A special THANK YOU!


I appreciate all the decorating ideas I got in
my post showing my new red kitchen!

I just wanted to share the links for some of the
talented decorators that shared their expertise!
I am so excited about the change!

We haven't actually moved into our new condo so
we are happy to get the rooms painted before we do.
Nikki is painting the living room and dining room today!
THANK YOU, Nikki for adding color and energy to our lives!
And then she will tackle the guest room and guest bath.
They will be different tones of beige and cocoa brown!

Here are a list of bloggers that have wonderful blogs and GREAT ideas!

Thank you, friends!

Aihara

M.Kate

jen

Celestina Marie Designs

Comforts of Home

Gracious Hospitality

Color Outside the Lines

She's So Pretty

A Haven for Vee

I wanted to share this list of blogger friends
that take the time to comment
and give their advice when you ask for it
and obviously NEED it! heehee!
Have a wonderful afternoon!
Keep blogging!

"Wednesday Wee Ones"

I love dolls by so many artists but these are some of my favorites!

Catherine and Annabel meet Mellie!


The artist is Heidi Plusczok and she produces her amazing dolls in Germany!

My cousin, Cindy even got to see dolls in the shops when

she visited Germany a few years ago!

They each have so much personality and detail!


Lizzi and Libby


This little girl had a note inside from Heidi

saying she had knotted her braids herself!

'Annegret'


What fun to redress these dolls and enjoy them!

Have a Happy Wednesday....and remember to take time to PLAY!

WHEW.....what a BUSY week (and what happened to the weekend) !

I've had a BALL signing up for giveaways at the
One World - One Heart 2009 Blog Event!
I've seen some of the most amazing art and interesting blogs and met some nice bloggers already!
I hope everyone will sign up for some of the drawings! Many of the drawings are open to active bloggers and some are open to everyone!

Well........I have hesitated to post a picture of our new kitchen
because I am not sure the color is 'true' in my photos!
The red is a little more terra cotta than the photos show!
But I want some ideas so here it is.....

BEFORE.......
And AFTER........
Please let me know what you think would look good on top of the cabinets and as a sort of 'theme' for the whole kitchen. I have a few things above some of the cabinets and I would like to find the other things one at a time. I don't want to buy a whole bunch of 'themed' pieces just to 'decorate' it right away.

So I would appreciate your ideas! Some of what you see above the cabinets are an old set of canisters that I received as a gift over 40 years ago! EEEEE!



I have a bird cage and a big old bread bowl, some milk bottles in the carrier....and a bunch of silk begonias.
(but anything can go except the canisters! heehee)

What else do I need? I need some fresh ideas!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wrote a comment on A Fanciful Twist about the beautiful turquoise bracelet
she is wearing in one of the photos and she wrote me right back!
I dearly LOVE this blog and just had to show her my turquoise ring!
Hope she finds me here!

I am SO in love with the handmade Annie Dolls!

She is having a giveaway for one of her precious dolls!

Please check out her website........HERE!!!

Goofing off on Saturday morning......

This was FUN! My girlfriend, Linda gave me the link!

Check it OUT! It's amazing how close they come!

THANK YOU!

It was GREAT to have so many birthday wishes!
I had a FABULOUS day filled with presents and cards, phone calls and emails ,
shopping and signing up for giveaways (heehee) and girlfriends that sang
Happy Birthday to me.....and grandkids that sang
their sweet Birthday song over the phone,
even a music play list (thanks David) !
I love everything I received and the special greetings from around the world.
One of the sweetest emails I got was from

Aihara Ramintessah Sanchez in Japan. She wrote "Happy Birthday dear!
Its nice meeting you tru OWOH. I hope you would enjoy your day!
What about gaining a new friend on your bday-thats ME! LOL!"

I feel so blessed to have such a precious family and so many friends. 
And there is nothing better than gaining a new friend!
My day was filled with love.

Well....and a sombrero.......and ice cream and chocolate on my NOSE
......and more songs and GREAT Mexican food.....and FUN! 
My face turned every shade of RED at Papas and Beer!


They really made me feel embarrassed.......I mean SPECIAL!!!

(Wonder if I can get away with ONE more FUN DAY!!!)

"Happy Birthday to ME!"

I'm on the left on the birthday stool! I still HAVE that stool!
I am opening a record entitled " Paper Doll"...
"I'm gonna buy a paper doll that I can call my own....
a doll that I can carry everywhere".....AAHHHH!!!!

And to break into song again.......

"It's my birthday and I'll CRAFT if I want to .......CRAFT if I want to......
CRAFT if I want to...... You would craft too if".........
The wind was blowing and the snow was swirling
and it was TOO cold to get out and go anywhere
and you wanted to stay in and have some FUN
.......and not do housework or any work at all
........and be QUEEN for the day
and eat delightful goodies and definitely eat dessert first
and maybe even skip the green veggies altogether.......etc etc etc!
heeheehee!
My hubby says we may brave the slippery roads to go out to eat later
and I do LOVE Papas and Beer and it is VERY close to our house.
So a Margarita may be waiting for me later....
and hot chips and bean dip and enchiladas with green lime sauce.....
OH MY! That would be worth getting out on slippery roads!
Wonder if they deliver!
So what have I been working on?

A mouse family.......of course!

Every home needs a mouse family!


There are holiday mice in Florida.....
And colorful mice in NC!
They are so much fun to make! I used a pattern from this lovely site!


Even followed the tuturial....
at "Pimp Stitch" .....
for the most part!
Great for small snippets of fabric and all kinds of trim
could be used.

My husband even plugged in the movie "Babe"
for my inspiration!

Lots of little mice in that movie!

So this is MY FUN day! Wish you could ALL JOIN ME!
We would sing AND eat cake and maybe dance a jig!
Never too old to dance a jig!
Enjoy your day........I know I will!

***One World - One Heart Giveaway***

I am so excited to be a part of the
One World - One Heart Giveaway this year.
I've had so much fun meeting bloggers the past few months and
I am hoping to meet even more with this fun event!

I have found so much in common with so many
bloggers around the world!
I love to travel, decorate my home and make all sorts of crafts.
I collect dolls and children's books and love to find vintage treasures.

My giveaway is open to all active bloggers.
The giveaway is open until February 11th and the winner
will be chosen and announced on February 12th.

Please leave a comment on this post for a chance to win!
(with a way for me to contact you when you win!)

Click on the logo at the top of this post to get to the event blog to see
all the other participants in this event and
for info if you want to become one yourself!

So now..........I have a sweet furry bear all ready for adoption!


He has been handmade by ME ... waiting to be named by his new family!














He's a nice BIG bear! Bigger than Wendy!


(Bear only! Wendy not included! heehee!)
(This bear is a collectible, not a child's toy)

Thanks for entering! I love making new friends!

"Baking Bread"

This is one of the easiest and best tasting breads I have ever made.
I have a Kitchen Aid mixer so I don't shy away from breads that require kneading
but this is a no knead, all in one bowl bread!
It is so aromatic that the whole house smells heavenly.
And one of the best parts is making panini sandwiches out of it later.
Because it is thin, it slices perfectly through the loaf
and heats up through and through when you use a
panini maker or even a pan with a lid.

Right out of the oven, I pulled some off and
dipped into a mixture of softened butter and olive oil!
OH MY!
My hubby is making a BIG POT of spaghetti sauce as I write and we are having that over Ron Zoni thin spaghetti with a few organically grown brussel sprouts on the side.....
with a nice glass of Yellow Tail Cabernet Sauvignon!
It's cold outside but warm in our home tonight!
The couple that cooks together........eats well......
and loves well, too!

Rosemary Focaccia Bread

2 cups warm water
2 Tbsp yeast
4 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt

extra-virgin olive oil
2 stalks fresh rosemary
kosher salt to taste
pepper to taste

In a large mixing bowl, mix yeast into warm water (with one tsp sugar),
then mix in flour and salt.
Blend with a spoon just until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Don’t beat!
Cover, allowing the dough to rise, for approximately one hour and 15 minutes.
Brush a baking pan ( I use a cookie sheet or pizza pan) with olive oil.
Pour half the dough onto the pan, then gently brush the surface of the bread with olive oil.
With your fingers, pull small holes throughout the dough.
Chop fresh rosemary.
I use some fresh, some dried and thyme to sprinkle over the top,
along with the sea salt and pepper.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 17 minutes.

Turn the broiler on for just a minute to brown the top if needed.

Makes 2 flat loaves

Tonight to make it even better, I used 1 cup of whole wheat flour and 2 Tbsp of flax meal.
You don't even notice a difference but it's healthier!
ENJOY!

"Wednesday Wee Ones"

Most of my dolls are vinyl....the type of dolls that you can play with.
But early in my doll collecting, I came across these porcelain dolls,
crafted by the Doll Maker, Linda Rick.They really took my breath away
and have all been very special to me.


I made these computer scrapbook pages awhile back
and they really show my beautiful dolls in detail!

Have a happy dollie day!

"Wednesday Wee Ones"


We have a few snow flakes flying tonight and it made me think

of a picture I took of Veronica in the snow.

She looks so pretty in her winter coat and furry hat.


Enjoy your Wednesday.......Take time to PLAY!

Flickr Memory Game!

I've had so much fun playing this memory game.......thought you might enjoy it, too!

"Flickr Memory Game"

I've read that it's good to play games like this when you get older!

So it's MUCH needed around here! LOL!

I was visiting jen's blog "the fabled needle" ..........I go there every day!

She mentioned "How About Orange" in her blog today and that's where I found it!

Great blogs! Thanks!!

Good morning fellow bloggers!

We are back in the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina.....
where it's COLD and wintry! I always feel renewed and rejuvenated after a few weeks
in Florida though and ready to take on the challenges of life! When I gave my awards last night I realized how hard it was to narrow it down to only 8 blogs.
I know you probably all feel like me......there are blogs for every mood and whimsy!
If you want to feel at peace or learn a new craft or get decorating ideas.......there are blogs on my list for helping me raise my quality of living. I can always get new recipes and even join others in thrifty living and healthy lifestyles. But I woke up this morning feeling the need to get away ( I know I just got home! ).
So where did I go? Who did I immediately think of?
The sweet friend that shares her travels and allows me to see things I will never see.......
M. Kate at La Vie Est Belle !!!

So if you woke up like me wishing you could experience new places and feel like a kindred spirit is there to guide you along and make you feel at home.....visit M. Kate today!
She not only shares her travels and her home with all of us on her blog,
she visits with you on your blog and shares the beauty of herself.

We visited a beautiful park near our home in Florida and here are a few pics!

"Sholom Park"

Well let me start on a very happy note as the New Year begins....
My sweet friend Linda at Royaltouch has presented me with the special "Proximidade" award. This award is a fine one because it focuses not on the glory and fanfare of blogging, but in the PROXIMITY to one another through this on-line world (kind of a Six Degrees of Separation thing).
"Blogs who receive this award are 'exceedingly charming' say its authors.
This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends.
They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement.
Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!
Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

I am very honored Linda,
and I would like to pass this award on to the following bloggers.

Lauren at Button Willow Chronicles

Cathie at Catherine Holman Folk Art

Penny at The Comforts of Home

Cynthia at Cynthia's Cottage Design

My friend at The Freckled Hen

Lila at Indigo Pears

Kim at Happy @ Home

The Girls at Mennonite Girls can Cook

It was SO hard to limit it to only 8 awards! Please visit EVERYONE on my "Inspiring Blogs to Follow"! Everyone on my list has made a difference in my life this past year! And I cherish each one for bringing such joy into my life!
Happy New Year to all my blogger friends!

Only in Florida......

can you enjoy sunsets like this......

taken from your back door!

And enjoy Italian Chicken Franchese from the restaurant
in your neighborhood served with an Orchid on your plate!
(I didn't have my camera at dinner! lol)

This is my take home box!
How amazing is that?

***Presents and Treasures***

My cousin always chooses the BEST presents!
Won't I have FUN! Thank you, Cindy!

I found this pretty vintage apron with all the pretty embroidery at a thrift store.

At the top it is hand embroidered and I wasn't sure
what it said until I took the picture!

Look at the beautiful detail!

"Wednesday Wee Ones"~~~Florida Style!



Here are some dollies in my doll room here in Florida.
They are Leman kids...the artist is Bridgett Leman.
I tried to get my collection of children's books in this room, too!
They need something to read while we are gone! heehee!

Our sympathy and prayers are for the Travolta family during this sad time of loss.

Our hearts were heavy when their plane flew over this morning and landed at their home nearby. It is such a blessing to have them here in our town. They are a wonderful family and have been such an important part of our community.

It's always a reminder of how fragile our lives are when we lose someone. And it's especially hard when it's a child. Please join us in prayers for this precious family.

We will be here in Florida for a few more days. I'll have a lot of blog catching up to do when we get back!

***Gloves....Glorious Gloves***

My sister can always come up with the most clever and artistic craft ideas. She bought inexpensive knit gloves and crocheted on the top of each one, using a yarn with lots of fringe and tassels! She worked single crochet stitches on the right side and added a chain stitch at the end of each row.

Then she turned the 'cuff' down and VOILA!
A beautiful custom made, one of a kind, winter glove!

Very nice, Delores! Thank you!

"Some Vintage finds"

Some pretty children's hankies...


and Golden books!

(even a little house that my youngest son put together for me!)

"Happy New Year"

We are enjoying the beautiful Florida weather and

taking advantage of spending time outside.

We've driven out to the Gulf Coast twice since we've been here.

This is the third year that we took a midnight walk to welcome in the New Year.

This is a gated community and there are lamp posts at every house so we can get

out in the neighborhood any time we want....just stay off the golf course! heehee!


Wishing everyone happiness and blessings in the New Year.

Be sure to include some 'fun' resolutions this year!