My name is Matilda Frueh. For nearly 25 years I have been cooking, cleaning, canning, parenting, teaching, scrubbing skid marks out of underwear and above all else, learning. As a housewife I discovered there will never come a time when I will be able to say, “I know everything there is to know about being a housewife!” Everyday there are new things to learn, new things to try, and most definitely new things to fail at. Failing has become so second nature around here, that I barely need to even try to do it anymore. What I have learned though, is that failing is the surest way to success.
Taking care of my family each and every day is my passion, along with canning, writing, staying fit, and maintaining my goal of eating out less than five days a year. Being a housewife can be a thankless job. How often have you heard that being a housewife is a dismal, unappreciated, underpaid job? How often have you thought it yourself? I have learned, after many years of struggling to come to terms with feeling that I was missing something, that there had to be something more, that somehow I should be happier, it’s all perspective. I came to the realization that everything I ever wanted was right there in front of me and it was up to me to make my own happiness, not wait for it to come to me.
I’m not going to tell you I’m glad when the dog throws up or my husband wipes his greasy hands on a good guest towel or the kids mindlessly track mud all over a freshly scrubbed floor — I am human. Plus, a freshly scrubbed floor in my house is more of an anomaly than something you’d see happen even once a week. But I have learned no matter how bad things might seem or how insane they get, there is always a reason to be grateful.
Finding even a small thing to be grateful for can be enough to make the difference between getting through or giving up. The point of this blog is to share some of the things I’ve learned, experienced, enjoy, or put up with and choose to be grateful for simply because. Every day there are things often taken for granted or nearly missed because we lose sight of what really matters due to the thankless nature of our job. Sharing my experiences will hopefully brighten your day as well as hopefully remind us all that it’s all in how you look at something as to whether or not today was a good day or a disaster.
~Tilly
You may be new to blogging but I think you have a great blog already! : )
Thank you so much. So far this has been a good experience. I look forward to posting more and visiting other blogs. Thanks for the comment.
You sound like a great mother ! I wish I ate out less than 5 times a year… Even 5 times a week sounds unrealistic to me haha great bio!
We didn’t always eat at home so much. When we moved into our house some 20 years ago the appliances for the kitchen didn’t come in for two weeks. My husband and I ate our every night for those two weeks. At the end of the two weeks my husband told me he never wanted to eat out again. We went out occassionally after that, but eventually going out became so miserable with him that I just gave up. I do take my children out to lunch sometimes, but unless we go out with my parents, I cook. I spend a lot of time trying to duplicate some of the flavors offered at some restaurants using CopyCat Recipes and some of my own. It has actually been a lot of fun. Thanks for the comment.
I have enjoyed reading your blog, especially your canning posts. Welcome to the blogosphere!
Thank you so much. So far this has been a fairly good experience and I really enjoy meeting new people and reading their blogs — especially yours. I have already learned so much from your blog, like why my pumpkins shriveled and died.
So happy to meet you via our mutual blogging friend Caitlin. I agree with you about being grateful. It truly helps so much in the day to day.
I am so happy to meet you as well. Reminding myself daily of the things to be grateful for helps keep things in perspective. Look forward to exploring more of your blog.
Thank you for visiting and following my blog. Glad to have discovered yours as well. 🙂
Thank you for stopping by and the follow as well. I really enjoyed your post on the pinwheel cookies and look forward to reading more of your posts. I made pinwheel cookies for the first time last Christmas and they are now my hubby’s favorite. I’ll have to compare recipes — he does like them crispy and mine weren’t, so I think I’ll give your’s a try.
Thank you! I hope you’ll like the results. Will be happy to have your feedback. 🙂
Great Site! I think you have a terrific attitude about life!
Thank you. I’m really enjoying the blogging experience and love meeting new people. ~ Tilly
Hi! You are such an inspiring blogger that I have nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. http://maryaperez.com/very-inspiring-blogger-award/
Mary,
Thank you so much for nominating me. At this time though I do not have the time to pursue awards. Canning season is in full swing and the demands of the house and kids are never ending. I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness though and perhaps some time in the future I will be able to look at this more closely.
Again, thank you so very much. ~ Tilly
‘Til sometime then… 🙂
Heya Matilda Frueh!
I am really very happy to know that you love to learn and try-out new things as a housewife. Working at home is the most beautiful job a person would have. So I am really proud of you and your work. Would you like to try-out something chinese. And yes, a very warm thanks for reading my post.
http://bit.ly/18k5mix
Happy Chinese Cooking!
Thanks so much for the link. Chinese cooking has always been the hardest for me. Last year I worked on Almond Boneless Chicken and egg rolls and think I got them down pretty good. Will have to definitely try some of the recipes on the link. Thanks again.
I am very fond of Chinese food. You can always begin with basics while trying food related to any ethnicity.
Once you set your hands on basics, moving on to expertise level won’t be too difficult. Good try for Almond Boneless Chicken and egg rolls.
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Hi there. I have been following your blog for bit now and I enjoy reading about you being grateful for the life you have and your positive outlook and great ideas (love the garden work bench made from “garbage”. Genius.) As such, I thought you would be a good nominee for the love/hate challenge. You can check out the details at:
https://thesunshineisours.wordpress.com/2015/06/10/lovehate-challenge/
Have a great day!
Thank you so much for thinking of me. I have not yet had a chance to check out the details, but appreciate you thinking of me.
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Tilly,
Long time follower, first time writer.
I’m struggling to get my cucumber plants to climb the lattice I have in my garden. Any thoughts?
Best Regards,
Craig
Sorry for the long delay in responding. Been super busy with the garden, etc. I use little clips to help the vines climb or torn pieces of old sheet. My cucumbers haven’t started climbing yet this year, but I’m using clips right now to keep my peas climbing their fences too.