~PLEASE DON'T HATE ME..OK?~

I'm teasing of course. :)
The reason I say this is because I think...I really do think, I got another great deal! I paid MORE then ten dollars this time..but still..I think I stole the following treasure...

Remember the sterling? Yeah..well..this time it's china. :) Noritake. On the way home after finding brand new hard cover novels...for a quarter, and some fifty cent deals..and other little treasures...and thinking our Saturday morning had been a success and so pleased, I was in for a surprise. This was our last stop..a garage sale that we had passed on our way out and decided to stop after breakfast when we were on our way home.

We did! And there, poorly wrapped in a big old cardboard box was this set of Noritake china, place settings for 8, plus gravy bowl and serving pieces.

I couldn't wait to get it home and see what it included. They didn't know exactly what was in the box... I unwrapped a few at the sale to know that...the price they wanted...I WAS GOING TO PAY! I didn't quibble!

I loved the pattern. REALLY did love it.
I think the pattern is just beautiful. The beautiful pale gold does not show up in the picture.

This is the markings on the back. See the M in the middle? I was confused. Where was the name? Where was the numbers? What did the "M" mean. Did it stand for "Mona" :) (I'm kidding!)

It was complete! I wanted to sing and do a jig! Ok..so I did dance a little jig, but only Sweet Husband saw me. You would have to know him to picture the LOOK on his face. I...think I puzzle the man! So...anyway...

Dinner plates...not a chip! Not a crack!
Adorable little gravy boat! PERFECT!
Cups and saucers. Check!
Are those sweet or what? And...you can see through them when held to the light!!
Oops..tiny chips in both these serving pieces...but...

Are you ready???

$30.00!!! YES! I know, I know! Me too! Just thirty dollar!

And the "M"? I looked it up on the computer...it stands for Mystery. Noritake has Mystery china and each has a number...such as Mystery #51...or Mystery #222. Like that.

So far I have looked at hundreds and haven't identified my pattern. I took down numbers that had no photo, but did give a description. If it was close to what I had...I wrote it down..so...the search is still on. The Mystery china seems to all be discontinued in the early part of the 1900's.

If anyone knows this pattern..please, oh please, write and tell me. I would really appreciate it.

So...do you think I got a deal? Now, if my kids won't shame me and get after me for buying it at such a cheap price. They did that last time you know. Darn kids!

Love and hugs, and have a wonderful Sunday!!

Mona

~FALL ...and FAUX PASTRIES.~

I know that summer has just gotten out of the gate..but already I am watching for wonderful items for Fall..

I admit to longing for those lovely Fall colors...and I admit Fall is my favorite time of year and the saddest time of year for me...still it is when I come alive.

While I am out going to garage sales, I am alway looking, searching, for Fall and Halloween items. I just can't help it. I haven't been posting those things...but..I am this time. Ready? :) Just one, ok?

I fell in love with this VERY heavy black candle holder..(the candle is mine and my favorite shade of orange. Price? $3.00.

These two tiny little pitchers with tiny succulents in them... $3.00.

Ok..I don't need any more of these...but I just can't resist Rhonda's creations. She is a delightful lady. Her Etsy site is Rhonda's Rose Cottage Designs.

I bought this delightful little chocolate cake. So sweet.
If you decide to shop with her...do watch the sizes..as the photo's can be misleading when taken up close. She states the sizes of each...so measure. :)

Now this little cake I did not buy...remind me to tell you that story sometime.

This cake is my very favorite one.
Each time I bought something from Rhonda...she sent a little gift..so I have this collection of cupcakes. I bought a couple and the tiny ones were her precious little gifts. Nice huh? :)

And this...well..this was bought years ago. It smelled delightful and made you hungry and for a long time it was the only faux goodie I had..
Then I bought this one...I guess I went nuts over that dark chocolate...again..I have no idea where I bought it as it is OLD!

Another Rhonda creation...LOVE it! I keep these in my little glass front hutch..

And here is where I keep my favorite little faux cake...all those tiny roses are handmade...and of course my most prized garage sale find. MY SILVERWARE! International sterling silver that I found at a garage sale for just $10.00!! The pattern is "Prelude."

It was a complete set with tiny butter knives with each place setting, and...four lovely sterling serving spoons and many various other silver plated flatware. ALL for $10.00 ...yeah...you are right! I STILL cannot believe my luck!

Just one of my milk glass compotes by Westmoreland. An Ebay find. I love real looking faux fruit.

Favorite apples in another Westmoreland compote. The first one of these I found on Ebay arrived broken to a million pieces. I had to find another...it took time..but..I found one finally.

Ok. Now....here is a good one for you.

Most of you probably know Rebecca at A Gathering Of Thoughts? Well...I had to laugh the other day when she featured her lovely home...and...showed her OLD and OUTDATED family room...and guess what! Mine is just like hers USED to be! I laughed, and laughed...but..outdated or not...I am not going to do anything else...this room is gonna stay exacty as it is...(almost.) I have already painted it and put in new carpeting of a lovely moss green..."Clover" by Grand Tehton to be exact. So...I will just go and look at Rebecca's when I need a beautiful new look. Ok, Rebecca? :)

Love and hugs,

Mona

~TURN AROUND...THEY'RE TINY...~

Time is slipping by me so fast. Today was Monday...again. Wasn't it JUST Monday?
The clock just ticks faster and faster...I used to hear my mother say things like that..."where does the time go?"
I had a little white Pom before Mele, Winnie was her name. She died and I was heart broken..and never wanted another dog. Or so I thought...
Then Christmas came..and there she was in a lovely shopping bag with a bow on her neck....from my husband, Frank.
Yes, I know. You kind of flinch when someone takes out their photo's...but today..I did just that...I mean, would you look at that ornery little girl up there...Frank's pants were in shreds around the hem..but that's why he wore them...because she could chew on them... :) His poor slippers were trashed! He didn't care..not a bit!

Just look at how tiny she was. Mele. She wouldn't mind me, didn't know her name, chewed on everything in sight but time passed...

...then she began to know her name...and come to me...FINALLY! I had forgotten what it was like to train a tiny puppy...exasperating!! :) And the clock ticked on...and she grew into this beautiful creature....


...and now I have this wonderful, sweet loving companion that is never far from me.
Under my chair, in my lap curled up at my back, behind my knees in bed...(yes, she sleeps with me...always has and yes...I know about the kennel method..but it's not for me) To each his own, I say.
I am this tiny little dogs world...she was there through the death of my second husband, Frank, just as Winnie was with me through the death of Patrick. When everyone else went back to their lives...these two wonderful, precious dogs were there for me. See her beautiful fur? It has been soaked in many tears...just as Winnie's was.
So...that is my thoughts for this evening. Love, from whatever source, is a precious gift. If I had my life to live over...I would probably do it all the same and I would get another puppy...
Turn around they're tiny, turn around and they're grown...I treasure every single moment with her...the clock is ticking....

Love and hugs,
Mona

~NO MORE FACEBOOK FOR ME~

Hi,
In our newspaper there was an interesting article about Facebook. My Sweet Husband called it to my attention... and had I not just had an unsettling experience I probably would have brushed it off.

But I read it and I learned something. At least I hope I learned something. Sometimes things can become so tangled due to an innocently misconstrued word or statement...that it can end up in a heartbreaking mess.

It has taken up the last couple of days and I had hoped that it could be explained and straightened out...but...we shall wait and see. It's a frightening and sad, sad thing.

Whatever the case..my mind has not been on my blog. It has been on my precious family and matters at hand.
If...any of you have visited me on facebook, which I really never used much, and didn't understand how to use very well...I am NOT there anymore.

Even writing on here, blogging, things can be taken out of context. I have had that happen. Not recently, but when I first began to blog and it is frightening.

So...like I said, IF you have visited me on facebook OR tried find me there...I am gone. It is permanent. I will not be back to FACEBOOK. I mainly joined to see the latest photo's of family and friends...and of course I had the joy of reconnecting with a long lost friend a few weeks ago. But....I find it a little dangerous...and no longer fun.

I will connect differently. The news article seems to feel the same way I do...be careful. It's public. And...it can be misunderstood and can cause damage. I'm just sayin'.... :)
Love and hugs,
Mona

~TO CLOCHE OR NOT TO CLOCHE...~

Fool that I am, I am joining Marty's Cloche party at A STROLL THRU LIFE.
You see, I am only doing this because I want to be where the action is..and I really could not think of anything to blog about..EXCEPT THE HEAT! Yeah! THE HEAT and who wants to hear about the HEAT! So...

I put my tiny faux cake in my sweet Princess House (VERY old) cake holder..I know, I know, it's NOT a cloche..but..I broke my big cloche and the only real one I have has a crack in it!

I really do like my cake saver. And..it's sort of "cloche" like. Sort of...

Now THIS is a cloche. Just a VERY small cloche...so..you know...here it is... (works for me!)


Ok. Now, small or not, this is another REAL cloche. And, yes, yes, you have probably seen it. But I was desperate here!!

I gave myself an A for effort. How's that for confidence! (...that I don't feel!)

Lovin'hugs!
Mona

~IT'S IFFY..BUT IT'S DONE...~

A few garage sales ago..I bought this little table for $20. I really liked it as it was...and yes, I could have just covered that black spot with a scarf or doily (too deep to sand out) and let it go...but as you know (if you visit very often) I have also been on a "spray painting" kick!

I waffled back and forth..should I or shouldn't I, and had some yes and no's from you little Sweethearts out there, but in the end...I just did it. "Remember now, you can always change it" I said to myself...which is always how I sooth myself when I'm scared and insecure!

Here it is the way it was when I bought it. I love the legs..


...and here it is painted white.
Disregard the doily on the back of the chair..I was trying it on the top of the table...didn't work.

The living room, is a problem. It's a mix of furnature..which is fine..but it just seems if you are going to go white..you should paint EVERYTHING white...and I can't. So...we'll see.

Do you get the feeling that I have NO idea who I am when it comes decorating? I love the bright, cheerful French Country look...but I like Rebecca's soft pinks and whites and feminine look...so...who knows! Shabby Chic?

What the heck, should I paint the curio cabinet white...and the rocker. It was a gift from Patrick :( so..you know. How can I paint that white...and would I be sorry? And the coffee table. The only thing left in wood would be my piano. NOW that I CANNOT paint! But the other stuff. I mean, I could.... *trails off in confusion*

I (sort of) tie it together by keeping my roses with the deep rose reds to go with the reds of the kitchen and Great room...(didn't we used to call that the "family room?) What's the difference. I know full well my ignorance of terminology is going to show here...but I don't care. I really do want to know. Anyone? Anyone? (Fast Times At Ridgemont High) heheh...

Yes...I know this little table looks ...all out of place..but..I'll figure it out. Maybe. (what to do..what to do..) Maybe it's the heat??

In the meantime I'm turning on that blasted air conditioner again. It must be 90 degree's in here! It is supposed to hit a 100 by weeks end. I can't sleep when it's so hot! My poor hanging flower baskets are pathetic looking...JUST PATHETIC..
(whine, whine...)

So..ok..what do you think of the table? I would say "be nice" but you always are.

I love you guys! I really do.. :) *love all shining from my eyes*
Mona

~THE JOY OF THAT LAST MINUTE FIND...~

I am proud to join Susan @ BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH for Met Monday! You really must come see!


Saturday morning didn't yield any great finds. I found a good book, an historical novel, some nice potted succulents, nothing really great and wonderful.

But...after our very late breakfast, and on our way home...RED jumped out at me from the curb! "STOP! STOP!" I screamed and dear sweet husband threw on the brakes with a screech!
Since he always gets as excited about things as I do, he quickly turned around and back we went. And there..forlorn and dirty, an old piece of carpet (I think) nailed to the seat was my little chair! EXACTLY what I was looking for...and I didn't even have to paint it!

I had my camera, of course, but I never remember to take pictures..so I took this one after he unloaded it from the trunk.
Not too impressive, but I love it! Look at these sweet roses on the back! And did you see the legs in the upper photo?? Did you?
Under the carpet was an old piece of probably paneling, nailed to the seat. No problem...
Sweet husband got his trusty saw and drill out...and while my girlfriend and I ate toast, fresh fruit and coffee, Mr. Wonderful went to work! (I hand fed him fresh grapes to keep him in a good mood!)
He cut a nice round hole in the top of the seat..the old wood was fine..
...and he worked at it until my new clay pot of succulents fit right down inside...perfectly. See how he is checking for size? More than once I am afraid.

I then got out the RED spray paint and in a few minutes it was all dry and in went my little Succulent garden bowl. I only painted the board Sweet Husband had cut...not the chair.

And here it is on the front porch. It replace the old wagon that had fallen into pieces...
I think I really like it there. My little chair! *smiles from ear to ear!*

Love and hugs, you bet!
Mona

~IT'S ADDICTIVE...SPRAY PAINT..~

It seems once I get started with the spray paint...I keep finding things I want to get done..and I can't stop.

So..the bar stools are finally done. In black! What is good about spray paint, is that when you are tired of that color..you can always change. The way I figure it, by the time they get back to "stripping" everything again...I won't care. *smile*

This is the way the stools looked. They came in a sort of light oak...and I have hated them from the beginning. I don't think I will buy furnature on ebay again! Not a great experience.


After living with them for two years...they are now black. Yeah. I like them.


Now I know everyone will be nice and say they look great..but I have to ask anyway. You are all so nice..no matter what you think..you will say they look nice.

Di will say, "well, if YOU like them, that's all that counts!"
Now you KNOW darn well that it isn't all that counts! We want EVERYONE to like them.

I cannot seem to get away from the French Country thingy in the kitchen and family room...but the living room...a different story.

I am off to bed. Nice Day.

Yep..sending more love and hugs.
Mona

~ANOTHER CHILD TURNED 50 TODAY~

This is Danny.


Danny was born in La Mesa, California. The fourth of our seven children. Yes, he is a middle child. He is the one that has had everything happen to him. I am fortunate to have him because he is the one that lost both kidneys due to working in a furnature finishing business from age 15. His sister donated one of hers and he is doing well. Still...I watch Dan. I worry. I try not to hover and tell him how to live.

On Danny's birthday I remember that when he was born we were alone. Just he and I at the hospital. His father was on a ship on his way overseas. He was a Marine.
When I went home from the hospital, there was just Danny and I and three young children, the oldest just starting kindergarten. Not an easy time. But I had Danny and a photo of his Dad sat on a table nearby. By the time he was a year old..he knew who "Dada" was. When we met the ship at the San Diego Navel Base and they let us up the ramp...Pat took us both in his arms as we stepped onto the ship. And Danny knew his Daddy. He went straight to him smiling.. Danny was just beginning to walk when his Daddy saw him for the first time.

I don't have Pat anymore to share things like this with, but I treasure all seven of my children and I hope I get to see every one of them turn 50. Only three more to go. Only ten more years. I can do it. You just watch me!
On nights like this when I can't sleep and memories creep up on me...I miss Dan's father terribly, but I am so grateful that I have a dear friend and husband in the next room that loves Danny and shows it. Somehow, I think Pat knows we are all alright and that I am happy.

Love and hugs to all...
Mona

~I FEEL SO BAD, I'VE GOT A WORRIED MIND~

I do. I lost my last post and all my precious comments from all of you. Di, at THE BLUE RIDGE GAL. She helped me try to fix my sidebar which disappeared to below my comments. I also lost my lovely frills around the sides.
She finally had to delete my last post which had an error in it and caused this to happen.
While she was in there I had her enlarge my header..and she did a few little extra's for me.

Is that not a friend?? Now I have a pokie dot border...but that's ok. I can always change it back but then I would have to go back to my small header. I don't know how it all works.
I wish I knew how to do it all myself..but I have a fear of losing my entire blog...and that would be a true disaster.
Anyway..it was a day of stress, blogwise. You know?

I finally got the nerve to paint my big old coffee table. It is solid oak and I kept saying I was going to refinish it..but never did.
Then I decided to do it black. I found it on a curb for just $30, so it is not as if I am ruining an expensive table...still...oak... *sigh*






Anyway...it's done. Finally! I am on a paint kick lately..told sweet husband...just keep movin' or you will get painted...
He ALWAYS looks at me when I say things like that...like he believes me! Well, two years together...I mean, he was used to someone MUCH sweeter than me. *sigh*

So..today I lost MANY of my sweet comments, my 7 little known facts about me..(I will redo that one) and my frilly trim! :(
Thanks, Di, for all your help. I am so delighted to have my sidebar back..plus the extra things you added for me!!
Love and hugs to all of you,
Mona