Quail eggs

Yesterday I got lots of quail's eggs from my friend.
She said that they were "the " quail's eggs.
I asked why she added "the".
The eggs were produced in a famous quail farm in MOUKA where it's about 20km far from Utsunomiya. And they are called "Mr.Ebihara's quail egg" in honor of the owner's wonderful work.

They were too lot though it was easy to boil them.

I almost gave up, but Yuki helped me.

And --- I pickled them.

While I was boiling, I cooked other appetizer for this week.

 

I usually cook appetizer for a week on Mondays, but today I had something to do in the morning.
It's the end of the month, --- so I put fliers of my class into mailboxes by myself.
I printed 400 sheets. And today I did 150 sheets.
I'll do it tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.
Why? I want some senior members and make a senior group to learn English together. Now I have only one senior lady. I hope someone will join us.

Though at Sunday night Yuki and I were cooking, in the afternoon we went to see hydrangeas in a shrine. And we also saw and attended an event, which is called Oharae.
It is done twice a year, at the end of June and at the end of December to remove calamity. We make our self purify, go through the ring three times. First after going through the ring we should turn to left, after the second we should turn to right, and at last we should turn to left??? (I forgot). Anyway after going through the ring third, our calamity must have to be removed.

it's fun

When a hand soup a pump  or an one-push  hand soup appeared instead of traditional hand soup, I was very surprised.
Then, I was also surprised the soup changed a fulid type into a foam type.
(I don't know the correct English words, what do you discribe these days hand soup.)
And I see a hand dispenser in public restrooms. However -- I coulndn't image, such a dispenser type would come out for my home. (Of course it didn't come out naturally, I bouhgt it.)
It was fun. For a while Yuki and I just put our hands in front of it though we didn't need to wash our hands.

Herb

Today it got sunny after so long, on the other hand I watered the garden after so long.

And I saw lots of herbs (not weeds) glowing.

So I did  a thing.

This is an old wearth which has some fake flowers.
I picked some herbs and --

I made herb wreath, probably it will wilt soon, but after that it will get dry and -- it will turn into a dry herb wreath -- I hope.
On the other hand from now an adult comes to take my lesson.
So I prepared cold herb tea and mit jelly with wine and small tomatoes.

Perfect. Now it's time to work.

At home

Whew!

Today I canceled the meeting with my friend. (Sorry, Eiko-san.)

I seem to be very tired, and I can't catch up things I have to do.

 

Anyway after Yuki went to work, I took a nap.

And I swabbed the floor, toilet and stairs with wet dust cloth (It's a probably traditional Japanese way. I like it instead of using a mop.)  Though I had felt not good, after doing this job I felt much better. Probably it is a kind of exercise, and it will lead to clean myself mentally ( I believe it).

 

And I cooked preserved food? or you can say appetizer.

Japanese style pickles of cucumber and DAIKON

Pickled zucchini

Carrots rapees

Grilled egg plants dipped soy sauce and DASHI

pumpkin grasset

and simmered cabbage and ground pork

And from now I'm going to start reading books while I keep this sheet on my forehead.

Can you guess what this is for ?
I know it's impossible to lose my winkles, but I want for my frown line not to get deeper ---.
I don't mind whether it works or not, anyway it's one of my ways to release my stress.
Of course I applied my homemade special aroma to ease my stiff shoulders.

Wow! Ten days has alreday passed.

ーI don't believe it, the last update was ten days ago.
What was I doing?
Probably I has been busy, however I don't like to use the word "busy".
The reason is --- I'll write later.

Did I tell you that these days I'm into aromatic oil therapy, and I try  not to take medicine, especially a cure for headache and for stability. It works, and it become one of my hobbies and it also engaged all members of my family. In his case I made a bottle of preventing odor for old men. He seems to enjoy the bottle. I made a bottle of concentrating for my younger daughter, and I made a bottle of relaxing for my elder daughter.

However, babies are prohibited from using aroma.
So I made something natural for Akari,  --- once I did it for my two daughters.

In the back yard, I have two loquat trees, and two fig trees,though they are not so big.
And the leaves are said to be very effective for our skin.
So these days Akari is suffering from heat rash, so I made loquat-leave water.
It's easy, just simmer loquat leaves with water for a while, and stop before boiling.
It worked for my daughters who used to be suffering from atopy.

How ever this spring I had the trees trimmed a lot, so it doesn't have enough leaves. (It is said that young leaves are not so effective)

So I pickled the old leaves and pickled them into vodka (Jan, are you reading it? It's not your vodka).
After the summer it become mild loquat extractive.

On the other hand, it recalls me bath water with natural leaves.
This year loquat leaves are all for Akari, so we use --- yes, fig leaves.
It is also said fig leaves bath is good for our skin ,and it makes more warm.

I enjoy my life with my garden.

This week

You can guess, why I couldn't update this blog this week. Yes Akari had stayed with us.

Of course her mother M was with her, but she often went out to do her errands.

So I was nursering? playing with her while her mother was out. Though they come about once a month, Akari always forget us, and it takes a while to get used to our house.  but she gets used to our house with her mother, once her mother goes out, she started crying.

And she freezed on me. So I put many? some toys around her and tried to catch her attetion.  She stopped cring for a while, but she started crying again. She did it repeatedly and  -- took a nap for about 30 minutes.

This is the way for me to spend with her in the day.

Let me tell you about Yuki.

Yesterday, he decided to stop his performace which is regurally done once a month at a live house.

Did I tell you? We were in Jazz club at college. Since we moved to Utsunomiya, we managed to keep our music activity though its individual.

When I was in the late 20's, I also played the piano at this live house.

He had continued playing the piano, bass, or guitar for --- oh, 30 years (though it had a time he stopped doing performance, he had been a member of musicans of this live house.)

Anyway he decided to stop his performance, next time he goes to this live house he is a guest.

Well, did you remeber I introduce my easy rose water.

While Akari was here, I often used this steam machine. So I tried making pure distilled herb water, using apple mints which are growin in my garden.

The blue rectangles are blue ie.

I got this one. It's natural and helpful bug repelient for babies.

Additionaly let me tell you about my activity this week.

I went to KARAKU tea room to play the piano --- and I took Aakri and her mother.

I was afraid if Akari started crying. But nothing happend. Once starting the piano music she fell into sleep on her mother's keens.

After my performance I got this fruit jerry and had a nice coffe.

The last weekday

Now I've finished  cooking kind of appetizer for this weekend. 

This weekend some men come to exterminate terminates . It costs high, though it can't be helped. Last year, we refurnished our kitchen, this year we have to do this thing to keep this house in a good condition . It's getting old like us.

And, Akari and M will come to stay with us for several days. 

Probably it will be difficult to cook something at kitchen, so I cooked these things.

Now I'll organize their room, and go working out as usual.

Staying with them is fun, noisy, troublesome, and fun again.

I'm afraid Yuki has been very busy these days, so it's not sure whether he will stay home , go to his office, or go golfing to let him release from the stress.( On this Sunday it us the day for a big tournament at the club he belongs)

Konmari method

Do you know of KONMARI, who is a Japanese lady, and these days --- who has been named to TIME100/

I have her first book which I got before it became a million seller book.

And last week I happened to buy this book which is her third book.

 

Do you remember that I try to throw away 10 things a day?

Now I don't do that, however I try to continue to throw away 10 things a week.

(On the other hand these days every month Akari comes ten new things come)

 

My way is called "dan-sya-ri". It is another way to organize our selves through considering about our belongings.

 

And now it is the time to start Konmari method.

 

Dan-sya-ri focuses the place whether you find room or not.

Konmari method focuses the belongings whether you feel love or not.

 

Today I checked our entrance and bathrooms.

I don't begin on my clothes yet, though according to the book the first try is to begin on the clothes.

 

Today it's rainy, rainy season seems to come just around the corner.

 

 

 

Rose petals water

Do you have roses in your garden? The rose season is almost finished here in Utsunomiya, though we still have lots of roses.

I'm not good at caring for gardens, but I like seeing beautiful gardens. Coincidentally one of my friends took a rose and planted. So I have one rose in my garden. It is very strong, so I don't need to care for. I hear that it's really difficult to let roses open their flowers without pesticide. However the rose in my garden opened the flowers without pesticide this year.

So I suddenly (unfortunately it bloomed the last flowers) had a good idea, "I can make organic rose petals water".

According to the recipe, 100g rose petals and 100 ml pure water are ingredient.

It's easy just put them into a pot, and put it on the stove. Then you should stop before their starting boiling. Then you  cool it, and filter it. You keep it one month in the fridge.

 

I weighed the last flowers petals--- only 25g

 

 

 

So I add 50 ml pure water (it was too difficult for them to boil.)

And --- most of water was sacked by petals, so I squeeze the petals including lots of water.

 

 

 

The color is clear red. It is said to a rejuvenation herb. (I know this English word for this time.)