Winter Outing

 
Monday was my mom's 92nd. birthday, she still lives on her own and with the exception of her sight she is in better health than many who are much younger. Mom's 90th. Birthday We had a family dinner on Sunday so on Monday I picked her up at her apartment and took her to lunch, since it was such a nice yet cloudy winter day we decided to drive out to the big lake (Lake Michigan) to see what was up with winter at the shore.  Before we even got out of town I had to stop at the dam since the swans were out.  It was hard to get a picture of them together as they seemed to want their own space that day.  Also taking a picture of something white on white isn't within my photo abilities either but this one was the best of the lot.

After a few more minutes of trying to get a good shot of the two beauties they finally moved a little closer to one another.

 We headed west over to Grand Haven after lunch to see the ice mounds at the lake.  I have to say this year they are not very impressive.  Normally they are much larger and go further out into the lake.  This is the pier at Grand Haven and one of my favorites in winter because of the bright red against the white snow.
 

What looks like the shore line in brown is really ice with beach sand blown over it during the winter.

So mom and I had a good day together and I can confirm that Lake Michigan is still there waiting for summer to return.

Joining
The Dedicated House
StoneGable
A Stroll Thru Life
Savvy Southern Style
Ivy & Elephants
Sweet Pea 

Real World

After a few days of hugs and laughter with my traveling buddies I'm back to the real world refreshed and ready to tackle a new project.  I've still got sand in my flip flops from camping at Grand Haven on Lake Michigan so here is a picture of sunset  from a couple of nights ago for you to enjoy until I can get something posted.

Bucket Lists

Do you have a bucket list?  Places to see, things to experience, commitments to fulfill.  My bucket list seems to grow longer every year and one of the items on it had sat dormant for far too long a time and that was lending a helping hand to Habitat for Humanity. Then there it was one Sunday a few years ago a notice in our church bulletin about a possible mission trip to New Orleans to help with the Katrina recovery. It couldn't have been any clearer what the "message" was if it had been pasted on my forehead. I was still working at the time but decided right there and then that it was time to get off the bucket and actually fulfill this dream.  I attended the church meeting, signed up and cleared the time from my calendar at work. 

So for the past three years I have gone to NOLA each spring with a wonderful group of church friends from Michigan, Virginia and North Carolina.  The results have been homes for those in need and wonderful friendships with people I would otherwise never have met.  What I have received in lending a helping hand far exceeds what  I have given which is usually the case when a person volunteers. 

 

This is the home a group of us were adding the finishing touches to this year. This home will house a 29 year old mother who has put herself through college and grad school and her four children. 

Our group is large enough to be split between two homes that were under construction.  This group did both the inside and outside finish work on this home.

At the other site a couple of blocks away another eleven people from our group were digging the foundation for a new home.  They were digging by HAND the start of another person's dream.     

I arrived home in time to spend Easter with my family in the comfort of our homes knowing that my bucket list is a little lighter and next year a couple of deserving families will have Easter in their new homes.

 

Swinging a hammer

I'm in New Orleans lending a helping hand to Habitat. I'll be back with pictures and stories after Easter.

Pretty in Pink French Macarons

Show and Tell FridayI was in Chicago this weekend to take a pastry class with my daughter in the art of making French Macarons.  I can tell you its not for sissy's.  I'll post later on the class itself but for today I've decided to post a few pictures of the results.  Lets just say I was at the bottom of the class when measuring the success of the "feet" of the macarons. My daughter on the other hand took home beautiful macarons with perfect "feet".

As you can see I did achieve baby "feet" so my efforts were not totally without merit.

I filled my macarons with passion fruit gauche that the instructor provided, I can tell you it was to die for.

You can see from this box of macarons that I did do a few with a strawberry gauche too.  The instructors business was called Sweet Spot.  She had a storefront and a mobile truck that she used during the summer months downtown in Chicago.  Unfortunately she found that trying to raise a two year old and run two locations of her business was just too much.  As luck would have it she decided to teach classes instead.

So I consider this class a success and I'll be giving the French another go at it in a couple of weeks.  The instructor did tell us that making Italian macarons is easier as they are more stable when being mixed.

Joining
Marty's Cloche Party
Winter Blues Wednesday
WOW us Wednesday
Open House Thursday
Feathered Nest Friday
Inspiration Friday
Pink Saturday 

And the Winner Is.....

The winner of the guess my header contest is  Debbie at Words on Wheels.  I really had no idea that this would be as hard as it was but I guess that's because I KNEW which each of the pictures were when I put them up on my header, duh.  Two were from Washington DC and two were from Williamsburg VA., I had hoped that everyone would see the pattern of the two cities and it would help but it didn't.

Anyway, Debbie along with several others were correct in two of the answers that included the National Tree and the Governors Palace.  Debbie was the first to respond so she is our winner.


The Answers are:

1. The Christmas tree was one at the Williamsburg Inn, several people guessed the White House tree and I can certainly see how one might think that when you look at the drapes in the background.  This time of the year my traveling buddies and I are usually on the road enjoying pre Christmas festivities somewhere on the east coast.  Williamsburg has been our destination several time where they celebrate with the Grand Illumination.  
2. The second picture is the front of the Eisenhower Executive Building in Washington.  This was the one I thought would trip everyone up.  It really is a beautiful building and has very minimal decorations but still looks so beautiful its all its intricate detail.
3. The third picture is of the National Tree at the White House.  I have to tell you it is not the prettiest decorated tree I've ever seen.  My friends and I have been to Washington at Christmas several times and were lucky enjoy to enjoy the national tree lighting in 1995 and 2004.  I don't remember which of those years I took this picture but the tree really doesn't change.
4. This of course is the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg, nearly everyone guessed correctly on this one and the National Christmas tree.

Thanks to all who participated and sent me their best guess.  I'll post a picture of Debbie's tote bag before I send it out to her.

Long Weekend in the South

I was in Florida for a few days antiquing with friends in Mt. Dora Renningers .  They have a sale every week but in November, January and February they have a super antique sale that was featured in Southern Living.    If you ever get the opportunity its worth the trip.  I love this wicker bench, it was at least 7' long.  I just couldn't imagine trying to check it with my luggage when I flew home after the sale.  I did find a few treasures that I'll share next week.

On our way back to Georgia we stopped in St. Augustine for a few hours and found this beautiful guy near the fountain of youth. 

He did not display his beautiful plumage but to see an albino peacock was a real treat in itself.

If You've Got The Money Honey

Even with temperatures in the 90's for I've lot count as to how many days I decided to head to the monthly antique fair about an hour from my home.  I knew it would be a short day as us Yankees can only handle so much of the heat but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do when it comes to treasures.

Years ago I had a booth at this summer antique fair, actually for several years.  It always seemed to be either freezing or oppressively hot.  Today was brutal and I was glad I was only shopping and not setting up a booth.

I didn't buy much, a bag of antique buttons and a flour sack but it was fun and I'll go back in September when the weather cools and maybe do a little serious shopping.
 
I thought I'd share a few pictures of today's market, it was not crowded at all which I credit the heat for.  The photos are just snap shots as I didn't have the energy to move stuff to get clear shots.

I think in the heat this guy lost his way

The Junk Gypsy's in their Pink Trailer

Weird furniture of the day, I'm not going to say anything more

I have no idea who this lady is but I loved her outlook on life

What would life be without Elephant Ears

I loved this desk and the beautiful legs, sorry about the sofa in the background but I certainly wasn't going to move it

I think the turkey was running from the gator

 

I've always wanted one of these and this guy was a nice size, just too hot to pick him to a lug him to the car

 

Only in America can we take healthy food and fry it!  My friends and I had fried pickles a couple of months ago and they were really good

This lovely lady had a booth in the shade and really great pieces, again to hot to shop

OK, my favorite piece of the day, I just love this!  These guys had a wonderful whimsical booth called REBEL reclaimed

I won't be visiting in August, this one about did me in.  September will hopefully bring cooler temperatures and better prices.

Anne of Green Gables

 Can you picture L.M. Montgomery sitting upstairs at Green Gables writing her stories of Anne Shirley? As I stood in the yard taking this picture I was so thrilled to finally visit GG.  I was reminded of my trip to Prince Edward Island these past few days as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are visiting Canada, one of the requests that the Duchess made was to visit PEI because of her love of the stories of Anne Shirley and Green Gables.  I stayed in a little B&B not far from GG and enjoyed exploring the island and reliving the stories of GG.  It was a wonderful experience and I'd love to go back some day.
 

 I drove from Manchester, NH to PEI.  It was a beautiful trip through Maine, across New Brunswick and then across this ginormous bridge to PEI.  This bridge is spectacular which is something for someone from Michigan to say as we have the beautiful Mackinaw Bridge.

Before I left the island I of course stopped at the Visitor Center to pick up all things GG including a package of lupin seeds. I had enjoyed the beautiful lupins that are so abundant on the island, they grow with wild abandonment everywhere in what seems to be all the colors of the rainbow.  The lady at the counter told me "good luck" they aren't easy to get started but are so beautiful if you are successful. I was successful and have been thrilled each year since with the beauty of the lupins in all their glory in my back yard. I was horrified a couple of weeks ago when I found Mr. Hubby in the back yard in one of my flower beds "pulling weeds"! He had pulled nearly all of my lupins by the time I was able to stop him.  They hadn't bloomed at that time, I was out in the backyard yesterday and all I have left was this one pitiful lupin.

Let me assure you he will not be helping to pull weeds in my flower beds again.  I think of the beautiful areas of PEI with all the lupins in bloom and I can only hope that I will see mine regain their glory in the back yard next year.

  
When leaving PEI I so wanted to take the ferry to Newfoundland but my time constraints ruled and I headed down through Nova Scotia to Halifax and finally after visiting Halifax I took the ferry from the south of NS to Bar Harbor Maine.

After writing this thread I'm going to have to pull out my book and read Green Gables again.

World's Fair 1964

In 1964 I was invited to attend the World's Fair in New York.  I was 14 at the time.....ya go ahead and do the math.  Anyway....my parents in no way had the money to give me for this trip so I spent several months  taking in ironing, babysitting, working at a little summer resort, anything that could generate a little savings.  With the help of all our neighbors who provided me with these jobs and what my parents could give me I saved enough to attend.  My girlfriend who had invited me to go along came from a well to do family so they paid for a lot of things that Paula and I did while we were there too.  Bless their hearts they are both gone now but I'll be forever grateful to them for introducing me to travel.

There were so many "firsts" on this trip, my first ride on a train, first time in a large city, first time eating at a restaurant where each person had their own waiter, oh and the first time I was ever in a restroom that had an attendant!!!!!  That was at the Waldorf and I thought I was in heaven to see such a beautiful place, the hotel not the restroom although it was beautiful too.

The World's Fair was wonderful and my girlfriend and I had the best time, this was in addition to all the fun things we did on our first trip to NYC compliments of her parents.  What an experience for a fourteen year old from a very very small town in the midwest.

All the mementos from that trip are long gone with the exception of two...one hangs in my mother's apartment and this one has been lying in the basement unprotected and unloved for many many years.  I brought it up the other day, had it matted and re-framed and will how hang it in a guest room. 

Yup, that's me so long ago that most of the memories of that trip have slipped away.  There was a chalk artist at the fair and he did two drawings of me.  I'm so glad this one has survived and will now be displayed in the house as a memory of a life experience that opened the world of travel for me.

Pink Saturday

In 2004 three of my best travel buddies and myself visited Butchart Gardens in Victoria.  It was an amazing trip, today I'm sharing a few pink pictures that I took while we were there.  Mr. Hubby and I will be headed to Victoria in June and I can't wait.

Happy Pink Saturday
 Beverly's Pink Saturday

Princess Diana - A Celebration

Today I am going to see the Princess Diana exhibit at our art museum with my dear friends and my sister-in-law.  It's a girls day out as we ignore all the responsibilities and tasks we still have to complete before the holidays.  I'm so excited to see all the beautiful dresses and jewelry and especially the wedding dress.  Yup, I'm a sucker for all things that have to do with the royals and despite all the turmoil that surrounded her life with the Prince I think she was very royal.

After we take in the exhibit we'll head across the street where one of the larger hotels in town that has had their pastry chef make a repica of Charles and Diana's wedding cake, then it's on to one of the restaurants in the hotel for a beautiful pre Christmas luncheon that will include a slice of the same type of cake that was served at the wedding.

I equate this experience to a little girl going to her very first American Girl luncheon, I'm just gidding....and at my age who would have thought it.

Home Soon

Picture provided by Pottery Barn

I'm on the East Coast wrapping up my responsibilities with the company I work for as I prepare to retire at the end of the year.  I'll be back in blog land very shortly and am looking forward to spending many winter hours enjoying everyone's company and hospitality as we share our homes and ideas.

Nell Hill's

I visited Nell Hill's Briarcliff store last year and fell in love with the store and with Mary Carol.  She is a cute, bubbly bundle of energy with a great eye for decorating and hiring the right people to represent her business. Although the building certainly isn't vintage at the Kansas City location once you step inside your head will start to spin with inspiration for your own home.  Room after room of beautiful displays will make your heart go pitter patter. 

I'm leaving tomorrow with two friends to make the 13 hour trek back to Kansas City to visit her store again.  Who in the world would think there was ANY store worth traveling 13 hours to get to?  I'm not sure there is....but my friends and I always take a pre-holiday trip somewhere and this year it was decided that Nell Hills would be our first stop.  Actually we'll be visiting the stores in Atchison and Kansas City and I can't wait to see what Mary Carol has on display for us. 

After we've exhausted ourselves at Nell Hills we will head to St Charles, MO. for more shopping.  This beautiful little town is just the perfect place to spend a day shopping and enjoying the charm of the town.  Lunch or dinner will be at the Louis and Clark Restaurant and we'll be sure to spend some time at Flower Pedaler, one of my favorite shops in the little business district.  I never leave the store without some treasure to bring back home.  Last year when we were there my friend bought this very large wooden chicken that was pulling a wooden cart.  That was a challenge to get into the back of the SUV.

Oh and along the way there will certainly be some stops at local antique shops and maybe a thrift store or two and we'll certainly be punching into the GPS any Home Goods we might find along the way.  Having this time together before the craziness of the holidays begins is better than anything your doctor can prescribe.  Take a minute....maybe you can't work in a weekend with the girls but hopefully you can find a few quiet minutes somewhere in the next few weeks to "feed" yourself with the happiness of family and friends and look past the craziness we make of this time of year.

Going to the Orchard

I live in the middle of a fruit belt and right now the fields are filled with pumpkins and apples.  Honeycrisp apples are my favorites for eating and a mixture of Courtland and Mac's are my favorite for baking.  As for pumpkins I love them all but  the Cinderella pumpkins always make me smile. They just appear to be so elegant, at least in the pumpkin world.  They didn't have any Cinderella pumpkins at the orchard today but did have some large ones sitting out in front of the bakery. These of course aren't the enormous ones that you see at contests but for farmers who's main business is apples not pumpkins I thought they were pretty impressive.

So I was lucky enough to get to the orchard before the lines were 200 people long waiting for cider and donuts to take home.  I love the fresh pumpkin spice donuts with sprinkled sugar and cinnamon and of course fresh cider.  Today the bakery part of the barn smelled like fall. The donuts were still warm so they couldn't close the top on the donut box because of the steam from the warm donuts.  I then moved over to the other side of the barn to pick up some cider, they were pressing and filling the jugs just as fast as they could, as they filled the gallons of ciders were disappearing from the counter by everyone waiting in line for that fresh taste of fall.  I was lucky to get away with a dozen donuts and a gallon of cider for Mr. Hubby. 

Buses of elementary school children visit the orchard in the fall on field trips.  The inside of the little bakery/restaurant is filled with thank you drawings from the children.  Our orchard has hayrides through the orchards with big beautiful Belgian horses pulling the wagon.  Very picturesque this time of year.

The centerpiece for the orchard is this large apple.  It stands ten or twelve feet tall and the kids just love to play around it.  There are lots of picnic tables where families can sit down to enjoy their cider and donuts fresh from the bakery. I had stopped to take this picture a few days earlier as on a weekend it is swarming with children.

Tablescapes from Country Living Fair

I'm not sure where Country Living was going with the tablescapes that they did for the Country Living Fair in Columbus Ohio last weekend but I dutifully took pictures (OK, my pictures aren't the best but it is what it is) and am here to report on what I saw.

This tablescape was set at the entrance of the building.  I think the moss covered dogs must have been a big thing at Market this year as they used two of them for tablescapes in this building.

This was the only table that was set as a dining tablescape.  It was simple in its style but was very inviting.  I love the folding chairs

The burlap as the table drop set a nice early tone for the tabletop.

It was hard to tell the story of each of the tables, this one I drew that it was set for a small dinner with the tables stacked next to the drinking glasses.

Stacked plates seem to be "in" this year, Pottery Barn is also showing tablescapes with just stacked plates rather than individual table settings.  I love the color with the green apples in the basket.

This one looked like it could be for an entry.  You can't see in the picture but there was another moss dog tied to the bottom leg of the table.

This was my favorite as was set for an entry but you could have easily made it into a small buffet table but including the carrot cake, pumpkin cupcakes and apple cider on the table.

I am participating in 

Table Top Tuesday

and

Tablescape Thursday