Some New Projects & Fixins' !

Good Monday morning to you all! Hope this week starts off well for you!It's cold here today but supposed to get more mild tomorrow with a high in the 40's! Not like our typical January at all! I have to say that although I am a snow lover, I find just as much pleasure in 2" of snow as  I do 12"! And of course it doesn't interfere with my husband's work too :)  We'll see~~I heard on the news the other night that February and March are actually more snowy months for our part of the country than January is. Soooooo that being said, I'm sure I have jinxed myself ;)

I've been working around here creating a few things and changing some others! I'm so looking forward to hitting some flea markets this Spring. The Elephant's Trunk in New Milford, Connecticut opens in the beginning of Spring and I'm waiting for Stormville in upstate New York. Yesterday we were treated to a visit
from my husband's sister and her husband from Moscow, Pennsylvania. That's in the Poconos. They came down for a visit since we didn't get to see them for Christmas. We had a great brunch with them. I satisfied their appetite for bagels! Apparently you can't get a good bagel out of New York---it must be our water. Anyway, it was great to see them and they too are collectors who are going to Adamstown, PA (aka as the antiques capital of the country) in two weeks. They try to go every couple of months and have picked up great stuff! They collect vintage stoves, roosters, and advertising products especially. I was showing them some of my finds from Stormville and the various garage sales I went to this summer and all the stuff my son brings home. We had a really nice time and plan to meet them for a future trip to Adamstown.
 Incidentally, they gave us a 20 ft flag pole for Christmas! My husband will be cementing that into the ground this Spring! They always come up with unique gifts!
I've been doing some sewing and did a few pictures that I now have to frame. Some are done with some vintage appliques (flowers) and the others are vintage buttons. I just can't leave them in a can--they're too pretty! The cat buttons I had purchased at Michaels several years ago. Speaking of cats, checkout Mommy Cat and Red Cat snoozing on my couch....not a care in the world those lucky devils.
Did some rearranging in my hallway (the teddy bear shelf pictures) and finally put up my Holly Hobbie plates! Yahoo! I've had them for three years! Always tryng to expand my Holly Hobbie collection! I just love her so much and it brings back the happiest memories of my happy 70's childhood! I tookout the Holly Hobbie sewing machine. Not sure if she's working. I'll have topost that photo in the future! SAdly, I never got to the attic to take down Holly Hobbie stove before Christmas like I had wanted but you can be sure that I will be getting her down just as soon as I can get my husband to put the ladder in the loft of the garage! You see, we've filled our shed already and now we have the top floor of the garage filling up...oh, and I have a couple of huge storage closets upstairs that are not for clothes but for MY stuff...I'd rather fill my closets with goodies than a wardrobe!
The pictures that show the blue box that says CORN is filled with straw and I added my old vintage roosters. I have a bunch of these cute roosters and chickens. I got the box at Christmas Tree Shop. Always bargains there! You can go in with hardly any money and always come out with stuff!
I redid the flower arrangement in the americana milk can. I added the porcelain birds on the branches. Love how that looks. I've had a really creative week! Right next to the chair I refinsihed recently and what's that behind it...that white swirl...looks like a poltergeist to me....maybe I disturbed the ghost that was relaxing in the chair when I snapped the picture. Sorry ghosty!
I want to give a shout out to Carol of Old Glory Cottage! She left a comment on my last post and I have been a fan of her blog for ages!!! One of the first ones I read back in 2009. We all need to go to the estate sales and garage sales Carol goes to! AND what a talent she has for displaying crafting! Illinois is the place for vintage. Check out all the stuff she finds. It's slim pickings in our stores for good stuff like she finds!

Well, I did have a good week  finishing up some odds and ends! I hope to keep the flow going! Have a glorious day and as my little picture says, remember your many "BLESSINGS"!

Snowy Saturday!

Good Evening! As predicted we got some snow today! I was excited it came but also a little disappointed because we were supposed to go to a post Christmas family party at my sister-in-law's home and it had to be cancelled. My  husband is the oldest of five and two of his siblings live off of Long Island--his brother lives in upstate New York's Putnam County and his siter lives in the Poconos in Pennsylvania. The other two sisters live here and we usually all get together before Christmas but this year the plans were changed due to an illness and the party was rescheduled for today...and cancelled. I think we may wait till the Spring to get together as a group at this point as the Poconos and upstate New York are prone to get lots and lots of snow! Part of me was kind of happy to stay home though as I really didn't want to be driving in this weather! I was also looking forward to seeing everyone. It just would not have been safe to try and round everyone up though! AND if you remember I had mentioned about my blizzard list of foods so I got to work early this morning! Nothing makes me happier than cooking for my family.

By 6:30 am I had my slow cooker going-- cooking up a batch of pulled pork and on top of the stove I made a pot of turkey chilli. Turkey chilli is my Mom's recipe. It was originally a beef recipe,but she substituted the beef with turkey and we all liked it better! It's the only way I make my chilli now and it does save the fat calories.  I served the pulled pork on big, crusty rolls. Yummy!

I made a Mexican 7-layer dip too, and we enjoyed that downstairs in front of the fire. My son wanted me to post a photo of the fireplace because he built the fire! He's gotten quite good at it! We just have been having such a cozy day and now that evening is here, the feeling continues! Cupcakes (vanilla & chocolate) for dessert!

In my backyard...

back steps lantern

pulled pork is cooking!

cupcakes waiting to be iced!

7 Layer Dip!

fire is blazing!

They really sparkle & glisten in person!!!!

I pulled out a box of some unfinished craft projects I had and saw these candle holders I had bought a couple years back and had added little rub on transfers to.  Little cherries! SO cute! I did a few more and filled them with glitter snow and tea lights! so dainty and sparkly in person--my camera doesn't give this precious little project justice! How pretty to scatter a few out on a table for a luncheon just for a little light!

I'm gonna settle back now with my cocoa and the fire and enjoy some country decorating magazines from the past. I had gotten a load of oldies from the 90's! Country Samplers, Country Collectibles, Country Almanac and I have been enjoyed going through them! I remember when I got married in 1988 the decorating trend was country blue and everything was ducks! I had ducks everywhere! Funny how now, 23 happy years later, I'm still decorating with feathered friends---especially roosters! 

Have a great night!

Making Memories! & Happy New Year!

That's my little angel baby dressed as a cowgirl for our Girl Scout Father/Daughter dance! She was so excited to go and had so much fun square dancing! Even Daddy had a grand time! He was beaming with happiness when he left with her!

Now to back it up a little :)  Happy New Year my friends! I wish you all a healthy and happy one! I hope you can achieve all that you want to! This will be just a shortie post as I am still in the middle of getting my house back to normal after putting the Christmas items away! It's amazing the dust bunnies that like to hide around my house~~hidden beneath and behind the decorations! I put away most everything but like to keep out the snowmen and some other items that, to me, just symbolize Winter! I got lotsa goodies this Christmas and my favorite is a wood burning stove! Not a real one as I have a fireplace but one of those artificial ones. You know how you plug it in and the logs start gleaming and giving off the heat! Well, I had wanted one for a long time to put in my foyer. My husband remembered and bought that for me and it looks adorable in my foyer. I placed it on an angle and I can see it from my kitchen and eating area!!!Very cozy!

Hope you all have a cozy night! I'll be back soon!

Happy Eve of New Year's Eve!

Everyone is talking about how fast 2011 went! I agree! Where did the time go? I hope 2012 does not go at such a quick pace! I have so much I want to do! Again, in my mind, there are so many things I'd like to accomplish, learn, change, master, begin.....We will be spending a quiet New Year's Eve home, and I am so happy to do just that. We may live only an hour from Manhattan but you won't find us in Times Square! Just my nephew who will be patroling as a NYC Police Officer! Not sure if my husband is going to work or not. He is currently building a clocktower for that shopping center he built. It's coming out so nice! I was never one who wanted to be with the crowds on New Years. A quiet dinner out in a local, inexpensive restaurant or at home suits me just fine. Early bird specials are our favorites! I never wanted to leave the kids and party with the adults---hey, it's New Year's for the kids too, right? Besides the fact I have to struggle to stay awake till midnight (I'm a morning person), the idea of being out so late and driving kind of scares me. People over indulge and drive and I think I will just stay in my nice warm home surrounded by those I love!

I've been going through  my various magazines as a Winter project and I've decided to compile a section in one of my many notebooks for snowstorm meals! Sounds funny, right? Well, I know we will be in for our fair share of Winter storms, and I love having great food during them! Or when we do our sledding it is so nice to come in to the house and have some great comfort food. But what happens sometimes, is my mind goes blank when I am at the supermarket about what I want to make!  SO I thought I would compile lists and recipes of good SNOW food so that when I hear there is going to be a storm, I know what to get for extra special foods! Here is an example of stuff on my list:  A plate of loaded nachos, cheesy bacon and cheese casserole, chicken corn chowder, chilli, chilli burritos and chicken enchiladas, salisbury steak, and a whole bunch more! Finger foods, soups, quiches...if you think aboI got this great calendar they were giving out for free from a local supermarket Key Food and it is done retro style and they printed recipes from the past and it was so cool! They have a great recipe for Depression Era Corn Chowder! and SPAM Casserole. Now I personally have never tasted SPAM but the recipe sure sounds interesting! Best of all was a meal called Steak Diane which I had heard of before but never saw the ingredients or the prep for it. It looks so good with nice mushrooms and cream sauce! On my list! ut it, you can come up with great foods you would enjoy  sitting down to after an afternoon of sledding and being outside in the cold!

I guess because I am a list maker and a menu planner, planning for a storm was a no-brainer for me! I'm having fun going through all my many years of saved Taste of Home magazines and Kraft Food & Family magazines!

I have posted some pictures of Christmas morning. Of course the cats are in the middle of it all in a sea of wrapping paper!  One of Caitlin's gifts was a pop-up tent for her dolls to sleep in and camp out. As you can see, Robin & Mommy Cat made it their own personal little clubhouse!

Have a wonderful day!

Decorating & More!

Good Morning! I'm trying to remember everything I want to write about. I really should make notes this time of year! I'm so happy to be getting caught up with all of you! I may not post every day, but I do read many of the other blogs! All of you Ladies inspire me!Everyone has been doing such lovely crafts and creations, decorating like professionals, and baking up a storm. I love reading about your menus and seeing all your pictures!
My decorating was slow this year and I am still missing a box of some of my favorite things. Sadly, I do not have the time right now to hunt for it. I'm thinking it got into the Easter section of my shed. I will find it, but not before Christmas, I'm sure. So much has been going on! Between shopping and decorating and the general housework, I have also been enjoying some lovely events. The month started off with a Christmas brunch with my Ladies Bible Class. We break for the Christmas, resuming in January, and we had the nicest brunch together. It was a "bring a dish" style and what an amazing array of foods there were. What great cooks! I had butternut squash ravioli for the first time and it was DELICIOUS! Quiches and salads and desserts...oh my! All good stuff! Besides the great food, we had a great time! And I wasn't the only girl in the family with a party to go to as Caitlin was invited to a Christmas party at her friend's house where they made mini gingerbread houses and paper plate tambourines! I love little house parties! So much fun and so simple! I have a few for the children during the year, and I think house parties can be very special. I love doing an Easter egg coloring party.

Caitlin participated in our Church's Christmas Pageant. Her Sunday School class, Promise Land, sang Silent Night and Joy to the World! See the photos of her? That's my girl! She's in the dress with the gray & plaid bottom and red jacket. She was very shy but she did it! AND we had our Girl Scout Daisys Holiday party on Friday! Soooooo.....I've been a little busy :)

Now here's a strange story with  a happy ending....my neighbor across the street put out his trash one day last week and next to his garbage pails was a manger. How does someone put a manger out for trash? It's like trying to throw out a flag...Anyway, we scooped it up and brought it inside and it was NEW! I mean NEW! There was bubble wrap on the light bulb inside it! I already have a manger that my Dad made but this one was lovely too. I filled it with the figures my  Mom bought in 1949 from Woolworth. I treasure them. Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, all the animals,the wise men, the shepherd. All made of chalkware and handpainted. Some of them still have their original price tags of .29 on their base! I have two sets cause my Mom bought one set for herself, one for her Mom. Our new manger looks magnificent and glows in an alcove in our kitchen. So our story has a happy ending! BTW, I noticed on Friday an empty box across the street by the garbage pails. That same neighbor bought himself a new set and put the empty box on his curb....at least I hope it was empty!

One of the reasons I'm thinking my decorating was slow this year is because Dutchess has been sleeping in all my cartons. Yes, that is her sleeping on the lights! That can't be comfortable. She actually growled when I moved her....silly girl!

Some other things I wanted to show you --my Santa's workshop! My Dad made that for me. Probably my most treasured Christmas item. Just as he made me a haunted house for Halloween, he made this workshop. He made everything except the obvious decorations which I added. He made the desk, the fireplace, the maps on the walls, the little tools on Santa's workbench. He even made the chair & ottoman. My Mom crocheted the little rug. Over the years I have added more toys, wrapped gifts, etc. My favorite addition I put in is the little cat playing with the string of lights! I would leave this workshop up all year long! I just might! My kids adore it. As you know, my Dad is no longer with us so it really means the world to me.

I hope you enjoy my other photos! I will do my best to post before Christmas Eve!  Love you all!

Everyone is Busy, Busy, Busy!

Including me! I always feel like I'll just never get everything done in time for December 24th! I'm feeling the anxiety of it this weekend, but I always DO get it all done, and I better start reminding myself of that! We are in the process of decorating so I won't be posting any of my Christmas photos till that's done. I have really enjoyed every one's blog lately and seeing all your decorations. What creative and wonderful bloggers are out there. All the Christmas open houses, craft fairs...it's so nice to see. I'm getting myself organized to decorate and as you can see by some of my wacky pictures, there are a lot of distractions around here. Namely from a few cats! Robin just had to climb in with the bunnies (he loves EVERYONE) and the bunnies love him. Bandit gave Robin a little kiss. I literally had to bodily remove him because he wouldn't leave willingly and I had to close the cage back up. I'm think that Bandit and Lucky just think he's an exotic rabbit with a long tail.....And then there is Dutchess. Dutchess was very excited to see all the Christmas cartons come out. She squeezed herself into a wooden sleigh and I mean SQUEEZED. I was in and out of the kitchen carrying the cartons in from the shed and when I came in with an armful, she had already managed to discover and squeeze into it. At this point I can only shake my head because nothing surprises me from her. Lastly in cat nuttiness...my son  was assisting Caitlin build her Lincoln Log village. He is such a good boy that even though he's 6 years older, he will still include her and/or do things with her. She wanted his help and he obliged and it came out adorable. Then later in the day, like a scene from a bad 1950's Japanese creature movie, Robin "invaded the town" and became the newest inhabitant (albeit, giant one) in Lincoln Log Town! You gotta love them!

Okay, I'm sure you've heard enough about the cats now. We bought our Christmas tree yesterday in Kings Park. It's where we have gone the last two years and his trees LAST! Yahoo! For $65 I would like it to stay till at least Christmas Eve, right?Is that to much to ask? :) And that's a bargain. Trees are so expensive but my son and husband love the real trees for their lovely scent. I do have my artificial tree in the foyer. Anyway, Caitlin chose our tree this year and by the way, she lost another tooth! She was so glad we bought the tree she chose and I was so glad that the one she chose wasn't bald on one side! Her choices are getting better! We will be bringing it in to decorate next Sunday after we see Santa at Hicks Nursery.

Did anyone happen to see the new Vermont Country Store catalog? I was amazed to see that they reissued some Gurley style candles! The choir boys and another set as well! Only they aren't saying they are Gurleys brand. It's definitely the mold for them though! They also had knee hugger elves and reissues of the 60's fisher price toys. I saw the milk wagon that I remember.I was born in 1965 and it came out that year. I had the phone, the dog, the house, the farm. Check it out. Some of the items are pretty pricey though.  They also had the cardboard/sparkly Christmas houses! Such good stuff. Makes me dream of Christmas as a child! I love thinking back. I had my Mom remake me the same Christmas stocking I had as a child---the big granny squares! I love them. In the 1970's I always remember my Mom and Grandmas and my Mom's friends crocheting the granny blankets and my Mom made us Christmas stockings. Such a happy time!

Remember I told you I had filled a spare bird feeder with batting? It had been leftover from projects and also from a torn scarecrow. Well, the other day, one of my squirrel friends, in preparation for the cold, was helping himself to a great big bunch! I'm so happy his nest will be lined with nice warm batting! The birds were taking some as well! Animals are our best barometers for weather! Just watch their activity and behavior.

That's about it for me! Gonna start my day and organize the Christmas cartons! I'm addicted to the Archway brand of cookie called "wedding cookies". They are in the supermarket by the spice cookies and cashew nougat cookies...all good. Those "wedding cookies" YUMMMM.They are so good but I know they are loaded with fat. BUT THEY ARE SO GOOD!  Try them......I think I may be freezing several packages since they discontinue them after Christmas. The question is.....if I buy several packages will they even MAKE it to  the freezer. I kid you not ;)

It's Been A Lovely Autumn

My tree by the front porch is losing the last of her leaves. I love the color of them. They are so vivid! What a beautiful Autumn it has been. I will miss you! I know the calendar says it is still Fall, but it seems as though it disappears the day after Thanksgiving as we start out preparations for Christmas.
We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner at my sister's house yesterday. I "ate myself full" as the Amish would say. So many good things to eat! And yeah for leftovers!
The day was preceded by a wonderful evening at Church for a special Thanksgiving service filled with music and worship and then Thanksgiving morning I made a big breakfast for my family to enjoy while we watched the parade. Today it's time to take down the turkeys and clean and prep the house for the decorations for Christmas. Billy will be taking down the boxes from our shed this Sunday I hope! In the meantime, I do have some in my closet upstairs and a few new goodies to add that I bought the other day at the Christmas Tree Shoppe. I look forward to decorating my big window with my mittens and hats clothesline; this year I'm adding Santa's over-alls! :)  don't know if I spelled that right.....I may also display for the first time my Holly Hobbie children's stove for Christmas. I have had it for years but never set it up. It's from the 70's, used and in it's box but in great shape. I love all things Holly Hobbie as you know.....In my foyer I set up a tree with just gingerbread decorations ( see in "pages" pictures of my decorations from last year and you will see my gingerbread tree) and I'm thinking I may set up my little stove by the gingerbread tree. How cute would that be? Yes, it must be brought out of it's box and maybe I'll set up my Holly Hobbie sewing machine.....okay, the wheels are really turning now.....Yes, I've talked myself into it! Get the ladder Bill, the stove is in the storage area over the garage, and me, being the klutz that I am, really needs you to get it or at least hold the ladder!
I will be hosting Christmas Day this year so I am also hoping to go through the recipes this weekend to add a few new ones. I think I might add homemade scalloped potatoes. So far I'm making a turkey but before I decide on the menu for sure I am going to check with my husband to see if that is still what he would like. Last month when discussing Christmas plans, he proclaimed "make turkey!" but maybe now he's in the mood for a ham? I may also make a pasta of some type as a starter since a couple of my nephews are pasta lovers. Maybe some stuffed shells or lasagna? Hmmmmm..........
Well, time to make a fresh pot of coffee and get to work on packing up my turkeys and pilgrims till next year. Have a terrific day!