Changes!

Spring is definitely in the air!  After our long winter's nap the question is what to do first!  The inside of the house has been stripped of winter decor.  I am not quite ready to open up the storage containers...yes, I said containers of spring things to decorate our home.  Mostly, I want to be outside breathing in the fresh air and taking in the signs of spring in our yard.  Both my husband and I love to garden...in our yard.  It definitely is a big job!  We are a good team in that he does the planting and I am in charge of weeding!  Some times, I don't recognize the new seedling and it gets pulled out!  Don has taken to marking these endangered plants with Popsicle sticks to keep them safe from THE WEEDER!  He has already started planting vegetables in the garden.  I am torn between what I could be doing outside in the yard and all the things that need to be done inside!  Here is my tip for this blog!  Get outside!  Dine El Fresco!  We enjoyed our first dinner outside on our new and improved patio Tuesday night!   How many bug free days will we have to enjoy?  Don't waste them!  Mother Nature is full of surprises.  She could have more winter in store for us!  

Here are the pictures that I promised of our booth at the mall decked out for Spring 2012!

Why am I blogging?

I wasn't exactly dragged kicking and screaming into blogland!  Two of my daughters have blogs.  Nothing pleases me more in the morning along with my two cups of coffee than checking in to read what our amazing grandchildren are doing,

My favorite blogs are posted on the sidebar of my blog.  Each one of them has inspired me in some way!  Again the question why am I blogging?  Who am I?  What do I know that is worthy to share?  My comment to that is to say, "I love to tell people what to do!"  Nothing pleases me more than to have the opportunity to talk to someone just starting out,  either in their first apartment or a first time home owner.  My advice to them is to check out the family basement, garage, and attic to furnish their home.  Please ask permission!   Resale shops, antique malls, and last but not least curbside treasures are also places to find the perfect accessory!

How many of you registered for fine china and silver when you were getting married,  only to find out in a few years you either don't use it or love it anymore?  Looking back on our home decor in pictures, I have to smile and some times laugh out loud at my attempts at decorating through the years.  Our tastes change and we are some what dictated to by magazines as to what our home should look like.

If I can help someone by suggesting what has worked for me,  then my blogging will have served its
purpose.   I hope that you will be able to check out Antiques of Winfield where Cathy and I have our booth.  There are more than forty dealers displaying their wares.  You just might find the perfect thing for your home.  The item may be used and abused,  but the price is right!  Think of it this way, you won't have to worry about getting that first scratch on furniture that you bought brand new and paid full price.

There is an expression, "a picture is worth a thousand words!"  In this blog, no picture but close to a thousand words!  Enough said!

What season is it?

You can thank me for this mild winter! I decided to leave our porch tree up for the remainder of the winter season. How lovely to look out on the lighted tree with a back drop of snow falling.  We did have one snow fall of winter 2012 to enjoy the ambiance!  As of two weeks ago all the plants that Don carried over during the winter under lights in the basement arrived on our back porch!  Is it winter?  Is it spring?  I am so confused!  Actually, Don thanks me for all my plant stands this time of year!  There will be even more plants on the porch in the coming weeks!  I try to turn a blind eye to the chaos right now and remember how wonderful it will be when the plants move out to the garden.  Soon enough,  we will be sitting on the porch and winter will be a distant memory. 

Now here is a question for you.  If I take the Christmas tree down and we get the Blizzard of 2012 are you going to blame me?

Spring is coming to our booth at the mall!

It was very flattering to be asked by Cathy Clauson to share a booth at Antiques of Winfield this past November.  Cathy is a magnet for finding "great stuff!"  My contribution to the booth will be a combination of purging from our home's nooks and crannies and excess seasonal decorations.  It makes for a very interesting booth...in my opinion!  Thursday is my target date to decorate our booth with bunnies, vintage baskets, eggs, chicks, plaques and so much more.  I thought I would give you a photo sneak peek of what will be there.  What I am working on today is finishing up painting some items for the booth.  I love to paint!  Especially since I have been introduced to Annie Sloan Paint.  No prepping!  That is my kind of paint!  Once everything is in place in the booth, I will take more pictures to post.  Now, I must clear the dining room table (my workshop) and get to work.

March Mantle

For years, I have had to work with a narrow mantle.  Over a year ago, a church friend/artist redesigned and made a new mantle for us.  Imagine the fun I am having working with this enlarged space!  Seasonal decorating in our home has always been a fun outlet for me.  This picture shows my St. Patrick's Day mantle for this year.  Am I the only one who takes a picture, and even posts it, only to go back and change it in some way?  I guess that's where "Good, Better, Best" comes in.  :)