Cold temperatures have brought thoughts of an early winter here in our little cottage at the edge of the Ozarks. We have radiators that will keep us warm, but at a price. Propane is very expensive. Our solution is to use our wood stove. We can buy wood at a relatively inexpensive price, but while waiting to have our chimney cleaned, we endured the Arctic Blast with our radiators turned to the lowest temperature we could. Here are some things I have done to take the chill off for our family.
- When you wake, put the kettle on to boil.
- Preheat the oven and bake something delicious.
- Fill the sink with hot sudsy water.
- Light candles. They give off a little heat.
- Use space heaters.
- Wear layers.
- Snuggle under blankets on the sofa and read aloud.
- Keep socks and slippers or shoes on your feet.
- Warm cold hands under warm water.
- Take a hot shower.
I recently read a very good article at Vickie's Kitchen and Garden about staying warm during the cold winter months. I invite you to visit Vickie. She has some good ideas.
5 Ways to Stay Warm in Your Home during the Arctic Blast
Enjoy your long weekend,
Laura
Keeping the shivers at bay
~~~~~
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It has been bitter cold recently! I wear layers to keep warm! Years ago I left the waters picket dripping and it froze on not an icicle, that same year we hung blankets to close off rooms and lived in our living room for five days. Those were hard days but we're also some of our best times! XxDazee
ReplyDeleteSo more good ideas to put into practice. It's snowing right now so we need all can get!
ReplyDeleteHave a great day
Vickie
Vickie's Kitchen and Garden
I know of the cost of propane. I heat my home with it too. I too do some of the same things you suggested to keep warm here in my own little cottage. Blessings
ReplyDeleteI love to cook with my baking stone or a cast iron skillet on the bottom rack of the oven when I bake something. When it's done cooking, I pull the cast iron or baking stone out and set it on the counter on a trivet. It radiates heat for over an hour and helps warm the space!
ReplyDeleteThanks for allowing me to piggy back on your article, Vickie!
ReplyDeleteLisa, that's a great idea! I'll have to see if I can find our cast iron skillet.
Good tips, but you don't know Arctic blast until you've lived in NW Wisconsin. Just sayin' LOL It is rather mild here today though and supposed to dip down to minus 5 in the next several days. We've got a fire in the stove, chowder cooking, candles lit, and I think I've covered it all. Oh, BTW, I homeschooled for a couple decades. It was wonderful, a great experience for the kids and for us as parents.
ReplyDeleteGas is our cheapest option, wood is expensive in Australia and we discouraged in some areas for using it. Great ideas:)) keep warm.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you need a pot of soup simmering and warm sweaters, Jo. You've got nice weather coming soon I'd say.
ReplyDeleteHi Judy,
ReplyDeleteHi Vickie,
I live in SW Missouri, and I know it doesn't get truly cold here very often. I'm not sure where Vickie lives.
I'd like to move North; my husband wants to move South. I think we should stay here.
Soup simmering on the stove is one of my favorite ways to keep warm!
Those are good ideas, Dazee. We have hung blankets over windows, too.
ReplyDeleteSounds lovely! I wish I was cold - it is sweltering here in Australia! And I do not like the heat at all. Sounds much cosier at your house.
ReplyDeleteMy son's wishing for summer. Not I!
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
Laura Lane
We get those arctic blasts here in Colorado----brrrr! I find wearing wool socks and wool sweaters keeps me very warm.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this post, I would love to be there with the cold, it has been quite warm where we are in Australia. We have a wood stove and that is all we use for heating during the winter. We can get as low as -1 and a top of 7 Celcius during the winter and our wood stove keeps us nice and warm. Thanks for sharing this at Good Morning Mondays, you have some great ideas. Blessings
ReplyDeleteBRRRR! I can't even imagine! Thanks for sharing and reminding me there are so many different perspectives from each neck of the woods. Stay warm! Thank you for linking up to the SHINEbloghop, I'm stopping by from www.ameliasletters.com
ReplyDeleteOoooh, it's cold here and I just felt toasty reading all your suggestions!
ReplyDeleteDrink hot beverages is a big one for me too. Coffee, tea, chai, hot cocoa... it doesn't matter as long as it's hot (warms the hands too if you don't put the mug down)!
Thanks for sharing and for linking up to the #SHINEbloghop!
Wishing you a lovely weekend.
xoxo
Thanks for sharing these tips. Our wood stove is our best form of heat and last year we were able to forage for wood on our land which was a blessing :) My favor though is to cuddle under the blankets and read together!
ReplyDeleteSomeday I hope to have both Pat. Thanks for talking back.
ReplyDeleteBlessings for warmth Jennifer!
ReplyDeleteHi Jes,
ReplyDeleteWe love heating with wood, too. We will be doing a bit of foraging this year, too. Blessings, Laura
Do make that kettle soup---with all the leftovers...a huge pot of soup will keep everyone warm. Love your post, and yes, we have sleet, snow and cold here finally in Chicagoland---and a pot is on the stove of beansoup. Lol, thanks for the cute post, Sandi
ReplyDeleteHello Sandi,
ReplyDeleteWe had bean soup tonight, too. I used the ham bone from Christmas dinner. We have extensive flooding in our area, including at the bottom of our property. I thank God we live on high ground. We had flooding in our basement that caused us to lose use of our furnace and hot water heater, but that's nothing compared to what many are suffering.
Blessings,
Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage
P.S. Do drop in again. I'll be by to visit your blog in a few minutes.