Blondie's Journal

I LOVE BASKETS

2012-01-24T12:12:00.008-06:00

We are well into a new week and I can't help but think how fast January had flown by. For a cold and uneventful month, it seems to have disappeared. All that snow that you see in my backyard has melted as the temps have reached the 30's. Perfect weather for flinging open the windows and letting the house have a good airing.
It sounds like everyone is buying flowers lately and I couldn't stop myself while grocery shopping Saturday. These were in the clearance {Almost Dead} bins. I should have splurged on some healthy ones. Next time.
They're not too shabby. Now you can see why I was a child who took in stray dogs and cats.
A trip to Marshall's netted me some cute things for the house, like this piece of driftwood.
And these terra cotta pots that I am going to plant some basil and thyme in for the windowsill. I also found a jute runner for one of my halls, some nice candles and a few other pretty things. Let's face it, I was bored but the prices are SO good. Retail therapy for sure.
Some people love pillows and I am one of them. In fact, I wouldn't even let myself look at them yesterday. Well, like my love for pillows, I really LOVE baskets. The more different, the better. These came in small, medium and large. I bought 2 of each size from Wisteria. I need to clean out my china cupboard and the drawers that hold napkins and place mats, etc, and now I have a way to make it look pretty, too. My linen closet is on my To Do list also. Every time I open the door I shudder.
Don't you love chicken wire? My new coffee table {not delivered yet} has a lower shelf and I thought the larger baskets would look cute underneath holding magazines and what not. Can you see why I love baskets?

If the weather stays this warm, we might take a trip to the lakehouse this weekend. It doesn't hurt to check up on things and of course we always need the change of scenery. A few long walks, a fire in the fireplace and maybe something warm and delicious in the crockpot. I think it sounds like a plan.

I hope you are having a good week. I am joining in on the party at Kim's of Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday, although I don't really see any big Wows here! Take care :-)

THE SNOW ARRIVES

2012-01-20T15:11:00.008-06:00

Well, it's finally here. After many of us wondering if we would set a record and never have snow this winter, we woke up to some whispy little flakes that gradually became larger and soon we were in the middle of a real snowfall. I had to run out to the store for coffee and filters and cream {who knows if we will get snowed in, I need my provisions!}, and by then the snow was blowing sideways and since it is so cold {15 degrees} it was hitting me in the face like little ice drops. I had planned on going grocery shopping later in the day but I think I will wait and see if tomorrow is better.
My little quails are happy they are in where it is warm. The nice thing about when it snows here in my neighborhood, people are out shoveling and helping out their fellow neighbors who might not be home. A neighbor just came and shoveled our walk and refused the money that Abby offered. I must look like I'm not home since my car is covered with a few inches of the white stuff.
I'm still waiting for the new furniture so Emily and I are trying to reppurpose things in that room into other rooms. I find her in the almost empty family room quite a bit, looking around, measuring...things that designers do. I'd like to think of it as a collaboration, I told her what I wanted and she found it. She has it all arranged in her head.
This was one of the tables we moved to the den. It is a little too elegant for the look I am going after. I have been wanting to take down this wallpaper but The Husband says it is the one thing in this house I can't change. Is wallpaper supposed to be making a comeback?
My blog books came and I have to say that I am very happy with them. The Husband seems to be more thrilled with them than I am...he reads my blog sporadically, so it was mostly new to him. He likes how I have recorded events, vacations and trips. He thinks of them like a family album.
I have to admit they are quite pricey, but I wanted to do 3 volumes. Hereafter it will just be one year at a time.
They make a great keepsake. So I give them a thumbs up, since you asked.

Life has been slow here this week. Abby and I went out for Mexican food one night for dinner and that is about it. I knew this time of year would be slow for blogging, especially since I am not the crafty or furniture painting type. I have been seeing a lot of great projects though. Everyone is keeping busy! Have a great weekend and I will be back soon! :-)

WINTER RAMBLINGS

2012-01-16T13:51:00.008-06:00

It has been a quiet day with The Husband working at home and me just fiddling and fluffing and not doing much of anything. I love days like this. Nowhere to go, nowhere I have to be. It's gloomy, although warm, and I was hoping to get some good photos for you. Last week I found a dough bowl that I fell in love with on eBay. I think it took less than 4 days to arrive on my doorstep. I truly love it and so of course I am going to show it off.
I thought when The Husband came up for air, we would have a nice snack, including Maggie's chutney. You might remember that she sent this to me last month as a sweet little gift, as I had never had chutney before. I am looking forward to trying it today.
I have a nice selection of cheeses and sausage and some bread and crackers, and I arranged it all in my dough bowl instead of on a cheese plate {so I could show it off, of course}. One of the cheeses is from England, Maggie! Since it is only 3:00, we will have mineral water instead of wine. Maybe not, what would they do in France?
It was a busy weekend. Yesterday we all met at Kevin and Mary Clare's new home. Well, they are awaiting the inspection, but then it will be theirs. It really is beautiful, a simple city Georgian, all freshly painted with new carpet throughout. They are so excited. Afterward we went to a little pub around the corner that we frequent a lot, Fox's. They have the best pizza and sandwiches in Chicago. My picture is a little grainy, but you can see all the dark wood and paneling...it's very cozy.
Saturday night we met a group of friends at Jenny's, a steakhouse. One of the girls is an actress/comedian and she had us rolling on the floor laughing. It really was a fun night! Didn't I mention in my last post that I really needed to get out. That I did!
I recently broke down and upgraded my camera. I spent a good part of Saturday reading the manual and taking pictures. This is one I took of Milo. I think he would prefer a less feminine background but he loves the couch! Anyway, I am loving the new camera and I wanted to mention that there is a blogger, Aimee at It's Overflowing that has a weekly series on photography that you might want to check out. It's on Fridays and you can follow the link. I have already read two posts and they are immensely helpful.

Another thing I recently did was had my blog put into book form. I have now been blogging 3 years, so I had 3 volumes made. They haven't arrived yet. I am so excited. I did this through The Cutest Blog On The Block and you basically make your own book. And then it arrives, a hardcover {or soft} book filled with all your posts {chapters} and pictures. I'm anxiously awaiting the UPS man...as usual.

So, how did you spend your weekend? :-)

SNOW OUTSIDE. NESTING INSIDE.

2012-01-13T13:54:00.007-06:00

Well, we got the snow I was wishing for...maybe 6 to 8 inches, but enough. And it brought with it freezing temps as a double reward. Brrrr...I feel badly for anyone that has to go out in it. January has struck!

I can't say that I have gone out much since I last posted. Abby now uses my car for school in the afternoons since The Husband put his sports car away in the garage for the winter. I don't mind, Emily is off on Mondays and Thursdays and we do things together...sort of like Driving Miss Daisy.
I am loving the new blue pitcher I picked up...it is HEAVY! Not sure where I am going to put it yet. It looks like my family room furniture will be coming mid February but the coffee table is back ordered until April. That's a bummer, people use their coffee tables so it is going to be a big blank spot for a few weeks. I'm not sure if I will wait until then for the full reveal or not. Shall I tease?
I need another pillow like a hole in my head. Emily and I totally fell in love with this quote, so home it came with me.

Have I mentioned that son Kevin and his wife, Mary Clare, bought a house? It's a Georgian located about 5 minutes from me. I am so excited for them. They have been living in the tiniest apartment ever and they have had to store all their shower and wedding gifts at her mother's house. It will be like Christmas morning when she can open all that good stuff up and put it to use. Last night they came over for dinner and we ordered out Italian beef sandwiches. A good time was had by all. I went to bed a little early though because I still have that cold in my head and chest and I feel a bit of an earache. I hope it runs it's course soon.
This is another blanket from PB. I can never have too many throws, we use them all the time, even to cover the dogs during the cold months. This color is called Ash and will look perfect with the grays I am using in the room.
Well, this is the start of the Chicken stock I made from scratch the other day. It really was fun and I loved how the house smelled.
I cooked the chicken until I could pull the meat off the bone and then I threw the carcass back in the broth to cook 6 more hours. After refrigerating it overnight, I skimmed the fat off and I now have a nice, deep colored broth. Tonight I am going to make soup! I have all sorts of root vegetables and mushrooms and some Amish noodles. That should clear my head out!

Yesterday The Husband worked from home and Em was off work. It was not my normal quiet day...and then we had all the kids for dinner. So, today is quiet, the snow has stopped and it doesn't seem like there is a soul in the world out there. I started a new book on my Nook and I am loving it. It's all about the comfort in holding it, I think. And I get Netflix on it and I am anxious to try a movie. That's what I think I will do today before I make the soup. We have no plans for the weekend, but I really need to get out. I'll come up with something! All of you have a wonderful weekend! :-)

FLUFFING & CHANGES IN THE BEDROOM

2012-01-10T11:52:00.009-06:00

When not out and about and enjoying the warm weather we have been having, I have been playing with vignettes that were inspired by some of the pieces I picked up at the store where Emily works. Not only do they have gorgeous furniture, the accessories are out of this world. I really have to stay away.

I have been playing with my mantel and it never fails to frustrate me. It is deep and long and although some would find that great to work with, I get overwhelmed. Any suggestions would be welcome.
I found the mercury glass piece at Emily's shop. Love at first sight. I kept a lot of mercury glass out of my Christmas bins to use year round. It's great for a sparkle here and there.
I'm just not sure what I am dissatisfied with...everything looks lined up although it isn't. More touches of greenery, maybe?
I also bought this at Emily's store, I just love it. It's so beautiful when it's all lit and I have tried different candles, too. These are from Homegoods and they smell heavenly.
I also pulled this little antique candle holder out of my stash to add more sparkle. I wonder if I am missing the blinginess of Christmas!
I hit a few white sales and found this comforter at Kohls. No coupons but it was marked way down. If you asked me months ago if I would ever have so much brown in a room, I would have laughed. This is a soft brushed corduroy with a sheep skin reverse side. The dogs are loving that part! The throw is from Pottery Barn, my son gave it to me as a birthday gift last year. I love the texture of all of it.
I found the pillows on my trip to Homegoods. I have a sisal rug on the floor that has red around the edges so it all ties in.
So, this is what I have been playing with this week. I didn't get out much this past weekend, other than to do the grocery shopping. That was a riot in itself. The Husband was bored and decided to go along. Since I hadn't stocked up since all the holiday shopping, I thought it would be nice to have an extra set of hands. I truly wish I had video taped it. When he wasn't complaining about the price of things, he was throwing odd things like Ovaltine and graham crackers in the cart. He kept complaining how slow I was. And why did we have to hit each aisle? I explained to him that as a shopper, I was not only comparing prices, I was planning meals, replacing things we were out of, and of course examining the labels for all the terrible ingredients they put in things. He still wasn't convinced this was time consuming and halfway through was whining to go home. I was ready to stick a sucker in his mouth to keep him happy. Never Again!

Well...I have load after load of laundry to do today and I realized that I haven't baked a thing since my frenzy over the holidays, so I thought I would do a little of that. I am also making homemade chicken stock that I saw on Susan Branch's blog. It takes about two days to make and I bought a little chicken so I am ready to go to town. It sounds like we are going to have some wonderfully cozy meals this week.

Take care and I will see you later in the week! :-)

SPRING IS IN THE AIR!

2012-01-06T12:45:00.008-06:00

It feels like spring is in the air. The temps are in the 50's and it's sunny. How odd after the freezing cold we have had the past few days. It makes me want to go outside and check for tulips and daffodils poking their little heads out of the ground. I will however, be happy about my blooming paperwhites instead. Aren't they pretty?
I have been getting over my wretched cold and just hanging out at home mostly. My Nook was not broken as I thought and I hope my bumbling around with it didn't dissuade anyone from buying it for themselves. It simply needed to be rebooted. Barnes & Nobles has a troubleshooting website that is fantastic. Anyway, I have been snuggling up with my Nook in the evening, getting acquainted with it. I haven't downloaded a book yet but I am getting email and the like set up, as well as actually reading ALL the instructions, which is unlike me. I still don't have the faintest as to what my camera is capable of.
Plans are full steam ahead for my redoing the family room. Yesterday Emily and I made a trip to Homegoods. This is only my second time there. What a blast...something for everyone. My color scheme in the room is yellow and white with touches of gray. I may add some blue, I'm not sure. I bought pieces for the walls and tables and some lamps and pillows...we really went to town. Emily started getting all sorts of cool ideas for her wedding and ended up with a cart of her own to create this:
...a sweet table at her reception. She has recently gotten into Pinterest and found some neat photos. This is one of them. I am sorry I don't have the source. In a nutshell, she will have a cute table set up with jars of candy and little personalized bags and scoops for guests to help themselves.
These jars were a steal. Aren't they huge? She has so many unique ideas, I am really loving planning this with her. She is now a big fan of Pinterest.
Back to the family room. Everything I have gotten so far is just placed back there so I can put it all together when the furniture arrives {8~10 weeks}. Here is a sneak peek of a lamp that I bought. I love it!
And I found these little things. Are they called kissing balls? I have them on my little tree from Wisteria.

It was so good to get out. Today I have to go grocery shopping although I am more in the mood for spring cleaning with this gorgeous weather. I wonder what it is about the sunshine that makes us want to clean and fluff. Maybe because we can see the dust bunnies better! What have you been doing these past few warm days {and hopefully you have this wonderful weather, too}. Happy Weekend! :-)

GOODBYE CHRISTMAS

2012-01-03T11:16:00.011-06:00

I'm feeling a lot better, not 100%, but better than last week. Thank you for all the get well wishes, they mean so much. The days start off slow with a lot of coughing but if I keep plugging along, I get my energy back. Today I treated my self to a nice breakfast of this and this:
I'm not too big on presentation when I am hungry. But nothing beats warm cinnamon rolls and coffee on a cold morning. It was 13 degrees when I woke up and reached a high of 17. We had a little snow on Sunday but nothing to make angels in. Winter has been a little wonky here in the Midwest.
Layla and Milo had the right idea this morning. I, in fact, took a long nap, too.
Saturday had me feeling a bit better and I desperately wanted some fresh air. We had no plans for New Years Eve, so we headed out in the early afternoon and ended up at one of our favorite restaurants, Mimi's, for a late lunch/early dinner. I love the decor here, sort of like a New Orleans jazz club and the food is outstanding.
I love the upper balcony, and the atmosphere is so fun.
I started with baked French onion soup and then moved on to...
chicken crepes with mushrooms and a wonderful sauce.
Before your meal, a bread basket comes with French rolls and their own freshly baked carrot cake. You can also buy it by the loaf, which we did and we had a great evening snack with coffee.

Our afternoon wasn't just spent noshing. We stopped at the store where Emily is a designer and she had a proposal all ready for me on the family room furniture. I have been wanting to redo this room for over a year now, but had to wait for son Jeff to move out and take the existing furniture. I decided on a white slip covered cotton canvas sofa, loveseat, and chair with an ottoman. It really is a pretty set and will look so good in this sun filled room that leads out into the backyard. Now we are working on some tables and accessories and I will include some downloads in my next post...this was a little overloaded with pictures. Lest you think I have no plans to add a stamp of my own in this room, I have a huge old mirror with a gold frame that I am going to paint and I found this at Wisteria:
Isn't it wonderful? It's made out of real branches and I got it for a steal. I'm not sure what I am going to do with it, decorate it for the seasons would be one idea. Anyway, this is a fun way to star the new year and I am enjoying the process of doing the room.

Have you De~Christmasized your home yet? Last night my sweet little girl went to town taking down all the decorations and packing away bin after bin. Then she and The Husband took the lights off the tree and put it at the curb where the big chipper truck had at it this morning. Goodbye Christmas. It feels different to have the house back to normal. It looks a lot less cluttered but I do miss those colored lights. On a good note though, my paperwhites bloomed! They look so pretty, I should have included a picture.

I hope everyone had a great New Years Eve and Day. The year is in full swing now and it sounds like we are all getting our projects and organizing in line. It's fun to read all the varied posts on what everyone is up to. What are you working on? :-)

I'm joining Honey at 2805 for Potpourri Friday!!

THE ANATOMY OF A COLD

2011-12-30T14:26:00.005-06:00

I have been reading all of the posts on the 2011 projects in review written by you crafty gals and I am loving it. I never claim to be crafty, I can be a bit creative when I want, but a project for me is more like cleaning out a closet. And I can boast that my closets are pretty tidy. This little paper white guy was a project in a way; planting, watering, watching patiently. He's gotten bigger, but no blooms yet. I love anticipation. If I were a very creative blogger, I would have styled this a bit better. But it's rainy and gloomy here and the best light comes from the kitchen since Sir Douglas still blocks the big window in the living room.

So, what have I been doing with myself since I last posted? Absolutely nothing. I have a head and chest cold and I am spending every spare moment feeling sorry for myself. I was lying in bed yesterday afternoon staring at the jar of Vaseline on my dresser several feet away. I really needed it for my scratchy dry nose, but I didn't have the energy or desire to get up and get it. I made a mental list of all the things I needed and wanted; a box of soft Kleenex, the one with the aloe in the tissues for my sore nose. A big bowl of hot chicken soup. Someone to wash and dry all my PJ's because I am out of clean ones. Someone to clean my bedroom which still looks like Gift Wrapping Central. Some cough drops, hot fruity tea, a warmer blanket...it's just no fun to be sick alone.

I keep remembering the scene in You've Got Mail, where Meg Ryan is sick and Tom Hanks comes to her apartment. He sits on the edge of her bed while she sniffles and pours her heart out. Why can't we all look that good when we are sick? Meg looks adorable in her cute flannel pajamas, with her snappy little hairdo, mussed up just so...and Tom is clearly taken with it and oblivious to all the used tissues scattered about {probably the ones with aloe}. Now me...I haven't had a shower in 2 days, my ponytail has moved to the side of my head and most of it is sticking straight out, I'm in sweatpants because of my lack of clean PJ's and the bed is covered with dog hair. Worst of all, my NOOK broke. I was happily playing with it the other night {prior to catching this bug} and suddenly the screen went blank. I did all the trouble shooting I could and now I have no choice but to return it for an exchange, which I can't do now as they would frown heavily on a scruffy looking person with a red nose and crooked ponytail, coming in and sneezing on them. A book, a REAL book would never do that to you, I argued with The Husband, the giver of the Nook. A real book is loyal all the way to the end.
Layla and Milo do not have the dreaded bug, but they don't like me this way. Granted, they love to snuggle and nap as much as they can, they are getting a little bored with me. After being abandoned so carelessly by my Nook, I picked up the book I had set aside during most of busy December and finished reading it. {It's on my sidebar, one of Grafton's best}. As usual when I am reading a murder/mystery, my imagination gets a little wonky, so I had to get up, check that the doors were locked and close the drapes. It was evening by now, so I made a pot of coffee {although I was out of my French Vanilla Cream, that would go on my whiny list above} and settled in to read some blogs. If I left you a comment, it was probably very short and made little sense. Nyquil will do that.
The Husband finally got home from work at 8:00 p.m. By then I couldn't remember if it was "Feed a cold, starve a fever", or the other way around. I did know I was hungry, wanted to be fed and crawl back in bed. We settled on ordering from Sesame Inn which is wonderful if you are looking for comfort food. The hot and sour soup can clear out your sinuses with just one whiff alone. I settled on the Japanese U~don Noodle Soup...shavings of beef and onion in a broth with huge, long homemade noodles. Me and my tummy were in heaven.

So all was well in my world as I hunkered down back in bed with the dogs...still no soft tissues, paper napkins would have to do, and as long as The Husband didn't mind, I'd just sleep in my sweats with my ratty hair. :-)

CHRISTMAS 2011

2011-12-27T11:19:00.006-06:00

Well, that's another Christmas behind us. I'm sure everyone will agree, it went by too fast. It seems like just yesterday I was shopping and wrapping gifts. I took this picture of our tree with the load of presents underneath shortly before the whole family was gathered Christmas morning. There was something {and more} for everyone. Our group is larger now with DIL, Mary Clare and Emily's fiance, Mike. We opened gifts while we munched on cinnamon rolls, coffee and orange juice. There was a lot of noise, happiness and thank you's all around. Afterward we had a big breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage and mimosas. Then we played games. There is a popular one out now called Stumple and you have to find it. It's a blast.
At 4:00, we met at Mary Clare's family's home for dinner. MC was in charge of the appetizers and they were out of this world. I will share them another time. We played Stumple while we noshed and then dinner, made by Katie and Nora, was served. Above is a picture of the table. Dinner was their family's traditional lobster, beef fillets, mashed potatoes, asparagus and rolls. It was such a feast.
Coffee and cookies, including gingerbread men dressed in swimsuits, were for dessert. We played more Stumple. I was tired by then...Thursday night had been one celebration with the O'Hara side of the family...Christmas Eve was a party with The Husband's side of the family and it all wore out my little batteries.
My family was so generous, The Husband gave me the new Nook {I gave him a versatile saw!}, and son Jeff surprised me with a gorgeous Kate Spade cover for it. I was given a pretty purse from Kevin and Mary Clare, a set of Williams~Sonoma dishtowels and pot holders from Emily and Mike, and a beautiful Michael Kors scarf from Abby. Everyone was surprised and pleased with their gifts. It was so much fun, but the real happiness just came from being together and laughing and hugging. I thought that as my children became older, the spirit of Christmas would be different, and it is, in a new and joyful way. The old saying that it is not the gift but the thought that counts kept ringing in my ears. Often, I had a lump in my throat, looking at my adult children and thinking that The Husband and I had done a pretty good job with them.

Well, that's it for Christmas of 2011. As the year reaches it's end I think constantly about all the things I have to be grateful for. Doesn't this time of year make you a little sentimental, too? Now we head into January and the new year. I'm excited for what it holds. I hope it's a wonderful one...for all of us!

I'm joining Honey at 2805 for Potpourri Friday. Join in!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2011-12-24T11:48:00.009-06:00

I had to pop back in to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas before the merriment begins. And I have a little candy recipe to share if you have 15 minutes before you rush out the door. I was inspired by Carolyn of Desire Empire {hers were much cuter}.
Crush some candy canes using a hammer, mallet or meat tenderizer as I did. I overdid the amount of candy canes, just make sure you crush them finely.
Melt a bag of white chocolate chips. I used the microwave and it took about 2 minutes, stirring halfway through.
Dip large marshmallows in the melted chocolate and stand upright in a cake pan. Sprinkle with candy cane pieces.
Simple, festive and delicious!
We had a party Thursday night, one tonight and a big brunch here tomorrow for the kids. We are having dinner at Mary Clare's family's home. They are so gracious. I hope to have them all here next year.

So, I know we are all busy but I just wanted to visit and say Merry Christmas. Have a blessed and wonderful holiday! :-)

MORE HOLIDAY RANDOMNESS FROM BLONDIEVILLE

2011-12-20T12:11:00.012-06:00

Things are heating up in Kitchen Stadium. Not only have I started baking some cookies and such, I am trying my hand at candy. This is an easy one and only has 5 ingredients. I found it at Flower Patch Farmgirl and it is so simple and GOOD!
I modified the recipe because I used a 9 X 13 pan. Layer baby pretzels in a foil lined pan. Melt 3 sticks of butter in a pot and add 1 1/2 cups brown sugar. Cook at a low boil until it gets really dark. Pour over the pretzels and bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes.
Take it out of the oven and while it's still hot, throw on a couple of handfuls of chocolate chips {I used this whole bag} and sprinkle on some sea salt. You have to play this by ear...I added too much salt so don't overdo it...maybe 2 teaspoons.
This is what it will look like. Put the pan in your freezer for a few hours and then break it up into pieces.
Be careful...it's addicting. Doesn't it look delicious? It really is. Have fun!
The days are counting down fast. Just when I thought I was getting bored {efficiency can lead to that, I have learned}, I volunteered to wrap presents for the late shoppers in my family. I actually like to wrap when I have a pile of it and all my supplies and paper out. Sort of like an assembly line. It brings out that teensy little bit of creativity that I have.
Abby and I went grocery shopping yesterday and it was nice to get out and about. I have been spending way too much time hunkered down with books and movies. People were friendly and cheery, I guess the big crunch time hasn't hit yet. I don't know what I am going to do with That Husband of mine...he has a list a mile long and he doesn't seem perturbed at all to get some shopping done, even on his lunch break or after work. He works in one of the biggest shopping capitals of the world! At least as far as I'm concerned. My goodness, the Mag Mile, Water Tower Place, Bloomingdales...it makes me break out into happy chills.

We have 3 holiday parties, as I have mentioned. All are somewhat casual but we always bling it up a bit. I bought a red silk top with a little sparkle around the neck. With nice jeans and black boots, I am now afraid I might look a bit like Santa {in more ways than one}. I'm not sure about that outfit, I never wear red, it washes me out. But then I have a black velvet top that I think will be pretty and for Christmas day I have a charcoal sweater dress. I can really lean toward being obsessive/compulsive about what I wear. I think everything is in the details.

So...today I am getting out my cookie cutters and making sugar cookies. And shortbread. And more candy, which I will share with you, maybe on Friday. In the meantime, try this pretzel/chocolate treat and email me if you have any questions. And I will see you later in the week! :-)

RANDOM CHRISTMASNESS

2011-12-17T16:21:00.009-06:00

I am going to start baking...I AM! But I keep getting distracted. Movies, reading, hanging out with the family, napping. I have finally consoled myself with the fact that the sweets will be fresher if I do it closer to the parties. We have three family events in a row starting the 23rd. The problem is narrowing it down to what I want to make, there are so many great recipes out there in Blogland. I could eat it, I mean, make it all!
Would you believe that we have a dog grab bag? Yep, there are a lot of dogs in our family and they are our buddies, so we treat them good at Christmas. I found an etsy shop that has all things good for your puppy. I got a gift basket for my grab bag victim. filled with homemade treats and a few cute toys. As always with etsy, everything is wrapped up so sweetly. If you need anything, visit Trish.
Over in Christmas Central, or my den as we usually call it, I have been a real elf. All that remains to be bought is The Husband's gifts for the boys. I do the girls, he does the boys. He loves to shop last minute, he's out now with the throngs.
I am also forcing paper whites in the den because it is so dark in there. I was told to water the bulbs and keep them in a dark area for 2 weeks and then bring them out in front of a window and they should bloom. I don't see that happening before Christmas. These babies are just starting out and it has been a week. Wish me loads of luck.
I don't think you have ever met Nina. She is our Quaker Parrot and lives in the den where we don't have to listen to her. She has a couple of great lines and makes a smooching/kissing noise constantly. She will also dance on command. But alas, she is mean. I avoid her.
I have been immersed in Christmas movies. Last night The Husband had two work related parties and I got to lounge in bed and watch The Bishop's Wife and part of Christmas In Connecticut. I fell asleep as usual, but I do love that ice skating scene with Cary Grant and Loretta Young and of course, the taxi driver. What a great movie. Last week when we stayed in that little town in Michigan, The Husband decided to take a nap once we were back at the inn. I turned on the TV and look what I found. I think The Holiday is my favorite {non~classic} Christmas movie. Love the story, love Rose's little English cottage, love Jude Law.
So, unless I can coerce The Husband into going out for dinner, it will probably be a very quiet night. Love those, but could really use some restaurant atmosphere tonight. They are all so decorated beautifully now.
I was able to download that picture from my phone of Milo sleeping in his new thrifted dog bed. He really only uses it when there isn't a couch or chair available. I think he looks comfy.

So, that's all I have for today. We had a little snow last night that melted today and it is 32 degrees right now. I went outside for a little while today and it felt quite cold. I just hope we have snow on the ground for the big day. Take care! :-)

JOYEUX

2011-12-14T11:59:00.014-06:00

I missed the party for the Christmas Vignettes so I thought I would share some of mine in this post. I love decorating windows and I have been lucky that Milo has stayed away from this one. He loves to terrorize the mail lady and UPS guy {my best friend lately}.
I also decorated my kitchen window with lots of candles and whimsical snowmen.

I decorated the coffee table a bit...it works for me now that my son with the big old feet has moved out. This was a perfect resting place for them.

This frosted glass tray was something that was going to go into my donation bag and then I fell in love with it all over again. Once I thought outside of the box, I came up with different ideas to use it for.
This tiered stand is a thrift store find from last summer in Michigan.
I kept it simple...
I LOVE my Christmas geese, they look so darn happy!
And here is a little plant stand with ornaments on sticks pushed down into the plants. My living room is small so I have to decorate where I can.
I found this hurricane on sale at Kohl's. I love how big it is. I set it on a rustic tray I had with vintage salt and pepper shakers. I have been burning candles that smell like evergreens since we put the tree up. It seems to have lost some of it's smell, or maybe I am just used to it.
Now I have some randomness for you, maybe a nice break from all the Christmas stuff...we ordered 2 new counter chairs from the home furnishings company Emily works for. I love them...they are very comfy.
And then this dog bed. I was out with Emily and Abby the other day. We went to a thrift store because they needed sweaters for the annual Ugly Christmas Sweater parties they go to every year. So, there was the dog bed sitting there, bragging that it was $5.00. Considering I had been looking in L.L. Bean at dog beds for over $100.00, I was ecstatic! I went to Target and got this bright pillowcase and then stuffed it with two old throw pillows so it would be nice and lumpy.
Milo definitely loves it. I had a picture on my camera of him snoozing in it, but I couldn't download it for some reason. He really loves to curl up in it. I think I did good for under ten dollars.

The days are moving a little slower now that things are done. As soon as I buy a gift or UPS delivers, I wrap right away, mainly because my daughters are peekers! I can't even use gift bags, Emily will pry them right open. I've always loved surprises, The Husband can put a bag in the closet and tell me not to look and I am not even tempted. I get my pleasure in the anticipation, I guess.

So tell me how far along you are with your Christmas plans. Still decorating? On to baking? Any good Christmas parties? I'd love for you to share! :-)

'TIS THE SEASON

2011-12-12T09:26:00.008-06:00

I think December was quite a good month for The Husband and I to get married in. We have spent so many anniversaries on little get~away trips, albeit in the frigid Midwest, I don't think I'd have it any other way. Sometimes it has just been the 20 minute ride to downtown Chicago, staying in a nice hotel and shopping the Magnificent Mile. And then we have ventured out into western Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. Never a tropical vacation, and never just a dinner out. Always a fun, and cold, cold trip where the sights are fun and full of Christmas spirit and the food is warm and delicious.

This past weekend was spent in St. Joseph, Michigan, a wonderful little town right on the lakefront. We stayed at The Boulevard Inn and Bistro right in the heart of the downtown area. We dropped our bags and went out to explore. The first place I found was this unbelievable kitchen store. Cooking utensils, spices, aprons, dishtowels, small appliances, everything and anything for the cook or baker.
I found some things I needed for the kitchen and even a few gifts. In the spirit of the season, a bottle of sparkling pear cider was given to every customer. And that's another fun part of shopping this time of year, all the hot chocolate and sweets the shops offer. Yum! On the left side of the picture above you can see the pink apron I bought daughter Emily for Christmas. Isn't it cute?
This is their festive window...
...and I couldn't resist a picture of this fun mixer. Isn't the color great?
I was curious to stop in this cafe but we never got around to it. But the name says it all. I bet the desserts are heavenly.
There is always a Kilwin's in every little town I go to in the Midwest. Do you have one near you? They make fudge and chocolates on big marble slabs and it's really fun to watch. The Husband bought some peanut brittle and I got some fudge and we finished it off in about 5 minutes!
As frigid as it was, we had to take a little walk on the beach.
And this is a shot from out hotel room. The inn was very nice and comfortable, decorated just beautifully for Christmas, but somehow I forgot to take pictures. When we arrived, there were two big gift baskets in our room filled with mugs and hot chocolate and candy. Wow...I really hit up on the chocolate this weekend! And one last surprise, I happened to open my purse to find a little box! Inside was the watch I have been wanting, a platinum men's style watch that I was hoping to get from Santa. We usually don't exchange anniversary gifts but since this was the big 25, The Husband is SO thoughtful.

I have some visiting to catch up on and I'll be back later in the week to post some pictures of our Christmas decorations. It's hard to believe it's only 2 weeks away. I'm really enjoying the season...I have the spirit big time. I just wish it could last longer. :-)

O CHRISTMAS TREE!

2011-12-08T17:46:00.008-06:00

The party's just keep going on and on. This is Honey's party for Christmas Trees. You can visit her and all the ladies participating at her blog, 2805. If you missed my post on Holiday Dining, just scroll down. These are all part of the Christmas Bloggers Block Party and I am having fun!

Here we have our monster tree, Douglas Firbanks, Jr. He was much smaller at the nursery, I think he might have grown overnight tied to my car roof.
Here are a few of my favorite ornaments. After my father passed away last year, my sisters and I picked out a few special things before his house was put up for sale. I really wanted some Christmas ornaments, ones that I grew up with. They hold a special place in my heart. You can also see the little sheet music ornaments I made last week, they are simple and fun.
I have a few of these 'popcorn balls' that are actually made out of Styrofoam pieces used for packing boxes. Aren't they cool? And next to that is an embroidered Santa I made years ago {when my children were little and I had time!!}
I love this one, it's very sweet.
I found this guy on clearance at Target last year. Look at those eyes. Awww...
If you have been with me since I started blogging, you may remember me showing you this ornament. It's a mini shopping bag from what once was my favorite store in Chicago. It's now Macy's, but I still call it "Field's"
I did my best taking a picture of the tree at night. I think it turned out okay. This is the best tree we've had, even if it is on the large size for my living room. Now I just hope that if I feed and water it everyday, it will live until January.
And finally, look what arrived today! I can't believe I have been waiting for this island since October. The kitchen is now COMPLETE! Don't you love it? I am so ready to bake cakes and pies and cookies!

Now I'm off to see some Christmas trees done up by some talented ladies. Pop over to Honey's and you can see some, too! Happy Holidays! :-)

HOLIDAY TABLESCAPE

2011-12-07T17:54:00.009-06:00

The Christmas Blogger's Block Party is in full swing and today I am doing a post on Holiday Dining, hosted by Sherry of No Minimalist Here Visit her blog and see all the ladies that have joined this party. It's a wonderful way to pick up some tips on setting your table for the holidays!
I took these pictures on Thanksgiving as this was the table setting we were using for our dinner. I was able to get these dishes on sale after Christmas last year and since we are going away for Christmas this year, I used them for Thanksgiving and we are using them for the month of December. They are from the Winterberry Collection by Pfaltzgraff.

I decorated the table in a holly theme and used a lot of mercury glass and silver as well. I found the little gold sparkly candles at Target. My centerpiece is a fresh rosemary plant wrapped in simple Kraft paper.
I didn't want everything to match perfectly so I found napkins with holly on them at Kohls. The rings are monogrammed and I got them at Grandin Road awhile back
I had a lot of candles burning...it was quite gloomy outside. The tastefully tarnished candlesticks were found at an antique shop years ago and my mismatched silver is from everywhere. My neighbor, Susie, from the lake gave me the little ornaments that hold tea lights. Aren't they darling? I hope she doesn't see this and want them back!

In the first picture you can see the wine glasses and tumblers that are also part of the Winterberry collection. I forgot to put them out and remembered to after I had blown out the candles. I was too lazy to light all the candles again! lol!
Now I have to thank BJ at Sweet Nothings for having her tea towel giveaway, which I won. I got to pick two and these are what I chose...
They are very nice and big. The husband loves this last one since he is French and wants to frame it! It could be very nice stretched on canvas...hey, that's an idea! If you are interested in any of these towels, there is a large selection a All Tea Towels. I dare you to pick just one!

Now I am off to finish decorating the tree. I've been busy wrapping presents and I mailed my Christmas cards today. Friday we leave for our anniversary trip, but I hope to squeeze in one more party. 'Tis the season to be jolly...' :-)

HOLIDAY MANTEL PARTY

2011-12-06T08:48:00.005-06:00

I'm happy to say that everything is up and decorated and I am on time for the holiday parties. Yay! Today I am joining Kristin of My Uncommon Slice Of Suburbia for the Holiday Bloggers Block Party. Today the party is about mantels and I have finally completed mine and can share it with you.
One thing I haven't changed is that I use real fruit amongst some live greenery...apples, oranges pears and pomegrantes.
Then I just decorate around this with whatever I have that I want to see on the mantel.
There are mercury glass bottles on a galvanized metal stand, mercury glass candle holders in the middle, some candles, ornaments and an Old World Santa {I collect these}.
As you can see, I finally got my tree up! Douglas Firbanks, Jr. turned out to be quite a monster once we brought him in. I still have another bin of ornaments to put on him, so don't look too close!

Thanks for stopping by and thanks Kristin for hosting this fun party! :-)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2011-12-04T11:15:00.007-06:00

I think the holidays are officially here. People are putting up lights on their homes and I see Christmas trees dotting the windows as I walk by. I think this time is the best part of Christmas in a way, before the pressure to get things done on time, before the crowds of shoppers start to get annoying. When you still have hope to get that wrapping done and the cookies baked. You wake up every day with that little thrill...it's Christmastime!
Last night we went to get the tree and wreaths. This is the nursery that I go to for flowers in the summer and pumpkins in the fall. I always get my tree here, too. There used to be elves working here, but I didn't spot one. They would have been helpful playing mediators between The Husband and I as we debated over the best tree.
I love coming here at night with all the bright lights and the smell of evergreen. I think we were the only ones here. I hope I am not getting my tree too early.
I busied myself picking out boughs for the mantel while The Husband walked up and down the aisles trying to find the perfect tree. I of course, let him do this although I had already found one. When we finally narrowed it down to a few, mine was it. The key is to let them think THEY found it.
And here he is, Douglas Firbanks, Jr. I say it every year, but I think this is the best tree we've had. Afterward, we tried a new restaurant for barbecued ribs. It was the perfect ending to a fun evening.
Here is Douglas strapped to my car this morning. The Husband is ready to take it off and get it in some water. It rained all night, I hope that helped it stay fresh.

So this was a quick post to let you know what I have been up to, since it will be awhile before I get the tree and decorations finished up. I'd really love to join some of the great parties going on and see what all of you guys have. I am almost done shopping but the wrapping is lagging behind. I haven't baked much since Thanksgiving and I hope to have some time this week to play around making and decorating sugar cookies. Just for fun.

Hope you have had a lovely weekend. Hopefully I'll bump into you at a party! :-)

A LITTLE OF THIS THAT AND THE OTHER

2011-11-29T09:54:00.004-06:00

It's a very blustery day in Chicago, hang on to your hat. It's not cold though, in the 40's and there are rumors of snow. We shall see. I'm hunkered down with my coffee and laptop and thought I'd do a quick post.

First up, I received the most wonderful gift in the mail yesterday from Maggie of Normandy Life. Many of you know her and I am one of the lucky ones. She did a post on making chutney a few weeks ago, and I commented that I had no idea where to start and had never tasted it before. She kindly emailed me and asked if I would like her to send me a jar from her homemade stash. Of course! So it winged it's way from France to here and I am the lucky recipient of not only a jar of Spicy Apple Chutney, but she included a sweet card, a little tote bag and a box of deliciously fragrant soaps that she bought in Paris! Is she not the best? I can't wait to try the chutney. She advised me that it is good along side cold cuts and meats and also cheeses, some of which she recommended. I am so touched and thankful to have such a sweet and generous person like Maggie in my life.
Time marches on and I have no tree as of yet. The Husband said he would take it under advisement. What was I thinking...that I could put up a live tree prior to December 1st and it would live to see the holiday? So I have been busying myself with other holiday duties...er, fun, such as writing out my Christmas cards and doing a little {lot} shopping. I have to say that I am 60% finished and I am going to start wrapping gifts today. I didn't go out on Black Friday, but I did take advantage of Cyber Monday. When there is free shipping, you just can't beat shopping online. I know this makes me sound like an efficient little elf, but believe me, after a week or two of the boxes arriving, begging to be wrestled open and wrapped, I start to lag behind and I'm up on Christmas Eve to all hours wrapping. All my ideas for handmade gift tags and stamped paper fly right out the window.
Our wedding anniversary is December 14th...25 years. Wow, I have been with The Husband longer than I have been without. We have a little trip planned to celebrate. Next weekend we are off to St. Joesph, Michigan to stay 2 nights at The Belvedere Inn and Bistro. It's right on Lake Michigan and this harbor town is known for it's quaint shopping and dining. I couldn't download any better pictures than this, as the site had one of those pesky little slide shows. I'm really excited and I promise to take lots of pictures.

So that's about all I have going on now. I'm late but I am joining Marty from A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday and Honey at 2805 for Potpourri Friday. Thanks so much for hosting ladies. And to everyone...have a wonderful week! :-)

THANKSGIVING MEMORIES

2011-11-25T18:27:00.008-06:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Today I couldn't do anything but lie on the couch and watch Hallmark Christmas movies! I think I ate the house yesterday! And I feel so tired from all of the cooking and cleaning and shopping and getting things ready. Drained. But it was all so worth it and we really had a lot of fun!

This was my centerpiece. I found a rosemary plant last minute and thought it would be perfect. Believe it or not, the tray it sits on was something I have had for years and don't remember where I bought it. When I cleaned my kitchen out for the remodel, I was going to put it in the box with things I wanted to give away. I'm happy I didn't because it goes with my holiday dishes perfectly.
Yes, I know it's supposed to be Thanksgiving and this looks like Christmas, but I really wanted to use these Winterberry dishes and since we will be having Christmas away, I did the whole table like Christmas. But this is all I am showing as I want to be in some of the upcoming holiday parties {see my sidebar if you haven't heard}. My family thought I was nuts, but they do all the time, so I was just a happy little elf playing with my Christmas things.

Emily and Mikey were in charge of appetizers, little finger sandwiches, some with chicken salad and some with shrimp...they were quite good. Emily also made the mashed potatoes with sour and cream cheeses. Everything was delicious...the turkey, sweet potatoes, corn, asparagus tips and rolls. After we ate, I took a little catnap before company came for dessert.
We had our annual best dessert contest and the hands down winners were my nieces who made these little turkey guys. The body is cake dipped in chocolate and decorated with candy. They were darling. Runners up were my nieces, Liz and Grace. Congratulations, girls.
I made shortbread cookies with a chocolate center and chocolate cupcakes filled with a cream cheese mixture. I found this three tiered stand at a thrift shop last summer for $3.00.
Of course the dogs knew it was a special day...Layla likes to lie in front of the hot oven to keep warm and smell the food. We found her curled up in this pie plate that missed the garbage can. It looks like a pretty dandy dog bed in the perfect spot.
After company left, I found Milo sacked out on the couch. Yes, we dress them up on holidays! He, Layla and I went to bed shortly after.

I was going to take my fall things down today but I only got as far as getting out the big box and some tissue paper. So that HAS to be done tomorrow when I am a little more refreshed {and not near the TV and Christmas movies!}. The Husband hit the Black Friday sale at Macy's today so I am hoping we can go together to get the tree tomorrow.

Now I am back to visiting some blogs and then I am going to get a good nights sleep. Christmas is in 30 days and I want to start dreaming about it. Have you started shopping yet? ;-D

HOLIDAY DREAMING

2011-11-19T17:55:00.008-06:00

I had a very quiet day at home and decided to do a little baking. Nothing for the holidays yet, just some goodies for taste testing. Only the best makes it to the holiday table. And I have some seasoned judges. Tomorrow I am going to start to bake and freeze. First up are some heavenly chocolate cookies that get help from a brownie mix. I got this recipe from Cass at That Old House. Give her a visit, she has a lovely blog and such a great sense of humor...you will love her. Anyway, she wrote about a cookie she likes to make and all you do is take a regular brownie mix, add 2 eggs and 1/4 cup of oil and mix. She added chocolate chips, I added walnut pieces, and your good to go. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. They taste like brownies! And oh! So easy!
I made chocolate chip cookies from a recipe I've had forever. I am sure you have your favorite. These are chewy and full of flavor. And simple. Love that.
I keep waiting for the cold {brrrrrr} weather and yet it has been in the 50's here all week. I want to whip out that new parka and North Face boots {okay, I can be a label bragger}, but the weather is not cooperating. I was looking at scarfs the other day at Target...yum, all the patterns and colors. Here in the Midwest, the cold brings out the fashionista in all of us. Why not look good while your lips are turning blue?
Thanksgiving plans are underway. I am breaking away from tradition. Who? Blondie? ;-D. After a long search for Christmas dishes to buy and have as a yearly tradition, I finally decided on the Winterberry collection by Phaltzgraff. I have had them in the box since last January when they went on sale. Well...we are not having Christmas dinner here, so I decided I am going to showcase those babies on Thanksgiving. It's going to look a lot like Christmas! There are no Christmas trees or snowmen on them...just some lovely holly and berries. And last week I ordered and received some matching wine and water glasses. I picked out some napkins with holly in a bit of a contrasting pattern from Kohls and I will mix these up with white ones. I am still working on the centerpiece but I know I am going to add some white pumpkins and branches lest we forget it's Thanksgiving.
This is my Thanksgiving and Christmas plate that we serve our turkey on. I've had it since we were married. I love the subtle color and how it works for both holidays. Isn't that turkey darling?
I have a favorite website, Terry's Village, that I find a lot of cool stuff at. I'm not much for whimsy when it comes to holidays. At Christmas I love to collect Old World Santa's and I have a thing for snowmen as long as they are not screaming red, black and green. This site has a little of everything and for the 3 months before Christmas, I place an order every once in awhile for a few favorite things. It all has added up over the years of course, and I have more spread out throughout the house. Give their website a peek, the prices are wonderful.

So, I have shopping and baking next week, cleaning and fluffing. We have 8 coming for dinner and then we are hosting dessert for about 30. Everyone brings a dessert and as we did last year for the kiddies and the young at heart, we have a contest for the most original and tastiest dessert. Somehow, those little munchkins always win! ;-D

So, that's it for my holiday countdown and a lot of rambling. For all of you that posted on my kitchen reveal, thank you so much for your kind compliments. I am loving it. It truly is the heart of my home. Have a great week! :-)

KITCHEN REVEAL

2011-11-16T12:57:00.009-06:00

I know that I have showed you bits and pieces of the kitchen redo but I thought it was fine time I showed you some overall views. I found out yesterday that the kitchen island I ordered from Williams Sonoma will not be delivered for another 2-3 weeks. I was waiting for that to show you a complete reveal, but we will just have to wait. Bummer.

So this is the kitchen now...
...and this was it 4 weeks ago. We kept the original cabinets as you know, but had them taken off and revarnished and new hinges put on. New granite counter tops replaced these green things that I had for 20 years.
We went with brushed nickel knobs and pulls to blend in with the stainless steel appliances. Try as I might, I can't help but have a little {lot} of clutter on my counters. Some of it is even functional! Next on my list is to take down the hideous wallpaper border and paint. It went well with the green counters but not these.
I think you have seen the built in spice rack that I love, it's opposite the stove and so handy. Now, if I had a place to hide that humongous bag of dog food. My apron hangs on a little broom closet that was extra space and above it is a wee little cabinet for plastic bags.
This is the little peninsula that looks out into the living room. Most kitchens adjoin a family room, but this house was originally only 2 bedrooms and an addition was made in the 1940's that included a family room that is at the other end of the house.
This looks from the sink area to the dining area and the living room beyond. The fireplace was made by the same carpenter that did the cabinets, all in pine. It looks like a lot of wood but I just tossed the big cream colored area rug I had in the living room and have something else ordered. It looks a lot cozier with the rug.
Sorry...this is a repeat picture!!
And this is a final picture looking from the living room. As you can see, I have plenty of room for that island and I just can't wait. Did I mention that it has a marble top for rolling out dough? I have been stocking up on all of my favorite baking ingredients and implements. It would have been fantastic to have had in time for the holidays, but hey, this isn't too shabby!

I have new counter stools ordered, they are distressed white chairs with backs and upholstered seats in a gold/yellow. I am also looking for blinds. In the spring I am going to rip off the nasty wallpaper above the cabinets and paint it a nice cream color along with the walls.

So, there we have it. I'm really happy and so happy that it turned out this well. I'm joining in with a couple of parties: Potpourri Friday at 2805, Feather Your Nest Friday at French Country Cottage and a kitchen linky party with Jennifer Rizzo. Follow the links to join in and have a Happy Week! :-)

LAVENDER AND HYDRANGEA LOVE

2011-11-12T15:34:00.006-06:00

Today I went outside with great expectations of throwing away the weathered, raggedy looking mums and inpatiens in front of my house and then I paused. They're not dead yet. They are bent and drooping from the wind, rain and cold, but still have lovely blooms. I stood there with the trash can and my gardening gloves and promised them all another week.

This is the lavender plant that I decided not to put in the ground this fall for fear it wouldn't root well enough before the ground froze. It's doing okay in my garden window. I water it every two weeks, as I read that they like dry soil. I have gotten advice that it will live okay in my house until spring and then I got another piece of advice to let it go dormant in a dark cool place. I suppose I would have to water it, too. Any thoughts on this? I get really emotional over this sort of thing.
I was thrilled to find that I could order a bouquet of lavender on eBay, which is pretty cool since my little plant isn't giving much yet. To my surprise, it arrived 2 weeks later via Athens, Greece. The stamps were very interesting and there were two little charms inside as well which I think was very thoughtful. It was totally wrapped in heavy plastic but the scent was unbelievable. Yum!
Daughter Emily brought home 4 of these pictures from the furnishings store she works at as a designer. They are framed French postcards. I'm going to do an arrangement on the wall in my family room, which is next on my To Do list. The room has been on hold since the kitchen took precedence. It's a big project, from furniture to curtains to everything in between. I am really excited to get moving but I think I will wait until the holidays are over.
The thing about dried lavender is that the buds fall off the stems. Never fear, into a porcelain soap dish and into the bathroom they went.

While I was on eBay, I also ordered some dried hydrangeas, which I have done before. The box came today...I shouldn't say box, it was a carton about the size of what my microwave came in. Big heads of purplish green hydrangeas. I was in awe at first and then I thought, "What am I doing with this when my house is in full transition from fall to Christmas and an unfinished kitchen thrown in as well?" I closed the box and managed to find a corner in the den to store it until January. Maybe they will look good next to some red and green poinsettia plants.

I am packing up most of my fall decorations this weekend {besides load after load of laundry}, and just leaving out a few pieces. This will make it easier to start Christmas decorating after Thanksgiving. This year I am going to be early, I will get my tree early and just water the heck out of it, and do what I say I am going to do every year...get it all finished and sit back and enjoy December. Last December with the passing of my father, we didn't get our tree until the 20th of December and I didn't decorate much at all. This year will be different. I have a big box of ornaments from him, the old, scratched mercury glass orbs, and after growing up with these, they now have a home here with my family to enjoy.

So, I'll go back to my laundry and pop on back next week. I hope all of you are having a great weekend. It's 60 degrees here and lovely!! :-)

I'm joining in Marty's party, Table Top Tuesday. Visit A Stroll Thru Life and join in the fun!

GOODBYE FALL AND A RECIPE

2011-11-08T09:55:00.008-06:00

The Husband and I took the scenic route to the lakehouse on Saturday morning, driving around Lake Michigan and stopping at one of our favorite restaurants, The Stray Dog for lunch. After having a wonderful taco salad, I took some pictures of the harbor. 99% of the boat slips are empty. Everyone is preparing for a long cold winter.
The Halloween decorations were still up. These were so cute, I had to take some pictures.
Isn't the baby darling?
It really was a gorgeous weekend, sunny and in the 60's. The weekend before our friends, Craig and Snow stayed here for their 18th wedding anniversary. As a gift they left me this little bird sign. I love it. Discover.

Needless to say, we didn't do much. Everything has been cleaned up and put away...we are actually ahead of the game. The Husband spent a lot of time watching college football and I spent my time lying on the couch reading and napping. Since the patio furniture is put away, I sat on the porch steps for awhile breathing in the crisp lake air. Somewhere, someone was burning leaves..it smelled like fall.
My daisies just won't quit. They are like me, a little stubborn when it comes to the seasons changing.

We ate at a steakhouse Saturday night. They really know how to load up the food. A bread basket and a basket of crackers with cheeses, Soup and salad. I had prime rib and The Husband had barbecued ribs. Turtle cheesecake for dessert. All in a rustic, farmhouse atmosphere. What a feast.
Sunday was even more quiet as it turned gloomy and rainy. The patio looks so empty and lonely. It's hard to believe that we had 26 guests crowded here having a ball on the 4th of July!
I made the simplest, most satisfying dinner for us on Sunday night. All you need is sausage, onions, potatoes and carrots. I adapted it from a recipe by Jacques Pepin. Cook the onions until soft in a little oil, throw in any kind of sausage {brats, Italian, breakfast sausage}, what ever you have. Stir in chopped potatoes and carrots and cook all until done. Add a little water if the food starts to stick to the pot. It should evaporate. I season it with salt and pepper and sometimes a mix of Italian seasonings. You can't stop at one bowl!

Our temps are supposed to go down this week and we may even have a few snowflakes. I am still working on putting together the kitchen, Jeff hasn't moved out yet so my living room is a catch all for all of his new things. I'm slowly packing up my fall decorations, everything is looking so crowded. I just need some space! I'd like to start Christmas shopping, but where will I put it?

So...tell me what you have planned this week. Any big projects? Just relaxing with some good books and magazines? Tons of laundry {that would be me}. Thanks for popping over! :-)

BOOT HAPPY

2011-11-03T15:45:00.005-05:00

To prepare for long, cold winters, some people have the chimney cleaned or the furnace checked, snow blower oiled and gassed up...the normal precautions. Me? I go boot shopping. That's one of the benefits of living in a cold climate, you get to wear boots. And I LOVE boots!

The great thing about having grown {still at home} daughters, is that we wear the same size shoe. Well, count Emily out, she has wee little dogs. But Abby and I share shoes and together we have quite a selection.

I bought these boots last week and Abby didn't like them. She said they made her feel short, like an elf.
WHAT? Elflike or not, these boots are walkin' and rollin'! These are great for pulling on quickly to rush out the door for something; a quick trip to the store or mall and hey, at the airport where you have to untuck your jeans, pull off your boots and your 3 pairs of socks. I love these. My Go To boot.
I love all the detail on these. Emily has them in gray, but she is a wee size 6. She is also only 5'0, but has never considered herself an elf. These have a short chunky heel on them so I don't fall. And by the way, a tip I learned to keep your boots in shape when they are in your closet; put a wine bottle in them. I did that here to get the one to stand upright. Rinse the bottles out first, or hey, put full ones in and you can have your own stash when you need it.
Now these will be great when I go out riding my imaginary horse. I love them. Again, chunky heel so I won't fall.
And I guess these illustrate that I don't take Midwestern winters lightly. Waterproof, fleece lined and cute. I am ready!! They go with my new black parka, but that's a whole other post.

I usually buy boots a half size larger since I am probably going to be wearing thick socks. Make sure you wear skinny jeans...and that just means that they are tapered at the ankles to tuck in your boots...they are not just for skinny people. Believe me!! Boot leg pants look terrible scrunched into tight boots. And don't forget leggings, skirts and dresses with tights.

I am not a mall person and I love to shop online because I'm comfortable and I see the stores whole inventory. But one place that I just found I want to pass on to you. It's called 6PM.com. I found amazing prices there. I believe they are related to Zappos. Your order is delivered in 2 business days. And best of all, you get that chill that runs up your spine when you see the UPS truck.

So, are you boot happy this fall? What are your winter wardrobe plans? Let's chat! :-)

MOTHER OF THE BRIDE

2011-11-01T12:37:00.005-05:00

I have exciting news...Daughter Emily is engaged! Mike popped the question Sunday night. But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, he invited The Husband out for a drink last week and got permission to propose {whew}, he got the O.K. and then later in the week told me. I was jumping up and down...I think Mike is just the greatest and they are so in love

The plan was that they were staying at the Hilton overnight for a "daycation", {a new word for getting away briefly}. He was going to propose after they got to their room. Which he did. The floor had rose petals scattered all around and he had made a heart with their initials on the bed. Not only did Emily cry, but she hyperventilated and Mike never had a chance to get down on one knee. The ring is gorgeous.
After the proposal, he led her downstairs for what she thought was drinks and dinner, but surprise...the bar was filled with about 40 family and friends! Here are my four. This would make for a great Christmas card if it weren't for someone wearing a baseball cap and holding a beer.
Emily and Abigail. Abby is going to be the Maid of Honor
Mike, Son Jeff, Emily, Abby, DIL Mary Clare and Son Kevin. The Thanksgiving table is going to be full!

Mike and Emily have been going out for over three years. Mike grew up next door to Papa, so they have known each other all their lives. Our families and friends are connected in so many ways. Before popping the question, Mike patiently waited for Emily to graduate from school and get settled in a job, which she has as a designer/salesperson in a large furniture chain here. The date scheduled for the wedding is September 29th of next year.

So...I am going to be Mother Of The Bride. Seems like yesterday that I was Mother Of The Groom. I've had a little practice but I think I am going to be much more involved this time. We are already looking at the bride magazines and looking forward to the spring fashion shows. I am truly happy and excited. Nothing is ever slow paced around here! I should get out and start looking for that dress now. :-)

BLONDIE PLAYS WITH HER PUMPKINS

2011-10-30T13:27:00.004-05:00

Do you mind me showing off my new sink?! I am in love with it. In fact, I have been washing dishes in it rather than the dishwasher because I love it so much. That's true love. On the other hand...my oven has died. There is a problem with the computer panel and I believe I have to get that replaced {the computer panel}. So now that the kitchen is done...I have a glitch. Only me. I can use the stove top, so we won't have to go back to fast food. I was hoping for a moment that the whole thing was shot but I guess I am not going to get out of cooking.
Yesterday was gorgeous, brisk and sunny. I ran errands and The Husband ran his errands and then we met at a little pub called Joe Daniels. We shared a big bowl of chili and a steak sandwich and watched college football. Well, I don't watch football, so I people watched. I can do that for a long time.

On the way home we stopped at my favorite nursery so that I could get new pumpkins {now that the squirrels have feasted on the buffet I put out last week}. I bought one for me and one for Abby to carve, but she was immersed in a scary movie. So I got to work with my nifty little orange knife. One guy is mean and one is happy. I was really looking forward to toasting those seeds, but that is when I found out my computer panel had died. I'm really not having much pumpkin luck this year.

I'm still working on putting the kitchen back together. It seems that all of my dishes, pot and pans and serving platters and bowls have multiplied since I stored them in the family room. I have the essentials in place and they look nice and neat but I still have so much more to squeeze in. If only the carpenter could make a few extra cabinets. So, I'm still plugging away at that.

I hope all of you have a wonderful week. I have a few paint projects I am going to start working on and I will share them with you soon. See ya! :-D

I am joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday! Thanks for hosting each week, Marty!

PROGRESS IN THE KITCHEN

2011-10-27T13:23:00.003-05:00

Today I thought I would show you a bit of the kitchen...it's almost completed. The counter tops are Italian granite and called Summer Wheat. I think that is the best description of them. My cabinets are pine. They have been refinished and I am loving the shine. The knobs and pulls are on, they are brushed nickel. You can see in the picture that 2 drawer fronts are missing, they are being made as well as another cabinet door. Otherwise we just need a few more knobs and pulls {I miscounted}.
This is a closer view. I like that the granite has more marbling than spots. I kept my wall tile which is white with a few squares of French wine labels that I had hand painted years ago.

So that is where we are at. The carpenter is here now putting a few more doors on. Then I have to run to Home Depot for the rest of the hardware. I counted these knobs at least 5 times and still came up short! Only me! Tomorrow I am going to start putting my dishes and everything else back in. I am trying to show some restraint with what I put on the counters. I purged a lot so I have room for bigger appliances, like the KitchenAid Mixer to fit in the cabinets. I want fun, pretty things on the counters!! The Husband thinks I am going to keep them bare, ha ha!
I have been laying a little low the last couple of days, I have an ear infection. I never get those and didn't even know I had one until I went to my doctor for a check up Tuesday. So I am putting in ear drops and then I have to lay on my side for awhile for them to get down in there. Okay by me...it's my favorite position. Tomorrow is my hair appointment, grocery shopping and a lot of laundry for my son that is moving out. This weekend we will clean up the yard and patio and put the summer stuff away at this house. It's not easy having 2 homes and don't get me started on the double gas, electric, water and lawn care bills. Reality stinks.

I brought this English lavender plant home from where I bought it in Michigan. I know that it is too late to plant it in the ground and have it establish roots before the ground freezes, so I am babying it at home in my garden window. It's actually looking better than it did when I first brought it home. Has anyone ever tried this? With any plant?

Well, I hope you enjoyed seeing the counter tops...I will take complete pictures when the island comes, which by the way, The Husband thinks will not fit in the kitchen. That is if we want to get into the cabinets. I say tough! ;-D

BRINGING THE OUTDOORS IN

2011-10-25T09:39:00.004-05:00

Just a quick post before I run out the door to do some errands. It's so beautiful out, I couldn't pick a better day to get out of the house. 60 degrees, sunny...the light filtering through the ever changing colors of the trees. Such a nice change from all the rain we had last week.

We had a great weekend at the lake. The ride up to Michigan is wonderful at this time of year. I was a little disappointed when I got there and saw that the marina had taken our boat to store for the winter. No last joy ride.
I took some pictures of all the plants that we had to bring in now that the temps are dropping so low at night. They really do well with all the sun we get through the windows. I lost one fern last year...they just need more water than the rest. The Husband's palms always seem to make it no worse for the wear.

We brought provisions with us...Italian meats and cheeses and fresh bread and just rented a movie Saturday night. Of course, it put me to sleep. Somehow, The Husband manages to stay up late and get up early.
Sunday I took my time cleaning, the kind of cleaning I like. A little dusting and sweeping, watering plants and just fluffing a bit. Then I moved outside and cleaned out and scrubbed the refrigerator that we have outside. It was so nice, I couldn't bear to go back inside so I just sat on the patio and enjoyed the fresh air.

I wish I had more to report on the kitchen. The cabinets should be ready soon, but we keep hearing that. I anticipated that this wasn't going to be a totally smooth ride, so I'm not that inpatient {yet}. The new dishwasher is in and we have ordered new counter stools. The island is going to be ready to ship November 13. It will be so nice to have everything in it's place. I hope you don't mind me going on and on about all of this. It seems to monopolize my life.

On a totally unrelated side note, the pumpkins are gone. The squirrels scooped out all the seeds to bury, and scattered the remains all over the lawn. Of course I knew this would happen but I just love seeing those sweet pumpkins on my porch for the little time I have them.

It is going to be a busy week. Son Jeff is moving out, it makes me a little sad. He's been living here at home since January and I am kind of used to having him around. He has an apartment on the north side of Chicago. Emily is decorating it for him and she is having a ball. Last night she went to Target and bought all of his sheets, towels, rugs and lamps. She and a friend had 3 carts. Can you imagine? I'll miss him though.

Well, I've rambled on enough...I'll be back later in the week. I hope you are having a good one! :-)

A LITTLE OF THIS AND THAT

2011-10-21T13:13:00.009-05:00

Not a very pretty sight is it? it happens every year...I put out the pumpkins and the squirrels come running. This makes me sad. This is the guy I was going to carve. Guess I will have to make another trip to my nursery so I can have one all lit up on Halloween. Isn't it creeping up fast? I haven't even bought my candy yet.
The little varmints got at this gourd, too. Even Milo standing guard at the door doesn't help.
But I still have some pretty ones, they haven't gotten to these yet. I am trying to look on the bright side. And it happens every year, so I should be used to it. Do you have critters getting at your stuff?
The mums just keep getting prettier. We have had a whole week of rain and gloominess here. Last night while driving in the rain with the windshield wipers slapping away at the drops, I thought, well, here it is, the beginning of the dreary weather. But all my flowers got watered by Mother Nature and today it is sunny and gorgeous.
We took a ride to Home Depot and bought the knobs and pulls for the cabinets. They are the brushed nickel half cup thingies. The cabinets are supposed to be done next week. I think I finally have gotten the hang of things having only a partial kitchen. I am keeping the essential pots and pans, knives and spoons, cutting boards and can opener on the open shelves. Ordering out was getting monotonous, not to mention expensive. I never thought I would get tired of pizza!
nYep...it was a slow week. I received some the 'activewear' that I ordered online, but it's not making me feel very active. And I tried to go off coffee creamer cold turkey and made it 4 days. My friend Julie from Being Ruby happened to remark on the container of French Vanilla creamer in one of my photos, "It's death in a cup!" I know it's the sugar that keeps me heaping it into my coffee and with the needle on the scale not budging, I knew we had to part ways. Then I was in CVS yesterday and I was slowly being drawn to the coffee aisle, telling myself, "Don't do it". But I did. I am happy and guilty, and a very bad girl.
The rainy weather had me catching up on my romantic novels. This author is pretty good and her books always take place by the water or mountains or just about anywhere beautiful. We are moving from lakehouse weather to lodge weather so I better read this fast. Beach Read time is over.

Well, I am going to spend the afternoon sorting out my summer clothes to pack away and bring out the sweaters. It's a monstrous job if you knew what a clothes hound I am. Then off to the lake we go tomorrow morning to get more of the summer things put away. Hopefully the marina hasn't taken our boat away for storage and we can get one last ride in. What's up this weekend for you? :-)

HAPPY FALL DAYS

2011-10-17T11:02:00.007-05:00

To me, fall is all about colors. Our leaves haven't really changed too much so I was able to get my fix at the local garden center on Saturday. The weather was perfect and the sun was shining.
I've been going to this nursery for 25 years...I get my flowers here in the summer and my Christmas tree in the winter.
They have the cutest little scarecrows, corn stalks and flags. It hard not to go nuts in here.
I love yellow and white mums, but we did those last year and this time Emily was with me and picked her own color palette.
Here is what my porch looks like with all the annual flower pots gone and the mums and pumpkins and gourds out. Everything but the mums were bought in Michigan last weekend and they rolled around in my car for a week and some of the stems cracked off. I was worried that the squirrels would get to them and instead it was me.
Aren't these darling?
Some of my impatiens are still going strong so I left them.

So, my fall decorating is done. It is looking a little crowded in my house. Maybe it is the contrast of the decorated living room and mantel and the emptiness of the kitchen. Just a few more days and the cabinets will be done and I can show you. I actually made stew last night after digging around in my piles for a pot, spoon, knife and cutting board. It's amazing what our kitchens hold. And I am sorry to say that I didn't get a picture of Sexy Irish Plumber when we had the sink installed...another guy came and although he was also a S.I. P., it wasn't the same guy. And, The Husband was home and I think he would have frowned on me taking pictures of the plumbers.

Hopefully I will be back this week with a reveal post, as long as their aren't any snags, and so far there haven't been any. Lucky me. :-)

KITCHEN REMODEL...BEFORE

2011-10-13T16:53:00.005-05:00

Oh Happy Day...the new counter tops are on, yet we still have so far to go. I took some before pictures. These are the old counters, they look like a green marble but they are actual a man made version similar to Corian. They were scratched and had some cracks and I was really sick of green. In this picture you can see the pine cabinets and white knobs. The fronts were taken off by the carpenter yesterday and he is repairing them as they were breaking off of their hinges. My counter look awfully bare here because I had spent 2 days taking everything out of the kitchen.
This picture says one thing to me: "Get the take out menus!" This is after out friend, Nuts, came and took the counter tops off. Last night we went to a place called Leona's for dinner and the night before we ordered stuffed pizza. Tonight, hmmmm...I'm not sure.
I survive on this most of the day. In between workers, I am going to slip out to the grocery store and buy things that we can keep in the fridge, that can be microwaved and eaten on a paper plate. All my food has been packed up and put in the den. All of my dishes, pots and pans, glassware, platters and a whole lot of other stuff have been relegated to the family room. We don't expect the cabinets to be done until sometime next week. Now, I have to pick out knobs and pulls. I am thinking of the brushed nickel cup shaped thingies I have at the lake. Any other suggestions of what you personally like or a place to shop for them? I was just going to mosy over to Home Depot.
These go well with coffee.
Meet The Fabricators. Peter and ? There they are taking the granite tops off the truck. And the final reveal...

...you have to wait for it because I want you to see the whole kitchen completely finished. I'm a real spoil sport.

Other than cleaning out the kitchen and then cleaning inside all the cabinets, this has been sort of like camping. We are using a lot of paper and plastic as I don't like the idea of washing dishes in the bathroom sink...even though I'd like to think it was clean, we've all had colds. And the best part, I wake up to a clean kitchen because there is nothing in it!

Well, I won't bore you any more...I am just SO EXCITED! Tomorrow Sexy Irish Plumber comes and since I didn't hesitate to get a picture of Peter and ?, I will get one of S.I.P. I lost my train of thought there...he is hooking up the sink, garbage disposal and nifty new dishwasher. And finally, just a few more weeks until my island comes. Did I mention I was excited? I will see you in a few days with something totally unrelated to my kitchen and hopefully soon it will be all done! :-)

A LITTLE SUMMER & FALL

2011-10-10T11:20:00.012-05:00

The weather was gorgeous this weekend as I'm sure it was all over. We spent the weekend at the lake, driving up Saturday morning. I missed the Na Da Farm event as The Husband couldn't get off work early enough to make the 2 1/2 hour drive before it ended. I was disappointed but I knew it was a long ride and I'm always happy with how enthusiastic he is about going to blogger events and supporting me when I want to meet bloggers. He is one of the few men that actually loves shopping and antiquing...I'm really lucky to have him. So, I will have to plan to go to the spring event at the farm.

Tomatoes are still on the vine next door at my neighbor Susie's house and she is always kind enough to bring some over. Here I served them with olive oil and some dried Italian spices. Yum.
Our fall clematis is in full bloom on the arbor. It's beautiful, isn't it?
These little blooms were growing on the other side of the arbor and I don't remember planting anything like it. It's another climber. Does anyone recognize it?
This is my one and only rose from the climber that we planted this summer. I was thrilled to even get one bud. At least I know what color roses I will have.
Roses blooming and acorns falling. I gathered some before The Husband swept the patio. The sweet guy also brought in all of the plants, including the palm trees and monster hibiscus. While the patio is looking empty, my house looks like a greenhouse. And can you believe I still have daisies blooming?
Our friends Craig and Snow got up late Saturday and as always brought gobs of food. We nibbled on meats and cheeses with focaccia bread before a big steak dinner. Then it was a long chat in front of the bonfire.
I mentioned the Under The Harvest Moon Festival in my last post. I went to it shortly after we arrived at the lake. There were all sorts of activities and vendors and fun all around. I met up with the sister in law of a blogger that I met in Asheville...Penny from Lake Lure Cottage. Sister in law, Barb, is from Dowagiac, Michigan where the festival was held. We had lunch together at a wonderful restaurant right in town called Woodfire. We had a table by a window and we watched everyone enjoying the fest. What a sweet lady she is...we really had a nice time together. Hopefully we will get together again in the future.
This vendor was selling the most beautiful quilts...
...and this little guy was sitting outside the restaurant.
I took this picture for Lynn from Happier Than A Pig In Mud. I'm sure Earl is happy he is safe and sound at home with Lynn.

This week is CRAZY. Tomorrow the carpenter is coming to take all the cabinet doors and old counter tops. Wednesday the new counter tops are coming and being installed. Thursday the plumber {the sexy Irish guy} is coming to install the sink and faucet, etc., and Saturday the dishwasher is coming. Today I have to pack up everything in the kitchen and put it somewhere. This is not going to be a fun project and there is no one here to help. But I'm happy to say that everything will be done in a few days and all I have to do is wait for the island to come. I'll take pictures of the mess before and then after.

More fall decorating is taking place. My car is full of pumpkins and gourds that I bought at my friend Sue's farm stand. I also bought a lavender plant that I have to get in the ground today. The gourds are seriously cute...very big and shaped like swans. Well, that will be another post. I'll see you all when the kitchen is done. Have a happy week. :-)

I'm joining Marty's party, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life.

BACK TO BLONDIEVILLE

2011-10-06T15:42:00.009-05:00

It is so good to be home again. We got in about 9:00 Tuesday night and it was so nice to sleep in my own bed. I hope we can eliminate this trip in the future {without sounding ungrateful, I hope}, as I think I have seen enough of Vegas for awhile. That said, we will be returning in June for Abby's 21st birthday, we have quite a large group going so far and I think it will be a blast. But the October trip...we'll see. There are so many other places to see and experience. But I did have fun and didn't lose my pants.

I came home to a bunch of dead sunflowers and dirty dishes but it was less of a mess than I expected. I spent yesterday getting the house in order and then had some quality time with my laptop checking out blogs and doing a little shopping. I needed some 'Activewear'. Somehow that seems to be the wrong thing to call it. I call it 'Laying Around Wear'. It was a productive virtual shopping trip and I even hit a few sales.
My son Jeff carried up the box of fall decorations from the basement and I added a few things here and there. My mantel is not satisfactory to me yet so I am going to play with it more. This is a neat wreath, you can hang it or lay it flat with a candles in the middle.
All is quiet on the kitchen reno front...the carpenters are working on the cabinets someway, somewhere, and the fabricator came last week and measured my counters and could be, at this very minute, be making my new counter tops. He said 10 days. But the cabinet fronts need to be done first. I am wondering if I have to empty them out if they are just installing the fronts. I really don't want to have to do that. I thought about making a little project out of eating everything that's canned or dried without buying anything else. Sort of how you clean out your vegetable bins by making soup. That will be less to take out. Smart. eh?
We have a busy weekend coming up. There is an event that Anne Marie from NaDa Farm has every spring and fall {she is a sweet and wonderful blogger}. She lives about 2 hours from here so I have talked The Husband into coming home early so we can be there for the Friday night opening of the weekend event on her farm. I missed it last spring as we were in Asheville. I really am looking forward to this and can't wait to see Anne Marie once again, along with many other bloggers.

Saturday, we head back to the lake. Our friends Craig and Snow will be joining us. Craig and The Husband have all the work to do {taking the boats out of the water and putting all the summer stuff away}, and Snow and I will be heading off to Dowagiac for the Under The Harvest Moon celebration. I've never been to it so I'll have to tell you all about it next week. Doesn't it sound like fun? I can taste the apple cider already.
Early tomorrow I am going to go buy my mums. The ones in Michigan are less expensive but a little on the shaggy side. The pumpkins there are nice and I also get haystacks. Most of the farm stands are selling pies and bakery now, too. Yum! Next week I can get to work on the outside of my house.
That's all I have for fall decorating right now. I only do my living room and kitchen as those are the rooms we use the most. But you know how it goes...every year you see more that you want to buy and soon you are venturing into the bathroom and den....
This is a poor shot, I'm still using my cell camera. You might remember my buying the sheer curtains from Target and forgetting 2 panels. I went ahead and put these up since the other window in my bedroom is a garden window and I'm just not sure how they will look. Anyway, I think they look nice {pardon the ivy growing on the screen}. The afternoon sun looks so nice coming in.
I lightened up the bed linens too by taking the duvet cover off {yes, now that it is getting cold and we need it}, and putting a white coverlet over it. Then I layered it with an Ikea throw and some grain sack pillows. Layla is happy with it. She will be burrowing under in 5 minutes.

Well, that's all I have for the 2 days I have been back from Las Vegas and as I said, I am enjoying being home. Now I have to get back to the laundry so I have something to pack for this weekend. I hope you have a good one! :-)

LAS VEGAS

2011-10-02T22:51:00.007-05:00

Well, it's day 3 in Las Vegas and we have done a little of everything. We have been spending more time walking around outdoors and shopping than we normally do. I haven't made any big purchases, everything here is a little glitzy to me. I did buy a pair of flip flops as they are more comfortable than my boots. Yep, boots and jeans and cardigans have been my mainstay and I have been perfectly comfortable. The weather has been gorgeous, just a bit hot in the sun but perfect in the shade. I snapped some pictures of the outdoor cafes...my favorite places to eat.
I could rave about the food here all day long. I've never had a bad meal. I've forgotten to take pictures of some of the food we have tried here, but it's all been out of this world. I have also been treating myself to Starbuck's lattes and chocolate eclairs every afternoon. The heck with the diet, I'm on vacation.

You might think this is an outdoor cafe in the above picture but it is actually in the Paris Hotel where the ceiling is painted like the sky. We stayed here a few years ago and I loved the French feel to it. But again, the shopping in the hotels is rather glitzy.
Our room at the Rio is plain and simple and clean. We stay here free with all the comps we win on our rewards card...it's complicated. but we stay here pretty often. It's pretty wild here with people running around in masquerade outfits; masks and feathers and the waitresses in teeny tiny clothing. Yep, makes you feel a little bad that you are eating eclairs everyday.
The Husband and I have been enjoying sleeping in our own beds. No dogs either. I finally have room to stretch.
This is my dream hotel, the Bellagio. Someday. I think we are eating lunch there tomorrow. This and the Venetian are two of the hotels I would love to stay at. Can you tell how nice the weather is?
Today the Bears played and it was on in the Sports Room. All the guys met there and I took my sweet old time sipping coffee and getting ready. Then I joined them in time for the horse races and won $35.00 on my first bet. I haven't been doing too well on the slot machines so that is why I decided to stay in the room tonight and just get room service. As I mentioned before, 2 wives couldn't come so I have been hanging out alone. The Husband says the slots put me in a trance anyway.

This is a picture of the Rio. It has pretty views all around and the landscaping is beautiful. I'll try to take more pictures outside tomorrow but it's hard with all the people milling about. I hope everyone had a good weekend. I have 2 more days here and then it is home sweet home. Abby keeps texting me pictures of the dogs and they have very mournful faces. I think they miss me! :-)

KITCHEN RENO PROJECT

2011-09-28T13:56:00.004-05:00

My camera is still missing, but I think I am getting some pretty good shots with my phone. I haven't started decorating for fall yet, that will have to happen after I get back from my trip, but I have spread out some of the decorations from Emily's party until I know how I want to arrange everything. It has been fun looking at all the blogs and the fall and Halloween decorations. Do we like to decorate or what?! I saw a front porch idea that I love and I am getting anxious to do my mantel differently. Fun, fun, fun.
This is a small slab of granite that I picked out for my counter tops. I didn't want anything with speckles or a muddy color, so this worked out perfect. My back splash is white tile, so I've picked up that and my cabinets are unfinished pine, the goldish color in the stone. My back ordered kitchen island has a black and white marble top, so I think this is going to compliment it. Today the fabricator is coming to measure and then we will have it in about 10 days.
After I nearly lost my lunch over the first quote we got on the kitchen, we decided to do things ala carte. We found a Kohler sink at Home Depot on sale and bought it. We also got the fixtures and garbage disposal {online}. A carpenter has one of my cabinets and is trying to match it up with new panels. Then I just have to wait for my island. Oh, we are getting a new dishwasher, too, as it's my only appliance that isn't stainless steel. I am excited to show you pictures because I have always avoided that since some of the cabinet doors had cracked and snapped off. It was really unsightly and I think I got the burner under The Husband lit by announcing I was going to have a Christmas Party with all of his friends and colleagues. ;-D
Anyone need sunflowers? I have 18 of them scattered around in various places. And all the bean jar candles. Those I may just wrap red ribbon around and use for Christmas.

So, I think I am ready for Vegas...just a little laundry and a trip to the drugstore for sample sized products. Two of the wives can't join us, one of whom I became pretty good friends with, so I'll be wandering around the casino alone most of the time. The Husband plays poker, sometimes at other hotels. I don't mind, it just gets a little boring. We all meet for dinner and sometimes a show. I'm not sure if we are seeing anyone this year.

I went to my doctor yesterday and I have bronchitis. I figured that from the 10 minute coughing fits. So I have antibiotics and I should start to feel well soon. Thanks so much for your well wishes.

Now I'm off to de~clutter my counters so the guy can get to them to measure. How would a vase of sunflowers look sitting on top of a toaster? :-)

SUNFLOWERS

2011-09-26T16:29:00.006-05:00

Saturday was a gorgeous day for a graduation party. It rained a bit in the morning and then it was sunny and hazy...that perfect sort of fall day. Emily {the graduate} had specific ideas for her party, a sunflower theme. We had three large tables under a tent and 2 big vases on each table along with assorted squash and gourds. I made the candle holders with empty salsa jars filled with beans and a tea light candle {as shown in my last post}. We had a lot of salsa left so that is what we munched on with plenty of chips.
The Husband hung up white lights under the tent and everything looked magical.
A small table was set up to hold refreshments. The Husband made his specialty, Sweet Tea with lemonade and vodka.
We kept the color scheme in brown and golds.
The night before the party Emily made red velvet cupcakes, {recipe from the Food Network}. These were honestly the best cupcakes I have ever had. She made forty, and they disappeared in 10 minutes. The cupcake stands are from Marshall's.
Aren't they pretty?

It really was a pretty evening. I wanted to scatter some of those faux fall leaves on the tables, but we didn't have to bother, leaves floated gently down and landed softly {in the food}. And the walnut trees serenaded us with the plonk!!! of falling tennis ball sized nuts. No one was hurt, thankfully. Most importantly, my girl had fun and everyone joined in!

This is a crazy week in Blondieville. I have a cold and I'm trying to get ready for Vegas on Friday. Since it's affecting my asthma, I have to go to the doctor tomorrow, but better safe than sorry. We have people working on the kitchen {that is a whole other post} and I was having problems with the Internet, which is now fixed. I'll be back later in the week with more on the kitchen and to say goodbye before we take off for Sin City. :-)

I'm joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday!

CLEAN UP & A LITTLE CRAFTINESS

2011-09-20T10:53:00.008-05:00

This is the mess I awoke to today, a leaking kitchen sink. The cabinet underneath would have been destroyed if it weren't for the bin holding cleaning supplies. So everything had to come out and be rinsed off and now I have to call a plumber. That's okay, he is Irish and sexy. Oh, and remember the clogged garbage disposal I had? It managed to clear itself out on it's own. I am wondering if it cleared a path for the leak. Woe to me. And I saw my first mouse of the season.
Plans for going to the lake were dashed when we realized all the work we had to do here to get ready for Emily's graduation party. The hedges and mulberry bushes were so overgrown it looked like a forest in the backyard. The Husband tended to them like a true lumberjack and I weeded the garden beds.
Can you believe how much was cut down. The neighbors next door must be enjoying the sunlight! ;-D I was thrilled while pulling weeds to find plants and flowers I forgot I had. The Sedum is just now turning a deep blush, and I have a ton of those elephant ears plants {I can never remember their name}.

So a lot was accomplished last weekend in between the Notre Dame and Bears game. We treated ourselves to dinner out after all our hard work, The Pit, one of our favorite spots. I had the Greek sausage, Texas toast and pasta salad. I think I then went to bed at 8:00 p.m., a very satisfied girl.
I took a few shots of the patio after I had it all spic and span. I have a lot of bird houses and some I just display because they are getting so old. I have an old chippy baker's rack on my patio, that I love to decorate for the season. Almost time for some pumpkins and gourds.
These boxes would look pretty with some dried or faux flowers in them, but I cleaned out my stash and need to restock. I feel a trip to Michael's coming on.
Yesterday was busy, a hair appointment, grocery shopping and a trip to Target with Abby. I am making some decorations for the party tables and saw a cute little candle holder someone made on a blog. I would give the blog credit but it slips my mind. Sorry. Anyway, I bought about 6 jars of salsa and 10,000 pounds of pinto beans. I poured all the salsa in a big container and soaked the labels off the jars. These jars are shorter so you don't have to use so many bags of beans. In went the beans and I tied a piece of raffia on and popped in a candle. Voila!
I am really an all thumbs sort of person, so I was quite proud of myself.

So, our party is next Saturday, I am doing a lot for it as Emily is working and Abby is at school most of the day. I don't mind, I am SO proud of her graduating. We are supposed to have great weather in the 70's. We've have tents and tables coming and we are going to decorate with my candles and vases of sunflowers. The food is being catered by the same restaurant that did my son's wedding. Pulled pork, smoked chicken, beans and rice and all good Southern food that we don't often find here in the upper Midwest.

Next week we leave for 5 days in Vegas. I have already done my prerequisite shopping online, torn between the hot weather and the cold casinos. It's all so confusing, even though we have been going at this time of year for what seems like forever. I'll keep you posted on my plans and of course, everything that goes wrong or gives me a headache. See you soon! :-)

I am joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday.

END OF SUMMER FIREPLACE MANTEL

2011-09-15T14:49:00.005-05:00

I'm happy to be back in a new frame of mind, happy again and just letting the good times roll. After I wrote my pity party post the other day, I got to work organizing and cleaning my house. The Husband came home and asked if the cleaning ladies were here that day {I have 2 girls come twice a month}. I guess I did a thorough job, especially in his Man Cave Corner...think laptop, Nook, notepad, coffee cups, cigars and ashtray, and basket of Fantasy Baseball magazines. I did everything but the laundry, but as some of you said...it'll still be here tomorrow. Thanks so much for your support and if you took the opportunity to vent as well, I hope you feel good now.

My camera is still MIA. I hope I find it at the lakehouse tomorrow. If not, maybe it's time for an upgrade. ;-D. I was able to get some good shots with my cellphone and I thought I'd share the recent rearrangement of my summer mantel. Given that I am a total summer girl, I haven't hauled out the fall stuff. Not just yet.
I took away some beach pictures I had up here and added some mercury glass votive holders to give a little sparkle. It's definitely candle time with all those juicy berry and apple pie smelling candles out now. And the flickering light looks so pretty early in the evening now that it gets dark so much sooner.
I've had these dried hydrangeas for months and they have faded from pale green to pink. Since I don't grow hydrangeas myself, I ordered them dried from a farm through eBay. It's pretty cool, you can get lavender, peonies, whatever you'd like. In a few more weeks I will add some fall decorations. I've been getting so many ideas from blogs and magazines. My biggest love has been burlap pumpkins that I have seen in Etsy shops, and lighted branches, which I hear Kirkland's has on sale.
My reading frenzy continues. I finished Maine. It had an ending that wrapped things up pretty well, but still left you hanging a bit. I liked that, sort of made me think. This is the author's second book and since I liked it so well, I ordered her first book, Commencement, from Amazon. In the meantime, I picked up this book at Target and I am really loving it. It's a beach read but really well written and it moves along fast. This weather just makes me want to curl up at night and read, sort of the way it motivates some to bake. At least I don't get the calories, although this story is set in a bistro and the food is outstanding.

After reading Maine, I suggested to The Husband that we check out the upper east coast on our springtime vacation. He countered with Quebec City. I think I need to brush up on my French.

The temps are in the mid 50's today. I am wearing my heaviest sweatshirt since it seems just crazy to turn on the heat when I had the A/C on earlier in the week. After my shower this morning I put cocoa butter oil on and it sucked right in. My skin is the first sign that colder weather is on the way.

Tonight we are going to look at stone for the counter tops. We received our first quote on the kitchen reno and it left us speechless to say the least. We have another estimate scheduled for Monday. I really dislike this whole process, it frustrates me and I don't like that. Hopefully all the decisions will be made in the next week or two.

Thanks for stopping by and I will see you next week! :-)

THE REALITY OF LIFE

2011-09-13T12:10:00.004-05:00

Have you ever thought your life could be a reality show on television? This occurs to me quite often. 99% of the time that I sit down to write a post, I have no idea what I am going to say. I can practically see you guys opening up my blog and scratching your heads, "Where is she going with this?" Well, I usually post around my pictures because my camera is really my window to my world. And I had lovely pictures to share with you this morning from my weekend at the lake. But, as I type, I realize I try not to look around me when I get up in the morning...I pour a cup of coffee, forever grateful that we have some, give it a few generous heaps of Coffeemate French Vanilla creamer and sit down to read blogs or maybe write a post. Today I went to get my camera out of my purse and...no camera. I really dug around a while for it because if you have ever seen my purse, you would know that I could pack a weeks worth of clothes in it and still have room. No camera. It has to be at the lake. No camera, no pictures, no post. What would I do?
I grabbed my cell phone and thought, there has to be something I can take a picture of, make a pretty vignette and join a party maybe. I looked around and realized it was post weekend {we came home yesterday}. I was in the land of semi~adult children. As I mentioned earlier, I head for the coffee pot with blinders on and after I have blogged and had what I feel is my only connection with the adult world, I look around, have a little pity party and start the clean up. Post Weekends are always bad because I'm either not here or I do very little if I am here. Cleaning and fluffing that is. So I told myself this morning, after a mere 6 hours of sleep, that I would post and keep it real. I grabbed the cell for pictures, only to find the battery was dead {and yeah, I have a few important calls to make}. After I scratched my head and swore a bit, I gave it a little charge and started snapping pictures. So... welcome to my reality show.

I took pictures in black and white to soften the blow. Above is the corner of my bedroom and underneath it all is a pretty quilt rack with pretty blankets and quilts we love to curl up with. Except Abby existed solely in my room for the weekend, eating and drinking and watching The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills. I'd love to be on that show except I would be the one without make up and an apron on. After arriving home late yesterday and putting my bag in my room, I tripped over a half dozen water bottles and paper plates and attempted to re~fluff the bed, my sanctuary. With the crumbs and dog hair, I needed a broom...on the bed. After making the bunch a delicious dinner of pasta, shrimp, salad and bread {I add this so you can join me in the "Why's}, I crawled into bed.
They made their breakfast and lunches for school I saw this morning. I knew exactly what they had and would be eating. Maybe that's why they leave it out..."See, Mom, a balanced breakfast and everything on the Food Pyramid."
I'll let the pictures do the explaining, I am almost ready to delete this but I'm on a roll. When they were small, it was so much easier to feed them out of the jar, wash their faces and toss the remains in the garbage. I used to keep their toys in a pretty wicker basket in the corner of the room and now I'm looking at 3 open laptops, several remotes and a few cell phone chargers in the outlets where I usually have my Glade Plug In's.

To further the scope of my reality world, I know for sure that downstairs I have at minimum, 11 loads of laundry. The garbage disposal is stopped up and not running {do I call a plumber or an electrician?}and I haven't heard from the carpenter since last week {don't people want work?}. I have a ton of weeds in the backyard and hedges to be trimmed, with a graduation party looming over me in a week and 1/2. The kitchen garbage is overflowing and I am getting ants in the dishwasher. Finally {maybe}, Layla pooped in the bathroom. Close, but no cigar.

I know I can sound like a Pollyanna. To take this conception further, let it be told that I had an idyllic weekend at the lake, the skies were clear, the birds were singing and I hummed as I made The Husband lunch with home grown tomatoes and grilled chicken. I sipped wine while I watched him skim along the bay in the kayak and I was at peace. Then I came back to my reality world.

I can sing the praises of my kids, but I won't. Today is a pity party. Through my tears I told Abby, yes, she could use my car because she was out of gas. And yes, I told Jeff, it was no big deal that he hadn't returned the tux from the wedding two weeks ago even though it is $20.00 per day late fee. For the most part I have a gentle voice and a smile on my face. I think it has nipped me in the a**.

Feel free to vent as much as you want in your comments. I would love the company. ;-D

EVERY BLOOMING THING

2011-09-09T09:52:00.008-05:00

This is sort of a shaggy little picture of my shaggy little flowers. We had a bit of rain last night and this morning so I suppose it wasn't the best time to take pictures. I am amazed at my pots of impatiens though, they look like a carpet of flowers going up the steps.
Yes, there are pots under those blooms. I blame it on the rain. We have been so fortunate to have had it at least once a week. I also used Miracle Grow potting soil and the little pellets when I first planted them. When these die off after the cold settles in, I fill the pots with pansies and add some mums.

We are getting ready for Emily's graduation party on the 24th and today was the day we were going to trim the hedges, so that sort of shagginess, I apologize for. Just too rainy. I won't even share pictures of my back yard, oh my, this rain makes the weeds take off as well as the flowers evidently. If it weren't for the party, I'd let everything die off, but it is going to get a big clean up and I suppose it will be a little less weedy next year. Are you about burnt out on your gardening at this time of year? I start out with such enthusiasm but right now the ivy is choking out the oregano that choked out the chives and basil that choked out the morning glories. What a tangled mess I have.
This is a perennial I have in front of the house and I am wondering if anyone knows the name of it. It comes back every year and I don't remember planting it. I think it may have been a stray seed or something. It gets bigger every year and usually blooms in late August and September.
I think it's pretty but I just don't know what the heck it is. Is anyone familiar with it?
My little picket fence containers line the ledge of a bay window. I caught a squirrel frolicking in them the other day. This is where I line up pumpkins in the fall, they must have keen memories.
Remember I told you that I planted a climbing rose at the lakehouse in July. Well, it took off and climbed up the trellis like crazy. Last weekend The Husband took a picture of my first bloom. Isn't it a pretty shade of pink? I am really doing the happy dance. I thought roses were hard to grow. I want to thank Tracie from Fishtail Cottage, who gave me so much advice about roses and even checks up on how mine are doing. Bloggers. Aren't they the greatest?

So this is what is blooming around here. Other than this, it has been quiet. Just a lot of reading and cooking some bigger dinners {I feel that fall/nesting syndrome coming on}. News on the kitchen remodel: The carpenter is stopping by today with two sets of hinges to pick out for my cabinets {I am going to take some better pictures of the cabinets as they are, or aren't now...doors are missing, well stored away after falling off the old hinges}. Next week we are going to a place to look at stone for the counter tops and I was in touch with William Sonoma about the island. It is not available until November 13th, so I am ordering it and I should get a call after that date for delivery. Hopefully I will have it by the holidays and I can say I am done with the kitchen.

I hope you had a good week. Up to the lake we go tonight after popping in to a party for a little while. I am perusing the lake newspaper to see if there are any fall festivals or activities going on. It should be fun! Have a great weekend! :-)

I am joining Honey at 2805 for Potpourri Friday!

RANDOMLINGS

2011-09-07T10:23:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone. What great weather we are having here. It's 66 degrees as I type...a little cool but perfect in the sun. The windows are open and the breeze is blowing in. Milo is loving it. The air is hazy and dry and though the leaves haven't changed colors, I can feel fall just around the corner. Have you started to decorate yet?

Things sure are quiet around here. I spent a whole weekend alone while The Husband was up at the lake. He left Friday to go to the Notre Dame game on Saturday. Notre Dame is just a half hour from the lakehouse. He called Sunday and said he was going to stay another day and just putter around and enjoy the quietness. I agreed, I said I was enjoying the peace and quiet and could use some down time. Actually I was bored out of my skull. Abby had gone to visit her boyfriend at his school for the weekend. Emily was at her boyfriends house and Jeff was also in Michigan. The hardest thing was sleeping alone in the house. Am I a baby or what? I am SO used to having someone here, I was restless and on edge. Milo growled a few times during the night and that unnerved me more. I was happy when the sun came up. How are you with spending a night or two alone? I don't know if I could get used to it.

I am in the middle of two books, just reading like crazy. Maine is a story of three generations of women that spend a few weeks at the family cottage in Maine. "By turns wickedly funny and achingly sad, Maine unveils the sibling rivalry, alcoholism, social climbing, and Catholic guilt at the center of one family, along with the abiding, often irrational love that keeps them coming back, every summer, to Maine and to each other." It really is a great read and I keep sneaking in a few chapters every chance I get. The last book I read was set near Seattle; these books have made me realize how little I know of the upper East and West coasts and has me thinking about our vacation next year. A few quaint towns or an island, it sounds heavenly.

The kitchen renovation is going slow. The carpenter is looking for hinges that will work for our cabinets and we are supposed to be out looking at counter tops, but haven't yet. This week is flying by with the holiday being on Monday. The island that I spoke of in my last post has a marble top, so I am looking for granite that has a marble look. I'm not in favor of a dark or busy pattern. In addition to what we are doing, I am going through all of my dish cabinets, sorting through what I want to keep. I want to at least start out with an uncluttered kitchen, but I don't think it will stay that way.

Labor Day was fun if not a little cold. We went to a BBQ and stayed inside most of the time. I made a fruit dip with frozen margarita mix, orange juice, powdered sugar, cream cheese and Cool Whip. It was really good and I think it will be a mainstay next summer. Let me know if you want the directions.

Back to the lake I go this weekend after 3 weeks not being there. The Husband seems to have had a marvelous time there without me...doing a little gardening, reading a Nook book, renting a movie ( that I am sure I would not have stayed awake for), and slept like a baby. He probably rearranged my furniture, too. So, that's all I have for now. Let me know what you did over the holiday. And tell me a secret: Can you sleep alone in your house?!! :-)

HOW TO GET HIM TO DO ANYTHING

2011-09-02T19:45:00.008-05:00

Look, I have been featured in the Williams Sonoma catalog! Actually I cut and pasted (as in with scissors and Elmer's Glue} a picture of myself and carefully inserted it in this picture. This is the kitchen island I want and I want it bad. In the cartoon bubble, (this picture will enlarge when you click on it), I expressed my desire (note: I wrote Pottery Barn in error) for this piece, especially given that I have put up with him...er, have been loving him for the past 25 years. Yes, Our anniversary is in December. And if I order it soon, I may have it by then. Now isn't this a clever idea? So I suggest you do the same. Play cutouts with your old photos and whatever your heart desires, just paste yourself in or show yourself holding it. The Husband got a kick out of it and I am pretty sure I will be ordering it in a few days. Isn't it a gorgeous piece?
The other night we had a carpenter come out and give us quotes for our kitchen. You might notice that I don't share many pictures of it...it is slowly falling apart. The custom pine cabinets have become brittle and doors have cracked right off the hinges. Apparently our hinges were popular in the dinosaur days. There are spaces between the doors and the knobs are outdated (I'm just really tired of them). And we need new counter tops, of the stone variety.
So next week I am on a mission. The carpenter has been hired and repairs will start while I look at counter tops. I'd really love wood (too much maintenance per The Husband), or soapstone (not enough shine), and I really haven't seen a granite that I have fallen head over heels for. But it's all exciting and I can't wait to share pictures with you as this unfolds.
I won a giveaway from Barb at The French Elements. This set of Bobbi Brown makeup brushes, which the girls promptly tried to steal from me, and...
...and a pillow and 2 tea towels that Barb made. She sells them online in her shop, so visit her blog and see some great French inspired treasures. I also won a can of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and already have a project lined up. Thanks so much, Barb.

This has been the sort of week that has ebbed and flowed. Some days were very relaxing and I didn't even get out of the PJ's, others I ran errands all day. The Husband left today to spend the weekend with his brothers up at the lake. They are going to the Notre Dame game tomorrow. Are you a football fan? I can live without it. After this weekend I will be back up there again and I am looking forward to seeing the trees change color and feel fall in the air. Can't wait. The Husband will be home Sunday and maybe we will invite the kids over for a cookout...no concrete plans. Tell us what you are doing this holiday weekend! :-)

THE LAST WEDDING PICTURES

2011-08-31T16:17:00.015-05:00

I have finally reached the last of the wedding pictures, except for the photographers, which we should have in a few weeks. These were taken with Emily's camera and pretty much show how much fun the wedding party had on this special day. This is a picture of Emily and Abigail {both bridesmaids} posing in front of an old Cadillac. It's rare that I have a picture of my two daughters together, so this is getting framed. ;-D
Back on the Chicago lakefront, the wedding party posed for pictures..
Kevin went from grammar school to college with his groomsmen. They are a fun bunch.
Home Sweet Home
On the bus to and from the lake...the wedding party had a little party of their own with sandwiches and refreshments.
Kevin has never worn a ring in his life. This, he will treasure.
The happy couple.
All in a days work...
After the wedding reception. people migrated to my nephew's pub, Blackthorn. The Husband and I, of course, went home. It was a long day!
Abby posing with my sister in law, Karen. Karen reads my blog and while she is doing housework, she dances to my playlist.
Emily posing with her uncles, Marty and Jim.
Marty and Karen
Abby and her boyfriend, Tom. She wore his jacket because she was cold, but left her shoes at the bar and came home barefoot.
Emily and her boyfriend, Mike.
Shall we call it a day?

I will be back soon with some normal blogging. Much is happening in Blondieville, some renovations in the kitchen and the preparations for Emily's graduation party {sigh}. Thanks again for being so kind working your way through these pictures. I think it was the best wedding I was ever at. Mary Clare and Kevin made all of their dreams come true. I hope they live a long and happy life together! :-)

WEDDING RECEPTION

2011-08-30T10:48:00.009-05:00

Thanks so much for your interest in seeing more pictures of my son's wedding. I am so touched. This was such a big day in my life and I want to share it with the world! These pictures were taken with my cell camera, which was a lot easier to carry but I may have sacrificed quality. Anyway...the wedding party arrived after having pictures taken at the lakefront and a bagpiper led the group to the tents where the reception was held.
Look at the rays of sun shining through. This had to have been the nicest night for weather that we had the whole summer.
Outside the tents, tables were set up for cocktails and hors de vours. Little sandwiches and quiches were served on the table in the distance and later the cupcakes {in lieu of a cake} and coffee were set up.
The bride and groom share their first dance. I didn't know they had rehearsed it...I don't think I have ever seen Kevin dance before! After this dance, he came and held his hand out to me to dance. I was in shock. He said it was a tradition for the groom to dance with his mother, so we danced slow to What A Wonderful World. I had to bite my lip to keep from crying.
The seating chart was written on old salvaged windows. Here, Mary Clare helps a guest find their table.
In addition to the Best Man {son Jeff} giving a speech, the brides sisters, Nora and Katie, also gave a speech.
The tables were covered in white tablecloths with burlap runners. You might recall we recycled jars, tied them with jute and they were filled with all sorts of wildflowers.
The jars also held candles. The wedding party carried blue hydrangeas that were just huge. Yesterday Kevin delivered a crate of flowers to me and my house looks like a florist shop! By the way, the honeymoon takes place in Cabo San Lucas in October due to Kevin's work schedule. As a little wedding present, Kevin took Mary Clare for a guided boat ride down the Chicago River last night.

So these are the pictures I have today downloaded from my phone. Emily has some excellent pictures on her camera and I will share them later in the week. Since I was the one taking pictures, I don't have any of me {but I was there}. I am hoping that the photographer will have her pictures soon and then I can share more, especially ones of my family.

Thanks again for your kind comments and enthusiasm for seeing pictures of this special day. :-)

GETTING BEAUTIFIED

2011-08-29T10:36:00.009-05:00

I'm still alive! The wedding is over and I am so happy to share pictures with you. I have so much to show and tell, I'll do a few small posts. These photos were taken by the photographer and I was able to copy them off Facebook {I hope that's not illegal}. They were taken along Lake Michigan with the gorgeous skyline of Chicago in the background.
Keeping up with the Farmhouse theme, the bride wore her cowboy boots.
We all met at Mary Clare's house to have our hair and makeup done. The girls doing the beautification all work for Mary Clare's sister, Katie, at her salon downtown. Here is a bridesmaid getting her hair done by a stylist.
The bride discussing her hairstyle, which she wore long and curled.
These are the toolboxes with all the implements to change us from pretty to gorgeous! Everything was air brushed, which was a new experience for me. It makes you look flawless. We all had a little help in the eyelash department and it looked so cool. Just a tiny bit of mascara is used before the little clumps of lashes are adhered. They look SO natural. I didn't take mine off until this morning. ;-D
The bride gets the finishing touches to her pretty face.
And what would a gathering of girls be without food to nosh on? Peggy, the bride's mother laid out a spread of egg casserole, fruit and cheese, and Dunkin Donuts coffee.
More refreshments to add to the festive occasion. Oh, we had a good time.

I wore my hair like Adele, of course {did you see her on the MTV Music Awards last night?}, poufed up on the top and pinned back with a long section down. Emily wore hers pulled to the side in a long ponytail and Abby had hers in a low bun. After all of this I headed home and had enough time to put on my dress and jewelry and have a quick cup of coffee before heading to the church. I didn't take pictures of the mass or ceremony but I used my cell camera afterward and I will share more pictures soon. :-)

REHEARSAL DINNER AND LAST MINUTE DETAILS

2011-08-26T12:22:00.010-05:00

Last night was the rehearsal and dinner for the wedding. It was held at the Limestone City Grill & Lounge. I wish I had been able to get better night pictures, these aren't the best...plus, I was using my cell phone camera as I was carrying a teensie weensie little dress purse. Look at the vintage Buick we found in the parking lot. What a nice ride this must be.
You can barely make anything out in this picture taken in the garden, the name of the restaurant is in the background. I had this smile plastered on my face all night long, it was so much fun.
As the grooms parents, we hosted 45 people to dinner and drinks. It was a great crowd and everyone mingled and enjoyed themselves. The food was excellent. My part in the wedding is very minimal...I walk up the aisle escorted by The Husband or Papa and at some point I light a candle, I'll figure it out.
Preparations continued all week long. Here is Kevin trying to figure out the seating for our side of the family. It was a good method...each sheet of paper representing a table of ten. The post it's are the couples.
But of course, everyone got in on it and it started to turn into chaos. But we got it done.
Emily has been working her little bum off. The reception is being held outside under tents so signs were needed to direct guests to the restrooms in the building and where the bar and dancing, etc., will be at. She painted, stenciled and distressed like a pro.
Our house has looked like Wedding Central.
Emily and a friend also made no~sew pillows for the haystack couches that are going to be assembled tonight. Remember, this is a farmhouse theme. The crates will be used as little side tables.
Here is The Husband arriving home with the first truckload of hay. A feed store was found way out in the country, but he would have driven to Idaho just for the chance to use his nifty new truck.

So that is where we are. 24 hours from now the bride and groom will be reciting their vows. A trolley that is going to be stocked with champagne and sandwiches, will be waiting to take the bridal party to a country club where pictures will be taken.

So I am just getting the house organized as it will be just crazy here with all of us getting ready. We have to get up at 5:00 a.m. tomorrow to get our hair and make up done. I have decided on my Adele hairstyle but I'm not going to have it tied back in a ponytail, just long in the back. And I'll be fluttering around in my fake eyelashes, of course. I'll be back next week to give you a full report and hopefully some pictures...that is going to be a little difficult to do while I am hob nobbing with the friends and relatives. But I'll try. Pinky promise! :-)

RAMBLINGS

2011-08-23T12:10:00.007-05:00

It's been a very slow week...okay, it's only Tuesday, but it's rainy and gloomy and I'm waiting for Sears to come and repair my dryer. I love how they give you a 5 hour time frame...that's 5 hours that I could be doing something constructive, like reading in the bathtub. So I wait and I thought I'd do a quick post.

All is quiet on the wedding front...the lull before the storm I guess. I want to thank everyone for the compliments on the shoes and all the tips for breaking them in. I'm still traipsing around the house in them, I guess I just like pain...or being tall. I received a lot of tips from a great blogger named Andie. She is a make up artist and knows quite a bit about weddings and how to keep the bride looking good. I now realize that I definitely need a larger purse for all the stuff I have to bring. I found a Bandaid product called a friction stick that glides on your feet and helps prevent blisters. Andie also recommended practicing with the shoes with wet feet, as that helps to stretch the leather. She really is a smart girl. Thanks, Andie!
I made a trip to Target yesterday for bar soap. Of course my cart was full when I left. I decided to add some pretty sheers to my bedroom windows...I have noticed how pretty they look in some of the rooms I see in blogland. I'd like to replace my blinds with bamboo like I have had forever in my living room, but the house next door is like 2 inches away and we need privacy. These are made of voile and they were only $4.99 a panel. I really wanted the crinkled voile but that was $3.00 more. Maybe I will change my mind. I feel a need for more bar soap coming on. I also picked up a new shower curtain and 2 books and a necklace and a candle. I bought the cute table runner in the first picture. I love the texture. Anyway...the retail therapy got my mind off things.
I forgot to mention that when I was out antiquing/thrifting on my vacation, The Husband fell in love with this picnic table. It's sort of petite and will look wonderful once we paint it a nice cream color. I'm not keeping it here, we have another area of the yard that is a bit empty. My bistro table will go here. Isn't it darling?
Well, that's all I have for now. I am just going to sit around waiting for Sears to come and then I may make that trip back to Target. I'm really having 2nd thought about the crinkled voile curtains. ;-D

I'm joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday.

SHOES

2011-08-20T21:43:00.007-05:00

Warning...this post has very few pictures and probably a lot less content. So pour a glass of your favorite beverage and be prepared to finish reading in about 2 minutes. I'm posting another picture of my dress for the wedding so you can compare it with the shoes I found.
What do you think? I ordered them from Zappos...you can't beat the next day delivery. They are Nine West and I think they match perfectly. They are a patent leather peep toe {as you can surely see} and they are a bit tight. I think that is better than having them fall off your feet with every step. So, I have been wearing them a half hour everyday to stretch them out and get used to them. They go well with shorts and sweat pants, even my PJ's. And with the 2 1/2 inch heels, I am going to feel so grown up being almost 5'5 feet tall.
It's hard to believe that one week from today 400 people will be celebrating the marriage of Kevin and Mary Clare. The reception will be held under tents filled with the soft lights of candles and the smell of wildflowers. It is going to be magical...unless I get blisters and have to go barefoot. There is noting more uncouth than the Mother Of The Groom going barefoot and doesn't make for pretty pictures either. I'll carry a few bandaids with me in case.

Next week is sort of the lull before the storm. I have to go out and look for some sparkly sort of pins for my Adele hairdo. People are starting to say that I am going to the wedding as Adele, as if it were a costume party. I love Adele...maybe I will start to belt out one of her tunes after a few glasses of champagne. Well, I don't drink champagne, but I've been know to belt out tunes impromptu anyway.

I will see you again next week if anything changes on the wedding front. :-)

SWEET HOME, CHICAGO

2011-08-17T15:38:00.009-05:00

We were back from the lake and in less than 24 hours we were in the heart of downtown Chicago for Emily's graduation ceremony from the International Academy of Design & Technology, class of 2011.
We couldn't have asked for a better day, not a cloud in the sky and temperatures were in the mid 80's. Perfect for a stroll in the park.
Millennium Park, that is. The ceremony was held at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance at Millennium Park.
A few years ago I worked just a few blocks West of here and brown bagged my lunch right here on the grass. But this day is all about Emily.
My baby girl with her degree in Interior Design. What a long road, but visionary dream it has been for her. Of course she is anxious to start working, but I think she needs a little break. ;-D
After the ceremony we had dinner at this lovely place right in the park.
Her proud boyfriend and father were just some of the guests. Next month we are going to have a big backyard bash to get some more celebrating in.
This was my view from the table. I love eating outside in the city. it can be as intimate or open as you want it to be. And I never get tired of looking up at those tall buildings. In fact, I thought and reminisced so much about my working girl days that I started to have thoughts about my own future...Is there a place for me here again? Or do I want to open a farm stand in Michigan? Well, I'll think about that another day...this was my baby girl's day!! Congratulations on a fine job, Emily. I hope all of you loved these pictures and do come visit Chicago, it's beautiful here! :-)

GOODBYE LAKE

2011-08-14T14:16:00.012-05:00

It's time to go home...the car is being packed for our two hour trip back to Chicago. The Husband called me over to the window to look on to the front porch at this cute little chipmunk hiding under the wisteria, and I was able to get a shot. Isn't it cute?!
It's quite a big deal to clean out the refrigerator...so many things that we didn't finish, and so much more to bring home. We ate a lot of fruit and veggies while up here {ignore that 52 oz. bag of M&M's}. And yes, I cooked in the kitchen until the end because we never got the part for the grill. Still, it was fun and satisfying. Last night we had steak shish kabobs and broiled tomatoes. Every night was really a treat, but I think we are going to order a few pizza's when we get home.
Milo looks at my duffel bag. I don't know if he is anxious to go or feels bad he is leaving. After 2 weeks, this begins to feel like a permanent home to a pet, I'm sure.
I took one last stroll around the grounds...the daisies are doing wonderful. The little critter agrees...
...And this has always been our motto here.
My climbing rose has taken off since I planted it last month...I am so excited...
See the little bud...I wanted pink roses, so I have my fingers crossed. Next week, maybe I will see it blooming. Little things make me HAPPY!!
The Husband's rock garden is doing well, too. He has a few little purple blossoms and it looks really cute. He's proud of it.
And I have a few little cherry tomatoes...very late in the season, I guess, but I am just so glad that I have something!!! I planted so late {as usual}. But, some things never change.
The chives and herbs have been used with much love. And that's all that counts.
So I have also packed up my pretty flowers that have done me so well these last two weeks and they will brighten up my city home which I just love to pieces and miss so much. Thanks so much for following me along on this little adventure. From me, The Husband, Milo & Layla...thank you!! :-)

SLOW DAYS

2011-08-11T09:00:00.007-05:00

I can't believe it is Thursday already. I am trying not to think about my vacation time running out. It has been such a big treat to be up here day after day, sipping my coffee while looking out at the bay...letting the day unfold any which way it wants. I am truly spoiled, but...back to the city we go on Sunday. I do miss the kids, especially Emily as she wasn't able to come up to visit. We will all be back for a Labor Day celebration and then the lake will significantly lose it's summer people as they head back home. Luckily, our home is year round.
Yesterday we took an hour ride north to a cute little beach town called South Haven. I love that name. I didn't take one picture...the sidewalks were crowded with tourists visiting all the cute shops and restaurants. You might remember we went last year as well. I've been here many times and always enjoy it. We had lunch on board the Idler, an old ship docked on the river leading to Lake Michigan. Then we strolled around town, stopping for huge ice cream cones. The only thing I bought was a clutch purse for the wedding that is the exact shade as my dress {now I just need shoes}. The Husband bought a Frisbee. He's such a big spender.
Have I mentioned that our grill died? I have been making dinner every night in the kitchen. Somehow it's different here, the fridge is overflowing with fresh vegetables from the farmer's market and I'm able to cut herbs from my little garden patch. No tomatoes yet, but I am ready to swipe a few from my neighbor's garden. Hmmm...big juicy tomatoes and cottage cheese. Lunch?
This is the little pelican I picked up at a thrift shop the other day. Isn't it cute? It looks like it is smiling. And only $2.00.
And this is the big Jade plant I found. It needs a bigger plant stand but I fell in love with this, too.

So this may be my last post as we wind up things here on the lake. We have a quiet weekend ahead with no company, but that's a good way to end it. Things are going to be crazy at home for the next two weeks before the wedding, but it's a good crazy.

How are all of you winding up summer? I suppose it's a relief for some because of the horrendous heat. We have been so fortunate, the days have been in the 70's with nice breezes. Again, I am so spoiled. If I do anything spectacular before we leave, I'll be sure to post! :-)

LAZY DAYS AT THE LAKE

2011-08-08T09:07:00.016-05:00

Wow...I make a commitment to post everyday about the little goings~on of my lake vacation and then I come back 8 days later. Internet problems, I won't bore you with them but I will say it was quite an adjustment not to sit down with my coffee every morning and read blogs. Of course I got more done and we've had a great time hanging out here and taking short day trips. When we weren't, I spent a little more time inside because of the heat and actually read 3 books. The drugstore variety...beach reads if you will.

One day trip was just over the border in to Indiana to a town called Goshen. This is The Husband standing in front of an antique store where I was able to find a lot of cute things; some linen table runners, some silver platters and and a few more beachy things to clutter up my house with.
Isn't this old wagon darling...it made the shop so inviting...
...and the entrance, too.
This was a cute little place, I wish we had bought some scones to bring home.
A little kitty also made a welcoming appearance.
Another day we went to a town called White Pigeon where I had been once before and fell in love with an antique/flower shop. I had been meaning to get back for some time and I wasn't disappointed.
There was an outdoor sale going on and we loaded up the new truck with quite a few things. The Husband bought a small picnic table and I fell in love with several big plants that I'll show you later. One is a big old jade plant that looks to be 100 years old. A few stems broke off in the truck and I stuck them in a jar of water to re~root them...is that the right thing to do?
There were a lot of goodies outside...
...and inside. Funny how you look back at your pictures and see things in a clearer way. I flock to the pillows in this shop. There is a very talented little old lady that makes them and I have several already. I can't resist a pretty pillow.
More good stuff...
And I added to my blue jar collection. I like these, they have the old lids.
I bought the peach colored pillow as it goes so well with my sofa and...
this silk flower arrangement.
Other than a big downpour yesterday morning, it has only rained a little at night so we have been very lucky with the weather. It has finally cooled off and is 75 degrees right now. The days are flying by...I can't believe we've been here a week already. We had company this weekend and everyone had a great time out on the lake except during the big storm, but we made a huge breakfast and weathered it out.

We usually take a little 3 day trip when we are up here for the 2 weeks. This year we were going to wander into Ohio and check out some islands off Lake Erie but we just didn't plan soon enough. We do have a few more towns that we plan to visit to do a little more shopping and dining in, and I don't mind just kicking back here, there is so much commotion awaiting me at home. And I can't believe it is going to be Labor Day in a few short weeks. I wish summer was 6 months long!

So that's it for now. I hope you are enjoying the hazy, lazy days of summer. I'm going to catch up on visiting blogs, I hope you didn't forget me!! :-)

LAKE LIFE: DAY 2

2011-07-30T21:30:00.006-05:00

I awoke this morning to The husband making breakfast. He gets up really early, like 7:00 a.m. I like to sleep until about 9:00, so breakfast was ready. Is he sweet or not?

I'm not sure if I am ready for this daily blogging thing...but we will see as we go along. As always, I have my camera with me and it sort of chronologies my days whether I blog or not.
Off he went to run errands in his new truck and I went out to examine the wisteria that is taking over our house. You might remember last summer that I flipped my lid over The Husband fiddling with the wisteria in an effort to make it climb up the balcony. This monster of a plant has choked out my hanging petunia baskets and is reaching desperately toward the ceiling of the front porch. I think it would wrap around me if I sat there too long. What a job this will be untangling it. I was warned.
I wanted to sit by the shore and read my book {you can see what I am reading on my sidebar}, but I couldn't find the keys to the shed to get my beach chair. I came inside and blogged a little. Finally, we made it out for a boat ride. Milo is now First Captain. He has his sea legs for sure.
At the grocery store., The Husband was able to find a Vietnamese fish called Swai. I sauteed it in olive oil and butter with a generous sprinkling of Old Bay Lemon and herb seasoning. It was the most delicious fish I have ever had...firm, sweet and totally non~fishy.
I simply cooked it on the stove as I was afraid it would fall apart on the grill. Plus, it's been in the low 90's all day and I barely sat outside. Tomorrow...yes. I need the fresh air.
So far The Husband and I haven't gotten tired of lake life. He has all sorts of plans. The lake is crowded now with weekenders and as soon as they are gone, I can do some solitary things like take the wave runner out or the kayak. For now...my one day here, I am staying close to home, reading a lot and making this house a home.

Should I come back tomorrow?

:-)

LAKE VACATION...DAY ONE

2011-07-29T23:54:00.003-05:00

It's very quiet here...the clock is just about ready to strike midnight, We arrived at the lake at about 10:00 p.m. and we put away everything we need for the next 2 weeks up here. I'm looking forward to a lot of things...relaxing, eating healthy and getting moving a little bit more than I do at home. Of course we will have our little outings but for the most part...I can sit and have coffee for as long as I want {without kids humming in and out.} I can look out at the lake while I do this and know I am in a special place.

But for some reason, tonight, I am feeling a little melancholy {baby}. Leaving behind the kids...my big comfy bed that is SO much better than this bed here...missing Abby beside me reading...a whole 16 days with just The Husband. I crave this place on weekends and so looked forward to being here and not having to pack my duffel bag after 3 days. I am SO not trying to come off spoiled or ungrateful...God knows how hard all of you work and live for your weekends. I sound like a Pollyanna sometimes.

Mostly, this is The Husbands vacation. He works so hard. But he can't sit still. I am a loner and I love to sit in my rocker...pictured above, and just stare out at the water, daydreaming a bit.

I was thinking of posting every day while I was here on the lake...just a little post to share what we did and maybe a little more of my feelings and perceptions of the world around me. Would that be boring??

For now, have a good night. Tomorrow I am going to try to spend the day outdoors, the heck with the heat...I need some fresh air. I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend! :-)

A HAIR DILEMMA

2011-07-26T18:10:00.009-05:00

Consider this a cry for help. I'm on a mission.
I have never downloaded pictures from the web for a post, but I have a lot of soul searching to do and a lot of decision making. It has me tearing out my hair and tearing up at the slightest mention of the dilemma. I have been looking inward and outward and I finally decided to share my grief with you. It takes a lot for me to admit...I just don't know what to do with my hair for this wedding.

This is Adele, my idol. A beautiful and soulful singer from the U.K. She's on my playlist a lot, maybe even now as you are reading this. I want to be her when I grow up. Oh, that's childish, I just want to be her now. Her fair skin, her perfect hair, her false eyelashes...
I could use some false eyelashes, and you know? I may just get them. We are having our make up and hair done professionally the morning of the big day. The make up artist does the most beautiful and natural eyelashes, and as you can see, I need a little help in that department. I'm not looking for anything huge, I'm not going to cause a breeze in any one's face as I speak to them, I just want to jazz things up a bit. And I feel I have gotten into a rut with my make up over the years; same old, same old. So I'm going to break out of the mold and go glam. Now, for the hair...
Here's Adele again. Did I mention I adore her? Well she wears her hair back combed up in a little pouf and then in a long ponytail. I love this look. Of course I will need bullet proof hairspray, but it will be worth it if my eyelashes are making the wind stir up. I thought maybe of wearing it half up and half down, but the neckline of my dress is very pretty from the back, so I want it to show. Decisions. I mentioned I am on a mission, didn't I?
I happened to stop by a blog called My Sweet Savannah today and she was showcasing some hairstyles. This is a variation of Adele's. A little looser and flowing, I don't know about the flower. What do you think?

I've really opened my heart up here and it feels good. I know you ladies listen and you were oh so complimentary about my new dress. This will probably be the last I post about the wedding. Friday, The Husband and I leave for a quiet 2 week respite up at the lake. I plan to do nothing but lie on the boat, ride my bike or kayak. Just peaceful bliss. So I need to tie up loose ends {or strands as it may be}, so I can be at peace at last. Comments please? :-)

SHOPPING FOR A DRESS

2011-07-23T11:56:00.011-05:00

I hope everyone is getting by with all this heat we have been having. We hit the hundreds here in the upper Midwest during the mid week and it finally cooled off yesterday. Today we are in the high 70's, which is perfect for me.

With the thought of getting a Mother Of The Groom dress looming over me, Emily and I set out to an outdoor mall just outside of Chicago to do a little browsing. If I were to find a dress, this would be the place as it boasts a Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales and Lord & Taylor.
The outdoor sculptures and landscaping are worth going for alone. Thank goodness I always have my camera with me.
Isn't this amazing? It's like being in a big park surrounded by stores. Wonderful restaurants, too. We had lunch at a place called Wildfire...it was delicious, but too dark to take pictures in.
Here are a few of my favorite shops.
We didn't stop in many, as we were on a mission, but we plan to go back when we have nothing but time. It's a great place to spend some outdoor time {and money}.
We popped in here and I fell in love with the beautiful dishes, clothes and things for the home. I picked up a bottle of grapefruit body lotion. It smells heavenly.
And surprise! I found a dress that was perfect. Pardon the state of my bedroom. I decided on a full length dress, as Peggy, the Mother Of The Bride is wearing one and she said we need to stand out. With the beading on the top, I think I might glow in the dark. But I love it, It fits perfectly and is so comfortable. We found it at Lord & Taylor. it was the first of six dresses I liked and the last one I tried on. Emily calls the color oyster...does that fit? This isn't such a great picture, I actually look like I have a waist in it.

We leave for vacation next week and when we come back the wedding is a week away. I'm glad I have this off my chest...no worries. I hope all of you are having a good weekend. I'll be here again this week! :-)

FRIENDS & FUN

2011-07-19T16:45:00.010-05:00

All the makings of a perfect Saturday afternoon. Didn't I have a picture of watermelon in my last post? Never mind...we eat it like crazy in the summer. Once again we had gorgeous weather {although now we have a heat advisory and Chicago is going into the triple digits tomorrow}.

We had company this weekend, good friends Craig and Snow and their kids, Luke and Ella. They are a wonderful family and The Husband and Craig go waaaaaaay back...
Grammar school, high school college and...
...the conversation went sort of like this: Craig, "Well, now that we're out of college, what are you going to do?" The Husband, " Well, I was thinking about law school." Craig, "Okay, let's go to law school." They are now successful attorneys.
The Miller's always bring a ton of food and plan our meals. This time it was flank steak marinated in lemon juice, olive oil rosemary and garlic. Craig did all the grilling. We snacked on his homemade barbecue chicken wings before dinner.
Snow had also marinated vegetables to toss on the grill. That was served on garlic toast and a salad of tomatoes and cucumbers in a balsamic dressing accompanied it. It was all so good we were whimpering.
Here is a picture of our great friends.
This is four year old Ella posing on the beach. She wants to be a rock star.
She is a doll. She gave me permission to be on my blog.
The Millers left on Sunday and we stayed until today. These 5 day weekends are wiping me out. The Husband is seen here washing his new truck for the third time in 2 weeks. We {me and the truck} are competing for his love. We also worked on a new flower bed after a visit to the friendly farmer for more stones. I think I have had my fill of stone borders, after all, this was supposed to be an English garden.

We are creeping closer to Kevin's wedding. Peggy, the mother of the bride has found her dress. The saleslady at the bridal shop was appalled that she hadn't gotten one yet. Now I am losing sleep over getting my dress. Said saleslady commented that the mother's of the bride and groom are supposed to stand out. Now I am REALLY losing sleep, but do have plans to start shopping Friday and I will be sure to post a picture of the dress when I find it. Wish me luck.

I hope all of you had a wonderful summer weekend. Is the weather sweltering in your neck of the woods? I plan on just hunkering down in the house and getting some cleaning and laundry done. I read a trashy little drugstore novel that Snow loaned me over the weekend, it took two days to read it and it was SO good. Monday I ran up to Rite Aid and bought another, Summer Island. The perfect little beach read. Have a good week and try to survive the heat! :-)

GARDEN FUN

2011-07-13T11:14:00.013-05:00

It's hard to believe it's been more than a week since I posted. I usually try to at least twice a week. It seems the whole weekend was spent working in the garden and I love doing that more than anything. We had gorgeous weather but for a big thunderstorm on Monday that had me cowering in the hallway again. Afterward I drove around and there were limbs and branches scattered all over. Our paddle boat completely flipped over. Otherwise we lucked out with temps in the 80's and a lot of sunshine. Camera in hand, I took some pictures of things I have growing. I am joining in with Tracie of Fishtail Cottage for Cottage Flora Thursday.

This is my hibiscus that I bring in over the winter. It takes a few weeks, but after some sun and rain it looks wonderful and healthy.
The blooms are as big as my hand.
Down in the pot I plant impatiens and petunias, just a mix of color, but mostly in the pink/purple family.
This is a new flower bed we worked on this weekend. I had planted a climbing rose {and I think I have asked everyone in blogland about them}. It's that tiny little thing in front of my vintage trellis. I didn't know what I wanted to plant around it and finally decided on daisies since I can cut them, too. The Husband drove around looking in farm fields for rocks and he happened to meet a sweet old farmer that told him to help himself. This is how our field stone fireplace was made, too. Then we mulched it with dark shredded bark.
I actually cut some and made a cute vase.
This is what the bed looked like before the stones and mulch. What a difference a little fussing can make.
I haven't spent much time on the front porch as I have a family of robins on the light fixture. Tuesday morning I got brave and went out to water my plants, camera in hand. The mother squawked and dive bombed me, but I managed to get a picture of her babies. Look at those hungry little beaks!! This is the 2nd little robin family we have had in this nest so far this summer. I worry that I am going to startle the babies and drive them out of the nest too early. After nursing many little birds and releasing them, I don't mess with Mother Nature anymore.
We have been sprucing up the home front a bit, too. About two years ago, Emily painted these shutters a bright blue. I really loved them, but then she thought they were too bright and painted them this:
Not much difference, but more subtle. What do you think?
And the porch is all decked out with flowers that are really filling out like crazy after a late start in planting them.
I have been told these are some sort of mini petunias. If you know the name, let me know because I get them every year.
And this is my favorite little chippy window box. I like it the way it is but am wondering if it needs a coat of paint and some distressing before it completely falls apart. Maybe I should weatherize it.

Well, I hope I didn't overload you with pictures. I am constantly in awe of the colors around me. I have another garden bed I am working on and I'm happy to report that the bunnies are leaving my tomatoes alone for now.

We have company again this weekend. At least I have the sand swept up and the beach towels washed since our last group. Summer is in full swing I would say! See you all soon! :-)

JULY 4th: A LAKE CELEBRATION

2011-07-06T10:17:00.010-05:00

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July. We were so lucky to have great weather in Michigan but for one big downpour on Saturday that didn't last long. I know that all of you know how much fun I have at the lake, but this 4 day weekend was nothing short of spectacular.

When we weren't feasting on brats, hamburgers, ribs and chicken {that the men made}, guests were whipping up delicious and beautiful side dishes in the kitchen. The kids even helped by making appetizers, cupcakes and bringing out bowls of chips, dips and fruit. We packed two refrigerators and several coolers with every drink known to man and with the warm temps, we killed most of it. 26 people can do that.
The kayaks were really put to use. I was amazed at the young ones that were able to maneuver them so well. Because we live on the bay, it's perfectly calm water to paddle around in. The water was so warm, everyone enjoyed floating around on inflatables, life jackets, whatever they could find.
On Saturday, when the temperature was the hottest and before a majority of our guests arrived, we took the boat out to the sandbar, where it is a tradition for a band to play off the island and crowds of people to anchor and splash and dance around in the waist high water. Shortly after I took this picture, the skies darkened and a storm came through. We made it back to the dock just as it started to pour. Thankfully it didn't last long and it cooled everything down so we were able to enjoy weather in the low 80's.
I took a ton of pictures {sorry, not so many of the food}, but I'm not posting many as I don't like putting pictures of little ones on my blog. This is daughter Emily and her boyfriend, Mike. Em bought a few floppy hats in Chicago to wear with her beach garb. She thinks she's in the Hamptons here.
Son Kevin and his fiancee, Mary Clare. We were so lucky to have Mary Clare's mom, Peggy and niece Hannah come also. We just love them to pieces and I loved having Peggy keep me company for early morning coffee and while we stayed out of the sun, watching everyone enjoy the water. What a great lady she is.
Mike, Mary Clare and daughter Abby taking a break from the sun.
Abby and her boyfriend Tom.
How do you have a gathering this big? Planning and motel rooms. Help yourself pastries and fruit in the morning and everyone pitching in with the food and refreshments. Lunch was at 2:00 and dinner at 7. And even though I felt overwhelmed at times, my wonderful family shooed me out of the kitchen and made sure that I would relax. And everyone made themselves at home.

This is not to say that we didn't have a few mishaps. Emily got locked in the bathroom when the door handle fell off. I was washing my face in the upstairs bathroom after The Husband fixed a drain and water poured into the downstairs bathroom where Peggy was using the facilities. Keys were lost and the light on the boat broke so we watched the fireworks from the boat launch area. Otherwise, things went smoothly.

Many great memories were made. We had a family from Ireland as our guests and it was their first time in the States. They marveled over the food, especially the side dishes and snacks, and made new friends for life. I learned they have fireworks on Halloween!

I'm exhausted to say the least. And next week I'll be back up to wash sheets and beach towels and sweep up sand. I don't mind, it was worth every minute.

I'm joining Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday. See all of you soon! :-)

THE HOARDER ROOM

2011-06-30T09:18:00.008-05:00

Just a little post before the BIG holiday weekend. Are you ready for it? {Insert fireworks here}. I am really looking forward to another 4 day weekend. But before all the festivities start, I wanted to share some things with you. I received a nice big box in the mail the other day, a giveaway I had won, from Michele at {Primp}. I am serious when I say go visit her. She is wonderfully creative and her blog is interesting. You'll be happy to add it to your list. Anyway, I won the goodies in this picture: A cute handmade card, the latest issue of Romantic Homes, a darling change purse, a ring {which Abby promptly snitched from me}, and...
...this tray turned chalkboard. I love it! I am so inspired to use some chalkboard paint of my own.
And last but not least, I won this gorgeous burlap pillow from her. I love toss pillows, I can never have too many. By coincidence, it landed in a room that daughter Emily just cleaned out, my hoarder room or simply known as the den. We have a living room, family room, office and for lack of another name, the den. It rarely gets used, so it became a catch all for all of my thrifty finds and seasonal change outs. I also keep all of my dishes but for everyday in there. Emily went to town cleaning things out, packing up boxes of this and that for me to bring to the lakehouse.
So I tried out my new pillow in there and I think it looks good. Then I realized since the room was always a my sneaky little hoarding room, I would show you some pictures of the new improved den.
My pictures are dark as it only has one window. I keep a lot of books in there as well. I wish I had straightened them out a little for my photo shoot.
The wallpaper is very old and I'm hoping that this fall we can remove it and paint the walls a soft gray. I think it will open the room up a lot.
These are some of the pretty things I keep on the sofa table behind the settee. The table runner was just placed along the top since I like to see everything sparkle. I'm weird. Now, you can't see the wall behind me as that is where I have the dishes piled up on a table and shelves. I am hinting around to The Husband that I would love a chippy white armoire. ;-D

So this is my den. I think you have now seen my whole house. Well, maybe not Piglets room.

So we are off to the lake again tomorrow. The Husband bought a new truck for us to keep up there. He has visions of hauling the boat with it, picking up sand and fire wood and I, of course am thinking of The Worlds Longest Yard Sale next month. No more excuses that we don't have room in the car!! So...we have 26 people coming for the holiday festivities, most are staying at a nearby motel. Emily has made up the menu's and is keeping everything organized. This is what she does best and it really takes a load off me.

So, tell me what you are doing for the 4th. Parades? Fireworks shows? Picnics or BBQ's? Or just hanging out with friends and family. It's going to be a good time!! :-)

I'm joining Sherry at The Charm Of Home for her party, Home Sweet Home. See ya!

GOOD FOOD, GREAT FRIENDS

2011-06-27T14:46:00.008-05:00

I was so excited to have Cindy {from Applestone Cottage} and her husband, Dan as guests at the lake. After driving 6 hours from beautiful Black River Falls, Wisconsin, they arrived in Michigan in the early evening on Friday. We had a great time catching up on everything since our last visit in Lake Geneva, WI. back in December. And catching up over dinner we did. This is the 3rd time we have gotten together. If you have ever met up with another blogger or had the chance to really get to know one, I can tell you that a lasting friendship can be made. Cindy and I have loads in common, yet two years ago we didn't have a clue who each other was.
Saturday was gorgeous and after a lunch of chicken salad {I am on a chicken salad kick}, we took a long boat ride and showed Cindy and Dan the lake.
The Husband and Dan also get along like old friends. They stayed up late each night talking while Cindy and I konked out a 11:00. I took Cindy into our tiny little town where we went to a plant nursery. I bought a few herbs and more tomato plants and she bought a foxglove. She kindly oohed and aahed over my little vegetable patch. Saturday night The Husband made a delicious steak dinner with baked potatoes and corn on the cob. Now that I think of it, we really did a lot of talking and eating!
Sunday, after a lunch of BBQ chicken, Cindy and Dan routed there trip home with The Husband helping to maneuver them around Chicago and lots of traffic. Although we are hoping to visit them at their home, or meet up in December again for what now seems like our annual Christmas shopping trip, it seemed very quiet after they left. We took a little boat ride and then I took a bath and went to bed early. We got up at 5:30 a.m. and came back to Chicago today. Need I say we had fun? To see more pictures, visit Cindy at Applestone Cottage.
I took some pictures of my wee little cabbage patch behind the Summerhouse. I lost 2 tomato plants to rabbits that seem to just pop them out to let them shrivel up in the sun. Naughty rabbits.
I do have a tiny little pepper on my pepper plant. Isn't it the cutest?
I picked up some chives, rosemary, basil and oregano at the garden nursery and planted that on Saturday. Hopefully the bunnies will find something else to amuse themselves with.

It was a great weekend and it seemed to go by in a flash. Next weekend we have a ton of company coming for the 4th of July weekend. I think we are going from Friday until Tuesday night. After I rest up from this 4 day weekend, I will be ready again!

I want to announce the winner of my Pottery Barn giveaway, Sweet Bee Cottage has won the $50.00 gift certificate. Please send me your address via email. Thank you to everyone that left a comment. I wish all of you could have won! See you soon!

SUN AND A SHOWER

2011-06-21T09:54:00.010-05:00

It was another beautiful sunny weekend at the lake, the temps just right for sitting outside, enjoying the breeze off the bay. My pots are filling in with the flowers I planted last weekend so I thought I'd share a few pictures. I plant a lot of impatiens because I like to leave my pots in the shade where they won't dry up while we are gone.
I love this cement pot, I think I'd cry if it ever broke. I love the rustic and beautiful...
...and the whimsical. Have I mentioned that one of my closest blogger friends, Cindy from Applestone Cottage is coming to visit with her husband, Dan next weekend? We are so looking forward to it. They are coming from Western Wisconsin, a good 6 hour drive. I have finally gotten the whole house clean! Room by room I have been working away, including the little summerhouse. The Husband removed all the bird's nests from the eaves and posts...I think there was a landlord renting out empty nests. Every time the babies would fly away, a new family would move right in. After he power washed the patio, he swore...no more nests. I sort of like watching and listening to them.
So, what is this, I ask you? Saturday was the lake yard sale...tons of them everywhere, but we arrived a little late to take advantage of it. My sweet neighbor, Susie, popped over with this wicker thingie and said it had my name all over it.
It looks like something you would bring on a picnic. I'm thinking outdoor buffet with napkins and utensils. It's very neat though, isn't it? Any other ideas?
Friday night was another shower for son Kevin's fiancee, Mary Clare. It was held at her Aunt Kathy's house, which is just lovely. I tried to take outdoor pictures, but it had gotten too dark out. Tents filled the backyard with flickering candles on tables, sangria was the theme drink and the food was outstanding. Although gifts didn't have to be wrapped, some were, and Mary Clare just beamed as she opened them. I think Kevin is enjoying the showers, especially for the food. August 27th is fast approaching, and no, I don't have a dress yet.
This is daughter Emily with Mary Clare.
And my daughter, Abigail.
This is me with Mary Clare's sweet mother, Peggy. We had a wonderful time and I wish I hadn't had to leave so early but it was up to the lake.

We are leaving again on Thursday, and Cindy and Dan will be coming on Friday. Did I say I am excited? Maybe we can do a post together.

So there we have my weekend. How was yours? A winner for the Pottery Barn giveaway will be announced next week when things die down around here. Good luck!

FLOWERS EVERYWHERE AND A POTTERY BARN GIVEAWAY!

2011-06-15T07:19:00.010-05:00

I want to start this post by telling all of you that I hit my 300th post and I want to celebrate. So...I am giving away a gift card to Pottery Barn for $50.00. All you have to do is be a follower of my blog and leave a comment. Simple!

On to the good stuff. I made it to our nursery on Sunday and bought some beautiful flowers and ferns for the garden. I planted pots most of the day. Every year I'm drawn to a certain color scheme and this year it was salmon pink and white. I think they go well with the color of the house.
As I worked straight into the dinner hour, I decided it was Happy Hour. How refreshing is a glass of Pinot Grigio while you hum away when you work?
This is The Husband's little rock garden. I can't remember the name of the plant he used in it but soon it will be overflowing
We had 4 yards of sand delivered. Most of it will be shoveled into the water to add to the sandy bottom and the rest will replenish the beach. It is really hard work and The Husband enjoys it. ;-D
The wave runners were brought out of the garage finally and we are ready to get out on to the lake. The work keeps slowing us down though.
Milo casually observes all that is going on around him.
I hung salmon colored petunias on the front porch. The wisteria is growing wild but I haven't got any blooms yet. It's still too young, I guess. Soon it will grow straight up to the balcony and I doubt I will be able to hang baskets. Pots on the steps will be good.
Over the weekend, Emily worked on more details for the wedding. These jars were made with chalkboard paint and a chalk marker.
I think they turned out darling.

So that was my weekend. Busy as usual. I'm planting flowers here today {if the rain lets up} and then we have another shower to go to on Friday night. I think they are so much fun. Then it is back up to the lake, hopefully to relax.

Thanks for following along and good luck in the giveaway. Spread the word on your blog if you'd like . I will pick a winner in about a week or so. Have a great day! :-)