Author Archive

March 24, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – Here at Century Farmhouse, as all around the globe, we are stepping back from our daily lives into new normal routines that are hopefully both short-lived and healthy.  Our preparations and worry about family and friends both near and far

March 2, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – For years we have been told the best way to avoid getting colds and flu is to thoroughly wash our hands. Now it seems almost daily we are reminded of the quick spread of COVID-19 and influenza, and that one

February 23, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – My grandmother – the grandmother who lived in this pretty log farmhouse – was a soap maker, probably because she had to be. A farm woman was frugal, and with animal fats readily available it was a given that she

February 23, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – My grandmother – the grandmother who lived in this pretty log farmhouse – was a soap maker, probably because she had to be. A farm woman was frugal, and with animal fats readily available it was a given that she

February 23, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – My grandmother – the grandmother who lived in this pretty log farmhouse – was a soap maker, probably because she had to be. A farm woman was frugal, and with animal fats readily available it was a given that she

February 23, 2020 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – My grandmother – the grandmother who lived in this pretty log farmhouse – was a soap maker, probably because she had to be. A farm woman was frugal, and with animal fats readily available it was a given that she

July 4, 2019 – West Bend, WI – The sun is shining on the chairs lined up along Wagner Lane and Kenny Drive, and excitement thrums through the late morning air. Red, white, and blue are the predominant colors against the greens of trees and grass and the bright spots

Jan. 31, 2018 – West Bend, WI – The wooden bead was just about the same size as the hole. Sister Suzanne Marie was hurrying us from the hallway to our second grade classroom after square dancing in the gym, and I needed to get my little cowgirl hat

    Oct. 23, 2017 – West Bend, WI – There is going to be a party in West Bend on Oct. 29  and it will include a trip down memory lane for former and present students, parents, teachers, and administrators of St. Frances Cabrini School. Sixty years of

June 17, 2017 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – The door slams behind me as I carry the last load of soap from the house to the waiting van.  Geese honk overhead as the dawn light slowly creeps into the indigo sky, and the very slight chill in the

  May 24, 2017 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – My sister Carol sent what we think is one of our oldest family recipes to the Milwaukee Journal. Let us introduce you to my great-grandmother, and her Hermits muffins recipe. Try them, they are wonderful! When she was making

May 9, 2017 – Big Cedar Lake, WI – Normally in May at the Farmhouse, I am getting soaps ready, planting early vegetables and herbs, and scoping out which flowers from my mother’s gardens will be ready to snitch in the dark of the early morning to decorate our