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Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Vintage Valentine Finds

I Looove wandering the resale shops,
you never know what you'll find there.

A few weeks ago I found this vintage  
runner with a pretty red crocheted edge.



Perfect for a Valentine's Tea Buffet
or may be a mantle scarf.

 I more recently found a cute little Valentine tin


with sweet vintage style graphics all around...








Here's a closer look at the lid...









...a little winged cherub wearing a blacksmiths apron
fashioning red hearts with his little anvil and hammer.


and,
 this little vintage booklet filled with Valentine Poetry.

Here's a look at the inside cover page.

Inside are many Valentine poems
like this one...



I'll be sharing more of these sweet vintage poems in  later posts so be sure to stop back often.

Sharing at   Rednesday
                                                Vintage Thingie Thursday
                                                Vintage Inspiration Friday
Also, my Love Story Linky Party will be here before we know it,
click on this button to read all about it.


I'd love it if you would share your own Love Story during the week of Feb 7 thru 14.

Please feel free to grab the link button from my sidebar.


Warm Hugs,

Sunday, January 29, 2012

$120.00....

Yes,

I am now $120.00,
Poorer.

What did I spend $120.00 for you ask?
Something wonderful?
perhaps some vintage china?
(oh, how I love vintage china...
with pretty florals);
or was it a piece of jewelry,
a purse...you know the ones,
just can't live without it.

NO,
I went to the County Court House this week to pay $120.00 for...

...a traffic ticket,  a speeding violation  
boooo :(

The day I got ticketed was

SERIOUSLY , 
THE  SINGLE  MOST  BAZAAR  DAY
of my Entire life.

Let me tell you about it...

...It was before Christmas,
We had talked about going to get our Christmas tree...

(when the kids were growing up we'd always gone to the tree farm and picked out a fresh tree.
That tree farm is closed now and the kids are grown
but we've yet to get an artificial tree)
...then in the late afternoon we would be picking up my husband's parents and driving 1 1/2 hours to visit daughter #1 and see another chorale program.
We thoroughly enjoyed the Boar's Head Festival where her chorale choir sang the week prior.

I got rather a late start to my day;
 daughter #2 had made blueberry pancakes for breakfast,
so I hung around to have some with her, 
 fill the dishwasher, etc., etc.
About 11:00 I was all set to go to the laundrymat.

(I've been going to the laundromat for awhile now,
ever since my machines, one at a time, decided to break.
But I sort of enjoyed getting all the laundry done at once, using all the machines necessary.
So I told my husband not to have our machines repaired.
 It's such a liberating feeling to get it all done for the week
 in 1-2 hours
instead of putsying along doing a load or two every day
and 
without the nagging feeling of having forgotten
to put the last load in the dryer.
I was allllways doing that!)

So...
all ready to leave the house,
aaand,
I can't find the car keys.
Bummer!
So when I finally did find them
I was anxious and rearing to go. 
 I realized I hit the gas peddle a little toooo hard when
I noticed the driver of another car at an intersection looking in my direction rather strangely.
First I wondered if I had a flat tire or something. 
 I looked around to see if I could see what he was looking at.
 Then I noticed red lights flashing in my rearview mirror.
Yes, I was ticketed for speeding,
I just accepted that
and dropped it to the car floor
to deal with another day.

So on to do the laundry.
All goes well,
but I'm on a bit of a tight schedule.
To load the car more quickly with fewer trips
I carried 2  full baskets of clean folded laundry at once,
one basket in each arm,
I walk out the door to my car.
Something is wrong,
my body is going forward
and my leg is being pulled backward.
Somehow, the heel of the backless shoe I was wearing
got stuck under the door.
It was closing, with my foot attached.
HOW does that happen!?!

I fell,  but not completely to the ground.
Trying to keep some hint of dignity,
not wanting to look like a total klutz,
I managed, somehow, to catch myself
and didn't spill any of the clean laundry
(well maybe one towel).
Whew!!

Next, on to our local ShopKo...
I had seen an ad in the morning newspaper
for a Gigantic tub of 100+ cookie cutters there.
Daughter #2 is sooo into making cut-out sugar cookies right now, I decided to add this to her Christmas list.
But it was going to have to be a quick little shopping trip. 
So I hurried on over
went straight in and out...
Well, actually...
 I had a little trouble finding the cookie cutters
 but as luck would have it 
 I bumped into a co-worker and she
 told me where she'd seen the
jumbo sized container filled with cookie cutters....
Not in the Kitchenwares
where you would expect to find
COOKIE CUTTERS, hel-lo,
they were in the Christmas aisle?!

I'm happy,
I've scored this extra little Christmas gift.
I know daughter #2 is going to LOVE her cookie cutters,
she'd actually been looking for a Betty Crocker
cookie cutter and this gigantic container was filled with
Betty Crocker cookie cutters.  Yaay!!
Now I just have to get home and get ready to go to daughter #1's program.
I back out of my parking space,
but wait, I no longer seem to be moving
do I depress the accelerator more, or 
have I backed onto something,
someONE!?  Oh Dear,
did I just hear a muffled crunch
Panic attack !
Wagging my head back and forth I see the car behind me now.
Another woman was backing out her space in the row behind me,
neither of us had seen the other so we collided!

Thankfully, there was no real damage
 just a black scuff from my bumper under her taillight
not even a dent.
She said she wasn't going to worry about it and
"have a Merry Christmas"!

OMG, What Else Can Go Wrong?!?

We decide we don't have enough time to get a tree.
Instead, we decide to leave earlier so we can go out to eat with daughter #1 before her program.
It would take 1 1/2 hours to drive there.
We picked up the grandparents,
filled up with gas,
had a 20 minute traffic delay.

Unknown to me daughter #1 asked
daughter #2, (the beauty consultant of the family)
to bring along her hair shears.
Daughter #1's choir was going to have a
photo taken before the program and her bangs were in her eyes. Drama, drama...
At this point, we were questioning whether we should take time to eat,
maybe we should just wait until after the program.
Daughter #1 said she hadn't eaten much during the day and couldn't do the program without eating.

So we decide on Panera Bread. 
A good soup, sandwich and salad meal would be just right, and without a long wait.
Daughter #1 drove herself so she could eat and run.
She'd need to get to the church were the program was being held earlier for warm-ups and of course the photo.
We could linger a little longer
and still get a seat for the program.
Only somewhat familiar with the city and without the GPS, we drove to the church we had only driven past in previous visits. Now arriving from a different direction and being evening it appeared different somehow.
Daughter#2 voiced her opinion that
this could NOT be the right church- it should have a larger steeple.
We were on the right street though, so it had to be the right church.

Parking is always crazy in this town,
my husband dropped G & G,  daughter #2 and I  off at the church while he parked the car.

As we are making our way up the walk we meet a group of 3 or 4 young adults. 
They ask us which door to go in.
 We didn't know, 
it was the blind leading the blind at this point
but we found what seemed like an entrance door unlocked 
and went inside, commenting that
everything seemed pretty quiet and dark.
We expected a rush of people coming in and getting seated.
Inside we purchased the tickets and the woman at the ticket table tells us the program is already in progress, having started at 7:00 not 7:30.

WHAT !?




My husband comes in and we tiptoe in, all 5 of us, in the DARK to find a seat in a pew.
As we are sitting there, looking around,
we don't see any choir.
Hm,  Are they in the balcony?
Will they be singing later in the program?
We don't see daughter #1 anywhere.
Were there programs at 2 churches the same night?
Daughter #2 is insisting that this is not the right church.
Hoping to prove her wrong,
I made the decision  (ignoring my husbands frowns) to go back out to the ticket table and ask.
 In the back of my mind I was thinking
 "What If"
What if we sat through this entire program and the choir never sang. What if we sat through this program and didn't even realize it was the wrong program until the program was over.
What if daughter #1 sang in the choir and we were not there to hear it and she could not see us smiling at her.
So, I excused myself and found my way back out to the door (in the dark).
I asked the woman at the ticket table if this was the First United Church.
To my horror, she said No, Episcopal!!!!!
First Church is down the street another 1 - 2 blocks,
just on the other side of a large parking garage
or library or something or other
OMG!!!!
 this was the answer to the question I had asked earlier...
..."What Else Can Go Wrong"

I had to sneak back in and tell everyone
We were at the Wrong program
at the Wrong Church!!
I heard Grandma utter "Oh Lord"
and we all paraded out.
All 5 of us in the dark, Embarrasing?  Yea!
(but I still found it funny and couldn't help giggling to myself. This day was like being in a comedy movie.)

Daughter #2 and I hoofed it down the street
 she's complaining, "I knew it was the wrong church but no one pays any attention to me"

Hubby gets a refund,
($50.00....$10.00 per person same as the other program...must be the going rate for a church community Christmas program these days)
then he and G&G go get the car. 
We got there before the program started
(ya, this is the one that starts at 7:30)
 but could only find seats in the back.
Luckily the choirs were in the balcony in the front of the church.
We could see them fine.






Driving the 1 1/2 hours home we started coming into patchy fog and my father-in-law suddenly said
"Look at the temperature!".
It was the eeriest thing,
the digital display of the outside temperature seemed to be going wild 
climbing up several degrees
then jumping back down again .
I guess it made sense since we were driving through patches of fog
but watching those numbers jump up and down so rapidly
 driving through the dark and foggy night was like being in the Twilight Zone or the Bermuda Triangle.
Was Rod Serling going to be around the next curve?
I could expect almost anything at this point.
My daughter kept asking me throughout the day what I did and to whom did I do it
to have such a series of events happen.

Well, they say things happen in threes.
I thought I'd met that quota.

Until the next morning.....

...We were to light the Advent Candles during church worship service so we wanted to get there early to get any special instructions.
I grabbed my velvet strappy winter wedgies on the way out the bedroom door and slipped on a pair of flats to walk out to the car.
In the car I put on my dress shoes
 and realized one entire sole was loose. It was like the glue had dried up and they were just falling apart.
I was NOT going to wear my everyday flats with my dress during church service especially to walk up to the alter.
I was just hoping and praying and walking veeery carefully
(I still sounded like I was wearing flip flops however; with my shoe flopping loosely and becoming more detached with every step.)
All went smoothly, I didn't trip on the steps or anything.
Walking out to the car after church the whole top of my shoe broke away from the sole and it was left on the street.
 LOL
Good thing I had my flats in the car, I could still go out to brunch after church. 
Trouser flats with a velvet Christmas dress,
not the fashion statement I like to make
but it was a salad at Culvers 
so I didn't really mind so much.

Hoping in 2012 all your luck is Good Luck
and your days are Blessed with
good times with good friends and family.


At the suggestion of "A Few Pennies",
I'm sharing this Fun Post at
Six Sisters' Strut Your Stuff Saturday

Warm Hugs,

Monday, January 23, 2012

Valentine "Love Story" Linky Party Marathon




A couple of weeks ago,
I tossed out the idea that I'd like to
host a linky party centering around
the Valentine holiday. 
See that post here .

After receiving some positive feedback
 and weighing several options,
 I've finally worked out all the details.

This will be an 8 day,
 Tuesday to Tuesday, Marathon Party-
Beginning February 7 and
ending Valentine's Day, February 14.

You'll have the opportunity to link up
your  "Love Story"...
Tell us how you met your groom/bride,
the Proposal,
  Wedding Day details--
was yours a big bash or intimate get-together
did it run smoothly or veer off course
include lots of photos, of course!
I just know you were all such beautiful brides,
when did you  "Say Yes to the Dress".

Additionally, I will have a
Guest Post Every Day,
and
I'll be sharing
my own
"Love  Story" on
Valentine's Day  February 14.

So grab the button from my sidebar
 and spread the word.

Pull that wedding album out of the drawer
or down off the shelf, 
dust it off and
start writing your Love Story post now.

Come back in February to link up
and read others'
"Love Stories"
because...
...Who doesn't Loove Love??

I know I'll be here with my box of Kleenex tissues at hand
I'm such a hopeless romantic.

Warm Hugs,

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Isn't She Beautiful?



My Sweet Mr. "picked her up"  ;) 
at an estate auction over the weekend.

click to enlarge

From what I could find on the internet,
which wasn't much,
she was manufactured in 1901 or 1902
 by the U. S. Glass Company

click to enlarge

The pattern name is 
"Manhattan"


Stunning details with
Gorgeous Ruby Flashing

and in perfect condition!


click to enlarge

Just in time for a Valentine Tea Party !

Image how she'll look holding a
 Red Velvet Cake.
I know just the recipe I'm going to make.

This recipe comes from Young Adventures Kitchen (click on the Recipe Index Tab at the top of their home page).
Hop on over for a visit, so many recipes there and they're all sooo tempting and scruptious looking.  Drool!

Watch for upcoming details about my "Love Story" Valentine Linky Party Marathon.

Joining the fun at these parties: Vintage Thingy Thursday


Warm Hugs,



Monday, January 9, 2012

Liz's Tea Cozies, National Hot Tea Month, and a Recipe

Tea Cozy from Shortbread and Ginger, see more below

Welcome, so happy you could join me for todays Tea Party.
 
Did you know?...
 the month of January is National Hot Tea Month.
There are so many varieties of teas available.
It's hard to chose a single favorite.

For today's tea party I've brewed up a pot of
Russian Tea  for you all to try.
I received this little jar tucked inside a bag of goodies as a Christmas gift from a member of the medical group where I work.



Filled with the instant powdered tea mix with just the right blend of spice, Mmmm.
Not tea in the traditional sense, but I love it!
It has a flavor reminescent of Wassail.
Here's the recipe:

2 cups Tang orange drink mix
1 cup Lipton Instant Unsweetened Tea mix with Lemon
(or you could substitute with 1 cup instant tea , plus 1 envelope unsweetened Lemon Kool-aid)
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
To serve- Stir 1 - 2 Tablespoons into 1 cup warm water.
Enjoy!

Did you notice these sweet little Tea Cozies,
Aren't they the Cutest !!

Sure to keep your tea piping hot!

Tea Cozy at Shortbread and Ginger

These are the work of my friend Liz

Just Click a photo, or her blog name above, to go there and see more from Liz.
She knits each one of these adorable tea cozies herself and offers them for sale by email...made custom--you chose the colors that will compliment your teapartyware!

I know Liz would welcome your visit, hop on over now and leave her a comment.

Warm Hugs,


Thursday, January 5, 2012

Seeking Your Opinion...

I've had the idea floating around in my brain that I'd like to host a...
..."LOVE STORY" Linky Party Marathon
 in the weeks surrounding Valentine's Day.

Posts should tell the story of how you and your special someone met,
 and/or
wedding day details, and photos of course.
So let me know what you think...
...Is something you would be interested in??
Would you be willing to dust off that wedding album and share??
Would love to hear what you think...do you give it a thumbs up or thumbs down

Warm Hugs,

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Look What I Got for Christmas...

...from my dear Sweet Mr.



Yes, that's right,
a cute little wire basket loaded with 
Annie Sloan Products, Yay!

6 colors of chalk paint



clear and dark wax,



 brushes, wiping cloth



and an instructions book...



It's so nice to have him support my creative side.

I have a whole garage full of pieces just waiting to be transformed.
But it's winter here in Central U.S. which means it may be a few months (uggh!) before I can dig in on the bigger projects- since I really don't have a good place to do it other than dragging it out onto the driveway.
I just have to hope the 2012 spring and summer months aren't as rainy and humid as last year.

Warm Hugs,