes of her Autumn chocolate collection to friends and relatives this season. These would be a great, though not inexpensive, hostess gift to bring to an autumn dinner party or Thanksgiving dinner you’re attending at someone’s home. My favorite pieces are the chocolate “Indian corn” chocolates.

Take a look at the stunning Christmas chocolates (including a chocolate Advent calendar). I also really appreciate that there’s a Hanukkah chocolates section for my Jewish friends, and a Winter chocolates collection for my atheist or non-religious friends and co-workers.

Here’s the perfect gift for someone you need to thank and don’t know very well – this is adorable and probably won’t cause offense: “Thanks a Latte” chocolates. So cute!

https://www.maggielouiseconfections.com/