Steals & Deals

With the weather beginning to warm up, we've gotten the itch to get out bright & early on Saturday mornings to hit every yard sale in our path. On weekdays, thrift stores will do ;-).

I thought I'd share with you some of my latest finds. I can't remember what I paid for each item but believe me when I say, if I bought it, it was thrifty...

A little framed needlework. The frame was originally a light wood. I painted it with an antique white and sponged on gold paint before adding a pink ribbon. (Fifty cents, not including the paint and ribbon I had on hand.)
A set of seven hankies ($2), a (real) silver tray ($1) and an assortment of beads (twenty-five cents each).
A simple bucket (.25) that I filled with sunflowers (new, .25 each bunch)
Framed bird print ($2)
A little pewter "K" trinket box. My maiden name begins with K. (.50)

And in the office, a duck & an old school dictionary.

Well, that is a peek into my "trash to treasures". What are some of your favorite finds?

Sweet Kitchen-y Things

Want to peek into my kitchen? I spend a lot of time there so I could use the company. Entering from the living room, one of my African Violets waves hello. They are one of the few plants that I haven't killed yet (not that I try!). They are almost always in bloom. And their pretty purple flowers go with the purple & green colors I like in here...

(a little frame in the process of

getting a coat of black paint stands

by patiently waiting...)

Above the cabinets over the stove...

(a jar with layered beans and one with a cookie mix. Both were Christmas gifts I made in different years)

Above the cabinet over the "coffee station"...

A couple of things hanging on the wall...

(I LOVE pretty plates!)

A couple of corner shelves...

(One of the first teapots in my "collection"~ I LOVE teapots!!! And, what do you know...another pretty hand painted plate!

The recipe for hot chocolate mix was sent to me by my great aunt when I was a young bride, over (ahem) twenty seven years ago, along with a sweet note. I decided to bring it out of the deep recesses of my recipe box and display it along with the other things I treasure.)

Bowls and Basket

Well, those are a few of my favorite kitchen-y things. What are some of yours?

........Now if I could just find the perfect shade of yellow paint~~~

*********Responses to a few comments...

Terri, I like that saying about cats! I never heard it before but so true~

Irma, you're welcome! Glad you like it~

Gardengirl, I was knitting this:

...but now I'm done~

Thank you Annabelle ~
and Willow Rose ~
and Carolyn ~
AND everyone else that has stopped by and left sweet comments and compliments!

Lazy Day

It's a cloudy, gray day today.

It makes me feel a little lazy.

But there's work to do...

For some of us.

How do YOU like to spend those "lazy" kind of days?

Love is Still in the Air

On Valentine's Day, we had torrential downpours so our going out to dinner plans got thwarted. We simply put them off until Sunday and found our dinner to be much more relaxed and peaceful than if we had went ahead and battled the Valentine's day diner crowd. After leaving the restaurant, we stopped to score some sugar free Valentine's candy at half price. In this case, the "day late and a dollar short" saying didn't apply~we added a few dollars by waiting just one day. Oh, the difference a day can make!

(My new sweetheart apron!)

Happy Valentines Day!

First Cup of the Day

It's a beautiful morning here...

I'm so glad you stopped by...

I was just getting ready to have a cup of coffee...

Won't you join me?

It's going to be a great day!

The Joy of Cooking

Many days I haven't given any thought to dinner until it's almost too late. And we don't want to live on fast food~not good for the budget or our health. Thankfully, at this stage of my life, I've done enough cooking to be able to fly by the seat of my pants. This meal is one of those.

Turn the slow cooker on to get it going. Take frozen (or not, depending on your level of organization!) boneless, skinless breasts and plop them in the bottom of your slow cooker pot.

Season them generously with herbs and spices like these...

Pour canned crushed or diced tomatoes, a little tomato sauce & a bit of tomato paste on top of your chicken & spices...

Put the lid on & let everything get to know each other for a while.

Before you're ready to serve dinner, prepare pasta. When the pasta is done & drained, remove the chicken from the sauce, add your pasta to the sauce and combine. Serve with your choice of grated cheese (we like romano & parm) & a salad.

Yummy! So yummy I forgot to take the picture of the finished product!

Knowing how to cook without a recipe and with what I have on hand, well to me on days like these, that's the joy of cooking.

Bon appetit!

Mom's Artwork

Since Saturday was my mother's birthday, I thought I'd pay a little tribute to her here today. Over the years, my mother has done many crafty and artful things and painting, at one time, was one of them. My walls are adorned with several of her pieces of work and I thought I'd share her talent with you...

This single rose was a source of inspiration many times over for my sons to practice their drawing techniques.

This one she did from a photograph of my sons when they were small...

These colors are so bright and happy...

And another parrot...

She's very talented, don't you think? Now she pours all of that creativity into beautiful, custom made quilts. I'm so proud to be her daughter!

"I'm Giving Away My Sweet Heart" GIVEAWAY!!!

Irma's Rose Cottage, you won!

Just email me (email address in sidebar) to let me know where you would like it sent. Congratulations!!!

And to thank ALL of you for taking the time to enter and comment, I am offering 10% off anything in my etsy shop for the month of February to all sixteen of you ladies~just to say thank you. Email me and I will give you the "secret code word" then, just convo me on etsy with the code word and what you would like to order so I can adjust the price for anything that catches your fancy.

And...coming soon...The People's Choice Giveaway apron giveaway...stay tuned!!!

**************************************************************************************

Today is my mother's birthday~~~Happy Birthday Mom! Thanks for all you've done for me over the years!!! God couldn't have put me in a better family.

****************************************************************************

No, not my husband, silly~~~this one...
In celebration of the month of love, I was inspired to give away one of my handmade hearts by a bloggy neighbor. I was sad to miss her giveaway but inspired to do my own! Thanks for all the inspiration you give Cindy (which also happens to be my sweet sister's name)!


Why? Because we all deserve to have a Sweet Heart!!!

***To enter just leave a quick comment, nothing fancy, so I can (hopefully) draw your name! I'll draw the name at the end of my day on Friday, February 6, 2009. Good luck! ***
(just another view)

(psst...just between you & me...the "People's Choice Giveaway" apron giveaway is in your near future!)

I'm In the Mood for...

( ***IT'S NOT TOO LATE!!!***)

VALENTINE'S DAY!

I thought I'd share some of my Valentine decorations and gifts from my sweeties from times past...

the plates I found at my favorite thrift shop about a year ago and the little embroidered runner at a yard sale last weekend...

the napkins I found in the "dollar section" at Target a few weeks ago~look at how the patterns match!

the chandelier was bought and hung for me while I was in Louisiana this past December by a very thoughtful husband~I love chandeliers and had been wanting one for the dining room for a while...I LOVE it! (maybe I should go out of town more often ;-))

Wait a minute~~~what's this?!

Bobo is patiently waiting for some valentine's morsels.

And a few tokens of love that I have received from my romantic husband and sweet children over the years...

It's so good to be loved!

I hope wherever you are, that you are loved and adored too!