~LITTLE GIRL BLUE~

Mele has not been happy this past week. She is doing better. A lot better. She slept a lot better last night than she has for a week. In this picture she was exhausted. She had spent the night trying to find some place she felt safe. I could not stand it and stayed up much of the night and played on the computer while she slept on the floor as far over in the corner under my desk chair as she could get.

Truthfully...I am rather reluctant to talk about this incident. I have no answers. I know what some learned people have told me..I know what I have witnessed and I am shocked to some extent and at a loss for any answers that make sense to me.
This incident spooks me and makes me unhappy. Suffice to say that Mele is better. I was actually able to take her into the room last night and she didn't struggle to get away or dash off the bed and out of the room the moment I loosened my grip. My husband thinks it is my dog. He did NOT raise her and we are both fairly new in his life. I don't want him upset so I am trying hard to down play this thing. Ihave had her checked and she is fine, healthy and totally normal. She has had every shot a dog can have.

Last night I put her under the covers and she stayed..not moving..as though knowing I was trying to give her someplace she felt safe. I finally took our top quilt and pushed it to the bottom of the bed and made a make shift cave for her. She stayed the entire night. I truly expected her to be gone this morning but she was not. So..I have hope this is passing.

I am very aware that there are wonderful ladies on here that I think highly of and want to like me and not think something is WRONG with me..or my little dog for that matter. We are getting through this. Probably the less said the better as we know nothing really. I have faith. It is definitely getting better. Much better. :)

~OH NO..not another ROOSTER...~

Now be nice! I couldn't help it. Dena bought a cutie at a thrift shop...and all I could find was a painting. Yes, yes, it was cute, and yes I love the way the frame turned out...however...the search has been on for a rooster lamp. I wanted BIG one for the sofa table in the dining room. So far nothing. Yes, this was a catalog find..and you all probably know exactly the catalog...but...he was just so doggoned sweet. I fought the urge. Well..I DID!! (stamping foot here!) No..really..I tried. From now on..it's thrift shops only. But..I mean just LOOK at him. Isn't he cute?? (Christer...shhhh.. :)

I used to try and whistle when I was a little girl. Everyone tried to teach me. All the cousins..Granddaddy, Uncle Earl. I would walk around all day long with my mouth all pursed up trying to whistle and getting nothing but air. Now and then a tiny sound would come out and I would be encouraged. When Grandma saw me doing this she would say.. "Now Miss Priss, whistling girls and crowing hens always come to some bad end!" I wonder what she meant by that???

~GRIMLIN ON THE LOSE?~

I am at a loss..things are just disappearing. First my entire blog list vanished. I must have hit something and it was gone. I spent most of the day fumbling around..looking here and there..and finally found my blog list but it was not showing and had to be entered completely all over again...so I did this. I copied it from a list I found on the dashboard..not sure I could find it again..but the "URLs" show. Then when finished, I found that some of them were missing???!!
WHAT?? For example Cottage In The Curve..our Patti Cakes...GONE!! I tried just enter her name..nope..would not take it. Gave me a pop up saying there was nothing like that or some such nonsense. So..I traced my posts back and found a comment from her...went to her blog..and wondered if it was under http patticakes....that sort of thing..put it in like that..NOTHING!
Now..also...my little "followers" box has changed. It looks completely different!!!
And where Patti Cakes little face was is an X. ??? I am baffled..also..other names are missing off my "blogs I follow" list. I am trying to find their URLS..and I don't even know what one is..so went to help... I can understand when someone drops of the list of my followers..ok..so that don't like me any more..I can take it..:) not really..but at least I understand that. The rest is a mystery to me.
Never mind..I am rageing and ranting here and I know it. It is just so frustrating.
Is that how you spell it. I NEED SLEEP...

~Valerie at GLIMPSE OF MY WORLD is having a GIVEAWAY..~

ARE these our lucky days or what?? Another giveaway...hurry...before you miss out!!

~SHEILA at NOTE SONGS..GREAT GIVEAWAY...GO SEE~

YOU will be blown away at the adorable things she is giving away! HOW she can part with that pillow is beyond me. I really don't think I would. But..bless her. With a song in her heart..she is doing JUST that!!!

:) you gotta smile at that woman when you look at her..doncha??

~POLKA DOT BAKING DISH...O MY~

Ok..now I have all the baking dishes one could ask for..and pie plates etc..and any other baking thingy one can think of..but...then I saw this one. Well..you can plainly see that there is a circle around it. When the catalog came..and I opened it ... and saw this dish..I slammed it shut and smacked it on the desk and walked away. Yes I did! You would have been proud of me! I..was proud of me!!
I didn't even return to the kitchen by that route. Nope..I certainly did not. I went through the living room...through the kitchen..through the dining room AND the family room. I HAD resisted the urge. Yes indeedy doo! PROUD! That's what I was!!

(it was backordered and will be here on the 15th of March.. shhhhhh... )

~CRONICLES OF A COUNTRY GIRL and SWEET COTTAGE DREAMS is having a giveaway..GO see~

And if you enter...leave my Dogwoods alone. They ARE Dogwoods..aren't they? Someone? Anyone? Anyone??
Oh..never mind! They are crabapple blooms..I went back and looked. I never seem to catch everything.

Our Becky is back! I was SO happy to see her new post about her giveaway. It is good to hear from her. SO good!
Mona

~MELE'S PROBLEM..CON'T~

I just posted about Mel's problem..saw a type o and came back to fix it..and then entire thing vanished. Photo and all. I clicked "edit" and that was the end of it.
Oh well.
Mele is still suffering..I was up all night with her. Now it is happening in the livingroom as well. I am taking steps to try and figure out ways to help. I was up all night..finally tried taking her to bed and put her under the covers with me and covered her with the quilts. She was quiet..and seemed to get a bit of sleep..but I couldn't. I was afraid I would turn over and hurt her. Finally I had to turn over and when I did she shot out of the room and I was too tired to follow. I have no idea where she spent the night. Poor baby.
I hoped tonight would be better..but..it seems to be even a bit worse than last night. I would love to know what she sees that I do not. She follows it around the room with her eyes. Wish I could help her.

~SUNDAY THRIFT STORE FINDS~

We have been visiting my favorite thrift stores on Sundays after breakfast out. Makes for a nice day. This is what I found this time. I think my bunny is a Goebel
but there are no markings on him. He was just $1.00. My blue log cabin plate says Lincolns Birthplace, Kentucky on it. The back say Old English Saffordshire. Probably a souvenir. Same with the Old Church Tower but I liked them and they were very inexpensive. :) Love that!!
I almost came home empty handed. Then suddenly I saw a table with lots of blue on it..and the bunny..
Nothing like a cute bunny or some dishes to make my day!! Or both!

HOW pretty are these? I think I will add a few more this year. For awhile last summer they looked sad and small and though I knew they were finally taking off in a burst of growth I didn't realize how much. When my girlfriend came to dinner last evening, she said, "Wow! I could see your house from clear down the street." They have really begun to bloom so beautifully! Spring is in the air and only a month away. I had to go out this morning and take a closer look so decided to take a picture. They really are lovely. These flowers were SO small that I even added three ferns to the bed..and you no longer can even see them.
Springtime is coming!!


This morning when I walked outside to check the flowers in the beds, I REALLY looked carefully at the front porch. I was sort of wondering what new things I might add..what to discard, move or pitch out It has been wet and rather dreary looking and today is also overcast. I usually go out through the garage. I then noticed that things were beginning to look ..sort of like Spring. That really did make me smile. I have a few sweet friends on here that really do need Spring. Badly! So..this is for them. :)

~QUIET SUNDAY AND SECRET DREAMS~

Our minister asked us today if we had one thing that nobody knew about, one thing we would like to do and have never told a soul for fear of being laughed at, or told how crazy it was..what would it be.
He used to be a lawyer. He said he had a friend that was also a lawyer and one day they were talking and suddenly he said to her "If you could have been anything else in the world..what would it have been?" He said she just stood rooted to the spot and stared at him for a moment and suddenly burst into tears. She said "I would have been a wife and mother. I never wanted to go to college and I never wanted a professional career or to become a lawyer. I was made to go to law school and become a lawyer by my parents..and now it may never happen. It is too late to have children really..and I don't even know how to change being what I am, and I am not happy. I never have been."
He said he has NO idea why he said what he did to her..and felt so bad when she ended up sobbing. He said he began to wonder how many of us are the same. That is when he made the decision to become a minister. He said he did not want to wake up one day at the end of someone else's dream. Thank heavens he did. We love him.
So..I thought about it. So..I will tell you what I wanted to be. I used to dream of being an actress. I never believed I could do such a thing and so..I never did.
I was shy and afraid of criticism. I lost much of my shyness..but not my fear of criticism.

I am not unhappy with what I did with my life. I was meant to be a wife and mother. I think I made some bad decisions in my life..and I do have some regrets...but never about having my babes. I have to think that had I been meant to be an actress I would have been.
I have learned..late..but I have learned that if you want something bad enough..
you can do it. That is old news..I know...but isn't it funny that so few of us really GET it. Most of us drift into what we become or do what is expected of us. How many teachers do you know that adore children..and make a child feel special and really want to learn? Don't we remember every teacher that ever gave of themselves to us? But that is just this one womans opinion..
Goodnight...I think I'm tired. Oh...loved the Acadamy Awards tonight..those dresses!!

~MELE UPDATE~

Nope..she refused to enter the room last night. I tried twice and let her alone. Same reaction. I enticed her into the bedroom with a treat in my hand yesterday afternoon..but even though she entered..she immediately left..where she would normally have stretched out on the rug and waited for me to make the bed. She no longer waits for me outside the bathroom door like you used to also.
This is upsetting to me..because during the day she seems totally fine. In the above picture which I took just moments ago..she laying watching the birds that flock on the grass beneath the feeders. NO idea what the problem is.

I'm going to take her to a vet for a check up on Tuesday...maybe she has an ear infecton or something. Hope it is something simple.

~ 12/2000 MY OLD HAT COLLECTION ~

TWB tagged me to write 6 interesting things about myself.. and as I told her, I have already told just about all there is to know about me and then things that only God knew. AND ..I don't know 6 people that wouldn't reach through this computer and RAP me right between the eyes if I sent it to them!!! The readers I have..I would like to keep..and I told TWB that I hope she doesn't hate me. Ok..Here goes..but they are not all THAT interesting.
1. I love long skirts, cute shoes, soft sweaters, blue jeans and old hats with veils.
2. I LOVE pretty hair clips and have lots of them. My girls always had long curls and lots of scarlet ribbons.
3. I am a chicken poo poo when it comes to people being ticked at me. I hate controversy!
4. NOT a good idea to corner me...or hurt my family.
5. I don't EVER want to be pregnant again!!!! (pretty safe on this one)
6. My favorite pieces of furnature are the rocking chair Patrick gave me and my piano.

~WHAT IS UPSETTING OUR MELE?~

This is Mele. Pronounced May Lay. Not that it matters..anyway. There seems to be a problem. Doesn't she look healthy? Bright eyed..happy? Well, for the past two nights she won't come to bed at night.
She has slept at my feet since she was 6 weeks old. Night before last when I put her to bed, I lift her up as the bed is too high, or so she says :) she began acting like she saw something..jerking her head this way and that..watching something I couldn't see. Then like a shot, she was off the bed and gone. I looked around..saw a little fly on the ceiling..and killed it, then went and got her and put her back on the bed. The minute I walked into the bedroom with her, she began shaking and her heart was racing. She..is not..a nervous dog..a yapper and normally very brave. Too brave. How could it be that tiny fly that frightened her as they are usually something she playfully chases?! Now here she was squirming to get away so she could run..and she refused to return. All night long.
Last night...same thing. Exactly. Acting like she sees something..and streaking from the room and refusing to return. Heart pounding, shaking and strugging to get free and run. Three times I carried her back, spent time talking soothingly to her, held her (not easy to do) and tried to just calm her obvious fear. Nothing worked. She was gone exactly as before when I loosened my grip. I finally gave up..couldn't sleep and was now wide awake. I blogged, unsuccessfully, played scrabble until nearly 3.
I finally was able to get to sleep. I slept late.. and this morning, though she did not come into the bedroom..she jumped into my lap the moment I sat down in the living room and kissed my hands and face almost apologetically. I am mystified. What is she seeing and what is spooking her?? She is obviouisly watching something..what?? Is she hearing something I cannot hear.
Being in California and living on top of a fault...that entered my mind but T looked at me like I was losing it..so I let that one go. :) Any idea's? I hate having her upset like that and I miss her at my feet! I can see one night..but not two. What could it be?

~THANK HEAVENS FOR SPRAY PAINT~

I have had this bunny forever it seems. His foot was broken off and glued back on years ago. One day a few years ago I got in a mood to paint and added a few roses and buds on him. He is very heavy so I keep him on the floor or hearth. He is a favorite of mine.

I saw this in the store when I bought the black fern stand. It was an odd gray but bought it anyway and painted it. It may be white again one day..but for now..t'is black. :) I dragged in more ferns..the plants will change as I want flowers in it.
Like everyone...I am ready for Spring.

~BLACK IS THE NEW ...WHITE?~

Whoa!! What a cute little wicker fern stand and NO painting required! $13 dollars? GREAT price!

Off to the patio for a plant..a bit of grooming for this little fern ...snip, snip!


I LOVE the way it looks. PERFECT in that spot! Something like this makes for a nice day.

~SEE? I KNEW YOU COULD GET IN TROUBLE~

I knew...you could get in trouble if you said something on here and people could read and take offense to. I just KNEW it! I worry about that. Yes, probably too much but today I saw it happen. My only comfort is that it was a blog that very possibly is a bit too young for me anyway. Still..I had just happened to read a comment by the auther on another blog..and went to see what the fuss was all about. :) FOFL but..sorry..I just thought it was funny. When someone comes on and reads a comment on their blog and gets upset..well..especially if that person is the one that brought up the subject in the first place..well..anyway...it just proved a point to me.
I have to tell you though...my most favorite blogs are the most outspoken ones. Don't think I would "follow" one that was filled with profanity or that sort of thing..but an occassional "discriptive" word, to me, is just real life. People cuss.
People ..do stuff..make mistakes. On blogs people write about themselves, their lives. (If they have a store or are selling things..different story.) People are encouraged to make comments. Things are not ALL goodness and light. I tend to stay to the light side as I love a good laugh and I think most people do. However..we are people and people suffer, want advice, turn to others. This is an outlet..or supposed to be. If you put yourself out there..I guess you can't get all upset when a comment tells you like it is. I don't know...you know....still thinking about this blogging thingy.

Still, the brave ones are my hero's. I just don't want to HAVE to delete my blog or feel uncomfortable writing it.

~THIS IS PATRICK~

This was taken when he was still in the Marine Corp. It's funny how you never know how things will end. You think you have forever but you don't. We thought we would grow old together and I guess we were lucky to have the years we had.
He came home FOUR times. He was always on the front lines so I am grateful for every single one of those 43 years. Every single one of them! I will always miss him.

HALLELUJAH...HALLELUJAH...HALL-E-LUUU-JAH ~

:) :) THANK HEAVENS for blogging friends who take the time and are kind enough (even when sick with a dread cold like Di, who had such patience with me. Dena, what a blessing and bj and all of you who took pitty on me. I still have to do some tweaking as it isn't just right..but..I at least now know what a Html is...and know it isn't JUST a lot of "gibberish". :) Di finally sent me an actual picture of her screen..when all she wanted to do was just crawl into bed. My thanks and gratitude and hugs to all of you.
Now..that is what I call love...(or just plain sick of hearing all the complaining I was doing!)
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!

~WE PRAYED FOR RAIN...not a roof leak..~

Not to worry..I'll have this fixed in minutes..
Not a problem..a little tar..here and there...
Oh heck no..not too cold..this will be finished in no time..

I got a little tar on the carpet...I don't EVEN WANT TO HEAR IT!!! OK??!!

~RANDOM THOUGHTS OF WINTER and WAR 1970~

My life was centered around Viet Nam and the evening newscasts and the mailman. Our children ranged from 14 years to 6 months. When Pat had to leave for overseas, the baby was just beginning to crawl and explore. This picture was taken by a friend the day our baby girl, Dawn, was baptized.
I remember Pat would be gone for a year and that year seemed forever. Now a year passes in a heartbeat..but back then it dragged on forever.
I would spend that first week in tears and depression, almost unable to function. The second week was better..but not much and by the third I would begin to snap out of it. When talking about it I often called it the "withdrawal" weeks. How my poor children coped with a crying mother, I have no idea...but I do know it makes me sad to remember it. During those times he was gone, the children and I bonded so close to one another. We are still a very close family and I wonder if it has anything to do with those days. They still are very protective of one another and me. War is so distructive in so many, many ways. I and my children lived in constant fear.

~SOOOO TRUE...but..wait...

Nothing about this pillow except what it said ...then I had to laugh. Cute... and sooo true. (At least you HOPE so. :)

~LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT~

THIS I could not pass up. It now sits on my couch where it has found a home. You know, this "shopping" thing could become a problem if I let it!
I STILL have not figured out how to post a picture..write under it..post another, etc.
I have read all the directions that everyone has given me and I feel like an absolute dummy here. I go to POST. I click on the icon for posting a picture..I download it, I then hit "save" and then write a comment about it...but I never see where I can "MOVE" a picture around..up OR down..and comment under it??!! I have done all of the above..even hit save..nothing. WHAT on earth am I doing wrong??!! GOOD GRIEF!! This would all be so much easier if I knew what I was doing. I really AM trying...I am! I am...darn it all!!

~BLUE MONDAY?~

Well, I went shopping today..and I saw these little flow blue mugs..but passed them by...I don't need them..do I? Really...I don't...GOOD GRIEF!

~PASSIONS FROM THE PAST~

Someone reminded me of these today. They are tucked away in the bottom of one of my curio cabinets..but..it she brought back memories. I really cannot remember why I got so into collecting these tiny bears, but they appealed to me at the time..and several times I have thought of selling them..but never do. I imagine one day they will end up in a shop like "Rusty Cuboard" and her mother run and someone will walk by and smile and say.."oh, remember those?" and wonder why they were all the rage. I still think they are adorable..and I am still loving Beatrix Potter figurines and stuffed characters like Peter Rabbit, and especially the frog, Jeremy Fisher..but they are bagged at the moment and stored away.
Anyway...just remembering things I collected long ago...and sometimes far away.
I am off to bed. Shopping at the Mission Inn Antique Malls tomorrow.. :) OH JOY!!

~FEBRUARY..THE MONTH OF LOVE~

This took place all across America, I'm sure. Perhaps it happened when I found myself alone after 43 years of marriage, but I consider Valentines Day a day to express your love for others. Family, best friends and all friends, even our special blogger buddies that give so much to us. I think..this was one of the best Valentines Days..I have had in a long time.
I slept in late this morning and as usual,T got up earlier and quietly slipped out of the room and let me sleep. When I finally rolled out of bed in shock at the hour, I found this on my dresser. He was all smiles when I came into the kitchen. We are new together. Old folks getting to know one another and shy about everything.
We had a quiet, warm, sweet day together.
We both know we have other memories of other times long past and we honor those memories. We talk. This person, this marriage, these times...are good. Getting older has it's rewards.
Neither of us wanted to be alone and lonely. Neither of us wanted to grow old alone. Oh we probably will one day be alone once again..and we have accepted that.
But right now...we are "Last Chance Howard...and Mona".
Valentines Day is running out quickly...but love never will. And we bloggers are on to ...another Holiday to decorate for and write about.
Love and hugs to all.
Mona

~MORE ROOSTERS...well...sorta...~

I loved this rooster and fruit rug for my kitchen. I put it under my island. The floors will be wood one day soon I hope. But even with the wood I thought it would work. It took nearly three months to get the rug, but I think it was worth the wait. Gosh, that floor is UGLY! At least some of it is covered. It's dark, cold and cloudy outside. HOW on earth you ladies handle it back east for so long is beyond me. At least the snow is pretty when you look outside. I'm going in and sit by the fire and fold clothes. Maybe the mood will pass. :) With me it usually does. Anyway..do you like the rug? Other than "More roosters Mona"? If you don't like it, it's ok..you can say so. :) I won't mind. :( At least not very much. NO..wait..don't tell me.
Oh..go ahead. I'm a big girl!!!

~RANDOM THOUGHTS~

I thought this little Fairy cottage was so sweet.
I was raised with an Irish Grandfather and Grandmother and tales of Fairies in Ireland. When my two oldest sons, Patrick and Michael and their wifes returned from two weeks in Ireland and brought me beautiful Irish lace and a VERY old green marble egg. They also brought lots of footage of themselves and their travels through Ireland.
They told me they only had a "wee bit of the good ale" but..from the footage..they proved themseves to be as Irish as their Pop. Those mugs looked good size to me but they said it was an insult to the establishment if they didn't down a quart right off. Do I believe that. Oh..well...probably. I'm gullible. Sounds like a buncha Irish tommyrot to me though. :)
My poor babes are Irish on both sides. Their Dad was all Irish and I am half. All seven have their fathers and my green eyes and dark hair. (Shhhhhh...we won't mention the pic. below!) They all have tempers, but hearts of gold and generous to a fault, AND they all tell a good story. An Irish trait for certain!
Anyway...I just felt like talking about my children a bit.

~IS THAT MY MOTHER I SEE ...LOOKING BACK AT ME?~

My daughter sent me a picture of herself she had taken and wanted one of me. This was last night. So, I picked up my little camera and snapped this. SHOCK! In a bit over a year..I GOT OLD. The picture I posted at the beginning of my blog was taken on November 11, 2007. A little over a year ago and look at what has happened to me. AND I haven't even been running this country! I am turning into my mother. It's not a bad thing. I guess I was just not prepared to see that. Oh well.
I need sleep. I am sleep deprived or I wouldn't post this thing. Wait..I can delete..no..no...this is TRUTH. NO deleting.

~AM I A MESS OR WHAT?....~

WHY IS MY OFFICE ALWAYS SUCH A MESS!! Never mind that...THAT part of my life and home is hopeless!! Maybe if I got my office straightened out...anyway....
I have a couple of questions..and I am hoping someone can help. I am struggling here, not just with picture taking but things such as: Who is the lady that suddenly appeared on my blog in the "Follow this blog" ...odd. She is wearing a bathing suit..and every time I try and check to see who she is it comes up and says she is a teacher, but if I click on her blog...the screen goes dark and it won't appear. Then suddenly my computer screen goes completely gray and I have to sign off aol because my screen freezes. I won't try again. WHO is this lady? Sort of concerns me. Anyway...if anyone knows who that is or why this happens and if it might be a bad thing, please tell me...oh..and there is another one. Not sure what that one is either. These don't seem to be the normal bloggers I have met.
Another thing..can someone tell me how I can download a picture..make a comment under it, go to the next picture and do the same without making separate post entries each time. I have played with it..and I can download several picture but I can't write beneath each of them. How do you do that?
Ok...my MAJOR award. HOW did it get way down the toward the bottom of my side bar. It used to be up on top..now it is not there. It is alright..I mean it doesn't HAVE to be right at the top...but HOW did it get down there. Did I do it?
I did figure out how to get a little calendar that I loved over to my blog.
They gave great directions but Di had already given me a page of directions..so I am fine there. If anyone can help or give me a bit of a hint it would be great.
Also..I only have ONE blog..yet it says in my profile that I have three. Am I a MESS or what?? Hugs and gratitude to anyone who can help.
Mona

~SNOW...IS THAT SNOW I SEE?~

I know is isn't much but at least it is something. I need to take a drive (by myself) and see if I can get a better shot. My husband was driving and had a sort of what are you doing look when I wanted to take a picture. Tomorrow..well..ok..it's already tomorrow..I will take a drive and get a better picture. The L.A. Times even had pictures of it. The grass was all white with frost this morning...but the Begonia's on the front porch are doing alright. I probably should bring them inside. It will probably be in the 30's before morning..LOVE it. We don't have too much longer to squeeze in a bit of Winter.

~EBAY FINDS~

I found the heart tablecloth on ebay and fell in love with it. AND it was oval!
The LITTLE MacKenzie-Childs teapot I loved. It is small, was described as LARGE :) and was also described as a teapot and looks like a coffee pot to me. Oh well. I had never seen one like it before and I thought it the cutest little thing. :)
Back to work.

~HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY~

Ok...my sweet friend,(uh huh..) SMART MOUTH BROAD tagged me with the Honest Scrap meme. The rules are that you have to list 10 HONEST and INTERESTING facts about yourself and then tag another or some others to do the same. SMB was tagged but she chose..for apparently vicious reasons....to put her poor sweet husband, HARLEY STUD on the chopping block. Then when she was finished with poor HARLEY STUD, as is her nature..she whirled and pointed her finger at poor me. She thought I would crumble in the face of such pressure and fall apart and immediately start deleting all. BUT I fooled her!
So...now it is MY turn to whirl and point!
That little tag thing is below. SO those are the rules and BLUE RIDGE GAL is my choice!
It'll keep Di off the streets and out of the bars...at least for a bit! :)

Oh..and who loves me? Why, SMB of course! HA!!!
Mona

~THERE'S SUCH A THING AS "SENIOR ABUSE" YA KNOW...~

Ok...my (HAHA) friend SMART MOUTH BROAD has put me in a corner. NO regard to how very old I am...doesn't care..NOT even! Tagged me! Says I have to tell ten HONEST and INTERESTING facts about myself. My poor heart is pounding! She's just mad cuz I delete stuff and frusterate her! She's out to get me I tell you!! Pure and simple!!
Ok. Here goes.

#1. I am quite lovely to look at. Yes, yes indeed! Quite stunning actually!

#2. I am very slender. (Even though I have had seven children..all 13 to 14 months apart!)
#3. I DO NOT snore!! ( I don't care what ANYBODY says!)

#4. I have VERY tiny feet. :)

#5. I have the cutest dog on earth. AND the smartest! (However, I taught her to "question authority" just like I did my wonderful children. Ok. So I made a few mistakes in life!)

#6. I have the cutest home and the most adorable children ever and all three husbands have been perfection! (I don't CARE what anybody says here either!)
#7. I can play the piano like a concert pianist and sing like a pop star. (Well, I CAN!!)
#8. My waist is as small as Scarlett O'Hara's (Ok..close!) and when I turn sideways people say "Where'd she go??

#9. I'm VERY rich.

#10. I NEVER, EVER tell a lie!

So...am I still going to heaven?? :)

One more thing before I go..just for the record..I don't have a clue how to send this thing on (thank God! And I mean that sincerely!)

I think I did that pretty darned well, don't you? (I need a DRINK!!!)

Hugs to my SWEET friend, SMART MOUTH BROAD. I now understand how she got her name!

Mona

~I JUST WANT TO ADD...~

Or should I have said "P.S.?" I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a couple of books that were tattered and taped together from so much use..and this is one of them. "Gone With The Wind" is another. One is on my nightstand and the other by my reading chair. Yes..I do read other books. "The Life of Edgar Sawtelle" is one that I just finished a few weeks ago. Anyway...I just wanted to say that about my poor bedraggled book. The adorable pillow in my chair and on my sofa table are from Becky at SWEET COTTAGE DREAMS. Those are just a few of the pillows I have bought from her. Her pillows have brightened our home. Becky is on my mind.

~MY LITTLE READING PLACE~

This chair is in the dining room, well actually at the dining room end of the room.
The light seems perfect there, I have part of my library of books which you cannot see, to the right of my chair, a place to set my tea and the chair pushs back for a quick nap. Neat huh? :)
The book is the works of John Stienbeck and at times I disappear into his stories and a different time.
It is one of my escape books.
(There's a spot on my chair?! Where? Where?? OH NO!! It's an OLD chair and besides, I didn't do it! Well, I didn't!! Ok..so I probably did...I gotta learn to watch what I photograph...shoot! I REFUSE to delete it!)

~SORROW~

I tried to post last night. Then earlier today I tried to add to it. Becky of SWEET COTTAGE DREAM'S is on my mind. She was a new and precious friend. I guess I just have nothing to say that makes any sense. It either sounds like too much..or too little. Taking a break for a bit.

~CAN YOU HAVE TOO MANY VALENTINES? ...NEVER~

At first I almost didn't get one because I didn't think I had a place to hang it.
It was so darned cute..I kept looking around and then thought of this. Party or no party, I really like it. Mika, the daughter of Tina of CHERRY HILL COTTAGE was making them because people saw it in Tina's kitchen and like me, wanted one. Naturally! So I asked questions and found out that showing the back would not look good where I HAD planned to use it..so decided not to get it. Well, then..us Cottage folk being like we are, I kept looking until I spotted the perfect place. So..there ya go! I HAVE A CUTE BANNER!! I am pleased as punch! :)

~END OF DAY THOUGHTS~

I don't have ANY snow to play in. I have to go to my sons home if I want to go on an interesting walk. I've photographed every darned thing in the house. The plants are dying because there is a water shortage so no pictures out there. The grass is brown. Looks like someone through salt on the darned stuff. I have to say the bird bath on the front porch is a joy in the mornings. The birds here are all the same exact color and when I do see a speck of color on one of them I do Di's SNOW DANCE!
I'm beginning to sit on the sofa a lot because it is covered with flowers. I hang around LITTLE RED HOUSE because of her beautiful photo's of flowers. I rush over to THE BLUE RIDGE GAL to see if she is going anywhere so I can go too. If Di isn't going anywhere I tip toe over to SMART MOUTH BROAD's blog so she won't hear me and yell "delete! delete!" Anyway..I'm going to hit ebay and then I am off to bed. Maybe I'll watch Sense and Sensability. I've only watched it 9 or 10 times. But hey, tomorrow IS another day!

~ECCENTRIC? PERHAPS?~

When it comes to goodies for the house..I realize I have a problem. Howsomeever (is that one word or three?) I think Nana from NANA'S KITCHEN is correct...partly.
I am not ready to FOLD here. I am a wee concerned that I do buy things and then find out I already have one. Now..that has taken me aback on occassion. (more then once!) Yeah...I'm eccentric AND a shopaholic. Ok..so this is something I gotta work on. But at this age...

~I AM NOT A SHOPAHOLIC....AM I?~

Years ago I loved ships. I used to want a model of an old sailing ship for my home..but I never could afford one. I would have settled for a painting or print of one...but couldn't really afford that either. One day, on one of my junk store adventures, I found this plate and never longed for a ship after that. It must have satisfied the yearning. I have noticed that if I don't get some coveted item, the passion for it eventually seems to leave me. Even if the day comes and I can have it, I walk on by. However..I go on these..buying rampages. I get a feeling like "I HAVE to go find something! Anything! What if THE item that is perfect is out there and someone else finds it!! I HAVE to GO!" :) And I have to say, there is something satisfying about it. It fullfills some need in me. Decorating, for me, is actually a reason to get up in the morning. I think it has kept me going at times of sorrow and loss. It is truly a passion and I have had it since I was 17 and a newly wed. Anyway...I love my plate. Do you really think there is such a thing as a "shopaholic?" I don't think I am that far gone..or should I say I have never thought of myself as such. Hmmm...I need to think about this. I always thought you were a shopaholic if you bought things you didn't have money for and had to charge them..got yourself in trouble in that way? No? Naw...I can't be one of those...
I mean I don't buy things just to be buying things and then take them back. I HATE returning something though I must say I am quicker to take something back that is flawed or won't work etc. than I used to be. Has someone told me I'm a shopaholic..well..yes they have. I mean it was never a HUGE deal..but I was teased a bit. I have things to do..I'll think about this tomorrow. :)

~SUNDAY SHOPPING IS BECOMING A HABIT~

After breakfast at our usual place Sunday morning we decided to stop by my favorite "Forget Me Not" second hand store..and after two tour around the store I spotted this way up high in a place difficult to see. I called the owner over and he said it was not an oil. He said he was sure it was just a print and that it over priced. I asked to see it anyway..and while he was off to get a ladder, I moved things around and got a closer look. A little piece of paper thumbtacked beneath said it was an "oil painting." NO idea why he said it wasn't but..he got it down for me and I loved it..so.. I took it home and painted it...yep..RED!

~LATE NIGHT POSTS~

I just deleted my late night blog because I made a comment in it about wandering about and reading posts that make me hungry at the sight of all that wonderful food. I also made a promise to stop haunting the frig for goodies during those times when I wasn't even hungry. I ended my post by saying "Yeah, and I'm Elizabeth Taylor!" as in what are the chances of THAT!! I forgot Liz had gained weight or was heavy at all. In my mind Liz is still, and always will be one of the most beautiful women that has ever lived and the chances that I will stop my late snacks are about as likely as me ever looking like Liz.
I lost my comments when I deleted...but that is better than being minunderstood or thought to be making fun of someone. That just never occurred to me.
So..chubby here...is off to make some toast, add some peanut butter AND jam and get on with my day. I did go junking yesterday..and ..I could not believe my luck when I came across another wonderful painting. Yes, I bought it! It was way up high on a wall..and I don't think it was there last week. I mean, how could I have missed such a thing. I am off to water my plants! :) That ALWAYS makes me feel better! :)