"Wednesday Wee Ones" Penny!

This is one of my newest dolls and already one of my favorites!

She's such a cute size to dress in real baby clothes!

When I got her, I named her Penny.


A short time later I made a new friend....Penny!

Of course many of your know Penny and follow her blogs,

The Comforts of Home and Lavender Hill Studios !

Don't you love coincidences like that?

Enjoy your day and take time to PLAY!!!

Wear your Apron Day!

I love Mondays and mine has started off in grand style!

She's Sew Pretty has written to let me know I won her giveaway! YAY!
She's going to make me a lacey corsage
(I'm supposed to choose my colors but I think I should leave that up to her!
She's so creative!)

And The Apronistas are wearing their aprons all day today!


I'm going to post my favorite apron
and see if I can find pics of some of the others I've made!


It's a perfect day to dress in layers! lol It's in the 50s here today and damp outside!

We are making Chili for dinner but that's my hubby's specialty
so I may just want to stand by and look pretty....in my apron! lol!

Have a wonderful Monday....my favorite day of the week!
And be sure to visit the Apronistas to see all the ladies in their pretty Aprons!

Should the mice be made to wear their aprons today, too!

heeheehee!

Celebrations!

Happy Mother's Day to all the special Moms this weekend!


We've had a week full of celebrations!

We went to the Biltmore Estate to celebrate
my mother in law's 80th birthday this week!


We had a wonderful time and enjoyed a beautiful evening!


My hubby was sweet to bring me a bouquet of red roses this week
for Mother's day AND to celebrate the day we met!
We still like to remember this special day, too
and it was 15 years ago on May 15th that we met
and started this amazing adventure!


Wishing you ALL a special weekend!

(A close up of the sweater I am wearing! lol)

Enjoy your time together with family and friends
and join me in a prayer of thanksgiving for all of our blessings!

Local Strawberries!

We look forward to this time of year, when our favorite produce store opens
and local produce starts showing up on the shelves.
The strawberries grown here in the mountains of NC
are some of the sweetest I've ever tasted!

And what do you do with LOTS of sweet, ripe strawberries?



They are even sweeter when you make my hubby's favorite Strawberry treat!


Of course I use my green bags to keep them fresh longer.
And I freeze some, too.

The extra shake was put in the 'fridge
and look how pretty it looked the next day!


Layers.....makes me think of the line in Shrek....."Ogres have layers!"
And then donkey says, "not everyone likes onions but everyone likes Parfait!"

Have a wonderful day!

Hope your day is 'sweet'!!!

"Wednesday Wee Ones" Zapf Kids!

My little Zapf kids are some of the cutest dolls I have!

Laura has on a dress made from Mary Englebreit fabric!



Marie thinks she looks 'fab' now that she lives in Florida!


And do you think Max can keep a secret?


Enjoy your day and remember to use your imagination


AND TAKE TIME TO PLAY!

Some of my favorite photos from the Johnson Farm Festival!

Here are pics taken inside the farm house!

I seem to be drawn to the kitchen


don't you love all the red and white?



and dining room.....



and the back porch of course!

A really fun giveaway!

"Blessed Femina"

I always enjoy her blog and she's made some beautiful things for her giveaway!

Thanks Jen!!!

Good luck everyone!

And when I was on Pamela's blog this afternoon,
she had this info on Grey Gardens that I have enjoyed!

I hope she doesn't mind if I quote her...

"For those of you interested in reading the definitive post
on the house that was,and remains, Grey Gardens,
do check out Joni Webb's exhaustive entry on her blog

Cote de Texas!"

AMAZING!!!

"Historic Johnson Farm"

We enjoyed a day on the farm!
"Historic Johnson Farm"


We went to the "Farm Festival" this past weekend
and spent the day eating BBQ, listening to Blue Grass music,
watching craft demonstrations, touring the old farm house and barn....
and buying a few craft items!
There were train rides for the kids and wagon rides for all ages.
The weather was fabulous and we had a great time!


Who is this handsome man?


I'll start with what I bought! lol Or better yet...what my sweetie bought for me.

When I had my back turned one time....he bought me a surprise.


He gave me this 'star' when we got home as a little souvenir! Isn't he sweet!!!

And I couldn't resist this little lamb.


The young lady that made it is standing in front of me describing the process.


And this busy bee flew home to live at the Lavender Cottage!


I'll post more pics another day! I took a LOT!

"Wednesday Wee Ones" My little Annies !

I fell in love with the little Annie dolls
so I bought 2 of them from Brenda at My Little Annies !

I am SO thrilled with them BOTH!

Here's the first one I got.....Emma Rose.
She's named after my nephews little girl.


Isn't she adorable?

Emma Rose was lonely so I got Valentine Annie
(and I still need to name her!)

She was in the mood to 'pose for pics' today!


Our azaleas are so pretty this year!


Pics in the Petunias....


Enjoy your day!

Take time to PLAY...and stop and smell the petunias!

St. Theresa's Prayer

May today there be peace within.
May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities
that are born of faith in yourself and others.
May you use the gifts that you have received,
and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content with yourself just the way you are.
Let this knowledge settle into your bones,
and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of us.


Thanks to my dear friend Pat for sending this beautiful poem to me today!

(photos taken on trip to Florida this month)

Decorating....and a boot update!

WELL.........I've hidden the boots for now! lol My hubby was on the way to Goodwill with a BIG load today and I told him not to take them! I'm going to consider some of your ideas! THANKS!

And speaking of hubby.....he is one of a kind! He actually LIKES to go shopping and met me at the mall today! And he even has good taste in decorating.


We bought this leaf sculpture at Pier 1 and he felt like it needed something! So he bought a basket for it. I love it, don't you?

"Books and Boots"

It's been an interesting month to be sure!
We've worked hard Spring cleaning our house
always trying to take time to smell the roses along the way.
What helps me to escape is my love of BOOKS!
I am usually reading at least 2 books at the same time.
I keep a list of my books in my journal and I even rate them....1 to 10!
I know this is obsessive but I love to look back
and see what books I've read in years past.
I've been doing this for over 10 years and keeping a journal for most of my life!

I have been reading many of the classics in the past year.
My son gave me Pride and Prejudice for a Mother's Day gift last year
and I've read all of her books this year.
Now I've branched out to other notable classics.
This past month, I've read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte....


very sad..but a wonderful read!
Then I read Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
( I've read his other books, Tipping Point and Blink )
and of all of these I enjoyed Outliers the MOST!
They are all good but Outliers will change your LIFE!

At the same time, I read the book, A Stopover in Venice by Kathryn Walker.
It's an easy book to read and very entertaining!
( I will read anything set in Italy! heehee! )
Today I finished Persuasion by Jane Austen and it was excellent.
I also picked up a copy of The Queen of the Big Time by Adriana Trigiani
at a book sale and I may read it AGAIN!
I have had the privilege of meeting her and love everything she writes!

So that's what has helped me stay sane.....if indeed I can make such a claim! lol

And then onto some of the cleaning out process........

GOOD BYE OLD FRIENDS!


These boots are on the way out! It's been years since I have worn them
but I have not had the heart to throw them away. Back in the '70s....
I traced my foot onto a piece of paper and sent it to REI and
they made these boots for me!
I've hiked in CO, NM, UT, AZ, NC, TN, OR, TX....
and even Alaska in these boots (and other states that I've forgotten, I'm sure! )
But they were replaced with better lightweight hiking boots YEARS ago so it's TIME
but it's still hard to give some things up.......at least it is for me!
My friend, Helen suggested I take a picture of them for a remembrance!
Thanks Helen!

Have a good night blogger buddies!