Where You Can Find Me

On any given morning and some afternoons year around you can find me sitting at our local park which includes a wonderful old dam.  I took these shots yesterday when the temps were in the upper 70's. 

I'll be on a short vacation soaking up some southern sun so I hope you enjoy

 my favorite spot while I'm gone.

Joining

Pink Saturday

Estate Sales

I don't go to a lot of estate sales, my preference is more in the Goodwill, Salvation Army realm but for some reason this summer I've had some luck finding good buys at a few estate sales. The estate sale I went to on Monday touched me in a way that I hadn't experienced before; it was the sale of a dear couple that I knew. I have to say as I walked through the house looking at all they had collected and held dear over the years I could still see the excitement and pride they had held for their collections and decorating style over the years.

I love bunnies and this sweet little guy sat on their front porch, he now has a happy home on my front porch.

Fred passed away a few years ago and Betty has continued to live in their home with all their treasures until recently when her health took a turn, she now lives with her daughter and had to leave behind her treasured home. This crock was ordered from the decorating store I worked at nearly thirty years ago, the same place I first was introduced to Fred and Betty. I'm glad to have it sitting with a few other crocks that I had custom made from Rockdale, with their name on it I'll always be reminded that we find friends in many different place. I hope to send Betty a note soon to let her know that a few of her treasures are now in my home and I'll keep them in a special place in my heart for all that they did for me when I first discovered the warm country decorating style that they were so passionate about.

At the last minute I saw these two biscuit cutters on the kitchen table and thought about how much Fred loved strawberry shortcake, I just had to bring them home with me. I have to say I didn't buy many things at the sale but the ones that I did I'm so pleased to have as reminders of a great friendship. I'm off to another sale today, second day as I didn't want anything I saw in the advertisement enough to pay first day pricing. It’s on the lake shore so after the sale I'll spend a couple of hours enjoying a late summer day in the sun and sand on Lake Michigan. I will be much less involved emotionally with the sale today as I don't know those who's treasures are being sold but I know someone who has attended will undoubtedly feel the same way about this home as I did when I walked into Fred and Betty's on Monday.

Fun Christmas Contest

I have my Christmas header up on the blog; it always takes me awhile to do that as I can never remember what the process is.  These aren't necessarily the best pictures I've ever taken and I'm sure there are professional pictures on the net that I could have used for this contest but I thought it would be fun to use some of my shots instead.  

This is so simple just email me at chturner67@gmail.com with your guess as to the name of each of the four shots and what city and state they are in.  Please don't place your answer in the comment section, use my email address. Three of the four should be very easy; one may take a little more time.

The first person who contacts me with the correct name and location of each of the four shots will receive a cute bag from Wisteria with a monogrammed bag tag. I'll post the correct answers as soon as we have a winner.

I Won!

Dawn at Creative Cain Cabin had a great giveaway a week ago and I won!  What did I win you say?????  A beautiful lime green MY FAVORITE COLOR scarf that she MADE!  I'm so in love with this scarf and I know I'm going to wear it a lot this winter.

 

I'm not sure how she gets it all surged up and crinkly but its soft and beautiful and I'll be wearing it this weekend to an event. I just clipped on a black rose pin with this jacket but the scarf to show that the scarf can be worn for cold winter days or to dress up an outfit.

  Thank you Dawn, you're the best!

Harvest Festival Bake Sale

Our church did a bake sale at our local Harvest Festival this weekend.  It was cool but sunny and we did very well.  This particular sale helped to raise funds for a Mission Trip to New Orleans each year where we work with Habitat for Humanity rebuilding homes post Katrina. 

This is Susan who is from New Orleans originally and myself just as we were getting started with the sale.  Susan still has family in NOLA and each year when we're down there building they provide us with a wonderful Friday Night NOLA meal.

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When we were at church loading up on Saturday morning there were a group of girls from our Youth Group helping with other projects, these two great teens came down and helped us with the sale for nearly the whole day.

Laura, bless her heart spent the whole day with me out in the chilly air selling.  Her husband Mike works with Habitat locally and also travels to NOLA with us each spring.

These little guys were just so cute and contented when they stopped by the booth.  I just had to take a picture of their darling little pumpkin hats.

This little guy sat there so patiently waiting for a bite of his daddy's apple dumpling.

It was a great event and what little we had left from Saturday we sold at church yesterday morning.  Even in this slow economy people are still so generous with time and money when it comes to helping others.  No time to rest...at the end of the month we have our silent auction and NOLA luncheon at church to raise additional funds.

This Week's Treasure

I was able to steal away for a few days to spend some time with my girlfriends slugging around antique fairs and stores.  First stop was at Allegan Antique Fair, the last of the season.  It was rainy and I just didn't find anything that caught my eye.  My friend Joan did find a couple of treasures for her home.  We left Allegan and headed down toward the state line to spend a couple of days with another friend.

There is a cute antique mall right around the corner from my girlfriends home in the southern part of the state.  Eureka... I found something that made me want to come home and decorate for fall.

 

There it was right at the entry and for only $28!!!  Its a cute chalk drawing 16x20 beautiful deep fall colors.  I was going to pick it up when we were ready to leave but my friend Carroll said that I had better get it off the wall and on the counter before someone else grabbed it.  Thank goodness I took her advise, when I went to pay for it the lady at the counter said someone else asked where the drawing hanging  in the entry had gone.  Hee hee, right in the car with us is where it went.  The lady who was interested in it came up to me as I was waiting for the others and said how much she liked this little gem.

The rest of my little mini vacation was spent on the lake shore with the girls enjoying the art communities that dot this part of the lake.  I didn't however find another treasure; good food and some wine but not another treasure.

End of Summer

My children are grown but as I see the big yellow school bus lumbering down the street I know my days on the porch are numbered and summer has officially ended.

September can still be a beautiful warm month here in Michigan but in my mind I know my love affair with summer is over for the year.  I thought I would share a few pictures I've taken in the last month and you can see the summer sun waving good bye.

You can see the walking path on the west side of the dam in our little town, it follows the river upstream and past the marsh areas that the ducks and swans move through.

I saw this log fallen log when walking along the walking path one day, it looked exactly like a shark to me.  Do you see it?  I even seen the eye of the shark looking at me...won't tell you what Mr. Hubby said when I showed my shark to him.

The swans usually hang out in this area, they do come down toward the dam some days if the kayaks and canoes aren't too prevalent.  I did catch a couple of shots of them along the east shore of the river.

  

 

And this is the reality of what we have now, oh we will still have some beautiful summer days and fall here is just spectacular but when I was camping this week at the big lake I snapped a few pictures of what is to come.

Just as we were leaving the beach the state workers were out installing the red flags of warning for anyone who might have been swimming in the lake. 

Pink Lilies

This is not my home but one near by, as I drove past it today I noticed the pink lilies in the corner of the entry.  Unfortunately all I had was my camera phone so the picture is a little off but I wanted to share the size and beauty of these flowers. Sorry there is only the one picture but I was afraid that if I sat in my car snapping pictures of the home the little lady who lives there might freak out and call the police. I'm not sure what the lady must feed them but they are as tall as the little lady who lives there, no kidding!

 Joining Beverly at Pink Saturday

Pig Out!

I'm not sure that there are words that can describe the BLT that was set in front of me last week while at a local restaurant called Tony's.  What was I thinking??? The menu indicated that this monster (all their sandwiches are monsters) was made with a full pound of bacon, I guess I just wasn't comprehending the magnitude of a full pound of bacon piled high on beautiful Italian bread.

To answer the question...NO I did not eat the whole thing, not even close.  Lesson learned is bigger is not always better.

I'm joining Kim at  WOW Us Wednesday, although I had nothing to do with the making of this sandwich I do think if it was set in front of anyone of us we'd definitely say WOW.

Good Friday

It was a Good Friday.  First stop was the Veterans Home to deliver several dozen Easter cookies.  Just in time....when I arrived there was a sign up in the coffee room indicating that there were no cookies today.  Can you imagine telling someone who put their life on the line for our freedom that there isn't a cookie?

 Here are a few of the vets and visitors preparing for the Good Friday Service at the Veterans Home.

The Vet Tones in the center of the picture in red vests were the choir for the service.

Lonnie was the first in line as we got the cookies ready for the guys. Bless his heart he had a black eye and a big gash on his head where he had taken a bad tumble.

There were five/six dozen cookies when we started and all were gone quickly as the word went out that there were cookies after all.

These carrot cookies were pretty large, about 12 inches.

The Easter egg cookies were in abundance.

 The finished cookies went pretty quickly and I forgot to get a finish picture of 

each of the different types so this is all I have. 

I hope your Good Friday was as inspiring as mine was.

A Little Push

My best friend Sharon and her hubby volunteer at our local Veterans Home several days a week and have shared the stories of many of the veterans who call this place home. From time to time I stop by to join them for awhile and bring sweet homemade treats for the guys, yesterday was one of those days. Over the years I have come to know many of the veterans, unfortunately many of them have passed.


As I was leaving the complex yesterday I saw Bill......Bill was trying to work his way up a small incline in one of the halls coming up from the chapel into the main hall to the entrance of the building in his non-motorized wheelchair.  A long way for a man who has had a major stroke, has limited mobility and very little ability to communicate with words.  I asked if he would like me to push him to his destination and he indicated by blowing me a kiss that he would love some help.  As I was pushing Bill along the gleaming halls I was thinking about Bill's life and what it had been and what it is now. Like all the veterans in this home and all the others scattered around the country there is a story of a life lived, sacrifices made, tragedies endured, triumphs and disappointments.


A home such as this is a great equalizer, your background, military rank, previous social standing and financial past are of no consequence here and Bill is a perfect example.  He is a well educated man growing up in an upper middle-class home in the Detroit area.  He graduated from Dartmouth and received his law degree from Yale. He enlisted in the Air Force and served in WWII and after returning from the war Bill began a career that gave him wealth, recognition and eventually set him on a path of public service through politics.


So what makes Bill’s story different than all the veterans we passed as I was pushing him through the halls?  Have you ever heard of William Merrill?  I thought not, until I met Bill at the veteran’s home his name was not one that I recalled either.  Are you are old enough to remember Watergate and President Nixon's resignation, I remember it vividly but still who is William Merrill?  If you Google this man Bill Merrill you will find that along with many other notable achievements in his life William Merrill was the Michigan Director of the election campaign to elect Robert Kennedy as President, this however pales compared to being a Special Prosecutor during the Watergate Trials.  If you asked G. Gordon Liddy, E Howard Hunt, John Ehrlichman and the list goes on who William Merrill is they would not hesitate in responding.


So what is my point, I don't think I have one?  Was my pushing Bill to his destination anymore important than pushing any of the other hundreds of veterans struggling to get up a small incline?  Because of his past was he more deserving of a helping hand? Of course not, no matter what our story is big or small we all need a little push from time to time, maybe that's my point.....and Bill's story is just a little education in our countries rich history.

Masterpiece Theater Downton Abbey

Masterpiece Theater... I remember watching it many many years ago, do you?  I think that was back when we only had three stations to choose from and one or the other was always running a western. Anyway... recently I was directed to a series that is currently running with four episodes in the US, with more to come.  I am head over heels in love with this series on PBS....Downton Abbey.  Downton Abbey

The characters, the costumes and the countryside are just a symphony of  what one would expect of life in England in the early 20th. century. I was hooked after the first thirty seconds, truly I encourage you to click on the link and watch this series on-line, it is well worth the time. PBS ran this in January and hopefully will run it again prior to introducing the second series. If you enjoy the production you can also purchase it on Amazon for $16.99.  I'm going to purchase three or four copies for gifts for friends and families, and of course one for myself.  I did see at the end of the last episode that they do plan to continue with more.  The English version which contains seven episodes is available on Amazon also but my understanding is you need to have a DVD formatted for the United Kingdom. 

So if you find yourself snowed in on Wednesday, settle in near the fireplace and enjoy.

Ice Sculptures

We had a winter festival in our little town last weekend, the weather was perfect for such an event, very very cold and sunny.  The Food Network was here filming the ice sculpture contest as there will be a new series called Ice Brigade which will feature two professional ice carvers from Grand Rapids, Ice Brigade Promo.  I'm really excited for this group, I hired these guys years ago when they were just getting their start to do a a few ice sculptures for me at a couple of large events that I planned for our company. Fast forward several years and now a  co-worker of mine Susan Walters is also involved in the company and the new show.  I picked out just a few pictures to share, there was no sunshine when I went in Sunday morning when I took these so they were really much more beautiful than what the pictures show.

This first picture is one of their entries which is a football player, as you can see from the bottom of the shot there are little Nurf footballs that they were using to throw through the ring that the football player was holding.

I love this next one....who would think to make an ice fire pit?

This one looks like two dancing fish, maybe dancing to the Bee Gee's "Stayin Alive" along with Travolta. 

The penguin is beautiful when the sun shines through it.  The ice is very clear but with the cloudy skies she looks a little cloudy too.

This one of the golf ball was sponsored by one of our local golf courses.  

Here is the top of the dam where the sculptures were staged, the same area where I took the pictures of all the decorated Rams in the fall of last year click here .

 Winter in Michigan....we make do with what we have and right now its very cold temperatures and lots of beautiful ice sculptures.

 

Meet the Author

My best friends husband has written a book, I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around someone just up and deciding to WRITE A BOOK. It has been a journey to get it written and published but its now on line with both Amazon and Barnes and Noble. 

Author Bill Burch's book

This is not an advertisement or promotion of his book although I thoroughly enjoyed it, I'm just sharing my happiness for him as his friend.  After watching what this has taken over the past couple of years to bring this work to print I am in awe of all those who have taken their talent for words on the same path.

Congratulations Bill!

Black Friday

It's Black Friday....do you know where your bargains are?  At this stage in my life I guess there just isn't anything I need badly enough to get up at three in the morning and fight my way through the mass of humanity to get a discounted anything.  Now if antique shops filled with dishes had a 3:00a.m. shoppers special I might have to give that some thought.  There was however something I wanted this year, still not bad enough to get off my turkey laden butt to go get but since my niece loves to do the Black Friday thing she offered to brave the shoppers at WalMart and pick up a Cricut for me at a pretty significant discount.  Bless her heart I assume she is sleeping right now and hopefully was successful at procuring my little 2010 treasure for me.

I'm getting ready to head out and pick up a few dozen donuts and take down to our local Veterans Home this morning.  I know there won't be any crazed shoppers there and then I'll be back at home by noon to start working on trimming the tree which I'm sure many of you will be doing today too.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, if you're out there in the Black Friday trenches watch for flying elbow shots when trying to pick up the 56" TV for Uncle Chuckie.

White House Ornament

I always describe my Christmas tree as a "train wreck".  There is no theme, no rhyme, no reason; just ornaments that mean a lot to me and my family.  Over the years I have collected many ornaments that represent places I've visited or events I've shared with family and friends and I love placing each one of them on the tree and remembering the reason for their presence.

Among the most beautiful ornaments I have are those from the White House.  To the left is my favorite so far, its the 2009 ornament. It represents the presidency of Grover Cleveland.  I'm always a sucker for snow in Washington, there is such a quiet elegance to it.

Each year I look forward to the White House Christmas Ornament being offered by the White House Historical Association. The program started in 1981 when the Regan's were in office and has continued each year since.  If you look at the early ornaments that were designed you will see that they were very simple the first few years and as the program has gained popularity the designs have become much more elaborate. I didn't start collecting these beautiful ornaments until the late 90's  but I love each and every one that I have.  This year's ornament I purchased while I was in Washington this summer, I was surprised that it was for sale that early in the year but loved knowing that my 2010 ornament was purchased at the White House store just across the driveway from the White House.  White House Ornament 2010.  If you look on ebay you can find the ornaments from other vendors but I figure the extra couple of dollars it costs to get it from the historical association helps with preservation of our beautiful historic program.

The 2010 ornament is a beauty too and I can't wait to place it on the tree the day after Thanksgiving.  Here is a preview if your interested.Again, its another winter scene, this one representing Present William McKinley's presidency.

Happy Halloween

Can I say that?  I have been watching the news and reading about all the protests of actually celebrating Halloween on Sunday and I guess I'm just naive but my view of Halloween is the sweet little faces that will arrive on the porch tonight looking for candy. I just choose to let go of the whole anti-religion aspect of it;  maybe that's just putting my head in the sand but there it is, in black and white.

I was thinking this morning about Halloween when I was a child and Halloween now.  I am old enough to remember when there was no such thing as a store bought costume, we made stuff up.  I'm not saying it was better that way, just less expensive and more creative.  I see how excited the little princesses and action figures are when they step up to the door with their bags sagging with candy and they seem just as happy in their store bought costumes as I was in my homemade one.

We didn't however, have to worry about contaminated candy placed in bags by those who are either just evil or very unbalanced.  The treats we received were nearly all homemade and would be out of the question in todays world.  My father would always have a hot dog roast for the kids who stopped at our house, he's be out there grilling hot dogs and the kids would grab a dog and be on their way.  At the next house they might get a popcorn ball or be invited in for hot chocolate.  I think the most memorable treat I ever got was a watermelon. Yes, my friends a watermelon.  I lived on a lake as a child but it was also farm country both big and small, one of the local produce farmers at the north end of the lake was handing out small watermelons that he had stored from the summer harvest to hand out at Halloween.  I can tell you it was a long walk back to our house on the other end of the lake hauling that melon.  Since there were no supermarkets back then we depended on local farmers for most of our food, it would never have entered our minds to just toss the watermelon.  Simpler times.

I hope you and your family enjoy seeing the children at the door this evening, they have no idea what the big deal is about Halloween being celebrated on Sunday, they're just looking for candy, and if your area celebrated Halloween yesterday I'm sure the kids were happy and are sleeping off a sugar high this morning.

Ram Nation

Our local high school's mascot is a Ram.  This weekend during our annual Oktoberfest several of our schools and community groups took on the task of decorating Rams, reminiscent of the cows done for the city of Chicago in 1999.  All the Rams will be displayed around our little town.  Yesterday and today they are all displayed by our local dam so that everyone attending the Oktoberfest  can see them all in one location..  There were forty five in total but here are a few of my favorites.

This one represents the dam where all the Ram's are currently standing guard

This one represents several downtown businesses and landmarks.  On the other side the Ram is sporting a replica of our beautiful football field.

This one was painted by the faculty at the elementary school I attended back in the stone age.  Our school colors are orange and black so that is why Mr. Ram is sporting orange and black spots.

I thought this was a pretty fall Ram.

And now right into early winter.

I love the boots that our local Lions Club painted on their Ram.

This one represents one of the wineries near our little town.

I can't remember what group this represented but it sure is beautiful.

So its Friday and our homecoming game and festivities will begin this afternoon with a parade.  Just about as small town as you can get and I can't imagine living where that isn't true.  I attended our annual Sports Hall of Fame banquet last night where five new inductees were introduced.  Sports are a big thing in our little town and I'm proud to say that Mr. Hubby was inducted into this outstanding group back in 2000.