A VISIT TO CHRISTIE'S SHOP

Okay, enough of packing. It is ongoing - we are all aware of that. I will now let it go.

A while back, I drove up to Laguna and dropped by Christie Repasy's shop. It was lovely to see more of her art and see her in that environment. I kept forgetting to post about the visit, so here are some photos.

Sorry about the reflection in the glass - I think it is from Christie's front window. Does the painting in the lower right hand corner look familiar? Yep, that's the one I bought at the Barn Sale.

Speaking of reflections, there I am with Christie in the mirror. I think that is Alice, her assistant, behind us.

Would you like this mantel that Christie painted? Of course you would.

This is Christie's adorable dog. His name is Jack.

Christie sent me on to Country Roads Antiques in the town of Orange with the assurance that I would go nuts. I did. It is the most amazing shop I have ever been in. It is huge with fabulous dealers (Christie is one of them) and displays. You will be proud of me. I bought nothing. But that is because I bought a vintage lampshade from Christie - that is now on its way home. I will post photos of it when it is happily home at MHC.

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS (BUT YOU KNOW I WILL TALK ANYWAY)

This says it all. Pack, pack and, oh, pack some more. I can't remember how many boxes I sent out this way in January - 6 or 7, I think. I have easily more than doubled that amount. Since I decided not to drive back, I am faced with sending all this stuff. Last week, the first things to go were the white flower basket (continually photographed with flowers in it during my stay), the wrought iron piece I also bought at the Barn Sale, and my dream Cherub painting. They were all awkward sizes and, in the case of the painting, precious cargo. So I had some lovely people recommended to me by Lori at Vignettes pack them. They should arrive at MHC tomorrow. In the meantime, I have packed books and more books, fabric, yarn, clothes, files, and stuff. Today I spent a lovely 45 minutes running up and down the three flights of stairs (on a humid San Diego day) and loading the car with 9 boxes. I drove out to the same shipping place and lugged them all inside. And now they are on their way.

There is still more. I had to buy a printer when I came out here, my little vintage birdcage needs to be packed, along with my Christie Repasy painting, all the pillows I bought in an attempt to make the furniture in this apartment even slightly comfortable (they are pretty and I don't want to leave them behind), the two lamps from IKEA that I want to use on our bedside tables back home, and a few other pieces of china, etc. Oh, and my husband bought me a guitar. That has to get home.

I am overwhelmed but have made a good dent in the whole thing. The rest of the stuff can't go until the end of the week because I still need it here. It will still cost much less than the cheapest car rental quote, and that doesn't even count motels, meals, and gas.

Do I ever want to go away for 6 months again? No. No. No. Especially not to a place where there are so many wonderful shops and barn sales with tempting treasures to buy. Because then I have to pack them. Oh, and where I need so many supplies in order to work - books, printer, paper, scripts. No, I think I will stay home at the Cottage for a good, long while.

I'm off to sit on the sofa and do some hand quilting.

OPENING NIGHT, A DOLLHOUSE SHOP & SCARVES FOR A CAUSE

Cyrano de Bergerac opened last night and is a resounding success. What an absolutely beautiful production, in every way - costumes, set design, sound, lighting, music - and if I may say, beautifully spoken. It helps to have an outstanding Cyrano. We do. And to be perfectly honest, I didn't have to do too much in the way of coaching him. He is a wonderful actor with an amazing voice. My colleague has directed it beautifully.

Everyone who works on each production always gets a single long-stemmed rose on Opening Night. The brilliant costume designer gave me a copy of one of her designs, another wonderful colleague gave me a plume, handkerchief and a lovely quote - all of which figure in the play. One opening down, two to go. Then I fly home.


I found the most amazing dollhouse/miniature shop the other day: Miss Peggie's Place - located in Pacific Beach. Why oh why can't I plop this place down in upstate New York? I could have gone nuts there but was saved by three facts: I haven't even seen my dollhouse in person, I already have too much to pack and I do not want to spend too much at present. I did buy this mini sewing basket because I fell in love with it ~ and I plan to have a craft/sewing room in the dollhouse (since there is no room for one in the cottage.) Isn't it sweet?

Miss Peggie's Place has been in the same location for over 30 years! Miss Peggie ran it for most of that time until it became too much for her. She died a few years ago and there is a new owner. I lived here for 8 years but wasn't into the dollhouse thing then or I would have been there all the time.

These are the scarves I decorated for Design Gives Back at Kelee's blog. I used scraps from the Quilt Along quilt and cut out circles with pinking shears. Then I glued them on with fabric glue, sent them home to MHC and my husband took a couple of photos of the dogs in their new scarves. It is such a great cause. Just click on the link and you can read all about it.

Don tells me the dogs wouldn't stay still - they had just had a walk (hence Scout's pink-rimmed eyes - she was excited) but I think they look pretty cute!

Have a great Sunday!

PINK SATURDAY

Hello and Happy Pink Saturday! Please visit Beverly and stop by all the Pink Saturday posts!

I am just a week away from my return trip home - I am happy that I will be returning to my husband and dogs, but I will miss my friends, both new and old, here in San Diego. I'm packing and shipping all my stuff (since I've been here 6 months, I've accumulated quite a bit!)

So, let's take a break from list making and packing and look at a few pale pink pretties.

This was at the most recent Barn Sale: pale pinks: in the pillows, the flowers and the depression glass. So pretty coupled with the white chair and table, don't you think?

Also at the sale: I love this desk - white on the outside, then a hidden pink surprise when opened. That is such a neat idea.How I wish I could have taken it home! And there is that pink purse again! (It was in an earlier PS post of mine.) Check out the frou-frou shoes on top of the desk! See the pink tole trash can by the desk?

And these pretty flowers - don't they look like roses? They aren't. I got them at Trader Joe's and can't remember their name. If anyone knows, please let me know! I think they are beautiful.

I am saving up some Barn Sale photos for future posts. I'm afraid there will be no more Barn Sales - I will be back East where Shabby Cottage Chic is not as prevalent. I will have to go on a shabby quest, won't I?

Have a great weekend!

THANK YOU, FEATHERWEIGHT

Thank you, sweet Featherweight! For hours of sewing away from home, for fabric eggs and fabric hearts, for stitching square onto square, strip onto strip, row onto row, borders onto rows and making two quilts. You are everything they say you are - a workhorse with a fantastic straight stitch. You do everything with grace. Thanks for keeping me company at the apartment. I will soon return you to my friend, Ingrid, who trusted me enough to lend you to me. You were her Grandmother's sewing machine - a treasure. I will miss you...and I will get one like you for myself someday...along with my dream Janome 6600P Memory Craft Sewing Machine. Thank you, Featherweight. Thank you, Ingrid.

The top is finished!

Mosaic courtesy BigHugeLabs.com

HUSBAND'S BIRTHDAY (AND A PICTURE OF THE QUILT)

The most important news of the day is that it is my dear, wonderful husband's birthday! Oh darling, have a wonderful day - I am sorry I can't be with you, but we will celebrate when I get home. I love you more than words can say. You are the best thing that ever happened to me. If I go on too much longer, you will be embarrassed. So I will stop...for the moment. Riley and Scout, be good to your Dad today. Mind him and give him lots of cuddles!


Quilt update: The big quilt has been sewn together and the aqua fabric that you see at the bottom will be the border. I am almost done! The quilting, etc. will happen later when I am back at home. But my goal to get the top finished will be accomplished. Of course, I should have been packing. Tomorrow is packing day 1.

A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT

I am hand quilting the Quilt Along project. I would love to machine quilt this but since my machine here is a Featherweight, I am unable to. It has been a long while since I have done this, and I am enjoying the process. The prize at the end of the Quilt Along is my dream sewing machine - I plan to win it!

I leave to go back home 2 weeks from today. For so long that day seemed impossibly far off but now it is just around the corner. I had planned on renting a car and driving home, but when I actually got some price quotes that idea quickly died. It is unbelievable how much the cost is if you are driving one way! I was truly shocked. So, I will have to pack up everything and ship it (which will still be far less than renting the car.) It seems overwhelming to me at the moment, but if I just send a little bit each day, I should be okay.


I received this award from Teresa at MiniMadWoman. Thank you Teresa! Teresa has a wonderful blog that I love visiting! I am supposed to finish this phrase: "I am a light and I want to illuminate"...the welfare of all animals, the elimination of cruelty to animals, and the goal of finding a loving home for them.

I am to pass this on to five people, but I find it hard to choose just 5 blogs that I feel are beacons of light - so I pass this on to all of you wonderful, compassionate bloggers.

I hope your Monday is wonderful. I am off to make lists, run errands, and maybe sew some more strips together for the other quilt.

FATHERS DAY

Not long after we moved into Mockingbird Hill Cottage, my father surprised me with this painting. He had painted it from a photo I sent him. I am lucky to have several of my Dad's paintings, but this one may be my favorite. He knew what a dream come true it was - finally living in our own home - and this painting is priceless to me. Happy Fathers Day, Daddy. I love you always.


Happy Fathers Day to this guy - my husband - the father of Scout and Riley. He is the best Dad and has taken over all the care of our babies while I have had to be away. I'm coming home, soon, honey - you'll get a little bit of a break. I love you.

Happy Fathers Day to my father-in-law, Lee - my brother-in-law, John, my brother-in-law, Ron, my nephew-in-law, Steve and two of my nephews; Eric, who's first child is due in August, and Jeff, who is the proud Daddy of a new Pomeranian puppy. And Happy Fathers Day to all the loving Dads everywhere.

PINK SATURDAY

Pink Saturday is here again...please stop by Beverly's blog and visit all those participating. If you saw my previous post, you know that I visited Vignettes again this week. I happened upon some wonderful pink things that I will share with you.

This pink dress looks as if it is ready to be worn to the Prom.

This is the exquisite detail on an vintage child's dress.

Oh, I think I could be talked into this - a beautiful headboard upholstered in gorgeous fabric (with pink flowers, of course.) This is from a dealer at Vignettes called Paris Flea Market. They are profiled as the cover story in this month's Romantic Country magazine.

A sweet corner shelf.

Beautiful millinery flowers.

Have a great weekend!

EYE CANDY

Twelfth Night had its first audience last night and went extremely well. I had lunch today with one of my dearest friends who is the man who hired me to teach this past semester. We have known each other for 20 years and have had lots of adventures together. As my time here winds down (only a little more than two weeks to go), I am trying to be present in each moment. It is lovely here and I have had the chance to renew old friendships as well as to make new friends. Though I can't wait to be home, I am well aware that leaving is bittersweet.

After all that, how about some eye candy from Vignettes?










I cannot tell you how much I will miss this shop. On top of all the visual beauty, Lori and her dealers and staff are the nicest, warmest people. I consider them friends and am so grateful to know them.

FOR MY DOLLHOUSE

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The people I have met through blogging are the most generous, giving people. Case in point: after I blogged about my dollhouse, I had a message from a fellow blogger, Marsha of Sassy Mini Dolls. Marsha is a miniaturist who follows my blog (and I follow hers.) She said she wanted to send me a couple of things for my dollhouse to welcome me to the mini community.

Look what arrived today!

She was going to shabby up this coffee table, but thought I would enjoy doing it. She's right! Look at the little pitcher, the glass jar of seashells and the blue bowl. So sweet! Marsha made the cheesecake under the dome. I am amazed that someone can do this. Oh, I have much to learn!

Here is a lovely blue hutch, two yellow pillows along with a blue flowered pillow and two mini books, Jane Eyre and Aesop's Fables.

Inside one of the drawers in the coffee table was a copy of Little Women.

I gathered everything together and was going to put it all back in the box for safekeeping, when I realized I had missed something - this sofa! Marsha, Marsha, Marsha (I bet I'm not the first to say that) you are generous beyond words and I am so grateful for this warm welcome. Everything is perfect and I can't wait to get home and start work on the dollhouse. I am well aware I have much to learn, but I love a challenge!

Thank you, dear friend.

Update on the previous bird feeder post - there are 15 in the photo. Today I stopped by the tree and counted 18 and they were full of little birds and hummingbirds - I think it was lunchtime.

DINING OUT WITH BIRDS

As I was walking down the back road to the theater the other day (that is the rear of the outdoor Festival Stage at the end of the road - see the stage lights?), I came upon this:


These hang outside the rear of the Art Museum. I've seen hummingbirds and other little birds dining there. Look closely. How many bird feeders do you count? (You can click on the photo to make it larger.)

OUR BLOOMING TREE, QUILTS, AND THEATRE UNDER THE STARS

One of my favorite trees back at Mockingbird Hill Cottage is blooming. My husband sent me some more photos of our garden and this tree - the Catalpa. We have 4 Catalpas on the property, but this one is right by our driveway, overlooking our shed. You can see it in the picture of the cottage on my sidebar. We can see it from our living room. It blooms in June with gorgeous, fragrant blossoms. Later the tree grows large bean pods, which drop to the ground in Autumn. We are fortunate because our neighbors have one, too, and I can see it while I am standing at the kitchen sink. Unfortuately, I have missed this beautiful blooming for two years in a row. Next year - I think I am staying home! Here is a close-up of the lovely blossoms.


The quilts are coming along. I am going to baste the smaller one together with the batting and the backing tomorrow. I have been sewing squares together and then sewing rows together on the larger quilt. It is slow going. I am determined to have the quilt top finished before I leave, since that was the goal I set for myself.



All three plays I am working on are in various stages of dress rehearsal and audience previews. Cyrano de Bergerac had its first preview on Saturday night and it was magical. There is nothing like sitting out under the stars, with a soft breeze blowing, watching a wonderful production. It makes it all worth it.

THERE'S A HOUSE INSIDE MY HOUSE

Look what I found! I have mentioned wanting a dollhouse several times in the past...you remember, right? During one of my every-once-in-a-while searches on Craigslist, I found this. I was searching in the area of New York state surrounding Mockingbird Hill Cottage. (For those of you who are not regular readers of this blog, I am working in San Diego temporarily and my home is in New York.) After researching this style, I realized it was a dollhouse manufactured by Real Good Toys - they make high quality dollhouse kits. But - lucky for me - it was already assembled and the ad said it just needed some TLC. And even more lucky for me, it was $30. The unfinished kit alone is just under two hundred dollars!

So, I contacted the woman selling this and after peppering her with questions, asked her to hold on to it until I spoke with my husband. Would he do me a big favor and drive to a neighboring town to pick up a dollhouse? The first words out of his mouth were "Where are we going to put it?" It was a valid question. Our cottage is small, small, small. I said I didn't know, but how could I pass this up, and you know I've been wanting a dollhouse, and please, please, please?

I even went on Mapquest and printed out the driving directions and emailed them to him.

Bless his heart, he drove out there the next day and loaded it into the car. He even called me after he got it and said that he thought it was really cool. Yippee! It needs some repair and of course, the inside is totally undecorated. That gives me the chance to wire it, paint, make and buy furniture....I get excited just thinking about it.

$30? I mean, I would have to be crazy to pass that up.

(Pardon the photo quality - I took this photo from the Craigslist post.)

PINK SATURDAY

Happy Pink Saturday, everyone! Please stop by Beverly's to see a list of all participating. I managed to come up with some pink treasures - by the skin of my teeth!

Here we go - this little plate was found at the Barn Sale. It is old with a lot of crazing, which makes me love it even more.

This pink present is on its way to Vanessa - she won my giveaway.

This little pink bird is part of this McCoy dish, given to me by Heidi.

And this, the last of the peonies, faded to a beautiful pale pink.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

MY SPARE TIME

Some of you have asked what I am sewing. Well, I am sewing together quilt blocks. This is one I have been working on for a long time - too long - and I promised myself I would complete the top while I was in San Diego. I have about 6 rows sewn together.


I've also been sewing some blocks for an online quilt along - I thought it would keep me occupied during the day - my work at the theater has moved to the evenings. I used some fabric I had on hand. This will probably be a throw kind of quilt. (You can see the hideous carpeting here at the apartment; something all of us staying here at the various apartments have commented on.)


And, with the scraps from the quilt along, I made these 2 hearts.



It keeps me off the streets.

THE TEA CHEST

When I was a child, I always saw this tea chest on a corner shelf at my Grandmother's house. I can see the what-not shelf now, with its dark mahogany spindles. It was just something that was always there. As I grew older, my grandmother told me it had been in her parents' farmhouse in Canada. Whether it was always theirs or passed down to them, I am unsure. I recently asked my Mom about it and she can't remember either. I do remember my Grandma saying that it had been handmade by someone. Each of the interior lids has a small shell as the handle.


Tea was a valuable commodity and tea chests came with a lock and key. By the time I came to know this piece, its use as a tea chest had long since passed. I must have peeked in it at one time or other. I do know that I loved it and always hoped to have it one day. My Mother had it in her home for many years after my Grandmother died, and eventually gave it to me.


When I looked inside, I found many things - lots of pennies, a blue glass dish, a pick for my grandfather's autoharp, a note written by my mother (as a young teen) to my Grandmother, a copy of the contents of my Great-Grandfather's estate. But the most heartbreaking and precious of the treasures found inside were the cards trimmed in black that were given out at the funerals of my great-aunts, my Grandmother's sisters. During the flu epidemic in 1918, my Grandmother, who was a nurse, returned back home to nurse her family. She had to watch as she lost one sister and then another. Maggie was in her 20's, and Rhoda, my Grandmother's adored youngest sister, was but a teenager. Both of them died within days of each other. I can't imagine the grief my family felt. It is incomprehensible.

Grandma never got over their deaths. And her adored Rhoda? There is a lock of her hair along with the death notice that makes it all the more poignant. Grandma talked often about Rhoda and how wonderful she was. She loved Maggie, too, but Rhoda was the youngest of the 5 children - the baby.

I am fortunate enough to have a pack of letters that Rhoda wrote to Grandma while Gram was in Nursing School in Barrie, Ontario. You have only to read one of them to see how delightful, joyful and lovely that girl was. Her joy in living leaps off every page. I find myself reading them occasionally and thinking that she had only a few years left as she wrote them.

I've kept the contents as I found them - even the pennies. I sense that it was Grandma's private hiding place for a few precious things. I am honored to have it in my possession, along with the letters and Rhoda's copy of Alice in Wonderland.

A CROW AND THE GIVEAWAY WINNER

I took a walk through the neighborhood the other day and saw a crow in this tree. Boy, those crows are big birds! I love the contrast of the black crow against the blue sky. I had to work quickly to capture this guy before he flew off again.

I'm trying to keep busy as homesickness has really engulfed me. So I am sewing, then cursing at the results of the sewing, then eating...you get the picture. One month to go.

The winner of the Giveaway is....drumroll, please....Vanessa at Vanilla Lavender! Congratulations, Vanessa! I have already sent you an email. Just get back to me with your address and I will get the Roses sign out to you in the mail.

TWO GENTLE REMINDERS

As we near the end of glorious peony season, here is a photo of our peony bushes back at Mockingbird Hill Cottage. They are older bushes, planted near the road by a past owner of the cottage. I was thrilled when I discovered them the first time we saw our house. I wish I was there to gather them, put them in vases throughout the cottage and breathe in their wonderful scent. Now you see why I have been buying so many of them here in San Diego. I miss my sweet peony bushes.


Thanks to my husband for taking these photos and emailing them to me. He knows how much I miss gardening and sends me photo updates.

Two reminders: The deadline to leave a comment for the giveaway is tonight at Midnight EST. You must leave a comment on the original post. Scroll down and you will see it.

If you want to avail yourself of my friend Mandy's fabulous offer of 8 sidebar labels for the price of 5, you must order by Tuesday, June 9th. The information is in the previous post.

Have a great Monday!

A New Etsy Shop and a Special for My Readers

Have you noticed my new sidebar labels? I love them! A couple of weeks ago I won a giveaway from Mandy at a la parisienne. Many of you already follow her blog and her French Lesson Fridays. This giveaway was for custom sidebar buttons, something I had been wanting for a long time. Look on my right sidebar - aren't they wonderful? I couldn't have been happier with the process. Mandy is wonderful! She asks questions about your blog, your style, and how you would like your blog to look. Then she sends a variety of font styles from which you choose several that represent your blog's style. Then, as if by magic, something appears that, in my case, was absolutely what I had dreamed of.

After my sidebar buttons were designed, she also designed a customized button (scroll down to see my ASPCA button) that fulfilled my need to link to a cause I deeply believed in but stayed true to the style of my blog.

The good news is this: Mandy is opening her own Etsy store! She will be offering sidebar labels and Etsy store buttons/links. She will also design customized buttons like my ASPCA button. All of these offerings can be customized however you want - you get to pick titles, fonts and the color scheme. Her Etsy address is: www.alaparisienne.etsy.com.

Mandy would like to offer a special for my readers. Anyone who purchases a set of 5 sidebar labels by Tuesday, June 9th will get 8 labels for the price of 5. What a great deal!

Truly, the process was a delight from start to finish and I couldn't recommend her more highly. She is a fellow blogger with wonderful taste. Go visit her shop and tell her I sent you.

Pink Saturday

Hello, fellow lovers of pink! Thank you to Beverly for hosting our weekly celebration of pink. Please visit her blog to see a list of everyone participating.

Here we go ~ this little dress was at the Barn Sale. So sweet.

These shoes are too gorgeous! The dress and the shoes? And the tiara? Princess.

This sweet hat reminds me of something sweet Anne Shirley of Anne of Green Gables fame might wear.

This is the delicate shade of pink that occurs as a peony starts to fade. Beautiful.

I saved my favorite until last. This photo is from my sister Meredith's blog. This is Wilbur. He is a 550 pound pig that has a deformed back leg. He has been raised from birth by the people that own this farm in North Carolina. Pigs are quite intelligent. Meredith got to pet him ~ I'm jealous. Isn't he adorable? Now, that's pink!

Have a wonderful day. Don't forget, I'm having a Giveaway. After you have finished commenting here, scroll down and leave your name on Thursday's post. You have to comment on both posts!

Friday Folderol

Happy Friday, everyone. You know I love peonies ~ and yes, I'm posting more photos. I cannot help myself. They are so gorgeous, so short-lived, so luscious! It also provides an opportunity to practice with my camera and the macro setting.

Beautiful. My husband sent the next photos ~ just to prove that I indeed have peonies on my property. Note to husband: please send photos of the garden and the now, I'm sure, fully open peonies.

I promised Donna that I would post a photo of my little vintage birdcage. I found this at Vignettes - my cottage is small and I need a petite birdcage. This is a vintage Hendryx cage that I fell in love with. Think of all the things I can do with it back at Mockingbird Hill Cottage! Right now, one of Joy's birds is happily chirping away.

Don't forget the Giveaway ~ scroll down for the details!

Giveaway Time!

Yes, yesterday's post was my 225th and in honor of that milestone, I am having a giveaway. When I was at the Barn Sale at La Maison Rustique, I fell in love with these signs made by Rita. I bought two different signs. One of them said "Cottage Home." The other said "Roses." As I was staring at one of them the other day, I thought "You should have this be your giveaway!"


If you would like to be eligible for this giveaway, dear blogging friends, please leave a comment on this post. I love comments on all my posts, but for the giveaway, the comment must be on this post. I will then put all the names in a hat, or a bowl, or something, and pick the winner. The deadline is Monday, June 8th at Midnight EST.


Thank you, friends!

La Maison Rustique, Part Two

More photos from the Barn Sale ~ if you missed the first batch, just scroll down a few posts.

Don't you just love this pink phone? And the chair with chalkboard paint?

I have a sideboard much like this that I made into our kitchen island - isn't this one lovely?

What a birdcage - Donna, I hear it calling your name!

I think these are Joy's birds on the top of the cage.

Such a pretty vignette.

Isn't this the most incredible birdbath? I just love it.

This tall cabinet was already marked "Sold" when I saw it. I can see why.

This old screen door is so charming ~ I can see it in a storybook cottage.

I hope you've enjoyed all this eye candy. I only have one more barn sale before I leave to journey back East...I'll really miss it.

This is post 225 - tomorrow I'll post about the giveaway.

Tagged and an Award

I've been tagged by Claudie...I supposed to share 6 things about me that you might not know. I did one of these early on in my blogging days; let's see if I can think of anything new....Hmmmm.

~~I cry easily. I just watched Pollyanna on TCM and cried my eyes out. A well-done commercial can send me off, too. I'm sentimental, what can I say?

~~I became sick right after I was born and turned blue. My Mother had to come home from the hospital without me and I was allowed to come home on Thanksgiving. For many years after that my Dad always said "Thank you for Claudia" during the blessing.

~~I love Fred Astaire. I have read most everything about him, and have seen all his movies many, many times.

~~My favorite novel and movie - ever - is To Kill a Mockingbird.(Do you see a connection to the name of my home?) The novel is brilliant, the movie is the best adaptation of a novel I've ever seen. I got to see Gregory Peck live a few years back when he was doing his one man show (because my dear husband bought me a ticket as a gift). As the theme music to the movie played during the introduction, I started crying. Mr. Peck was delightful - a real Irish storyteller.

~~I love animals - all animals, and I'm a vegetarian. At times I am vegan.

~~I can burp on cue. I used to do it to annoy my brother when we were kids. I kept on doing it until he told me one day that it would give me an ulcer. I was younger and I believed him.

I also received an award from Lynn. Thank you, Lynn! I'm supposed to list 5 things that I don't like. Here goes:

~~ when people talk loudly on cell phones in public - as if they are in private

~~ when people forget to turn off their cell phones at the theater or, unbelievably, text during the show

~~ cruelty of any kind - to people, animals or the earth

~~ injustice

~~ hypocrisy

There you have it - I am supposed to pass these on, but to tell you the truth, I feel a bit uncomfortable doing that. If you, my readers, would like to take part, please do! Feel free to take the award, and tell us what you don't like - or take the tag and tell us things about yourself we don't know.

Tomorrow I will post more photos from the Barn Sale! And that will be my 225th post, so the next day I will post about the giveaway!

An Anniversary and a Cause

First, I want to wish my parents a Happy Anniversary! Today marks 63 years since they took their vows back in Detroit, Michigan. I am so proud of you, Mom and Dad. You made a commitment to each other, worked hard at your marriage and raised 4 children. I am enormously proud of you and thankful that you are my parents. Happy Anniversary, Gordon and Shirley!


I want to draw your attention to a wonderful cause. Kelee Katillac is a designer who truly gives back to the community. Her latest idea is one that will really help lost dogs. Oliver Wendell is Kelee's dog - the photo you see above is of a scarf. Kelee's idea is to have us all buy scarves and decorate them, then take a photo of the scarf on your dog and send it to Kelee. For each decorated scarf $10.00 will be contributed to the effort to help rescue lost dogs. Many, many pets are being abandoned by families dealing with foreclosure and financial loss. What a great idea! Please visit Kelee ~ she will tell you exactly what to do.

Have a wonderful Monday! (Don't forget to scroll down and see the eye candy from the Barn Sale!)