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Our Homemaking Series continues as I share10 Life-Changing Homemaking Secrets from Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables in today's video.
1. Strive to be a Notable Homemaker Mrs. Rachel Lynde was described as a "notable housewife; her work was always done and well done". While Mrs. Lynde had other issues going on, no one could dispute that she ran her home notably and efficiently.
2. Cleanliness is next to Godliness… according to Marilla Cuthbert. When Anne first arrived at Green Gables she noticed that “The hall was fearsomely clean; the little gable chamber in which she presently found herself seemed still cleaner”. While Marilla might have gone a bit overboard keeping things too clean, one can find inspiration for her love of a clean home.
3. Untidy Habits Cannot be Tolerated Marilla tells Anne, “Now, Anne, I noticed last night that you threw your clothes all about the floor when you took them off. That is a very untidy habit, and I can’t allow it at all. As soon as you take off any article of clothing fold it nearly and place it on the chair. I haven’t any use at all for little girls who aren’t neat.” Marilla instantly addressed Anne's untidy behavior and nipped it in the bud. It's best to eliminate bad habits before they fully form.
4. Work is done first… then play Marilla says, “But remember this in all your planning, Anne. You’re not going to play all the time nor most of it. You’ll have your work to do and it’ll have to be done first”. This is a similar theme that ran all through the Little House on the Prairie and Farmer Boy series and is worth taking note. We should work first and then play if we want to get anything done and rest with satisfaction.
5. Always test the food and drink you are serving to your guests. Anne was ecstatic that she was going to have Diana over for tea while Matthew and Marilla were away. She wanted to use the fancy rosebud tea set (Marilla said no) and was imagining exactly how the afternoon would go. She gave Diana what she thought was raspberry cordial, but it was actually Marilla’s current wine. Diana got drunk off of three glasses of wine and things went downhill from there. That could have been avoided if Anne sampled the cordial for herself. She would have known it wasn’t Marilla’s cordial at all and the mishap would have been avoided… but then we wouldn’t have had that entertaining story. Ha!
6. Sometimes Homemaking must be put aside when more thrilling matters are present After Anne saves Minnie May’s life and Mrs. Barry forgives her for getting Diana drunk off the “raspberry cordial”, Anne is invited over to the Barry residence. Anne asks, “Oh, Marilla, can I go right now – without washing my dishes? I’ll wash them when I come back, but I cannot tie myself down to anything so unromantic as dish-washing at this thrilling moment.” Sometimes placing homemaking aside to deal with more exciting matters is totally acceptable.
7. Table Décor matters just as much as the food The minister and his wife are coming to tea and Anne is so excited. She wants to be in charge of the whole affair. “You’ll be using the best tea set, of course, Marilla,” she said. “Can I fix up the table with ferns and wild roses?” “I think that’s all nonsense,” sniffed Marilla. “In my opinion it’s the eatables that matter and not flummery decorations.” Anne then goes on to convince Marilla that table decor matters just as much as the food.
8. Always label every bottle properly. Anne’s table may have been pretty for Mrs. Allan, but the cake was inedible. She flavored the cake with anodyne liniment instead of vanilla but it wasn’t Anne’s fault. Marilla said, “I broke the liniment bottle last week and poured what was left into an old empty vanilla bottle.” We should always label bottles properly to avoid tragic mishaps like this one.
9. Look on the bright side with your current decor. Take heart in less than perfect décor as it leaves room for imagination. Anne and Diana visit Diana’s wealthy aunt, Miss Josephine Barry. Miss Barry’s house was furnished with “great magnificence,” as Anne told Marilla afterwards. “Velvet carpet,” sighed Anne luxuriously, “and silk curtains! I’ve dreamed of such things, Diana. But do you know I don’t believe I feel very comfortable with them after all. There are so many things in this room and all so splendid that there is no scope for imagination. That is one consolation when you are poor- there are so many more things you can imagine about.” I believe Anne truly did love Miss Barry’s décor, but she was employing positivity by looking on the bright side with what she did have.
10. Home is a consciousness Driving back from Miss Barry’s house “Anne and Diana found the drive home as pleasant as the drive in- pleasanter, indeed, since there was the delightful consciousness of home waiting at the end of it.” … “It’s good to be alive and going home,” breathed Anne. “I’ve had a splendid time, she concluded happily, “and I feel that it marks an epoch in my life. But the best of it all was the coming home.” Later in the book when she goes away to college, Anne is experiencing homesickness. It says “a horrible choke came into her throat as she thought of her own white room at Green Gables, where she would have the pleasant consciousness of a great green still outdoors, of sweet peas growing in the garden, and moonlight falling on the orchard, of the brook below the slope and the spruce boughs tossing in the night wind beyond it, a vast starry sky, and the light from Diana’s window shining out through the gap in the trees.” When we understand the home is more than a building or a shelter for us, that it is a consciousness we can appreciate it as homemakers and look after it with renewed inspiration.
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Jackie writes, "Jennifer, you are such a GOOD COOK! The pasta was a fine-dining experience and so amazingly simple to make; wow! We are sitting here after dinner, feeling satiated and rich 🍤 Looking forward to trying some of these other options. Thank you, Jennifer. Your videos enhance my life."
Thank you, Jackie! I'm so happy you and your family enjoyed the Cajun shrimp pasta!
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4 comments:
Hello Jennifer! I couldn’t find another way to contact you, so I’m doing so here. I’ve been a follower of yours for more tha n ten years and have all of your books. I recently joined the Chic Society and am enjoying your videos there also. What I can’t seem to figure out is when will the live sessions with you occur? I have searched all over and all I can find is that you will do a live session once per month (for the Classic level). Can you please let me know what day and time each month this is to occur? Or maybe where I can look to see this information on an ongoing basis? I sure don’t want to miss it! Thanks a lot! I’m very much enjoying your content. Thank You, Teresa
Hi Teresa! Thank you for joining The Chic Society! The live zoom calls are for all levels. I usually announce them in the community tab a few days before with the link to join. I believe the live will be this Friday or Saturday but I haven't scheduled it yet. Every time I post in the community tab, you should get an email notification. Thank you and see you there! ~ Jennifer
Hi Jennifer, I have been subscribed for several years and have enjoyed your posts and books very much. I notice that you are looking at home making and classic novels and I wondered in you had ever come across the “What Katy Did” books by Susan Coolidge aka Sarah Chaunsey Woolsey? There are 5 books which all contain excellent examples of home making skills and how to behave with grace in all circumstances. The books are set in Ohio/ New Hampshire and Colorado in the 1870s - 1880s and are much beloved by little girls and women in the U.K. as they are still in print in the U.K. I believe they were taken out of print at some point in the U.S. If you haven’t read them, you might want to take a look. In the U.K they are loved as much as Little Women and Anne of Green Gables,
Very Best
Julie
In "Anne's House of Dreams", L.M. Montgomery gives us one more very important homemaking secret. Anne hires a housekeeper! When she loses her first child, she needs time to recover her health and spirit. She and Gilbert hire a local woman to help with the housekeeping and cooking until she recovers. Spoiler alert: she gives birth to a healthy child later. As Montgomery reminds us, we can't do everything and be everything to everyone all the time. Sometimes, we need a bit of help around the house.
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