~MY LAVENDAR HILL FLOWER POT~

My computer is fine but our server has a problem..so I am on line only a short time and then...poof...kicked to the proverbial curb! So..I will have to catch up as I can..I am falling behind on my visits...I HATE that! I do!! I hate missing anything...always have! :)

This is the beautiful mosiac flower pot that Penny from
THE COMFORTS OF HOME/LAVENDAR HILL STUDIO made for me. I am so happy with it. It is a match for my beautiful house number..and has helped make my front porch a joy!


I just love it! And...it is huge. I put a large fern in it for now but that will change shortly. I need to buy the plants but I was in such a rush to get it posted that I couldn't wait.


Another view of my ~smile~ beautiful mosiac flower pot!


I took this so you can see our lovely house number again..and how it goes so perfectly with my gorgeous flower pot!

I am ONE HAPPY CAMPER! (I mean blogger!)
Thanks you so much Penny! I so appreciate your talent and the care you took in making this for me!

Love and hugs,
Mona

~TWO MEANDERING GEESE~

P.S. I have added a couple of things...a signature to the painting and an ironstone pitcher I forgot to post...

That is the title of the painting on my tray.
This is a hand painted tray and is signed by the artist on the back. The woman who sold it said the artist is her friend and that everytime she has a "show" she buys something..and she has to cut back on some of her collection..
I said, "GREAT idea! and smiled! $10.00. I grinned all the way to the car...but first..

When I posted last night I forgot to take a photo of the back so you can see the artists signature..so..I just added it. Probably not a big deal..but I mean the artist should get recognition even if it is just on my blog! :)


I bought the easel it was displayed on for another $2.00. I LOVE that easel! VERY heavy iron. I thought the finish on it was gorgeous!

I didn't exactly steal these two plate. But...I love red transferware. A lot! So...they followed me home also. I kept saying "I DON'T NEED YOU!" But nope, they wouldn't listen. One was 8.00 and the other was 5.00. They started off much higher..so..you know...


Enlarge this and you can see to the left of the screen a darling little white glass frame. FREE! You can see the two DVD's I found for $1.00. A little blue tin of writing paper. Brand new.. and FREE! Many just wanted to get rid of the stuff and not have to put it all away. Both the frame, the writing paper came from the same garage sale as the cookbooks. I also bought a novel in perfect condition "The Vinyard" for $1.00!


This was a nice little cookbook put out by a church. Family recipes...I said...what the heck for 1.00 it came home with me.

A little book on how to give tea parties...Uh huh...I do THAT a lot..but...I do have daughters that do that..so...home it came to continue the journey to a daughter or granddaughter!
$1.00. It ties shut with little ribbons...how cute is that?! ALL of the cookbooks were like BRAND NEW. That is what I look for! Gently used if old is fine.


The woman who owned the cookbooks said this one was her favorites and that she had a duplicate that was why she was selling this one.... San Francisco has some wonderful restaurants...so for $1.00 I took that chance...


This recipe box was nice a large and in perfect condition. Mine is so chock full of recipes that I cannot get the lid closed and this was only .25 cents...so in the car it went. I have Granddaughters just starting out. They are going to love their Grandma!


Listen...you CANNOT go wrong on a Chocolate Cookbook...I don't bake all that much, but I love to read them. :) Do you believe me?
Hmmmm.. a Costco Cookbook? Love their food...so...what the heck! .50 cents!! WELL spent I say!!



Sweetie loved the fact that he bought all of these CD's for a total of $20. He loves music and CD's are what he looks for. Some were just .50 cents. He always checks to see if the CD is in the case and that it is the correct one.
He sometimes buys them even if they aren't the kind of music he likes...I asked him why? He said he likes to give all music a chance. Whatta guy!

Well, that's it. My Saturday finds. Well worth getting up early I would say. Followed by our pancake breakfast of course!
Have a wonderful Fathers Day, everyone!

Love and smiles,
Mona

P.S. I am adding this post script because this morning when we were getting ready church, sweet husband went to the car and discovered in the back seat, wrapped in a towel, this beautiful ironstone (?) pitcher I bought Saturday for 2.00 and forgot to bring into the house.


Below you can see the bottom of the pitcher and a couple of hairline cracks that don't go all the way through...so they didn't bother me at all. This has SO many uses!! Plus, I think it's just a beautiful pitcher!! It's by Homer Laughlin...and I think that's good. Right?? It is close to 9 1/2" tall. A nice size. Very heavy.


Bye bye...and hugs!

~A LOVE OF HOMEMAKING~

This little pillow reacquainted me with a lovely person I met on ebay some years ago..and then lost last year.

My hobby is homemaking and I love it. Would it make sense then that I love to clean?
I am a "closet" cleaner I guess. I remember I used to deny my love for cleaning. Back in the fifties..everyone wanted to get out of the home and go to work. Not me. I really enjoyed being a homemaker.
I loved to wash and iron..hang beautiful white clothes on the line...(we used to do that you know) and there was such a joy and satisfaction in seeing it all finished and beautiful. I haven't changed. Of course there were bad times when I HAD to work..but being home was what I loved.

Decorating is one of the most rewarding things I do. I love buying things for my home...always have.
Then I discovered ebay and all sorts of things, usually Shabby Chic things..quilts, pillows, dishtowels became available to me. Things that were different. Things handmade and some old and beautiful things and some just second hand. Mostly though I found I was interested in handpainted items, exceptional sewing and crafts.
Things I no longer do and things that someone does much better than myself.

Rebecca of A GATHERING OF THOUGHTS is someone I met on ebay years ago. I loved her work and had lost her for awhile. Then one day I found her in our community of bloggers and was overjoyed.

I have a hand painted lamp by her, pillows and as many things as I could get. Her tiny Christmas tree, cross-stitched onto a beautiful little pillow is my favorite I think.

I fell in love with this lovely little pillow and it is going in our guest room. My favorite room in the house.


Since I found her again..I have been catching up..and added a few of her lovely pillows to my collection. I am also thinking of Christmas! I have daughters and granddaughters that would love one of Rebecca's creations! IF I CAN PART WITH THEM!



Look how beautifully her pillows come packaged. And always with a little gift to make you feel special..


Thank you, Rebecca. Everything is just beautiful. I appreciate your hard work! Your beautiful creations are treasured items in my home.

Love and smiles,
Mona

P.S. I just learned yesterday that I am the proud winner of Gloria's giveaway at HAPPY TO BE. Can you hear my feeties doing the HAPPY DANCE??! Move over Snoopy!! Thank you, Gloria!

~A CHEAP DATE~

Yep! That's me!
Take me to garage sales.. thrift stores or..even to Costco for groceries..where I can taste all sorts of samples...I'm fine.

As I have said...SATURDAY is such a fun day for us. Early morning and my Star Bucks mug filled with hot coffee...and off we go. We usually head for neighborhoods nearby where we love to look at the homes as well as seeing what neat things we can find.


Our first stop and I found these. All three for $3.00! I have seen them in stores and I loved them but not the price. They probably can be seen at one of the discount stores...but here they were for just the right price!
Now I am off to Michaels for some pretty candles...
Can you see the tiny bee's and butterflies" on them? CUTE!



As you may already know...I have a tiny year old granddaughter, Emily, that has already shown a big interest in books...so I was on the lookout for new or nearly new books...and again..I found them!! 25 cents each! We are building her a little library. Never too early to start.

A..red mug?


Yes! I also came across this lovely RED mug! Exactly the color of my Kitchen Aid Coffee maker! Yep..exactly!! 10 cents!!

Yes, yes, I did the "happy dance" and got looked at strangely!! Who cares! I carry it around with me now...LOVE THAT MUG!! Just feels right...you know? :)

It says "WAECHTERSBACH GERMANY" on the bottom.. which meant nothing to me...it's just a beautiful deep red color...




Years ago...I bought a slow cooker.
I learned that there is a difference between a slow cooker...and a crock pot! Yep. I used mine...and wore it out finally and have been looking for another ever since..but they don't make them like that any more.

On Saturday...there it was! This time with a glass lid..which means I can put it on the stove with the lid on. My old one had a plastic lid. I was overjoyed. Got it for $1.00. Looks like NEW inside and out! Cord even lookd new and not a scratch inside! (WORKS like a charm! )

Another HAPPY DANCE? You bet!!! (The sweet woman told me she had gotten a crock pot and didn't use the slow cooker and had only used it once or twice! OK! Did I tell her..Naw...why confuse her!



Sometimes, on the way home... folks are repacking, closing up...and you pull to the curb...thinking all the good stuff will be gone..but what the heck..and there it is. Your find of the day! This was only $2.00 and I love it. It is going in my Shabby Chic living room...PERFECT just under the old floor lamp! See?


PERFECT!



We braked for one last garage sale sign..and my sweetie was suddenly in his GLORY!
LOOK..what he found! He was in 7th heaven! (why..I have no idea! ..oh well....)

~Love and smiles~
Mona

~THE BEAUTY IN BLOGGING~

Blogging seems to bring out a beauty in people. It brings out their deep thoughts, talents and reveals their very souls and spirits.


Blogging is a special sort of giving and sharing of yourself to one another. I admired her photo's and said the next best thing would be to have a book of her work..and Mary at LITTLE RED HOUSE sent me this lovely book of flowers and it touched my heart!! It was her way of communicating her feelings and appreciation. I love her for that. My camera is not the best and does not do the pictures of the roses in her book justice at all. Her book is of the most beautiful flowers and that glare is NOT in the real photo.


And with her book...a card...



And the card said it all...


And this book will rest on my coffee table in the years to come and inside will be Mary's sweet card.... and a note by me so my family will know who "Mary of Little Red House" was in my life and how we added to each others lives.

The sweetest and the best of friends are met through this wonderful world of blogging...
Thank you, Mary of Little Red House!

Smiles and love..
Mona

~SATURDAY ADVENTURE TIME~

Good "Saturday" morning!

I am off to garage sales..and breakfast. Wish me luck!


I have meant to post this all week..but my week has been a bit crazy. I think you probably know what I mean! It happens.
Recently I bought a few quilts from one of our bloggy friends, Tammy, at FOR A STITCH IN THYME.


First I bought this lovely quilt...a lap robe you know...perfect size..and when I took it out of the box..and the nice bags they came in..I was struck by the SOFTNESS of these quilts. On the back was the softest material ever with tiny hearts..gorgeous material!


Then...I spotted this one..even better. It could go in our little guest room. Lovely! My guests are going to love this! Like a cloud!


Ah..but the doll cradle I just bought at a thrift store..I had been looking for one that would fit it. I have bought all these gorgous little dolls for my granddaughters to play with when they visit...and she had a tiny one she called a "sampler"...so...I decided to SAMPLE it!
Tammy uses the most beautiful material and her photo's do NOT even begin to do her work justice. NOT EVEN!


This picture is not at all necessary to this post..but my little sweeties have dollies to play with..and little dishes when they visit. (you know..for the grandbabies?) :)


I love to buy things that folks have made..and I have found some wonderful seamstresses and artists with so many talents...mosiacs, sewing, painting..and these attract me most of all. And...they fit my cottage style.
So... a BLISSFUL DAY to all of you...and many hugs!

Mona

~UNIMPORTANT THING'S THAT MAKE YOU SMILE?~

I'VE BEEN TAGGED!


This is a picture I took on the Island. Do you see those berries at the bottom of the picture? ...THEY are something that make me smile.

MR1DRFL's WONDERFUL family, three wonderful people who make me smile!


This is, starting on the left, Big Brother (Island resident) and Mom (their 98 year old mother) and Mr. Wonderful. Soon to be known on this blog as MR1DRFL.

Do you think that would make a good personalized license plate? MR1DRFL would surly do me in if I tried that! So anyway..on with the game!

Well...it's about time I got to this...Karen probably thinks I let her down...nope..NOT on your life!!

Karen at SOME DAYS ARE DIAMONDS has tagged me... You see...I am AWARD free but not TAG free...so.. :)

Rules of the game are to list 6 unimportant things in your life that make you happy! EVERYTHING is important to me, which goes to show me I have to lighten up a bit!

Then, as with most tag games, I must name 6 others to do the same thing.
I am "award free" but not tag free..so..LOL here goes!

1. MR1DRFL offers to cook dinner.
2. MR1DRFL offers to do the dishes
3. MR1DRFL says he is going to Home Depot and do I want anything?
4. MR1DRFL calls from Costco and asks if he can bring a hot chicken (not chickie!) home.
5.MR1DRFL says "you don't need to cook tonight. I'll go get us something." YES!
6. MR1DRFL says "take your time and enjoy yourself" when I go shopping! :)

And like Karen...I could just go on and on. Every one of these things brings a smile to my face! FAST! All seemingly unimportant...but they make me smile.

See why I married again? It was a no brainer! :)

My choice for 6 sweet people to tag are:

1. Words of Wisdom From a Smart Mouth Broad
2. A Little Shabby Always Chic
3. Blondie's Journals
4. English Cottage in Georgia
5. Never Enough Time
6. My Vintage Blankie

PLEASE don't yell at me. Ok? If you are tag free etc..etc..just don't do it. I will love you anyway. I promise!

Love and hugs,
Mona

~ ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON~

Yes, I know we are a partying family but when you have seven children..and they are grown and they all have children and they keep getting married, starting to have families the family just gets larger...and larger ...and larger..and there are celebrations and more celebrations...and we HAVE TO PARTY AND HAVE FUN!! :) Right?
Right! (puff..puff!)

Please enlarge the pictures as I have not learned how...

The WEDDING CAKE..
was done with fresh roses..
Chocolate cake with Mouselline filling and fresh raspberries and whipped cream frosting. Mouselline filling is vanilla bean pastry cream and Italian Merangue Butter Cream blended. I hope to heavens I have that right. If not...Cheryl is going to do me in!! The cake was made by my sweet daughter in law at her wonderful bakery "Jammin' Bread"


Chocolate covered strawberries...of course!! What's a reception without those!


This was a wonderful cream cake...I had never tasted anything like it. It was almost not a cake but a delicious cake type pudding...


This was a morning brunch celebration held at 11:00am. Approximately 85 people attended.
*Warm rice pudding
*Fresh fruit salad
*Fresh raspberries and strawberries and other berries, cherries, Kiwi..etc. etc...
*Crisp bacon and sausages (in those large silver pans you see)
*A wonderful potato dish..with eggs..(I think)
*Waffles made on the spot! butter, syrup and other toppings..
And to be honest..so much more I can't even remember...but it was all DELICIOUS!
and of course the omelets of your choice!
Cold drinks of your choice...and Fresh made lemonade and sweet tea...
and fresh coffee!
The outdoor drink table by the pool...

My sweet son in law had four omelet pans going at once. He made omelets of their choices and the line was four deep and out the door! Busy guy!


Wonderful ice cold Mimosa's served with a fresh raspberry is why everyone was so mellow? You suppose? Nothing like fresh squeezed orange juice for brunch! Uh huh!

These beautiful swags were made by my daughter...she wants to make them for Christmas and add TINY fairy lights. VERY tiny lights. I want to do it with her for my home..so that should be fun. The swags were made of lemon leaves..Mary said they only took a couple of hours to make...and there were five very long ones. I think they are just beautiful. Over the fireplaces and all the doorways...

There were fresh swags and wedding bells over all the doors..my pictures don't do them justice..
And the gifts began to arrive...hmmm...do you see that lovely crystal bowl? Hmmmm... :)

All of the floral arrangements and garlands were made by my daughter, Mary. All the cooking was done by Mary and my daughter in law,Cheryl, and the mother of the bride, my daughter Erin. Nothing was hired out or done by outsiders. I am proud of that. ~smile~

Thank you so much for your visit and I hope you enjoyed, yet another family gathering in celebration! Always something to celebrate it seems. I LOVE it!

Hugs to all of you for limping through this post.
Mona