Sunday, May 29, 2011

Peace For Andrew

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Thinking of all who are and have served our Country and thanking YOU from the depth of my heart.




I met an eight year old boy yesterday at a sale I was having. His name is Andrew. Andrew was dressed in Army camouflage pants, shirt and a vest. I was curious why the little boy was wearing the outfit. When I asked Andrew about his outfit, the adorable little boy, with large brown eyes and a spattering of tiny freckles on his checks, lit up inside and shared his heartfelt story with me:




“My brother is a drill sergeant in the Marines and he gave me this outfit. My brother is going back to Afghanistan again. He has been there three times already. In my room, I have a picture of my brother and next to it a cross. I pray for him each day and pray for him to come home alive. I am very proud of my brother and love him so much. When I pray, I also pray for peace.”




Andrew was admiring a cross I had on the table for sale, the very cross that is in the photo below. He asked how much it was. I told him it wasn’t for sale and handed it to him. On the cross is the word PEACE. It was a meant to be moment…the cross was to be for Andrew. I didn’t share about my life with him but only told him I would pray for his brother.




As the adorable Andrew walked away, clutching his cross to his heart, he turned to me and said, “It was nice to meet you, Becky. I will remember you always and pray for peace.”




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As Andrew shared from his heart, his grandfather stood back and listened, tears forming in his eyes – finally having to brush them off of his cheek. Later on, grandpa added that all of his grandchildren are in the military. When he spoke those words, I could see his pride shining through.




God Bless Andrew and his family….and God Bless all of you.




Never forget a soldier and always thank those who have sacrificed their freedoms for ours.




Peace………

Thursday, May 26, 2011

randomness

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Company is coming and no time to blog…so today will just be some totally randomness around the house pics.


Off to clean!



xxoo

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Spa Therapy

P1010034 The cool weather over the weekend made for a comfortable day for hubby to work at digging away at the defunct (love that word) spa and filling it to the rim with DIRT. Yup, dirt. Duhgall’s favorite drinking bowl is now a planter bed. Why? Well, the original owner to the house put this spa smack-dab in the middle of the patio – a very unsafe place for a spa.





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A white Crepe Myrtle tree was planted in the center of the planter. Around the tree we planted white Impatiens and pink and white Dianthus. Of course, who do you think was the supervisor for the job?



Can you dig it, Fiona? Well, not DIG it, but do you like?



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In the other flower bed, the red Penstemon is showing off quite nicely this year. I think it likes living with the Begonias and Queen Ann’s Lace (aka: wild carrot – and yes, it looooves to reseed itself!)



How does your garden grow?


addendum: I am linking up with KIM at Savvy Southern Style blog for her Wow Us Wednesday Post! Check out her gorgeous bookcases that she just repainted and redecorated. Her home is amazing!

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Oh Baby, Baby!

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One of my favorite things to look for when I am out scouting for old treasures are these silver plate baby cups. Some of mine are Victorian (bottom right) and others are newer. A few have names engraved on them while others are plain or say “Baby.” They are just super sweet and don’t take up too much space in a cabinet either.


The little white cabinet (below) holds many of my smaller collections, including the baby cups. My collection is slow to grow, but there sure is room for more!


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Did you have a special cup to drink out of when you were a baby?


My special cup wasn’t silver plate but rather a lovely bone china tea cup with flowers on it. My Nanny would serve me the best oh-so-chocolate hot cocoa, homemade of course, with a smidge of fresh whipped cream on top. MMMM…oh baby, baby!


I was surfing through etsy and found some lovely baby cups for sale. Here are the links:


Victorian cup


“Jessie” Cup with a Stag


Victorian “Baby” Cup

Friday, May 20, 2011

A Sunny California Day

P1010014qToday was a bright and sunny day – finally – in California. So sunny infact, the pictures themselves are VERY bright. But nonetheless, a lovely day to putz around in the garden with the animals. As you will probably conclude after seeing the photos, Duhgall is napping – AGAIN – in his man cave. Socks and Fiona are enjoying themselves as are the bees. The wonderful coolness of the air has preserved the flowers thus far. Warmer weather is heading our way…but for now, cooler temps are the best! Gotta love it!



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Enjoy your weekend, whatever you decide to do!



Right Fiona?…my little sunbathing god-dess……

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

The Little Princess

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A sweet little baby picture + an antique brooch…


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…makes her a princess! The brooch was the “crowning” touch for this little “instant family” picture.


I love it when little things come together like this!

Monday, May 16, 2011

Wake Up Call

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Good morning……


Time to rise and shine!


“Fiona…did you hear that?”





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I know…I know…but can I just lay here a wee bit


longer?”


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“Hey, Duhgall, if we ignore her, maybe she will just go


away!”


“Good idea, Fee, good idea. Did you see the bird that


just flew by?”


xxoo

Saturday, May 14, 2011

The Challenge


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Blessed is the man, indeed,
Who in this life can find;
A purpose that can fill his days,
And goals to fill his mind!


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The world is filled with little men
Content with where they are;
Not knowing joys success can bring,
No will to go that far!


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Yet, in this world there is a need,
For men to lead the rest
To rise above the "average" life,
By giving of their best!


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Would you be one, who dares to try,
When challenged by the task;
To rise to heights you've never seen,
Or is that too much to ask?


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This is your day--a world to win
Great purpose to achieve;
Accept the challenge of your goals
And in yourself, believe!


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You will be proud of what you've done,
When at the close of day;
You look back on your battles won,
Content, you came this way!


poem by Dr. Hartsill Wilson


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I just wanted to share this wonderful poem with you. When I read it, it really brought things in my life right now into perspective. No matter the daily challenges, obstacles and hurdles can be tackled by just focusing and taking them on. We own our life. We just have to believe in ourselves, even when things get uncomfortable.


Give yourself a hug and take on the challenges of your day. *muah!* Remember, we can do anything we put our minds to. Own it! Love it! Embrace it!

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Questions and Answers

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Note: thank you to those of you who had commented on this post, but for some reason - with all of the blogger problems - your comments were deleted, and not by me. Hopefully all of the bugs at blogger are worked out now.



Hi there! For this post I thought that I would address some questions that were asked during The Parade Of Homes tour. Honestly, I am not the best at promptly responding to emails as I am not at the computer each day. So this way I hope that I can do a group response to the questions that many of you asked about collections, paint, etc.






Q: Where did you find the Ironstone in your hutch?






A: For years I have collected my pieces at thrift stores, estate sales and antique stores. The best prices are at the thrift stores and estate sales, but every so often you can get a deal at an antique store. Some of the milk & cream pitchers are marked Ironstone – England, but others are vintage restaurant pieces made by Tepco. Restaurant ware is nice and heavy, much like Ironstone. Of course, prices vary, depending on where you find a good buy. Expect to pay anywhere from $8.00 to $45.00 for a milk pitcher and $1.50 to $9.00 for a butter pat (the small little pieces stacked above.) Though my collections don’t cost three arms and four legs, they make me smile. I am a junk-n-eesta and don’t like to break the budget to decorate our home.






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Q: What are the black boxes?






A: They are antique cash/document boxes that people used long ago to store money and important papers. The boxes vary in size and condition. I don’t mind a little scratch, dent or imperfection in the pieces I buy. These can be found in antique stores, ETSY and eBay. Use “cash box” or “document box” for your search prompt. These make great storage pieces, too.






P1010072g Q:Where did you find the green lamp in the master bedroom?






A: For quite some time I have been wanting a green lamp, but it had to have a linen shade to coordinate with the linen on the French Settee at the foot of our bed. One day I visited Marshall’s and lucked out big time – there were TWO lamps on the shelf. They had a nice ride home to my house. :)P1010005sQ: Are the linens on the doors of the hutch French?






A: Yes, they are old French linens that I found at The Alameda Flea Market. There are several vendors there that specialize in French Linens and their prices are very reasonable, too. The piece above with the B and E monogram was $8.00. Yes, a great deal and it is in excellent condition. So see there, there are bargains out there!











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Q: What color of paint did you use for your walls?






A: For the downstairs, I used two different paint colors. The walls of the foyer and dining room are Sherwin Williams Latte (SW6108). It is a nice neutral color and picks up the colors of the antique prints displayed on the above foyer wall.






Below is a wall in the living room that was painted with Sherwin Williams Kilim Beige (SW6106). If you click on the links you will see that the colors are on the same paint strip. The website is really cool and you can actually do a color visualization of a room with their paint.






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Q: Where did you find the curtains in your guest bedroom?






A: I found these at a local thrift store for $4.00. The tag on them is written in Japanese and are vintage. The fabric is a raw silk with a great nubby texture.






Country Curtains has a lot of wonderful styles and fabric choices to choose from. You may find something there that you like. They do have a wonderful checked curtain – just click HERE to see.






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I do believe that the guest bedroom takes the prize as being the favorite room in our house by so many of you. If you would like to read more about the redo, you can click HERE.






If you have any other questions, just let me know and I will try to answer them for you.






I am thinking…just thinking…perhaps our house needs more buffalo checks…..like my favorite house. Dreams…dreams…dreams can come true….;)

Monday, May 9, 2011

Conjuring Up Thoughts Of Gardens Past and Present

Have there been years that your garden has just been your favorite and maybe even kept a gardener’s journal – documenting what grew best where and what did not?



One of my favorite flowers to look forward to each year are my climbing roses – always a pure joy to see their first pops of gorgeous blooms. Strong, fragrant and the bees just LOVE them!



Another flower that just pops up where ever it pleases are the Shasta Daisies. I like to think of them as God’s sprinkles of icing in the garden, being as they are unplanned by me. Then there are the forever faithful Begonias that seem to get better with each year – kind of like us girls….only get better as we get older. Now isn’t that the truth! :)P1010029oP1010023m



Years ago I bought this old garden sampler on eBay. It was one of those pieces that just spoke to me – such a sweet saying coupled with soft and old fashioned colors. The piece also made me think of my mother. Mom always had a lovely flower garden and I recall how much joy her flowers brought to her.



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Remembrance IS the sweetest flower that in the garden grows. Sweet memories. Unlike the fading of the flowers that come and go in the garden, my memories of gardens past are as fresh as the flowers that bloom today.



I would like to extend a warm thank you to all of you who were so sweet and left comments on the Parade Of Homes Tour. Your kindness is like a fresh bouquet of flowers – sweet and full of sunshine.



((hugs))



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Wednesday, May 4, 2011

The Parade Of Homes Tour






For those of you who have never visited my blog, and for those who already have, let me take a moment to say HELLO and WELCOME to Home #30 on the Parade Of Homes Tour.



A HUGE thank you goes out to Toni, our beautiful and creative genious for the current Parade Of Homes tour. If you click on the above button, you will be navigated to the very beginning of the tour, which began on May 1st. There are so many talented women participating in the Parade, so be sure to sit down and relax and enjoy their gorgeous homes.


Onwards now to our quaint cottage – a small Cape Cod home nestled on a street with other pretty New England style homes. We had always dreamed of living on this street and when a home became available, and the model we liked the most, we sold our other home and moved in. The home had been neglected and there was tons of work to be done. Over time, the cottage has taken on small transformations – and large ones, like the kitchen remodel and the half bath redo. Though there are still projects yet to do, I will share with you the house – the presentable rooms (smile) – for now.


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The front porch.


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Come on in….Fiona, our Wheaten Scottish Terrier, will greet you. (Our other scottie, Mr. Duhgall, is napping in the closet – his “man cave.”)


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Entering the great room.


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Fiona is napping in the granny chair.


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The Formal Dining Room:


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Come on in to our kitchen.


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Walking towards the laundry room and half bath.


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The guest bedroom:


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The Master Bedroom:



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P1010108g Miss Socks finds the bed quite comfy, don’t you little Missy?



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This concludes the tour of our small cottage. Thank you for taking the time to visit!



Wishing all of you a Happy Mother’s day, too.



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Your next stop will be to Amanda’s BEAUTIFUL home! Her transformed laundry room is amazing!!! Just click on the button below.




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If you have missed out on some of the homes, just click on the button below to take you to the very beginning of the tour.



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Run along now! You won’t want to miss out on the fun!



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