Month: March 2018


Mar
2018

Are You Ready For Easter?

categories: Easter

Just simple Easter plans this year, me, my husband, and our son.

My sweet little family.

So thankful that the sun finally came out after a rainy week, shining on my beautiful front door wreath.

I love adding fun touches to my home for all holidays.

Not a bunch of money is always available to buy decorations, so a cute inexpensive something I do, is to make banners.

Maybe it is because of a childhood passion of cutting paperdolls, that makes me want to work and create with paper.

Just like quilters, and folks who sew collect fabric pieces, I find it hard to pass up a lovely piece of paper or cardstock.

I printed out some Beatrix Potter bunnies for the entryway mirror, and just different spring colors and patterns for the dining hutch.

Whimsy touches that I love!

Every year, I also print out and frame, a reminder of the real reason of this holy time of the year.

Easter dinner will just be in the kitchen, a simple table setting, highlighted by cute bunny plates I found at Hobby Lobby, 40% off, less than $2 each.

This year’s menu will be ham, scalloped potatoes, green beans, and a favorite salad my family loves.

Apple pie and ice cream for dessert, with coffee.

Even though I have no grandchildren, and my son is grown, I still love to color eggs at Easter.

This year I tried using cool whip and food coloring to color the eggs, so easy!

The colors and patterns are beautiful.

Hope you all are ready for tomorrow, whether a small or large gathering.

Just being with those you love is such a gift.

So thankful to have my little family with me.

Prayers for those with no one in their lives to share special times, those alone, with no home, or folks to love.

Blessings and love.


Mar
2018

My Momma’s Birthday!

categories: Random Thoughts

Today would have been my beautiful Momma’s 94th birthday.

She was just a simple, Kentucky born girl, who only wanted one thing in her life, to be a mother and grandmother.

Her greatest joys came from her family, her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

So proud of all of us!

Never judging!

How she loved being with all of us, cooking for us, loving us!

No one could have had a better friend or sister, she was ready to help, support, and love when needed, without hesitation.

Mom was an amazing quilter.  She was always sewing, and quilting, until the last days of her life.

I keep her sewing box in my bedroom and there are many days, like today, I will open it and see her threads, needles, small pieces of fabric, and her thimbles.  Momma always used a thimble to sew.

I am like her in some ways, I make my bed everyday, I love to care for my home, I iron everything before I wear it, and I love simple homemade things.

I am not the good cook she was, I cannot sew or quilt, and I lack her unselfish ways.

Love this photo of her smiling at me!

I pray she is smiling down on me today, knowing just how much I miss her and love her.

Happy Birthday my sweet Momma!

 


Mar
2018

It’s Finally Here – Springtime!

categories: Easter, My Simple Home, Spring

According to the calendar, today is the first day of spring.

Unfortunately, the teasing continues.

Two days of warm temperatures, and then, as is today, cold, rainy, and snow.

This was a photo taken from my front door just a few days ago!

Hibernating is about over!

I guess it is about time to give up my flannel sheets.

Our woodpile is low.

Fires in our wood burning fireplace are coming to an end.

We will miss our fires, they were the center of our home during the cold winter months, drawing us to the glow and warmth.

The change is near with Easter in only two weeks.

My magnolia tree is budding, the daffodils are up, and there are so many robins in our yard, giving my sweet kitty someone to chatter with!

Yesterday, I gathered my spring and Easter items, and I also changed my front door wreath.

It will be nice to be able to sit outside once again.

Longer and warmer days ahead.

Projects will be changing from inside ones, to outside.

Today I will clean a bit, and find just the right places for all of my bunnies and chicks!

Hoping you find some sunshine in your life today.

Happy Spring!


Mar
2018

Our St. Patrick’s Day!

categories: Celebrate

I can never let St. Patrick’s Day pass without writing a bit about my husband’s Irish heritage.

His grandparents came to Ellis Island from County Galway, Ireland.

They did not come together, but met and married here, raising five sons and one daughter.

Such lovely people, religious, good, kind, and hard working.

Both living well into their 90’s.

My husband’s dream was always to go to Ireland, but that was not to be!

He is now not able to travel so much, and it saddens me that his dream will not come true.

We had a little Irish lunch celebration today, making a recipe I found on Pinterest, “Baked Reuben Sliders”.

They were yummy!

Added a bit of green to the table, and we talked about his childhood memories growing up with Irish grandparents.

Such sweet wonderful stories.

There’s an Irish Blessing, I wish for all of you today,

“may your troubles be less, your blessings be more,

and nothing but happiness come through your door”.

Love to all.

 

 


Mar
2018

Organizing My Kitchen Cabinets

categories: Home Projects

Just take that first step.

Begin.

That was all I needed to do to complete a project I had put off, ashamed to say, for years!

With a busy life, I just felt I could let it go for later, wishful thinking, it just gets messier.

I started my kitchen cabinet organization project with the two baking cabinets above my stove, they needed the most work.

Yikes!

I know, I know, the before photos are horrible!

So to begin, I removed everything from my cabinets, sorted the good from the bad, the outdated, and gave the inside of the cabinets a good cleaning.

To give order, I gathered all the containers I had on hand, although I did purchase some new canisters with a gift card given to me by my brother, for my birthday.

I also found some great “Rae Dunn” look alike stickers to add to the front of the canisters.

New spice jars were needed, eliminating all the little cans of spices that were here and there, never able to find.

I filled the jars and labeled each one, found a great set of labels on Amazon.

Glass jars worked well for so many of my baking items.

I love that I can now clearly see the items.

Using glass jars and containers standardized my organization.

No more boxes and little cans.

You can now see that sustaining, keeping this order, should be easy, everything has a place, and all containers clearly recognized.

Pleased with the outcome of this project.

Now I am not embarrassed to open these cabinet doors.

They are clean, and organized in an easy simple way.

This is just the beginning of organizing all my kitchen cabinets, next step, dishes, cups, glasses.

Today might be a good day for you to take that first step on a project you have been putting off, just begin!

Love, blessings, joy, and laughter today.

 

 

 


Mar
2018

Happy Day Out!

categories: Flea Market Finds/Thrifting

Last week I had such a wonderful, happy day out!

Before meeting my sweet sister for lunch, I stopped by the thrift store.

Found this really special bed tray for $4.00.

I had never seen one like this before, and was sure it was a vintage piece.

Well, I was sure until I found a small sticker on the back, “made in China”!

Bummer!

No matter, I love it just the same.

It only needed a bit of work, cleaned and scrubbed, sanded, two coats of white chalk paint, and a coat of wax sealer to finish up!

I also sanded the edges, so the tray didn’t have such a perfect look about it.

Love the scalloped edges, also that it can be a flat tray or bed tray.

Love it!

There are many days when I need to be alone, those many cold winter days, days when I can’t go out and sit on my back porch, so I retreat to my bed, have my coffee and read.

Have you noticed that it doesn’t take too much for me to have a happy day?

Just simple things!

A thrift store project, lunch, and lots of hugs from my sister.

Thanks for stopping by and letting me share with all of you today.

I love that I made this “vintage tray” like new again.

Blessings.