Relax and regroup

I requested and was granted an extra day off work this weekend so I have a 3 day weekend ahead of me. So nice! As I said yesterday, my plan is to stay home and work on my quilt and do some cleaning and whatever I set my mind to do. It feels very good just to have 3 days to relax and just so whatever I want. And sort-of regroup.

I'm re-reading some books I haven't picked up in years. Miss Read, or her real name, Dora Saint, is an English authoress who is one of my favorites. I discovered her many years ago quite accidentally while looking vaguely for a book in the fiction section of the library. I picked up a book called The Christmas Mouse. It's title was appealing and it was a skinny book and just sounded interesting. I fell in love! Since that time, I've read everything of hers I could get my hands on and have scoured used book stores and flea markets to buy my own copies. My MIL, during her many trips back to England would always bring me some back and when she passed away, I inherited her copies. And so, I have an almost complete collection of Miss Read's books on my book shelves. Some are duplicates but I don't care. She writes about English country life in Cotswold villages and it is full of English expressions and habits and her characters just spring to life. They really make you look at the simpler things of life and enjoy what you have - family, friendships etc. Her village stories encompass two different series - one of Fairacre and one of Thrush Green. I'm re-reading the Thrush Green series right now and it's been so long since I've read them, it's almost like it's the first time. For me, to curl up with one of her books is a lovely way to spend an afternoon!

Well, didn't intend to do a book review here - just chatty, I guess. So, with that, I guess I'll close and visit all of you before I get started with whatever I decide to do. Stay warm and safe and have a lovely weekend. I'll leave you with a picture I got off a site called Cute Overload. It features cute animal photos that people submit along with the some very funny narration! A larger version of this is on my desk top and I grin every time I look at it.

A gray, rainy day.

I woke up to the sound of rain lashing the window and it looks like the rain has settled in for the day. I knew it was coming according to the weather forecast and with it, 2 or 3 days of cold temps at night. It feels like a good day to go back to bed and indeed, I feel very sleepy as I write this. I don't have much planned for today except the normal house-hold chores to do before work. Then I'm off for 2 days and I'm so grateful!

I've been reading about the awful weather throughout the country. I talked to my daughter in Oklahoma yesterday who said that it looked like it was trying to thaw out a bit. She is a teacher and they had no school again yesterday but expected to go back today. I'm reading about horrible ice storms and downed power lines. Whenever I think of no power here in Florida, I think of summer with tropical storms and the like. Then it's miserable because the heat. But to be without power with temps down in the 10's and lower, to me would be worse. My prayers are with all those affected - those without power and those working around the clock to restore the power.

I don't have any great plans for this weekend. It is supposed to continue with rain tomorrow and I'm all stocked up with groceries and whatever else I need. I don't even have to leave the house the two days I'm off. I want to start on my quilt this weekend and just putter around the house. Home is my favorite place to be!

I've been contemplating my hopes and plans for this year. Last year seemed frenzied to me. My thoughts and plans seemed to center a lot around vacations or week-end getaways. I had three mini vacations at Disney World that when I think back at the cost, makes me wonder where my head was! It was like I was trying to just keep busy and entertained and not think. This year, I'm much more contemplative. My desire is to simplify my life a bit - in my surroundings and in what I fill my life with. I want to read more, work on my quilt, give myself permission to relax and listen to God's voice. It seems like 7 years of "learning how to be widow" has made me forget how to be "Melanie". As the Apostle Paul said in the Bible, "forgetting those things that are past, press on..." You never really forget the past. But the time comes when it's time to go forward. And with that, I need to be still and let God reveal His plans for my life. I suspect they may be a bit different from what I thought they were.

Hope you all are safe and warm and coping with the ice and snow. Spring will certainly be welcomed this year!

The many faces of winter!

I'm sitting here right now in high 60 degree temps and reading about others engulfed in snow and many without power. My daughter in Oklahoma called yesterday and she was home as school had been cancelled. She rather expected it would be today as well since they were forecasting more "wintry mix" weather. I emailed her and have not received an answer which is very unusual so I'm wondering if she is without power. I'm going to call her this morning. It's been a hard winter for those of you up north!

I received an unexpected phone call this morning. The name on the caller ID sounded very familiar and the area code I recognized from upstate New York where I grew up. It was a guy I graduated from high school with and he was trying to track down missing class mates. We had a great talk and it was so nice to connect with someone from high school after all these many years. I've never gone to any reunions because no one knew where I was and even though I registered with Classmates.com I couldn't find anyone. It was a nice beginning to a day!

My daughter and I talked some yesterday about my trip to OK in June. We plan on going away for the night, just the two of us, just to have some fun. We talked about Branson which is not too far from her. I've emailed for some info since I don't know much about the area. If any of you have been there and have an suggestions for lodging or shows, let me know. She and her family only went there one Sunday to attend a church there and so doesn't know much more herself.

Well, I'm going to close this and go visit some of you. My Simple Devotions is up for the week, should you care to visit. Have a great day and I hope you all are safe and warm.

Another week begins.

The days seem to fly by lately. It's hard to believe that we are already near the end of January.

I'm trying to finalize my vacation request for June to hand it in. My plan is to go to Oklahoma and be there for my daughter's birthday - June 5. I'm toying with the idea of taking a full 2 weeks off. I would go the first week to OK and then the next week have just to relax and maybe do a day trip or two. I've very seldom every taken 2 weeks off like that and it would be nice.

I didn't get anything accomplished that I wanted to this last weekend. Mom had some issues I had to deal with and that took some time. This weekend, my plan is to go absolutely nowhere and perhaps begin my quilt. I love those days off when I wake up with no obligations pressing in.

No more news has come from Texas and my father. I guess, "no news is good news". I am hoping he got my letter though I don't expect he will write back. No news from Vermont and the new grand baby either though I did get a message from my DIL on my Face Book page. I haven't heard anything from my younger son either about recording progress of their CD. Last I knew, they were towards the end. Mike had already laid down his drum tracks and they were finishing up the vocals. I think they're tentative date for release is the latter part of February.

Not a lot to report around here. There are numerous bird coming to the feeder now, many different kinds. My friend at work is going to loan me a book so that maybe I can identify some of them. They certainly are eating me out of house and home. Saturday, I did buy a bigger container for water. It's actually a terra cotta shallow bowl that goes under a plant pot to catch water but it works very well for the birds. I'm also having several squirrels eating seed off the ground around the feeder.

My Simple Woman's Day Book entry is up if you'd care to visit. I'm off to visit some of you. Have a lovely week.

My Saturday morning post.

I don't know about you but I always have a difficult time coming up with a title for my post. I could just call it, "Saturday, January 24, 2009" but that sounds just so boring. I want something witty but the "witty" gene is just not giving me anything. Hence - my rather boring post title.

We're supposed to have warmer temps for awhile now, last night being our last night in the 20's and 30's. One of my blog friends pointed out to me that just a few weeks ago I was longing for colder weather. I laugh because I remember saying that too but when the real cold temps come, I become a wuss and remember that I really don't like it very cold. I think the problem is having to go out in it. If it's cold or snowy and I want to go out, that's okay. But having to go out in it late at night - well, as I said, I'm a wuss. Or perhaps just not easily pleased!

Friday night (or actually, Saturday morning) when I came home from work and crawled into bed, I had one of those "utter contentment moments". I had 2 days of being off work to look forward to and just crawling into the warm bed and cuddling up with my Doc-Boy (if you've just tuned into my blog, that's my silky terrier!) was bliss. It all came to me of how very blessed I was - with a job, a warm, solid home, food in my kitchen, family that loved me and a little furry friend to keep my company. My income bracket is just about in the middle of things: too much income to qualify for food stamps and not enough to take a world cruise. But at that moment, I felt very rich.

I had my hair cut yesterday and my hairdresser, Holly announced to me that she was now a vegan. That means - no meat, poultry, cheese, eggs etc. As one of my friends once put it - "If it has a face, you can't eat it". Holly reported that she felt so much better since beginning it - more energy, lost 10 pounds, etc. She had also stopped using Splenda or any other artificial sweetners after something she read. Apparently, according to what she read, Splenda has small amounts of arsenic. Of course, I had to come home and google it and I did find many sites that said the same thing. On one site, a person reported suffering from joint and muscle pain especially in the hips and legs and increased inflammation. She stopped using the Splenda and they went away. It's an interesting read and if you'd like to check it out you can click here. The article caught my attention since for the last 2 or 3 months, I have had a lot of pain and "flare ups" of the fibro. I probably ingest at least two Splenda packets a day - maybe more if I have sugar free pudding or jello etc. I try to be open minded but not swallow things I read hook, line and sinker but I think I'm going to go off Splenda completely for a few weeks and see how I feel.

Not sure of my plans today except to do some sewing. I have a couple of "pillow" ideas I want to begin. My white bedspread did come in and I'm using it with a small rag, pink rose quilt laying out on the foot of the bed. With some pretty, colorful pillows at the head, I think I'll like the effect. If that is the case, then I think my next project will be a quilted wall hanging rather than a bed quilt. If I do a bed quilt, it probably will be a twin size for accent rather than to cover the whole bed. Why is the hardest part of a starting a project deciding which to do?

Hope you all are doing well today. I'm off to visit some of you and then get some breakfast.

Starting to thaw out!

Wow, I think I experienced the coldest night I've ever had living in Florida, at least that I can remember! The local news channel had it predicted to bottom out at 6 degrees and although I don't think it got that low, it was cold!! My car said 24 degrees when I got in it at midnight but I'm sure that with the wind chill factor, it was even colder outside. I was very glad to get home and into my warm bed.

Thank you to everyone and your kind words concerning yesterday's post. If you have just "tuned in", you can scroll down and read what I'm talking about. I did get a later email from my Dad's youngest daughter who tells me that me he is sitting up in bed and with help, can get to the bathroom. He's still eating too and so that's a good sign. In my heart of hearts, I still don't think he will be with us very much longer. I've been blessed to have reconnected with him. I feel more complete somehow.

Tonight is my last night at work before my weekend off. I'm looking forward to just getting things done around the house. I do have a hair cut scheduled and I really need it! I also want to either begin 1.) a quilted pillow for my bed, 2.) a quilted wall hanging for the bedroom or 3.) a twin sized quilt for my bed. It probably is going to be a pillow. I have bid on some fat quarters on E-Bay that I will use for the bed quilt if I win them. I'll know tonight. They are some rose tones and very pretty. Fat quarters, if you're not familiar with the term are pieces of fabric a little over 1/4 yard in size. I had to ask too!

I heard something on the TV last evening about a "proposed buyout at Disney". Not being very economics-savvy, I'm not sure what that means. I tried to Google it when I got home from work but it still wasn't clear to me. Apparently there are buy-out offers being put out and if there are no bites, then Disney will start laying off employees. Their hotel reservations are down as well as park visitors, I understand and I guess that should not be surprising. With people losing their jobs and homes, nobody has the money for expensive vacations, not to mention the cost to stay in one of their hotels. As much as I love the place, I pale when I think of what I spent last year to stay in one of the rooms at the Wilderness Lodge. I think those days are over for me. A wonderful thing to experience, but not a life-style I can continue to cultivate.

Our weather here is going to be warmer and more seasonal for us after tonight. Hope my northern friends are thawing out as well. And for my Australian friends, enjoy your sun!!

Until later...

A beginning and perhaps an ending.

I had mixed emotions all day yesterday. I watched the inaugural proceedings sporadically as we spore in a new president. In between all that I was getting emails from various family members in OK and Texas that my father is failing rapidly and that hospice has been called in.

My history with Dad is complicated and lengthy. If you'll bear with me, I can fill you in on the highlights. He and my mother divorced when I was around 2 years old and she remarried soon afterward. It was my step father who basically raised me. My father was in the military, stationed overseas for a good deal of his time. Through out the years, I was led to believe by my mother and grandmother that he basically just wanted out of my life. I found out later that instead he had been writing me but the letters never got to me but instead were destroyed by my mother and grandmother. They apparently felt they were "protecting" me. When the letters escalated and he began asking to see me and perhaps let me live with him for awhile, my mother panicked and pushed to have my step father legally adopt me. My father did make a visit to see me and make sure that the adoption was what I wanted. It was, of course, because I didn't know this man who said he was my father. And with that, I didn't hear from him again.

However, he always had me in his heart and when I became an adult, tried to find me but couldn't remember the little town in upstate NY that I had lived in. At the same time, I often thought of him. Did he still think of me? Does he love me? I felt a part of my life unanswered. When I was only weeks away from having my youngest son, I received a phone call. It was from him. After a chance conversation with a client who was from upstate NY who mentioned the name of the town, my father began making phone calls and several calls and hours later, I received the call from him. He came to see me 3 months later and we have visited several times since. Each visit has been like puzzle pieces being put into place in my life. From that first meeting, it was very evident that I was his daughter, from physical characteristics to mannerisms. Then, in 2006, I was able to meet several cousins I didn't even know I had. When I left OK on that trip, I felt like a piece of my heart was left behind.

Now, Dad is failing with respiratory and cardiac issues. Trying to get the money and time together to see him isn't as much of a problem as family dynamics. His wife has never accepted me and it is a consensus of opinion that a visit from me would make her very upset at this emotionally charged time. I understand and I'm okay with it. I've written him and we talked on the phone a few weeks ago. We both knew then that his time was perhaps short.

Please forgive the lengthy post today. I guess I need to "talk" to someone. I'm full of conflicting emotions right now - anger that I lost so many years with a Dad I never knew but thankfulness that God orchestrated our reunion. I lost a dad, found him and then am about to lose him again - all without ever being able to develop a relationship that a father and daughter should have.

If you've stuck with me this long in this lengthy post, I thank you for listening". You are true friends.

A bit warmer today but only for today.

I posted in my Simple Woman's Day Book this morning and thought I'd add something here. It was quite pleasant last night when I came home from work - breezy and if the air had been warmer, I would have been tempted to open the window to sleep. Today it's sunny and cool but we have freeze warnings again beginning tomorrow night.

I love to look at women's blogs who include photos of rooms in their home or different little arrangements of things through-out their home. I always come away inspired and think, "I never thought of that!". So, I look around and see what I can do that is different. Perhaps if some of you visited my home, you might recognize some of your style! I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery (or something like that) and so I'm grateful to you all who have a keen decorating eye. In the next few weeks, I hope to have some more photos of my home up for you to see. And if you see any of your rooms in my photos, please let me know and I will give you credit!

There have been several bird visiting my feeder each day now - little sparrows, I think and today a squirrel was on the ground eating bird seed that had dropped. I don't think he can shimmy up the pole to get to the feeder.

Well, not much happening around here so I'll go and visit some of you all. Have a great day!

Sunny and warmer

After two very cold nights, it looks like we're warming up a bit the next couple of days. Friday night was our coldest - in the 20s and I was very glad to cuddle up on the couch and watch TV. As it was, even in the warm house, I had my fuzzy slipper on and then wore socks to bed. If my feet get cold, I'm cold all over!

I have finally finished, I think, with my bedroom and it's new decorations. I've never had my bedroom like this before and I'm really pleased with it. It's all pink and roses and "crystal" looking - maybe not to every one's taste but it's so pretty for a change. I have a multicolored quilt on my bed now with a pink rag throw quilt on top. Originally, my thought was to have a white bedspread, perhaps chenille and then the throw on top of that. The plan was to make a quilt for later on. My concern with a white bedspread is that because of the white walls, it will just blend in. So, I may keep things as they are for now.

I moved the tea set to it's own little table covered with a white table cloth (it's a pretty junky table!) until I can get a little tea table. The tea set is so pretty and it just didn't seem to stand out on the dresser. I also bought some candle holders for the dresser - very shabby chic and they look crystal even though they are acrylic. I also found a little lamp of the same and it looks so pretty. Here are a couple of photos.

It's difficult to see the lamp as well because it's lit. And, please excuse the cable wires on the floor. They're permanent and they keep coming out from behind the dresser where I put them. In the middle of the dresser is a photo of Alan and on either side, me as a baby with my mother and the other with my father.


A close up of the photos.


A better photo of the lamp. The base was bought at K-Mart and the shade was made by an E-Bay store called "Silky Woods".

I updated my craft site with some things I've done over the weekend, including the fan decoration on top of my jewelry box, in case you'd like to take a peek.

Hope you all are having a restful Sunday and weekend. I'm back to work today. Until later...

We have birds!

On this cold, cold morning, I finally had some birdie visitors at my new bird feeder (or at least the general area). I noticed a little bird taking sips of water from the little bath I created there and later he and several of his friends were feeding on the spilled bird seed on the ground underneath the feeder. So, word is out there is a free meal here. I hope to see more soon.

Tonight is supposed to be our coldest night in a long time and I'm so thankful that I'm off work tonight and the next. I can cuddle up with Doc and Thelma on the couch and watch TV and doze. So nice! Tomorrow I may venture out to the grocery store, or maybe not.

I haven't heard much from the Vermont homestead except to talk to my grand daughter on face book. She says that Mom is holding up well and that Joshua is doing fine. If you have tuned in late, Joshua is my newest grand baby, born on the 12th. I have another picture of him taken soon after he was born.

This looks to be taken soon after he was born. He looks a little disinterested in things or maybe he was just worn out. Being born is hard work!

I have a couple of days planned to do some craft projects and perhaps even start on a patchwork pillow or quilt wall hanging. I'm still undecided whether to tackle a large quilt for the bed. My Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt is still in the plans but it may become a wall hanging or at the most, a lap or twin bed quilt. The trims I ordered off E-Bay are finally here so I'm going to get going. I'll let you know when I have something done and I'll post it on my craft blog.

I watched the drama on TV yesterday afternoon when the plane made a splash landing in the Hudson River in NY. What a miracle that no one was killed! NYC can once again feel pride for the quick response of those who rescued people - even the Circle Line which is a sightseeing boat. I keep changing my mind about whether to drive or fly when I go to Oklahoma in June. Right now, driving sounds pretty good. It amazes me that a flock of birds can take down a huge airplane!

I guess I'll close here and go and visit you all. I hope you have the coffee pot on and the heat cranked up, cause it's cold outside! Except maybe my friends in Australia who are sitting in the air conditioning! Until later...

Oh, yes, and thanks to my dear friend, Judy for the cute siggie!

Windy and cold - even the dogs are wearing sweaters!

At work, we have a frequent visitor to one of our patients. She is a Bichon Frise called Nicky and is she ever cute! She is accompanied by our patient's wife and is so sweet and well-behaved. The other day, she came in wearing a lime green "dress" with the words "Dogalicious" across the top. Then, yesterday evening as it was getting pretty chilly, she came strutting in wearing a pastel-striped sweater. With her fluffy, white coat, it was quite striking and she was just adorable! I wish I had my camera 'cause I would have taken a photo for you all. Such a cute, well mannered dog who is definitely a fashion diva! My Doc-Boy wouldn't stand for that kind of nonsense! He's be rolling around all over the floor trying to get it off!

With all that said, I can confirm it is rather chilly right now. The Weather Bug on my computer says 46 but I'm not convinced. This morning with I took Doc out, it was cold! It is supposed to get into the high 20's tonight. I realize some of you may be rolling your eyes right now at such "mild" winter temps - but for Florida - that's pretty cold. The worse night is supposed to be tomorrow night and I'm glad to say that I'll be home in my nice, warm house.

I've seen no birds at my feeder this morning. I look out every time I pass the window hoping to see one or two. I guess the word isn't out yet that there is a free meal here. Still hoping.

Not much to say right now. I'm debating whether to go to the grocery store before I go to work and then I wouldn't have to go tomorrow. I love those days off work when I go absolutely nowhere! I'll think about it.

Stay warm and have a lovely day!

Cold but sunny!

It was a pleasure to see the sun out this morning after almost two days of drizzly, wet weather. But it is cold out, especially by Florida standards. We are in for a hard freeze Thursday night into Friday morning.

This morning when I opened the blinds to my kitchen window, a bird quickly flew away from the feeder. I must have startled him so from now on, I'm just leaving the blinds up at that window. There is a lot of vegetation around the perimeter of my back yard and so not too much visibility anyway. I went out and changed the bird seed because of all the rain so hopefully my bird friend will return and bring some of his family or friends.

I had some very strange dreams last night. It seemed that every emotional conflict that I ever had came out in what was going on and I was either crying or very angry throughout most of the dream. So, I woke up rather relieved to see the morning and not feeling very well rested. I hate those nights! Sometimes when I dream like that, I try to sort out what is really bothering me but there was so much bothering me during these dreams, I don't know where to begin! So, I think I'll just chalk it up to the bedroom becoming too warm and a stuffy nose.

My Simple Devotion is up and you can visit it by clicking on the graphic below.

Parts of the country are having record cold temps, I understand. So, for those of you having 30 degree below zero, please forgive my whining when it's 30 here! Stay warm and safe. Time to go and visit all of you!

An award!

Karen at Homespun Simplicity has given me the Proximidade Award. Thank you, Karen!

This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are extremely charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly written text into the body of their award."

I am passing this award on to:


Judy at Judy's Country Home
Kathy at My Home & My Heart
Katy at The Country Blossom
Judy at My Grateful Heart
Joyce at Brookside Cottage
Tracy at Buttercup Hill
Susie Q at Rabbit Run Cottage

Rainy and cold!

Our cold front is moving in. We had rain off and on from yesterday evening and still it's misty out there. And it's not damp and cold with the promise to get colder. It feels good being inside my warm home this morning.

My shopping and lunch time with my friend on Saturday was fun although we didn't hit as many little shops as I had anticipated. We did find one little shop, sort of off the highway and obscure that had the cutest hand painted things. This lady and her daughter took ordinary things, mostly wood and turned them into works of art. I love sunflowers and have lots of sunflower things in my kitchen. Here is the plaque I bought there. It's a bit bright in the middle of the plaque from the camera flash but of all the pics I took of it, this one showed it's true colors the best.


This lady had painted rolling pins, old wooden bowls and the cutest was an old school desk with the desk attached to the chair (you remember those?). She had painted the top and it was a treasure!

I also got a bird feeder and pole for the yard to hang it on. My friend has several bird feeders in her yard and is somewhat of an expert, so she was the perfect one to help me pick one out. I put it up Sunday morning and so far no visitors but it takes awhile, I understand.

I haven't talked to the proud parents of my newest grand son since Monday morn, but they update on their facebook all the time and things seem to be going well. They've posted lots of pictures there. I'm asking my son to find the best ones and maybe either send a copy or order some at Walmart for me to pick up. He could send them to me email but my printer does not print photos well and I want some nice ones to show off.

I'm sleepy this morning. Don't know if it's the weather or if I'm truly tired but I'd just as soon go back to bed. I may have to sneak a nap in before I go to work this afternoon.

Not much more to say so I guess I'll close and maybe get another cup of coffee and try to wake up! Have a great day!

Just call me Grandma!

I have news!

I am a new grandma! Joshua Aaron was born this morning at 12:08 a.m. He weighed in at 8lbs and 1 oz and is 21 3/4" long. I've got a picture here I got from Jim's facebook but it will only let me copy the teenie one so you can't see very well. I'll post better ones when Jim sends them to me.

Tina had a home delivery with a midwife and things went very well. I'm so proud and happy right now and wish I could fly right up there but it won't be able to be until later in the year. Sigh!

Not much else to mention here. I'm going now to post on my Simple Woman's Daybook right now.

Hope you're having a great day. I'll post more info and pictures as I can.

Waiting for a baby.

Still no word yet on the little one's arrival. My newest grand baby is just not ready to make its entrance yet, I guess. I talked with Tina and although she is having the usual preparatory contractions, they're not regular. I'm a bit nervous because they are having a home birth and so I'm thinking of the snow and will the midwife get there on time and all sorts of things. I've been praying for her off and on the last couple of days and will be very happy and relieved when the news comes.

I'm going to lunch with a friend from work today. We're going to Brooksville where there is a cute little tea room and lots of gift and craft shops. I want to get some sachet or pot pourri or whatever you put in those little sachet pillows. I also am on the look out for a small quilt with little roses - something delicate and cute for my bedroom. I only want it for the foot of the bed so it can even be a throw size. I've found several on E-Bay I like but I'd like to find something locally. It should be a fun day.

Yesterday I had to order one of those converter boxes from Amazon for my mother's TV. She doesn't have cable where she is so in mid February when all the TV signals change, she'd have nothing. She did apply and receive one of those coupons through the government for $40 off a box but she didn't read it very closely and yesterday when she finally showed them to me, I saw that they had expired on 11/4. Apparently there are only so many available, so if you let yours expire or lose it or whatever, you can't get a replacement and your expired coupon is issued to someone else. The long and short of it is that we had to find one full price. God bless Amazon - they had several and I ordered the mid range for $47.99 (with free super saver shipping!). This reminds me again that I've got to watch things more closely with Mom. I just can't assume that she has things in order. I wonder how much longer she can live on her own.

I guess I'll close this off and go and visit you all. I haven't checked in with my friends for a couple of days and I'm feeling out of the loop! Have a great Saturday!

A rainy, windy day.

We have a cold front coming through and so it's rainy and getting a bit chilly. We can use the rain and it's rather cozy inside right now so I don't mind.

My Simple Devotion post is up. You can find the link on the side bar.

A quick, short post, just to say hi! I hope to have more photos of my "redecorating" tomorrow.

God bless.

It's Christmas all over again!

Judy's give-away that I won arrived yesterday and it was so exciting to see everything! It felt like Christmas all over again. Here is a photo of all the goodies.

She added a cute little Christmas wreath that was a surprise and a bonus!

Her granddaughter, Emily drew a picture of herself to send me. It now has pride of place on my fridge (where all the important stuff goes!). Thanks so much, Judy and Emily!

No word yet on the birth of the new grand baby. I called yesterday and my grand daughter whose 13th birthday it was yesterday answered the phone. Jim had taken Tina for an appointment but no labor so far. She usually goes past her due date so I expect the news any day now.

I hope to have some more photos of things around the house tomorrow. I'm also hoping to decide what quilt project to begin. My plan had been for quite some time to begin my Grandma's flower garden quilt. It is completely hand pieced and to my mind, sounds like it will take the rest of my adult life to complete. I was advised by a lady at a local quilt shop that hand piecing is not as durable as machine stitching and for a quilt that is used a lot such as on a bed and requires frequent washing - that hand piecing may not be the way to go. I'm not sure I agree since there are many, many old quilts lovingly hand pieced by grandmothers etc that are still together today. But, I'm thinking of maybe a 9-patch design for a bed quilt. It would be quicker and I could have a bed quilt sooner. In the meantime, I can be working on the GFG one.

Hope you all are having a great week so far. It's life back to normal now and the excitement and bustle of the holidays over with. It feels kinda good to be back that way. Until later...

A day book entry and more photos

Today is the day for my Simple Woman's Day Book. I decided to give my day book it's very own home. The link is on the side bar but you can also access it here.

And as promised......here are some more pictures of my bedroom.


My bed with it's vintage pillow cases. Eventually, I want to get another quilt - a shabby rose or something like that or perhaps a quilt that I've made. Right now my quilt doesn't quite cover the end of the bed.


This is one of my vintage pillow cases. I have 2 different ones on my bed right now. You can see the photo of the other one on my day book.


This is a coffee table that was my MIL's. I put it at the end of the bed and put some pretty silk roses and hydrangeas in a vase. The basket holds some antique handkerchiefs, a crotchet washcloth, a handmade lace collar and a couple of sachets. I want to make a few little sachet pillows to put there as well.


A close-up of the sachet basket.


A close-up of the beautiful embroidery work on the vintage scarf on the end of the bed table. I won it on an E-bay auction and almost didn't get it because someone outbid me and then at the last minute, they retracted their bid. Lucky me!!


Here is the vanity tray on my dresser. I've laid a white, heirloom handkerchief, a small pair of little, lace gloves and a string of pearls to make it look very feminine.


This is my pride and joy! I spent months collecting these pieces. I love tea cups and this pattern is Royal Albert Old Country Roses. I actually bought the tiny little basket in the foreground at Epcot in the United Kingdom pavilion years ago never dreaming that I'd add to the collection later on. My plan is to find a little tea table just for this but for now...it sits safely on my dresser. In the background you can just see a little photo of my mother holding me as a baby.

So.....this concludes your tour of my bedroom. I'll put up some pics of various things I've put around my living/dining/kitchen area later on in the week. So, if you're not too bored...check back!

I hope to have some news too about a new little grand baby. I'm going to call there today and see what's going on!

Until later... have a wonderful day.

Open house tour - Part One

Many of you have been asking to see photos of my decorating endeavors of this past weekend, so I thought I'd add a few a day of the highlights. As I mentioned before, my "redecorating" is mostly bringing out old and new things and redecorating with those. If I was really getting serious about changing things, I'd tear out the kitchen cabinets and re-install new ones, get a new stove, tear up the carpet and put down wood inlaid floors and paint the walls a warm or soft color, depending on the room - I could go on and on. And so I'm decorating my little rental home with pretty things that make me smile.

First of all is a little hat I picked up at E-Bay and refurbished. It's not a full-sized hat, only about 12" in diameter. You can see more photos of it on my craft blog.



This is a little corner shelf that I inherited from my late MIL. I always admired it and it's a cute size to fit just anywhere. You can see my bed to the left of it. Unfortunately, you can also see my phone and computer connection jack as well. It's difficult to be charming and quaint in a high-tech world!



One the top shelf are these little vases that I actually got from a grab bag at our work Christmas party.


This is my Royal Albert Lavender Roses tea cup and saucer. It matches very closely a tea pot that Alan bought me in England just 2 months before we married.


Here is a little antique purse that belonged to my Great, great Aunt Pearl. One of her handkerchiefs is peeking out from it. Next to it is a little egg that opens up, part of the grab bag set you saw above.


I'll try to add some photos at least every other day until you all get too bored and tell me to quit.

No new grand baby news yet from Vermont, but my granddaughter in Oklahoma had her "sweet sixteen" birthday party last night. It is actually a month late because her birthday fell at the time 2 of her classmates were killed in a car accident and so the timing was just not good for a party. She looks so grown up!

Hope you all are having a relaxing Sunday. Tomorrow, school restarts here and it will be back to life as usual. Have a lovely day!

The dust is flying!

I had a pretty uneventful NY Eve and Day. I worked both days and so they pretty much felt the same as any other. I had given report to the night nurse and she was doing the narcotic count when the ball dropped so she stopped and came out to watch it. We all hugged and wished each other "Happy New Year" and then Carol went back to the narcotic count. One of the CNAs had made black eyed peas and brought in for our "good luck" dinner and I had made corn bread and another brought in a very nice veggie tray and dip. We all loved the veggie tray and had vowed we weren't going to bring any dessert to this NYE dinner of ours! We are so "cookied-candied" out from Christmas!

I am on Day 2 of my "rearranging-redecorating-redoing" of some of my home. Yesterday, I got my bedroom in "almost-done" order. I'm very pleased with how it's turning out and I'll have some pics soon, I hope. Today, I'm going to work on the kitchen and living room.

Lest all this sounds very ambitious and you think I'm super woman - my "redecorating etc" is merely moving a few things around and adding some things I've bought. Being in a rental home, I can't redecorate as far as painting and tearing up carpet (which I would dearly love to do) and tear down kitchen cabinets. Well, I could paint the walls, perhaps if I really tried to convince the property management but then I'd have to repaint them all back white when I left. I prefer to just let my decorating tastes (or lack thereof) be expressed with my furniture and color and what my Mom calls "knick knacks". For the last 2 months, I have been combing the "aisles" of E-Bay and other places for things to give my home more charm and distinctiveness. If you asked me what my favorite style is, I would probably answer "country" or "victorian". Now, I've sort of redefined myself and found that part inside of myself that I can express in my decorating style. Just a long-winded way of saying I bought a few things and I really like! Anyway, in the next few days, I'll try to get some photos up here and let you see what I did. Sort of an "open house" in my home.

Weather here is a pleasant upper 60's right now and supposed to get a bit warmer before another cold front comes down. I've had the heat on some the last few days but today the doors and windows are open and it's nice to have fresh air coming in. Now that Christmas is over, I don't mind so much not having the cold and the snow. And if truth be told, I wasn't too crazy about having to scrape off windshields and shovel paths that winter I lived in Tennessee.

One bit of news that I haven't mentioned in awhile is that I am about to be a grandma again (my 10th)! My Vermont family is expecting their 7th on Jan.4 and so I'm awaiting the phone call. Their oldest child, Christiana celebrates her birthday on the 5th and I'm hoping that the little one doesn't choose that day. It's probably going to be fall before I can get up to see them and the new little one. I'll keep you posted!

Hope you all have having a relaxingly and great New Years weekend. Take care!