Random Thoughts 7/19/2012

Granddaughter and great-granddaughter were in California recently visiting with our daughter. This video made by granddaughter makes us laugh as we're the great-grandparents. But as you know, I don't show much in the way of Caroline on here so as not to bore you but I am a very proud, doting great-grandmother so you'll have to indulge me once in a while. ;-) We are pretty sure the dogs were so severely traumatized they refused any walks thereafter with Miss Caroline. BTW, our son says our granddaughter and I sound exactly alike. So now you know what I sound like.

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Just some random thoughts today.

I cannot tell you how many times here on my blog I get questions from people who post as anonymous, have no blog, and/or don't leave me an email to respond to their question. I truly try to find a way to respond but that just doesn't happen. I don't know if they read every post so I can't post an answer on one of my posts. Please, if you want a question answered from me, leave an email address or ask me by sending an email, which is on my sidebar. I'll definitely get back to you.
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Oh, and another thing. I monitor every single comment. EVERY ONE. So if you're trying to advertise your real estate site, your computer software site, removing stickers site, payday loans site, rapid cash site, garage storage site or your  tent trailer site, don't even bother. It'll never see the light of day on here.
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I read a lot of espionage, mystery and thriller books. I always wonder how good a spy I would have made. I'd love to work for the CIA. Wonder if they take 70 year old great grandmas? That would be a perfect cover I think!
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I recently found a fashion blog. She just posts photos of fashion, no writing or text, just photos. Not really any advertising either. But down at the bottom there is a "Donate" button. For the life of me I can't figure out to what a person would be donating. Her blog? Her lifestyle? I have no idea. Nice try though. I suggest she go out and look for a job instead of begging.
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Every kid is a frustrated lawyer. Example:
Why do you ask?
How do you know that?
What about it?
I don't have to tell you anything.
Sigh...
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Power tools. We women know how to use them; we just prefer to let the men get their hands dirty and have the broken nails instead of us. Why do something when men love doing it? That way my hands stay clean. I have my own tools and they're clean. Hubs are greasy, dirty and gross. Need I say more? Hmmmm?
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Isn't this bouquet and vase exquisite? What a stunning display for a table setting.

Lacy ornaments in a basket.

Another refurbished, decorated bottle. So simple to do with just any bottle.

A cottage for rent in Brittany, France.

Beautiful vintage window with pansies and lace curtains.

A crown table display for a birthday party. Cute!

Lovely potting shed.

Scrumptious-looking cake.

I. Would. Love. To have this fence and flowers in my yard!!!!

I need to make more of these for a friend who is having a baby in September. They are easy to make, just time consuming since I make mine by hand.

THIS is the color of yellow I love with pink! Gorgeous.

Another sweet little cottage in France.

This is the inside of a Carmel, California, cottage. I wish everyone could pay a visit to Carmel. It is like another world there.

Or you might like this little cutie.

I have some old tiny wine crates I got in Napa Valley. I think I'll paint them white and display some things like this in them. Adorable.

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Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one. ;-)
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Painting the Ornaments

After sending hubby off today to do some volunteer work, I decided to get busy on these little ornaments for the Christmas tree next year.

Starting to put together these little cones I've had for about 2 years now. I've painted them pink and stuffed them with cotton and snippets of pink paper. Just need to put the ribbons on with which to hang them and decide what to use for the decoration on them.
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Random Thoughts:

I consider myself in the "wilds" when I can't see the "Golden Arches"!!
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Creating a New Bedroom

I've been chompin' at th' bit to get our bedroom "redone" and that includes several stages.

First I wanted to create a canopy by putting the netting up before getting the room painted pink so I could fill the nail holes before the paint job. Can't you just see how much prettier it's going to be with new pink walls?! Those are paper roses up on the top part. Ooooh, my heart is thumpin', chicks!!

Next was a trip to the post office and fabric shop yesterday. Now, this might sound easy but since I haven't been out of this house for almost 10 days except to doctor's office it was exhausting, gals, exhausting!! I had to come home and take a nap for 40 minutes. Then I told Love Bunny it was whatever he could throw together for dinner as I just wasn't up to it and THEN proceeded to pass another stone, but it went quickly. Not a "beautiful" night all in all, but I'm on a roll today, little cherubs. He threw some TGIF potato skins in the oven. That was it! But tonight he's taking me to Olive Garden.

But anyway, I had to pick up some eye candy for me and to show you. I got these little ornaments for about $1.50 each. Zooo0wwwwieee! I'm infatuated with them, especially since this one had roses on it! These will be hung in my office or sewing and craft room.

This little blue one is also just a glittery thing to hang in one of the rooms.

And these little green balls??? Aaaaah. they're such a pretty green so I couldn't resist at $3.00 for 12 of these little darlings!

Now, this morning.........

Hubby walks for a half hour every morning on our treadmill. When I got out of bed he hadn't walked as I can tell because his sweats were dry. I mentioned this to him. He said he wanted to stay and snuggle with me. I said he didn't need to do that because I felt fine this morning. He said, "Some things are more important" and looked at me. Now, how could you NOT keep a man like that around? Hmmmmm???

Pink Saturday 12/27/08

Beverly at How sweet the sound emailed me recently to remind me of Pink Saturday and whether I was participating or not this week. Well, as things go I almost forgot about it until this evening!!! So while hubs was talking to his sister in Pennsylvania I grabbed the camera, turned out all the lights in whatever room I was photographing and snapped pix. He's used to it by now so he just kept right on talkin' to that chick and I just scurried around trying to find some pink things that you haven't already seen. This was a next to impossible task! But I'll post some pink "fluff" for ya because I do NOT want to disappoint Beverly. ;-)

While this isn't PINK it is lovely. I discovered it today while taking down our tree and putting ornaments away. (Yesssss, once the Christmas day is done that tree comes down to give us more room. BUT we have figured out a place we can put it next year to leave it up a tad longer.)

Anyway, this ornament was packed away in some soft cotton batting and I'd almost forgotten about it. Someone special gave it to me many years ago and I thought I'd share it with you. I didn't put it back in the ornament box but intend to hang it somewhere in my office or sewing/craft room. It isn't light but actually heavy and I'm sure it's fragile.

Look at those gorgeous grapes and the gold on this beauty. I absolutely love it.

A pretty pink box I keep my Sculpy in, a purple box I keep decoupage ephemera in, a pink toile box I keep my finished clay roses in and a pink rose box I keep "secrets" in. *Wink*

You may not have seen these little birdhouses I make. Not really for the birds but just full of barkcloth fabrics, "icing" and roses. I've never been successful at selling most of them and that's my gain as I place them around my house for my pleasure. "Their loss; my gain!" But they truly are a labor of love, intensive to make and absolutely stunning when seen in person.

This is one of the first I made. I started from the bottom up. I cut out foam board, glued it together and added all the lace, fabric, roses and stuff you see on here. It also is truly lovely. Ooooh, not because I made it but because of the lovely rose fabrics all over it.

This one was made with House Inc. fabric. Very very expensive - about $30.00 a yard but it never sold either. I added the pink "icing" and it looks so lovely with the Waverly polka dot fabric I hated to sell it but then it didn't sell so my gain again! I'm very philosophical about it. My interest in selling is to share some of these beauties, not to make money so it isn't essential that they sell.

This one I went over the top with!! I added so much stuff just because I wanted to - tiny birds, paper roses, buttons, vintage lace trim and vintage fabric, leaves around the bottom with little flowers. Adorable.

Just because I thought I'd add one more "PINK" item for you to see. Hah. Have a wonderful day, my sweet chicks.
Beverly, I DID it!!!! Now to sit down and chat with the hubs..... *Sigh*..........

Christmas and Thoughts on It

I think most people would be surprised at how I decorate at Christmas. For me and Love Bunny, it's all about traditions. While I believe new traditions can be made by each and everyone of us and our families, we pretty much stick to the traditions of our forefathers and mothers. But first of all I'm wishing all of you a

Merry Christmas!!!

I've flitted about the blogs these past several days looking at each person's Christmas trees and gifts under the tree but you'll find it a bit different in this household. I do NOT mean it's better or worse, just different. I wouldn't be mean to any of you chicks! My heart is a tender one most times. So sit back and just enjoy my Christmas post. I'm composing this on monday the 22nd of December and will probably "edit" it for the next 2 days. *Grinning*..........

I've always been know to do things a tad different when asked to speak at church or something like that. It's just my nature to try and put a different perspective on things so bear with me.

This is our Christmas tree. The cost of trees is getting almost prohibitive and we don't want to go to the mountains and cut our own. (Let me be clear on this: hubs does; I don't! I hate driving on snow covered roads.) So we decided last year to buy a faux tree. Yesssss, we succumbed in order to save that money for other things and we're seniors so for us it's not a big deal not having a fresh tree. Oh, I know some want the smell and the adventure of going out to find one whether it be the local tree lot or the local mountain. This works for us.

I would love a white one to be decorated in PINK! I think hubs would cry if I did that. He's truly the sentimental traditionalist in this family. Okay okay, I'll admit to it also. Who am I trying to kid? But that man does NOT ask for much and I give him things that are extremely important to him. I save my battles for pink things that I just cannot live without - like walls! He's like a little kid when it comes to Christmas and "his" tree. So we have the green tree.

Now, for the ornaments.

If you've never read most of my blog posts then you may not be aware hubs is a retired Marine, which means he spent 2 years away from us when we were younger. He went to Okinawa for 13 months in the 60s and missed being home for Christmas. That year I spent with my family in San Jose, Calif. Then again in the early 70s he spent another 13 months in Okinawa missing another Christmas while I spent that year in Pennsylvania near his family. The kids and I spent that year making our decorations. It's one of the things that kept me sane because I had never lived there and everything was so strange to me and not knowing anyone left a hole in my heart. We didn't see his family much that year. I painted and decoupaged those ornaments and that's what we've used on our tree ever since. We add a few others to the tree but those ornaments are always on there and always will be. I think hubs would cry if I changed that. It's the things like this that make a family unique I believe. So we have just a plain green tree with a lot of memories hanging from it.

I've only included a few on which to comment. This one reminds me of families sitting down together. Even one Christmas apart is one too many. We always sit at a table. I believe it's one of the most important things in our home: the dining table. It's where we talk, share stories of the day, discuss family business and teach our children manners. This isn't easily done at a kitchen bar with people sitting four, five, six or more in a row. It needs to be a "table" to bond properly I believe. In the "old" days just about every problem could be solved around that table. Even in restaurants I always ask for a table, in lieu of a booth. I love the it and all that it invokes in my heart. Our food is always blessed also. No eating without prayers of thankfulness.

Yes, I still believe in Santa Claus!! He's not the focal point in our home, but kids do soooo get a kick outta this character. ;-)

This ornament reminds me of the time we lived in Oceanside, Calif. when hubs was in the Marines and we had just had our second child. We were poor. Marines in those days didn't make near what the ones today make even with inflation. I do not begrudge them at all. I think anyone serving in our Armed Forces deserves as much as they can get. I'd gladly pay extra tax if our Armed Forces would be able to not pay any tax. That's how strongly I feel about it.

Anyway, it was Christmas Eve and we didn't have a tree. I had told hubby for 2 weeks we didn't need one. We simply couldn't afford the extra money to buy one so I decided that presents were more important than a tree for our 2 babies - both under 2 at that time.

Well, as is usually the case in situations like this I started bawling that afternoon that we "didn't have a tree." (Our '57 Oldsmobile didn't run either and the previous summer while trying to fix it by taking the motor out with the help of the government housing playground swing posts and a chain, hubs and friends bent the swing set in the playground! Only those involved in the incident of the Olds knew what really happened and they never squealed. It was a long time ago, but I seem to recall "adult" beverages were somehow involved also. *Sigh*....... ) So hubby left our military housing apartment on foot and walked the long distance into our town of Oceanside to look for a tree - a bit of a ways since military housing was out away from the town itself. There were absolutely none left in the town! So he walked to the next nearest town of Carlsbad - a couple of miles. Remember, he was a Marine and was used to "walking"! So he got to Carlsbad and found a lot with a few scraggly trees left. He had $2.25 in his pocket and that wouldn't cover the price of a tree. So the owner of the lot felt sorry for him and charged him $2.00 for the tree and that left him 25¢ to catch a bus back to our apartment as he couldn't walk that far carrying a tree. But he said when he got on that bus everyone looked at him as if he was crazy. He then walked from town out to our apartment and brought it into the house and I cried some more. While it wasn't the goose this guy in the ornament is carrying, it sure was golden to us to be able to have a tree for our son's first Christmas. It was late Christmas eve but we had a tree!!!

This one simply reminds me to have a song in my heart during this particular holiday season. I can carry about every 3rd note but I sing loudly in church especially during the Christmas season. Favorite song: Angels We Have Heard On High. I love the GlooooOOOOOooooOOOrias in that one!!!!

What can I say here, the man is hooked on trains! :-)

Over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we go......remember that song? I don't know about you but I never ever went to my grandmother's house in the snow, much less in a sleigh, but it does produce wonderful visions in my head of the scene in that song.

Reminds me of the above story of the Christmas tree and the rejoicing we did that night.

Kinda reminds me of "Scrooge" but I'm never a bah-humbug kind of person. This is a reminder to never be one either. I rejoice in the season.

This little jack-in-the-box always reminds me of "The Nutcracker Suite." Don't know why, doesn't matter; it just does.

Fireplaces are synonymous with Christmas, don't you think? Well, I do, even if we don't have one in this house.

I used to ice skate and loved it. I've never been on a sleigh on the ice though. I love the flippy little skating skirts we'd wear. If I tried that now I'd be in traction the rest of my life! Hah........

Yes, we all want peace on earth but it isn't happening and probably won't until our Savior comes again. BUT we can have peace in our homes. My home is my refuge from the harshness of this world. But it is still a wonderful world, my sweet friends, and this country is the absolutely best on the face of the earth. We are a truly blessed nation.

What would the holiday season be without the wreath hanging on the front door? It just makes everyone smile and happy seeing it.

Our current tree topper. It's changed through the years as they get broken but this one has stuck for several years because it isn't breakable and I'm too lazy and sentimental to buy a new one. This will have to do until Love Bunny decides that we need a jazzier one. ;-)

We talked to our kids a few years ago and told them to not buy us anything for Christmas any more. They decided to do the same thing also so we don't exchange gifts. (Besides, we now have 4, yesssss, 4 massage mats for our home and cars thanks to our son and his family.) There is truly nothing in this world I need or want that I don't already have. Priorities change as we "assume more years"! Hubs and I don't even exchange gifts now. Just don't need to do it as we buy what we want throughout the year. I do, however, buy him this box of candy each year since he loves licorice and I can't stand it. I can't even stand the smell. So you know how much I love that man when I can give him something that stinks so badly! That's a lot, trust me!!!

And lastly, this is, for us, what the season is all about. That Man that died for us over 2,000 years ago after being born in a humble stable in Bethlehem. For that I am soooooo grateful and blessed beyond measure. So from the top of my graying fluffy hair to the bottom of these "redone" toes, I wish all of you the very best Christmas you could ever want. We are truly blessed beyond our dreams in this household. I hope you are also. *Smiling at ya!*

Greenhurst Nursery #14 & Pink Saturday

Happy Pink Saturday. I made this little pin cushion for someone to give as a special gift.
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"Dream walk" is what I'm going to call this post because I dream when I go down these paths. I feel a calmness and yet an excitement at all the lovely things I see here. My life is no more nor less hectic than any other people my age. Our daughter and son are grown and we're in the twilight of our lives but I'm telling you I've never been busier than I am in these "senior" years! I'm rarely idle. By idle I mean doing absolutely nothing productive. Reading is not "idle" time for me; it's essential to my well being. My son, daughter and I absolutely absorb books non-stop. I love reading and will until I die. But I'm digressing.....

I walk these paths and dream of what my yard could look like if we had enough energy and money to make it look like this but it isn't the priority it once was. Just having my grass cut, weeds pulled and rose bushes trimmed is about all I feel I can put on hubby's shoulders now. So we meander the nursery gardens and "dream." I do buy some things once in a while but nothing to "kill" Love Bunny with working too much. I've grown quite fond of his face around here and will keep him forever.

This little path is just outside their side door going to the back of the nursery where all the trees, shrubs and flowers are. Underneath those stones is water. On the right........well, let's just meander the path.......oooops, sorry, but they didn't all come out sequentially and I'm NOT going to cut and paste so live with it, chickees! Let's go....

I love this long view of that area.

To the right is a waterfall. Enlarge to see hippopotamus in the water.

Closer view of the "stone bridge" pathway.

Another view of the waterfall.

Ornamental plants. Look like roses to me.

Long view of grotto or waterfall. That tree limb on the left goes across the pathway, across a huge section of lawn to its tree! They've had to put ropes up there to hold it up. That branch has got to be 50 ft. long at least. I've never seen anything like it. The whole branch looks like that end piece. They just keep propping it up with those ropes strung across the space. Amazing.

Koi pond on left side of stone path.

This is their bulb section which would be behind me while taking pix of the pathway. It's an outside wall of the nursery shop.

The outdoor furniture. It's not HIGH end but higher end than most nurseries I've seen. Our area of the country couldn't support the upper end of that kind of furniture. Idaho does have more millionaires per capita than any other state, but they all live in Sun Valley and Ketchum! Not many down here in the Boise area.

Just a look at a piece of their extensive statuary there.

More shaded areas to walk through while delighting in the displays.

The beginning of another part of the nursery - water plants I believe.

Standing at the entrance to the outside looking towards the back.

Off to the left is the "pottery barn" and trellises and display things for your yard.

Looks endless, doesn't it? Bathrooms on the right, ladies!! ;-) Soft drink machine also.

The shade plants.

I would give much to have that nursery back up to my home. Ohhh, what delights those homeowners must experience.

Of course, trees, trees and MORE trees.

My favorite section - the rose garden.

Another little section with shrubs and trees.

Lots of places to sit and take a break and rest.

This is the end of the season so this exotic plant greenhouse is pretty empty. Lots of stuff in here when spring and summer are here.

Reeeeallly big!

A pink rose singing its swan song for this year.

Inside is a bit of bling for chicks also.

An outside water device for soothing you.

Another view of all the furniture and japanese "gongs" and copper pots.

Colorful gazing balls and flags.

One last look at indoors before I left.

These are clipperz for stationery or scrapping.

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And that's it for today. I think I have 3 or 4 more posts with closeups of the kitchen area and more stuff that they put up after the first group of pictures. They were having an open house the 2nd time I went and had more decorations up. But we'll see how many more posts I'll have doing this nursery series. I promise to not do many more posts on it. On to other things after that, my little cherubs.