. . . all is bright
MEMORY BOARD/SUNFLOWER SWAP + PRAIRIE DRESS
I have rearranged the Nature Room one more time because I just LOVE this memory board made from one of my all-time favorite fabrics & a picture frame I picked up from a thrift store years ago.
There are many reason I haven't been blogging regularly. . . . but the most enjoyable distraction I've had is sewing this Prairie dress & pinafore for my youngest grand daughter. Oh I had sew much fun!
Doesn't she have the most delicate hands? I just love this shot of her that my son took with his camera phone!
This is going to be a very busy week for me, so I'm not making any promises that I'll be blogging. . . . I so very much admire those of you who are faithful to do so! Have a great, great week!
I'm almost through decorating this gentle place we call home & had not found the perfect place for it, SO the sunflower picture that WAS here is now on the porch, & here is my memory board. Hopefully I'm through with this little corner of the room!
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| Sunflower pic now over the little table. |
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| Photo by Simon Smith - Editing by me, Vera Smith |
This is going to be a very busy week for me, so I'm not making any promises that I'll be blogging. . . . I so very much admire those of you who are faithful to do so! Have a great, great week!
FOR TODAY - SUNDAY - DECEMBER 4, 2011
Outside My Window. . .the sun is coming up and it is raining. We are in a flash flood watch until 4 PM. It's been many, many months since we've gotten that warning.
I Am Thinking. . .that we need to leave earlier than usual for church today. We attend about 30 miles away and take a 2-lane road most of the way. A 2-lane road with no shoulders and the posted speed is 70mph. It's especially unsafe today.
I Am Grateful. . . that I got to attend the local production of The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever with my daughter, her hubby, their crew and my other (unofficially adopted)children, Tim & Christiy.
Anyway - year after year we read "TGCPE" and sometimes rent the DVD as it just isn't Christmas without some rendition of The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever!
In The Kitchen . . . is not much going on! Breakfast will be light. Very light. Probably a protein shake and banana and other fruit. I guess we need to go shopping, which is one of my least favorite things to do and especially this time of year.
I Am Going. . .to come home from church and shopping and edit photos. I had two photo shoots this past week and need to get them edited and ready!
I Am Reading . . . the blogs that I follow. I am especially enjoying the ones by Swedish and Norwegian authors. I really like their way of decorating, especially for Christmas-time.
I Am Hoping . . .to get much accomplished today.
I Am Hearing . . .the EdenPure heater humming. The little cabin doesn't have central heat. I'm not at all certain it has any insulation! I guess I should add that I'm grateful for the EdenPure heaters!
I'm also hearing the rain on the metal roof, which is truly one of the loveliest sounds there is!
Around The House . . .are signs of the Christmas Season.
And fragrant, blooming paperwhites.
I Am Wearing. . . a pink gown.
I Am Thinking. . . that I need to get ready for church. We leave in about an hour.
I Am Wondering . . . if my husband will volunteer to do the shopping himself. He doesn't mind grocery shopping, while I detest it. Especially on a December Sunday. Especially at WalMart. I don't mind the little Mexican grocery or the health food store. . . but I can't handle WM!
One Of My Favorite Things. . . well, I've already mentioned it: the sound of rain on a metal roof.
About Today's Photos. . .
I Am Thinking. . .that we need to leave earlier than usual for church today. We attend about 30 miles away and take a 2-lane road most of the way. A 2-lane road with no shoulders and the posted speed is 70mph. It's especially unsafe today.
I Am Grateful. . . that I got to attend the local production of The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever with my daughter, her hubby, their crew and my other (unofficially adopted)children, Tim & Christiy.
Anyway - year after year we read "TGCPE" and sometimes rent the DVD as it just isn't Christmas without some rendition of The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever!
In The Kitchen . . . is not much going on! Breakfast will be light. Very light. Probably a protein shake and banana and other fruit. I guess we need to go shopping, which is one of my least favorite things to do and especially this time of year.
I Am Going. . .to come home from church and shopping and edit photos. I had two photo shoots this past week and need to get them edited and ready!
I Am Reading . . . the blogs that I follow. I am especially enjoying the ones by Swedish and Norwegian authors. I really like their way of decorating, especially for Christmas-time.
I Am Hoping . . .to get much accomplished today.
I Am Hearing . . .the EdenPure heater humming. The little cabin doesn't have central heat. I'm not at all certain it has any insulation! I guess I should add that I'm grateful for the EdenPure heaters!
I'm also hearing the rain on the metal roof, which is truly one of the loveliest sounds there is!
Around The House . . .are signs of the Christmas Season.
And fragrant, blooming paperwhites.
I Am Wearing. . . a pink gown.
I Am Thinking. . . that I need to get ready for church. We leave in about an hour.
I Am Wondering . . . if my husband will volunteer to do the shopping himself. He doesn't mind grocery shopping, while I detest it. Especially on a December Sunday. Especially at WalMart. I don't mind the little Mexican grocery or the health food store. . . but I can't handle WM!
One Of My Favorite Things. . . well, I've already mentioned it: the sound of rain on a metal roof.
About Today's Photos. . .
This is our "big" tree.
Remember, we live in a little home and there is no room for a bigger tree,
unless we put it on the porch,
which we may do someday.
But not this year.
Week two of Advent.
I am using my husband's cousin's Advent Devotional, found here.
Across from the tree.
The quote is especially meaningful to me.
The Paperwhites smell wonderful.
Although my husband think they smell
like ham.
And my daughter think they stink!
What do they know!
Not enough tree to hang all the ornaments.
They are displayed in other ways
around the house.
Linking up to the Simple Woman's Daybook
ONE OF THESE THINGS
Well, here it is December and I've barely started decorating for Christmas. Even though my heart's desire is to keep it simple, I'm finding it difficult to scale back. My heart says, "not so much. . . keep it simple. . . you don't have to use all that you have." It seems to me that it should be easy. But over 42 years of marriage has resulted in a lot of stuff; 10 Rubbermaid totes to be exact!
In an effort to scale back and weed out some things, I've looked over my Pinterest Christmas Board to determine what I'm drawn to, which is lots of white and neutral colors; lots of candles, both skinny & chunky; wreaths in windows and scrawny little Charlie Brown Christmas trees. Over and over again that's what I've pinned to my {beautiful} Christmas board. Everything is so simple, beautiful and serene. Beautiful, simple and serene.
In some small part I've accomplished that in the dining room. For the most part it reflects beauty, simplicity and serenity. Here's the top of the china cabinet. Simple, beautiful and serene.
No, it doesn't look like the photos on my Pinterest board, but it does have some of the same emotional elements: serenity, beauty, simplicity.
Included in other areas of the dining room are more nativities, and lots of paperwhites, and some garland and boughs, although no wreaths in there. I'll be sure to post photos of those areas later on. But for now you'll have to trust me that even though I may not have all the physical elements of my Pinterest board, I do have lots of the emotional elements.
While going through all the decorations {did I mention there are ten huge Rubbermaid totes?} I came across the many nativities we've collected through the years. One little set has a missing Joseph. He's completely gone - I can't find him anywhere. And the shepherd has lost his head. It too is missing in action! But since I like the little set I decided I should just improvise.
I apologize for the poor photo quality. . . but the natural lighting in that bathroom is non-existent.
I readily admit there is nothing on my Pinterest Board that looks like this. Not. At. All. But I like it and I think I know why. Like I've already said,my Christmas Board includes lots of photos with lots of white/neutral colors and there's nothing whiter than Jack! My board has lots of simple elements and is there anything simpler than a round ball with a goofy smile pasted on it? Hmmm? And serenity: well, just take a close look at Mary - have your ever seen a more serene face? I doubt it! And if Mary can be so serene with that Jack Shepherd near her baby Jesus. . . well I guess I've accomplished what my heart has been desiring all along: beauty (for this little Mary is simply beautiful), simplicity and serenity. PLUS - a bit of humor for everyone to enjoy because this little scene is right behind the toilet! LOL
Good night. . .
PS - I must admit that this reminds me of that Sesame Street Song, One of These Things.
One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn't belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?
Do you remember it?
In an effort to scale back and weed out some things, I've looked over my Pinterest Christmas Board to determine what I'm drawn to, which is lots of white and neutral colors; lots of candles, both skinny & chunky; wreaths in windows and scrawny little Charlie Brown Christmas trees. Over and over again that's what I've pinned to my {beautiful} Christmas board. Everything is so simple, beautiful and serene. Beautiful, simple and serene.
In some small part I've accomplished that in the dining room. For the most part it reflects beauty, simplicity and serenity. Here's the top of the china cabinet. Simple, beautiful and serene.
No, it doesn't look like the photos on my Pinterest board, but it does have some of the same emotional elements: serenity, beauty, simplicity.
Included in other areas of the dining room are more nativities, and lots of paperwhites, and some garland and boughs, although no wreaths in there. I'll be sure to post photos of those areas later on. But for now you'll have to trust me that even though I may not have all the physical elements of my Pinterest board, I do have lots of the emotional elements.
While going through all the decorations {did I mention there are ten huge Rubbermaid totes?} I came across the many nativities we've collected through the years. One little set has a missing Joseph. He's completely gone - I can't find him anywhere. And the shepherd has lost his head. It too is missing in action! But since I like the little set I decided I should just improvise.
I apologize for the poor photo quality. . . but the natural lighting in that bathroom is non-existent.
I readily admit there is nothing on my Pinterest Board that looks like this. Not. At. All. But I like it and I think I know why. Like I've already said,my Christmas Board includes lots of photos with lots of white/neutral colors and there's nothing whiter than Jack! My board has lots of simple elements and is there anything simpler than a round ball with a goofy smile pasted on it? Hmmm? And serenity: well, just take a close look at Mary - have your ever seen a more serene face? I doubt it! And if Mary can be so serene with that Jack Shepherd near her baby Jesus. . . well I guess I've accomplished what my heart has been desiring all along: beauty (for this little Mary is simply beautiful), simplicity and serenity. PLUS - a bit of humor for everyone to enjoy because this little scene is right behind the toilet! LOL
Good night. . .
PS - I must admit that this reminds me of that Sesame Street Song, One of These Things.
One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn't belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?
Do you remember it?
I LOVE THIS MAN
Thanksgiving has come and gone. It was a wonderful day, but didn't last nearly long enough. It never does.
All of my husband's siblings were here with their spouses and my daughter and her crew were here, too. And my mama; my sweet 90 year old mama. I didn't take many photos and since I don't have permission from my in-laws, think it's best not to post the pix of them. But what a joy to have all six of them together in a picture.
Unfortunately Friday and Saturday found me flat on my back. I've never suffered with back problems, but I must have done something wrong because I could barely move.
All day Friday. All day Saturday. I suffered with severe back pain. I felt just find except for my lower back and hips and I was miserable in bed. And I discovered I'm not a very good patient.
But this man. This man took such good care of me; coming and asking from time to time if I needed anything. Rubbing essential oils on my back and making up capsules for me. Preparing the bath for me. He did whatever I wanted or needed. In that regard I am a good patient. I'm not very demanding. I prefer to be left alone. But I REALLY prefer to be pain-free!
Guess what else he did - he even put away all the Thanksgiving decorations, without me asking or hinting for him to do so! Yep - he put them all away in the Rubbermaid totes and put them in the attic. And you must remember, we live in a very old place and the access to the attic is nothing more than drop down stairs on the porch!
And you know what else? He brought down all the Christmas totes! All 10 of them! (I thought there were 14, but he only found 10). He wiped them clean and sorted them by room so they are all ready for me when I'm ready to deal with them. Isn't that pretty wonderful of him?
And the wonderfulness continued. I woke up, once again barely able to move and stayed home from church, spending more time on the couch than in bed and really started feeling much better. I was very glad because I had a Christmas photo shoot scheduled for 2 o'clock and it involved folks who were in town only for the holidays. And what did Mr. Wonderful do? He offered to be my assistant and carry the camera bag, step-stool and props! I didn't even have to ask - he offered to be the pack mule!
All because of him, I was able to keep my obligation and hopefully grandparents will get a wonderful photo of their precious granddaughters!
So, that's what has been going on at the Cozy Little Cabin. I've been an invalid and he is still, after all these years, my hero. My very own Mr. Wonderful
All of my husband's siblings were here with their spouses and my daughter and her crew were here, too. And my mama; my sweet 90 year old mama. I didn't take many photos and since I don't have permission from my in-laws, think it's best not to post the pix of them. But what a joy to have all six of them together in a picture.
Unfortunately Friday and Saturday found me flat on my back. I've never suffered with back problems, but I must have done something wrong because I could barely move.
All day Friday. All day Saturday. I suffered with severe back pain. I felt just find except for my lower back and hips and I was miserable in bed. And I discovered I'm not a very good patient.
But this man. This man took such good care of me; coming and asking from time to time if I needed anything. Rubbing essential oils on my back and making up capsules for me. Preparing the bath for me. He did whatever I wanted or needed. In that regard I am a good patient. I'm not very demanding. I prefer to be left alone. But I REALLY prefer to be pain-free!
Guess what else he did - he even put away all the Thanksgiving decorations, without me asking or hinting for him to do so! Yep - he put them all away in the Rubbermaid totes and put them in the attic. And you must remember, we live in a very old place and the access to the attic is nothing more than drop down stairs on the porch!
And you know what else? He brought down all the Christmas totes! All 10 of them! (I thought there were 14, but he only found 10). He wiped them clean and sorted them by room so they are all ready for me when I'm ready to deal with them. Isn't that pretty wonderful of him?
And the wonderfulness continued. I woke up, once again barely able to move and stayed home from church, spending more time on the couch than in bed and really started feeling much better. I was very glad because I had a Christmas photo shoot scheduled for 2 o'clock and it involved folks who were in town only for the holidays. And what did Mr. Wonderful do? He offered to be my assistant and carry the camera bag, step-stool and props! I didn't even have to ask - he offered to be the pack mule!
All because of him, I was able to keep my obligation and hopefully grandparents will get a wonderful photo of their precious granddaughters!
So, that's what has been going on at the Cozy Little Cabin. I've been an invalid and he is still, after all these years, my hero. My very own Mr. Wonderful
THANKSGIVING WEEK 2011
This is a rather disjointed post, but I'm feeling rather disjointed and with good reason!
For starters I decided to rearrange the dining room. Because of all the windows looking out into the trees, I always assumed it would be my favorite room, but it hasn't been. I decided what needed to be done was to move the armoire and chairs. Christy came and helped me and made some very good suggestions; one being that since the armoire wouldn't fit nicely between the windows, to place it at the end of the dining table instead, and move the tall, slim rosewood piece between the windows instead. Voila! That did the trick. I don't have many photos to post - hopefully will take care of that soon! I'm beginning to understand why I'm more and more drawn to very neutral/white rooms. . . just look at the busy-ness of the windows and trees!
But even so - I still very much like the new arrangement
details of hutch moved between windows
So - I spent much of the week rearranging and moving pix, etc. Instead of preparing for Thanksgiving!
AND, get this, hubby brought home 10 GALLONS of pears. Yep - he sure did! So besides rearranging a room, I also made up 15 jars of pear preserves! Instead of preparing for Thanksgiving!
Monday was youngest son's birthday and because of the weather, didn't have internet access in his part of Norway. I think it was the first time I have NOT been able to talk to him on his birthday. The first time in 28 years and I couldn't talk to him. So I was sad. Sad and disorganized with a messy kitchen for much of the week!
And there was a haircut and time spent w/my mom and some volunteer business I had to take care of. And of course I had to mop floors and shampoo carpet! The point being - I haven't done any cooking and no real holiday preparation.
But today id different. I'm cooking: baking cornbread so I can make my 90 year old mom's dressing recipe. Sauteing onions and celery and an apple. Eggs are hard-boiled to stuff them tomorrow. Turkey is thawing. . . hubby is going to deep-fry it tomorrow. Doesn't a fried turkey sound disgusting? Well, it did to me, too, until our oldest son prepared last year's turkey that way. Like he said when we recently skyped - "it's now a tradition" - so we're deep frying! And there's ham. And lots of folks are coming and they're all bringing food with them.
I'm most excited because all of my husband's siblings and their spouses will be here. We're all in our 50s and 60s and it will be good to all be together. So much better than waiting to get together at someone's funeral! AND my daughter and son-in-law will be bringing their 3 foster boys with them. It's always nice to have young people around!
To top it off - the weather is suppose to be sunny and 70 degrees, which is so much better than last year, which started out cold and rainy. In spite of that, it will cool down fast and we're planning to have a campfire and have a wienie roast.
Oh - and hubby came home today with - - - you want to take a guess? More pears! 5 gallons! OK - time to go find a pear cobbler recipe!
.
May your Thanksgiving Day be blessed . . .
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