Shine's Thyme

Never grows old

2012-01-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

Today I'm going to link up with Kathy again for another one of her blog parties. I always find great ideas at these parties and always come away making sweet new friends.
One of my paternal aunts passed away a while back. She was in her nineties and a spunky little thing right up to the last. She had this painting in her home for many years and I feel very honored to now have it in mine.

She had it in a very flimsy little frame, but I found this one at an antique shop and it was a perfect fit. :))))

It also doesn't hurt anything that hubby dear just happens to be custom picture framer. All that being said, I love the picture. I love having Jesus in my dining room. Well....you know....He's always there, but I love looking at the picture. So nice to reflect when we are having our meals. The picture never gets old. I could look at it forever and never tire of it.
A sweet friend gave me the little sheep linen for Christmas....I LOVE IT!!

So cute with all the little sheep lined up in a row. All hand stitched....and I just love that little black sheep at the end.....sometimes I think that's me:)

Jesus watching over me....I like that.
Stop in and see A Delightsome Life today......you won't be sorry!!
Blessings~~Shine

I'm going in

2012-01-21T11:51:00.001-08:00

I have had a spinning wheel now for about 8...maybe 10 years. We bought it, finished it, assembled it....I played with it sporadically, but I have never given myself over to it.

I love looking at my wheel....and I've dreamed over the years of making her fly...and spinning the most beautiful of yarns.

I just never could seem to make the time to learn it properly. I wanted to make gorgeous yarn, but when I spun, my yarn was knobbly and not even cute like the popular knobby yarns these days...just ugly and wrong.

Most people wonder why on earth I would want to do such a thing in the first place....just go buy yarn. I can't explain it, it's just something I yearn to do....and not only just do, but do well. Have you ever seen gorgeous handspun yarn? If not take a look here. This yarn lady is awesome. Her yarn is exactly what I want to do. SO precise and gorgeous.

For the past two weeks, I have been pondering on my wheel. She has been beckoning me to come and master her, and guess what? I do believe that now is the time. For the first time since I've had my wheel, I did manage to produce a fairly decent yarn. Not willing to share that just yet, but it wasn't all bad, and now, I'm jumping in head first. I've been in touch with my spinning lady who has DVD's ordered for me....rovings for me and best of all....I'll be having some private lessons.

So soon dear friends.....very soon...you'll be seeing lots of postings on newly spun yarn. Who knows???? Perhaps even an etsy shop in the near future:) Whatever is calling your name girls....go for it....CARPE DIEM!!!

Blessings ~~Shine

Too good to be quiet about:)

2012-01-13T15:02:00.000-08:00

In our home, we have lots of OLD furniture. Some we bought at yard sales, flea markets...etc. Sometimes out of necessity, sometimes, when we were fortunate, just because we love old things. I have tried over the years to take care of what we have, just kinda felt a responsibility to do that. One day one of my sisters said that we (my husband and I) were better caretakers of what God had blessed us with than anyone she knew. That made me feel like it mattered....the things I do. To think that God blesses us is beyond my comprehension, but, maybe, that is why I do the little things I do....to be a good caretaker of my blessings:)

Once while visiting a favorite blog...(I have many:))....I read where Cass had used a new product that she gave very high reviews. This product truly is amazing. It's inexpensive, so I thought I'd give it a try. What do you think?......these are the results.

No need to tell where I used it:) If you love your old furniture, you need to feed it...it really does dry out:(
Just thought this may be useful to some other antique lover. Think I'm going to have to order some more:) The product name is Feed-N-Wax. You may be able to purchase it locally, but it was easier for me to order it. Hope you all have a lovely and VERY blessed evening.
PS.....Think I'll link this up with a new sweet friend, Kathy, at A Delightsome Life. Visit her awesome blog for lots of new inspiration and ideas!!
Much love~~Shine

What a TREAT!!!!

2012-01-05T13:51:00.000-08:00

Sophie was wondering...
Have you ever seen parisiennefarmgirl ? If not, you NEED to go see her site...she has an awesome blog AND she's having a super giveaway. Go here to see her latest surprise and her giveaway!! ~~Blessings~~Shine

Time to stop.....and start again.

2012-01-02T20:49:00.000-08:00

For the last two days, I have been in the twilight zone. After the busyness of Christmas, we decided to take the youngest kiddos and head to the mountains. It is amazing girls. We were literally only 15 miles or so from our home, but it felt like another planet. It was 15 miles up into the mountains....where there is nothing. No wi-fi, no cable, barely any cell service. Wow. I had almost forgotten how it feels to go "off grid". I must say, I love my wi-fi. I can do without television.....all the latest gadgets...but I want my computer. Weird. I never thought I'd say that. I always felt like I could be a million miles away from anyone or anything and be perfectly content, but I really had to work on it:) I did enjoy my family....my quiet time with my Beloved, I was just very ready to get back home. Now that I'm back to the real life:)....time to think about a new year and all the hopes and dreams that come with it. As I look back on last year's New Year's ambitions, I'm a little encouraged...kinda sorta, in a way:) I did manage to accomplish some of my goals....and hey! we do the best we can..right? Here's what I managed to actually get done.

I did get new window treatments for my dining room
I did get a mantle for my stone fireplace!!
I did go on a diet and lost 28 lbs! I had major cosmetic dental work done that I had put off for WAY too long, and I started going to get my hair done professionally! (These 3 things were probably the most major)
I finished lots of projects
I made 4 quilts and helped Anna with 2
I knit one pair of socks

So see...I DID make a little progress!!

Now, for 2012
First...
I want to spend more time in God's word.
I want to spend more quality time with my family.
As far as projects
I REALLY want to give my kitchen a facelift..she's tired:)
Strip wallpaper in Anna's bedroom/bathroom and paint/redecorate.
Paint my bedroom...MAYBE reconfigure the master bath
Strip, replace boards, and repaint our deck (MAJOR)
Four quilts.
Knit two pairs of socks
Knit a beautiful cashmere scarf
Take a spinning class...for my spinning wheel:)

Glory! That's alot!!! Oh well! I'll do my best:)
Now I leave you with my last Christmas shots....and a blessing and a prayer for you my sweet friend. I pray God's favor will shine on you and He will BLESS you abundantly.

Much love~~Shine

To be Pink, or not to be Pink....that is the question

2011-12-30T14:11:00.000-08:00

Today I am linking up with Beverly and the Pink Saturday gang to share my daughter's bedroom, and the debate on whether to change this room or not, or.....perhaps I'm even asking more for advice on, how should we change this room? Anna has a beautiful room right now. How about stepping inside.....

Gotta tell ya girls....it's pretty pink:)

Let's walk on in and take a look. I really do think it's pretty cute just like it is.

Why do little girls have to grow up?

This is my favorite picture of Anna w/the verse from Psalms "....that our daughters be as pillars, sculptured in palace style."

Sweet little bed with all her handmade pillows.

Electrical entertainment area:)

And....the pink powder room.

I don't know....seems to me, she has such a lovely little space.

Trinkets from sweet friends.

Old pink cabinet bought for $10.00:)

The closet had no doors, so we fashioned this curtain made from eyelet fabric.
Now.......Anna just turned 13 and is very much wanting a change-a-roo. When we bought this house, the whole thing, and she's a big girl, was covered with wall paper. Very much in vogue for the 70's and 80's, but it all HAD to go.....except this room. I just felt like it was a perfect little girl room. We plan to put our house back on the market in the spring, so I suppose painting it a more neutral color would not be such a bad thing. We found a most gorgeous inspiration from Miss Gracie's House, and have somewhat of an idea on SOME things. I need some advice though. Anna has said she could go with a neutral color on the walls, but, then she's really wanting lots of contemporary elements. One thing we are definitely doing is the Music Speaks stencil Renee and her daughter used....just not sure what color background to use. Anna would love to have purple....but wouldn't that get old? We plan to make it portable so we can take it with us when we move. These are the colors she loves......electric purple, lime green, and solar blue:) Hmmmmm....just can't quite get a picture for it. Well....I would LOVE it if you could give me some input. Promise....I'll share the after pictures too. Blessings...Shine

Slow down

2011-12-27T14:43:00.000-08:00

Today has been an awesome day. The busyness of Christmas almost gets overwhelming sometimes, but I always try to keep my eyes focused on the true meaning and just hold on:) Yesterday and today I have actually been able to sit down, hug on my children and just take in the beauty and abundant blessings from the past few weeks.
It is good dear friends. Good to be able to sit and reflect. I am so grateful. Blessings too numerous to count, and I feel very humbled. I hope you all had as lovely a Christmas as I did....and I hope the new year brings joy and peace, blessings and happiness to you all.

With much love and affection,
Shine

I made MERRY!!!!!

2011-12-16T18:52:00.000-08:00

With so much to do and so many projects biding for my time, I am generally pretty picky about the things I try to tackle this time of year, especially for myself, but when I saw this cute banner....I felt like it was well worth my time. I happened upon an awesome blog, and this is what I saw! I knew I could do this in a reasonable amount of time and I already had all the things I needed in my scrap booking stash. Thanks so much Jennifer for all your wonderful inspiration. Here's my version of Jennifer Rizzo's Merry Banner.

Merry Christmas sweet friends!!! Two quilts down and two to go :-O.......Well...I'll do my best:)
Blessings~~~Shine

Ho Ho Ho...here we go!

2011-12-08T18:45:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas sweet friends!

You know it's Christmas when the gingerbread houses are made:)

Have a blessed and lovely evening~~~Shine

Christmas Mantle

2011-11-30T18:14:00.000-08:00

Hello sweet friends! This is my first year with a real and proper mantle! Yes...I have been married almost 30 years....lived in many lovely, cozy homes and always managed without one, BUT...I always wanted a mantle. We always found somewhere to hang our stockings, but I just dreamed of a "fairy tale" mantle:) Last winter my dear hubby finally gave me my heart's desire.....so now, without further adieu.......my beautiful Christmas mantle.

I do believe I'll hook this post up with Sherry's Home Sweet Home.
Have a lovely evening sweet sisters! ~~Blessings~Shine

Early Giving

2011-11-22T19:08:00.000-08:00

A while back, a sweet friend of mine asked if I would like to have some of her "mismatched China". Well...I could never say no to China, of any sort. I LOVE all China. In actuality, I truly thought she was talking about "just a few" pieces. She had told me that she had sold a lot of things, but had held on to these as they were some of her favorites. When she brought them to me, I felt like the box was really big for just a few pieces. When I opened it up, I was in for a fabulous surprise:)

I still can't believe it. Six different complete place settings.

Plus a few added treasures:) LOVE these beautiful plates.

Each setting is unique and gorgeous. No wonder they were her favorites.

I bet you're saying "That's Amazing!"........ I still am!

Every day, I choose a different "favorite".

And every day I have tea on a different set:)

Rita is one of those rare people that has a gift of giving. Very rare in this day and time indeed.

Every time I see Rita she is making something for someone else.

She has always put other people before herself.

I never have felt like I can say "Thank you" properly.

I mean, really...this is such a blessing.

If you're able to read this Rita, I am SO thankful for your gifts....AND for your friendship. YOU are such a blessing in my life.

Look at this sweet heart cup and saucer.

I must confess...I have to share this with Anna....she loves it so:)

I'm not the only one blessed by Rita's generosity....she donates to many good causes every year and like I said before..she's always busy making something for someone else. Do you have angels in your midst? I believe I truly do.
Have a blessed evening sisters~~~Much love to you all~~Shine

Serious sweetness!

2011-11-08T16:24:00.000-08:00

Do you love hot chocolate? I mean really LOVE hot chocolate? If so.....you must take notice and try the following recipe. If you choose to ignore this post.....well you've missed out on some of the world's most incredible yumminess:) It's really simple, but unbelievably fabulous. ENJOY Sweet Friends!!

Rich and Creamy Hot Chocolate
Makes 10 chocolate balls, enough for 10 1-cup servings.

1 (12 oz.) bag (2 cups) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon salt

Microwave chocolate, cream, and salt in large bowl, stirring occasionally, until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Stir until smooth.

Cover and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours. Roll 3 TBLSP. chilled chocolate mixture into ten 2-in. balls.

Individually wrap balls in plastic wrap and transfer to zipper-lock bag. Refrigerate for 5 days or freeze for up to 2 months. (They will NOT last that long:)
To make 1 cup of hot chocolate, combine 1 unwrapped chocolate ball and 1 cup of milk. in a large mug and microwave about 2 minutes, or drop ball in milk and heat on low heat on stove till melted . Whisk for frothing.

Have a most beautiful evening! With much love, ~~Shine~~

Two months....really????

2011-10-23T18:01:00.000-07:00

I am absolutely amazed at how fast the time goes by. Two months since my last post... unbelievable. Well, you girls know that with the changing seasons comes my "busy season". So since I am so busy with birthdays, recitals and the like, I will simply post a few pictures of some of my favorite autumn vignettes.

Have an absolutely lovely and blessed evening sisters.
Much love~~Shine~~

Chocolate or Strawberry?

2011-08-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

We love cake here and I DO love to bake them. I LOVE cake. Lately I have two special favorites.
CHOCOLATE CHERRY

I think this is my very favorite:)

AND......................................................STRAWBERRY........................................................................

Do you have a favorite?????

Here's a fabulous recipe for the chocolate cherry, and the strawberry is just easy.... Vanilla cake of your choice and fresh whipping cream w/fresh strawberries. This recipe for the chocolate cherry was given to me by a sweet friend...Ms Kelly, who just happens to have been a professional chef, BK...(before kids)......Hope you all have a lovely evening!!~~~Blessings sweet friends~~Shine

CHOCOLATE CHERRY CAKE

Ingredients for cake

3 cups and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups white sugar
1 cup and 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4-1/2 eggs
1-1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

This recipe's Ingredients were scaled to yield a new amount. The directions below still refer to the original recipe yield of 1 - 9 inch 3 layer cake.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9 inch, round, cake pans; cover bottoms with waxed paper.
In a large bowl, combine flour, 2 cups sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add eggs, milk, oil, and 1 tablespoon vanilla; beat until well blended. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 35 minutes, or until wooden toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool layers in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Loosen edges, and remove to racks to cool completely.

Chocolate Cherry Cake from Kelly

Chocolate cake layers. I made 2, 9" layers. I sliced my layers in half to make 4 layers.

Chocolate whipped cream. I used 2 cups of heavy cream and 4 ounces of semi sweet chocolate. This made enough for 2 cakes, so I guess you could use half as much. I'm always afraid when it comes time to frost that I won't have enough, and I'll have to skimp. So I always make WAY too much. You just need enough to put between 3 layers. 1cup of cream just seems silly. I'd go ahead and make way too much :)
Melt the chocolate in the microwave and let cool for a few minutes. You want it to be liquid and pourable when you add it to the cream. Whip the cream until it's just getting thick. You can put a couple Tbls of sugar in I suppose, but I don't like it overly sweet. Up to you. Stop beating, get a whisk, add all the chocolate in and fold and whip until it's combined. Done.

Plain whipped cream. 2 cups of heavy cream and 2-3 Tbls of sugar.

Chocolate ganache. (for drizzling on top) I just can't remember....check online. You just need a tiny amount. Something like 1/4 cup cream and 2 ounces chocolate. Boil cream, pour on top of chopped chocolate. Don't touch for a few minutes, then stir. Done.

This is the last chapter... Al just asked if I was writing a novel.

So to put it together, slice your 2 layers, spread chocolate whip cream, sprinkle a few (or a lot) of frozen cherries, and stack that baby up!!! Whipped cream and ganache all over outside.

Don't forget to get a lot on your fingers!!

It's What's For Dinner!

2011-08-26T10:36:00.000-07:00

These last days of summer are all about cooking on the grill. Yes....it's really hot to stand outside around a grill, and I am DEFINITELY a cold climate gal, but....there's just something about these days. Knowing that winter is just around the corner....knowing there will be fewer and fewer days of standing around the grill makes me want to be out there every evening. Lately, our favorite dinner on the grill...indeed has become a weekly Fri. night ritual, is pizza on the grill. My homemade pizza has always been a hit in our house, so I didn't really want to mess up a good thing, but I had to give it a try....and boy, am I glad I did! Now it's our FAVORITE by far! So fresh and DEEEELISH!! I found the recipe with great pictures here. The first time I tried it, it was a hit, so it's really easy. Here are a few pictures of my humble results:)

First, make your normal pizza dough.....I'll post my favorite at the end. Roll out into smaller size pizzas. (Easier to work with). Spray the pizza dough(s) with olive oil spray the gently transfer right onto a hot grill. Cook on the first side just long enough to "set" the dough. You're not trying to fully cook the dough at this time, but you will see that it sets where you can see grill marks on the "done" side and you can handle it much easier. Then flip it once and let it set on the other side. Maybe 2-5 minutes per side.

Next, bring in the crusts and top with your favorite toppings. Here's where's it's fun. You can really get creative. Our favorite was the spinach and tomato, but I haven't made one we didn't like yet:)

The kids like ham and cheese. I usually start w/ about 1/4 cup olive oil with 1-2 cloves of fresh garlic. Spread that over the pizza then add toppings. I have made them with the tomato based sauce and that's yummy too, but we like the change and lightness of the white pizzas best. Serena at The Farm Chicks has lots of great ideas and examples for toppings.

After topping, take the pizzas back to the grill just for long enough to heat the toppings and melt the cheese. Girls, trust me...this is YUMMY!!!!!
Here's my simple recipe for pizza dough. It's Serena's recipe that she got from Better Homes and Garden, but I replaced the AP flour with my fresh ground whole wheat flour. The results were fabulous!

Pizza Dough

2 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour (I used fresh ground whole wheat flour)

2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup warm water (not hot)

2 tablespoons olive oil

In a large mixer bowl combine 1 1/4 cups of the flour, the yeast, and salt. Stir in warm water and oil. Beat at low speed of electric mixer for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can mix in with a spoon. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic. (6 to 8 minutes total).

Cover dough and let rest 10 minutes. Divide dough into as many pizzas as you'd like to make and roll out on a floured surface. (I recommend starting out with small pizzas while you get the hang of cooking them on the grill).

Here's to hoping you all have a gorgeous afternoon and a lovely evening!!!
Blessings sweet friends~~Shine

Deep

2011-08-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

Sometimes a small thing can provoke a very profound thought.

On an impromptu hike, this single flower was just that for me. In the middle of the oppressive heat & drought, here this beautiful flower found a way. Have a lovely evening~~~Shine

Oh Happy Day! ! !

2011-08-21T16:09:00.000-07:00

A VERY happy day indeed. Guess who's back????? I'll give you a hint. She's super sharp....stylish and ever so precise.

Oh how I have missed my dear friend. If you remember, I tragically, but accidentally dropped my sweetie. Trust me, it hurt me far more than it did her:) I couldn't bear to look at her for a while, but I when I finally found the intestinal fortitude to do so, I found out she was going to cost me a pretty penny for her recovery treatment.

Somewhere in the neighborhood of $200.00, plus shipping. Ouchie. I had a hard time swallowing that, as much as I loved the dear girl.....what to do? I was almost ready to send her out the door when dear hubby said..."let me take care of her". I was in such a bad frame of mind, I just relinquished my beloved. She was gone for what seemed like an eternity. Yesterday however, sweet hubby said...."Shine, I have a surprise"....then he held out my baby all fully recovered!!!!! Here's the funny part. She never left the house. When I dropped the dear girl, she landed right on her face. Actually, the rim of her face. When I tried to turn her on, her lens couldn't move or focus, the rim was bent. Hubby carefully removed her delicate rim and low and behold she came alive!! She could not go around without a proper rim though! Sooooo.....hubby ever so smoothly bent her rim back into place and popped it back on. He is SO clever, that man of mine.

So here she is, in all her glory. Hallelujah!!! I am a happy girl:))))))) Blessings to you all sweet friends....Have a lovely evening~~~~Shine

Fairies

2011-08-05T14:46:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I want to be a child again. To be able to take time to dream and play fantasy~~sigh. I'm lucky because while I may not be a child myself, I do have a young daughter and together, we do get to play just a little:)

We found the SWEETEST of herb farms recently and came away stock full of ideas and inspiration.

All of these pictures were taken at Erin's Meadow Herb Farm . What a treat!
First, I had to go with two of my oldest and dearest friends. We had to "test" the grounds:) Got to pick up a couple of herbs and gather some nifty ideas.

We also got to go to the nearby sleepy little city of Clinton, TN. Here we were able to stroll through lots of antique and gift shops, and have lunch at an awesome little cafe on the main drag.

At the herb farm , they have lots of fairy items available for purchase to start your own "Fairy Garden".

The idea of starting a Fairy Garden is to attract fairies to your yard. Fairies are well know to bring good luck you know:)

I was immediately in love, and I knew Anna would be too.

Sooooo....two days after my initial visit with my buddies...

I decided I needed to go back and take Anna. She (by the way) was DYING to go after hearing all about it.
Keep in mind, this herb farm is more than 50 miles from my house, and I don't do 50 mile trips often. I knew this would be another trip worth taking. As anticipated. Anna was in love.
We purchased a couple of things to get us started and within 2 days time, we had a good start on our own fairy garden.

We started by choosing our spot, then it just "came together". We cleared the ground, then we added our arbor with the gate for the fairies to enter. After that, we just collected items from the house that had been discarded in drawers or neglected. Fish tank pebbles, broken potshards, tiny pots and pebbles.

Anything with a bling or shimmer to it was fair game.

I was able to dig up some moss that was growing downstairs and it was like laying down a puzzle! Little pieces came together like a smooth carpet. A soft surface for the fairies to walk on. It has, in a few short days, become a ritual for us to wake up and go to the garden early, before the heat sets in. We'll continue to add things every day. Such a fun treat for the two of us to share together AND, for me to be able to act "just a little" like a child again:)

I Won the Marathon!!!

2011-07-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

The Marathon that was going on in my house today that is.
It's been a long day, but I managed to turn out two batches (that's 24) of fresh ground whole wheat bagels, two loaves of French Bread, one Healthy Dog Friendly Birthday Cake and one super cute bird feeder wreath!
Whew!

The bagels are easy and VERY yummy, but time consuming.

I didn't get pictures of the French Bread, but it was also deeeeelish. For dinner, we had the French Bread, w/fresh tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. Fresh cucumbers out of my sweet friend Lovie's garden. So simple, fresh and fabulous!

Also...this was sweet Sophie's birthday.

Little darlin looks pretty good for her age:)

Lastly, pictures of my bird feeder! So fun and easy...Go here for super easy instructions.

But girls....just a friendly word of advice. Please hang this gorgeous wreath under a shelter or after your first nice afternoon shower, you'll end up with bird seed soup.

Have a most lovely and blessed evening......
With love~~Shine

Bloomin

2011-07-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

A couple of years ago, I picked up a plant at a Farmers Market that I'd never seen, called a double echinacea . I really couldn't believe my eyes, and thought surely this was some freak of nature that would bloom as every other normal echinacea plant once I put it in the ground and gave it a very normal little life. Well....I was wrong.

Isn't that cool? As soon as the bloom begins to fade, another grows on top of it!

I love it! Absolutely amazing:)

Alongside my "different" echinacea is my very normal stand of buckeyes.

I love these ordinary flowers. I have alot of them just now starting to bloom and they will soon fill the inside of my house too!

Another shot of my front yard....not much blooming there, but lush and green......lovely.

And lastly, look who's back on my front porch......look closely at the top left hand corner of the following picture.

Lovie Dovie is back! This is only her second visit this year, so I was beginning to worry a bit.
No worries! What's blooming in your yard sweet friends?
Have a lovely evening.....Shine

Sitting...waiting...dreaming

2011-07-03T10:52:00.000-07:00

Well girls.....that's what I've been doing alot of. Sitting, waiting, dreaming. I dreamed of this house so often...I just knew it was for me. Have you ever had just an uncanny feeling about something? Just had a feeling that this "something" was REALLY going to happen...just for you? That's how I felt about my Painted Lady.

Just knew she was "MINE". Just knew that all the circumstances that surrounded this dream, could only have happened through heavenly intervention...and it was all for ME!! Funny how we can do these things to ourselves isn't it?

I wanted so badly for it to happen, I thought I could open that door myself.....

My lofty thoughts didn't get me very far though girls. Initially I prayed that if this wasn't something God wanted for me, that He would close that door, quickly.......and He did.

Then when He did just what I ask Him to, I pouted and cried like a little baby. My flesh is SOOO selfish.

God did not want me here, in this place I thought was perfect. He wants me somewhere else. I'm still trying to

accept His perfect will......I am just a very fallen human that struggles with things of the flesh.

I can't see things the way I wish I could, through Heavenly eyes that could see though all the layers of life and all the distractions on this earth. God has a plan for me sisters...I know He does, and I will carry on in spite of myself and continue every day just to ask Him to please go with me where ever I go. To please have mercy on me and never leave my side and to please give me the wisdom I need to get through this earthy life without hurting others or myself along the way.

So while this Painted lady may never be my home, I know that God has something just as grand waiting for me somewhere and that my TRUE ultimate home awaits me in His kingdom.

I pray this is a blessed and peaceful day for you all sweet friends.

With much love and affection~~Shine

I Think I'm in Love

2011-06-19T06:15:00.000-07:00

I still can't believe we have a contract on our house. It doesn't seem real......seems very surreal. We've been looking hard and I have found my true love.

I have ALWAYS loved old Victorians, but never thought I'd actually be able to have one. For one thing, I live in a very rural part of east Tennessee where there just were not very many Victorians built.When you do find them...they are valued very highly and WAY out of our price range.

Now low and behold I've found this beauty. It just so happens that we are also in a high tourist area. Long ago, someone took this old farmhouse and transformed it into this gorgeous painted lady. They bought the farm and split the land into smaller parcels and built several other Victorians and marketed them as a "Victorian Resort". Unfortunately, with the collapse of the economy this person's dream came crashing down and the whole community went into foreclosure.
The difficult times we are in breaks my heart. I have seen so much tragedy.
That's why I am so convinced that this is definitely a God thing.
Why He is working in our lives right now is beyond me. I do not feel worthy of anything God does for me, but when He does true miracles for me, I am so amazed I can hardly function.
Sisters....if you don't mind...I'd appreciate your sweet prayers right now. I don't know if it's possible for us to actually get this painted lady, but boy has she stolen my heart.

So much so that when I think about her, I truly go into "swoon" mode. No matter though, what my heart says, if this is not where God wants us to be, I don't want to be there. Our "fight with our flesh" is just constant isn't it? Well....I just ask for prayers that we will be wise enough to follow God where ever He wants us to be. I Would be a VERY happy girl if He would let us be here....in this beautiful piece of art.......

but I know deep down, that where ever He takes me...I'll be happy, and thankful.
Have a lovely day ladies....will keep you posted on the move!
Blessings~~Shine

Simple Change

2011-06-10T15:29:00.000-07:00

Hello girls! Well...this has been a different week to say the least. After having our house on (and off) the market for the last 5 years, we had a showing last Sat.! (the first in almost 2 years). Then, the couple wanted a SECOND showing!! (now I'm getting "a little" excited.) Then the next day...they made an offer!!!!! Can I scream YAY!!!!!!!!!!! They LOVED our house!!!!!! Just as we do.....there is ALWAYS someone else out there like you:) NOW....the scramble will be on to find our next home. Actually....tomorrow, we'll find out if we have to scramble. Their first offer wasn't ridiculous by any means, but we could not accept it. So we countered, and, hopefully...they'll come back tomorrow (by 4:00 pm) and have a better offer. I'm trying not to get too excited ya'll :)
HOWEVER, in the meantime....I have a cute transformation to share.
If you'll recall....on Mother's Day, my sweet hubby surprised me with a gift I'd wanted a long time.

It was instant infatuation. I LOOOOVE my swing girls. BUT....take a looky at how much better it looks now.

See! I made my chain covers!!! They are super easy to make (you can find a great tutorial here) cordcoversandmore, and they make such a BIG difference!! (The BLOOMING hydrangea doesn't hurt anything either:)
Girls....it's my most favorite place. I sit here every chance I get and try to just look at the birdies....or the flowers, and I am so thankful for all that God has done for me. No matter if He wants us to move or wants us to stay....I really don't care at all. I ask only that He goes with me, wherever I go.
Blessings to you all sweet friends.....Love Shine.

Happy Day Scones

2011-06-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

I am SOOOO ready for this new season. School's out.... I'm just dreaming girls......dreaming of all the projects I can do this summer. It truly makes me swoon! I am enjoying every possible moment lately. Savoring every sweet breath....taking in every green leaf and every priceless smile from my precious children. More plans, more projects, more dreams.......EXCITING!!!!!
Right now I think I'm going to make these incredible scones that I found on Eggs on Sunday.

They are really easy and deeeelish.

I think the fam will love them.....after all...what's no to love? Chocolate, raspberries, butter.....YUMMMM!

These are actually photos taken by Amy . I hope it's OK to do this. I did read somewhere that as long as you're giving credit to the blog you get the info from, it's politically correct in blogland.

Here's the recipe for these scrumptious treats...., but please do go and visit Eggs on Sunday. Blessings to you all dear friends.....Have a lovely evening! Love ~~Shine

__________________________________________________________________

Raspberry Chocolate Tea Scones

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and chopped into small pieces
1 cup miniature chocolate chips or finely chopped chocolate
1 cup frozen raspberries, chopped (keep frozen until you’re ready to add them to the dough)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 egg, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and sugar. Add the chopped cold butter and rub with your fingers into the flour until the bits of butter are roughly the size of peas. Stir in the chocolate chips/chunks.
Separate the egg; reserve the white for later use (you’ll use it to brush on the tops of the scones before baking.) In a separate bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the cream, egg yolk, and vanilla extract.
Add the chopped frozen raspberries to the flour mixture. Pour in the cream, and using light, quick strokes, stir with a fork until just moistened (there may still be some flour on the bottom of the bowl.) Use your hands to gather the dough into a ball and knead it lightly a few times, just to gather it together. Don’t worry if there’s still a little flour remaining on the bottom of the bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and divide into two balls. Gently flatten each ball into a 1-inch high disk, and cut each disk into 6 wedges (for 12 scones total.) Place on baking sheet and brush the tops with the reserved egg white; sprinkle with sugar.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and scones are cooked through.

Waaaaa!!!

2011-05-29T10:28:00.000-07:00

I know sometimes I do go for a while without posting, but girls, now....I have a reason... and it's a tragic one. I DROPPED my beloved Nikon camera! :( I have been so sad about this I just have not had the intestinal fortitude to come to my blog home. I was so upset...I really haven't even been able to think about it. I've just tried my best to put the whole ugly scenario out of my mind completely. I think I am finally at place now, however, where I can think about it and take some action. I'm sending it in for repairs. SO....while I may not have very good pictures to post, I think I may be able to come back and visit my sweet home here. I'll put on my best smilely face and keep on keeping on:)

I'll also try and post some more yummy stuff . Maybe like the recipe for these scrumptious scones.

They are most deeelish girls:)))))))))

Have a GREAT day in the Lord sweet friends!!!

Blessings, Shine

What makes you smile?

2011-05-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

These make me smile:)

And these.......

And these!!!!!

Such a special day

2011-05-07T18:42:00.000-07:00

God has blessed me so over these many years of my life. I am always amazed at His generous mercy He shows me every day. I do not deserve His love girls. I do not even deserve "to be heard". But He loves me just the same and He is so good to me. I will love Him for all my life. One miracle He did for me was to give me the most incredible mother on the planet.

My mother married at a very young age. She had her first child early and eventually became the mother of five daughters and two sons. She did the best she could with very little in the way of worldly goods. She taught us all how to love each other and most importantly, how to love God. She didn't shove God down our throats, but rather lived a Godly life before us all, each and every day. She has endured many heartaches over the years, but God has honored her heart and blessed her richly with a wonderful heritage to leave her children. This Mother's Day I will rise and call my mother "Blessed of the Lord". I love her so, and I will be eternally grateful for her.
One of the other amazing things that God has done for me is to give me the honor of being a mother.

I have the most awesome kids in the world!!! Three strong, handsome sons and the most delightful daughter you could ever imagine. They are all thoughtful, kind and caring. They are smart, responsible and amazingly talented. I do not deserve these children, but I am so thankful for them....every day. I pray many times a day that God will help me to be a good mother to them. Even when our children are grown, we still love them as much as we did when they were infants. Isn't that interesting? Isn't it wonderful that God puts that kind of love in our hearts? A love that will never fade, but just grow stronger with every breath.
I am also the lucky future mother-in-law to a dear girl I have come to love as my own.

She is such a strong and gentle young woman. She is the perfect match for my 1st born son. She has a good and true heart and I am thankful for her. Thankful for the future mother she will be to all of my adorable grand-children, and for the good wife she will be to my son.

My second son also has a beautiful future wife. She has been a blessing to us all. She loves the Lord and she loves my son. Aren't you glad that God knows the perfect person for our children and that we don't have to worry about that when we trust in Him? Very thankful for these special girls.

This is a very special year indeed for a special Mother's Day. A day of thankfulness for me
Dear sisters......I hope you all have a most blessed Mother's Day.
I am thankful for you all, for the friendships I have made here and for all the wonderful mothers that have encouraged me and meant so much to me here in my little corner of the world. I pray God's merciful blessings on you all. Most lovingly~~Shine

Yippee for me!!!

2011-05-06T19:13:00.000-07:00

When I came home after a very long day, the first thing I saw when I drove in the driveway, was this.

Sweet hubby surprised me with this perfect Mother's Day gift.

I've wanted a porch swing here for the last year and true to his nature...he's slow but sure:)
Think I need some of those chain cover thingys.

It's absolutely perfect and I know I'll spend lots of special moments in this spot. Thank you hubby dear.

Blessed

2011-04-23T17:49:00.000-07:00

Have a blessed day dear friends and please remember that "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Many Blessings to you all,
~~ Shine~~

Yummo

2011-04-17T18:35:00.000-07:00

Well, I've wanted to do a post for quite a while on bread baking, so I suppose today's the day! For many years now I have been grinding my own wheat into our every day flour...for ALL our baking needs. I haven't bought store bought bread of any type for so long I don't remember. Initially, I started researching and realized the health benefits. So, I invested in an electric grinder, bought 50 lbs. of wheat and began my journey.

I make all our bread....of every sort.

Although we still love the health benefits from eating fresh ground whole wheat, we've truly come to love the taste.

Last night, my fifteen year old had a couple of buddies over, so that's three large teenage boys, my husband, my daughter and myself. I made a batch of dough, and out of that dough, I made a large batch of bread sticks, two large pizzas, and two loaves of bread.

The boys very very happy:)

Ignore that dirty oven:(

Almost all pizza devoured in a short amount of time:)))

Although it is quite an investment up front, over the long run, making bread from scratch is very economical, and oh so yummy!!!! If you've never researched it, I would highly reccomend it, you'll probably be surprised what all you find out. Have a lovely evening sisters!!

Peace Doves

2011-04-15T19:31:00.000-07:00

Every year we have these sweet dearies come visit us. They always come. Last year they came and had four sets of babies!

My sister said..."You are so blessed!....Doves are a sign of peace....Peace will alwayas be here!" I LOVE my doves....Peace Doves. They will always be very welcome here.

There's going to be a wedding!!!

2011-04-04T19:25:00.000-07:00

Isn't it gorgeous? My son FINALLY formally proposed to his girlfriend of four years...and we're all delighted!

The date has been set for May 19, 2012!! Plenty of time to take lots of deep breaths and dream, dream, dream. We're so excited.....WE may not be able to contain ourselves for an ENTIRE year!!!!! Well, I guess I should just chill out...it'll be here before we know it!!

Longing

2011-03-20T19:01:00.000-07:00

It's that time. The time of year I start thinking about beautiful linens, delicate china, chicken salad and scones!

It's such a natural ritual to have a spring tea...even my china cabinet seems to start beckoning me to open it up. My china is speaking. Can you hear it? "Let me out!!"

I just so happened to come upon the most fantastic blessing ever. My dear friend wanted to part with her beloved Lemoges china collection and she just happened to want me to have it! I've never even seen true Lemoges before....now look! I have tons! And isn't it beautiful?

Soooo delicate. It is so fine it's almost translucent. The china I already had is very beautiful....just not quite
the same. Here's a picture of my old set and new set side by side.

They work beautifully together, don't you think?

Oh, my linens are also in need of some loving use:)

Beautiful antique linens. ~~Swoon~~ I don't mind that they are totally imperfect. Some have stains, some even have holes in them from all the loving hands that have held them.

Yep, it's time. Who wants to come over for tea? How many places should I set? What's on the menu? Come on over sweet friends.......it's tea time!

How Simple

2011-02-23T18:17:00.000-08:00

I found this today at a most lovely blog. Anita at Castles, Crowns, and Cottages has such a beautiful place to stop by and visit. She has lots to look at and ponder, but I thought this to be simply....adequate. Have a most blessed evening dear friends.~~~Shine~~~

Soup & Bread

2011-02-06T18:50:00.000-08:00

Although today is exceptionally warm (55degrees!!), I still like to put a pot of soup on in my crock pot early in the mornings.

When we have a busy day, it is so good to know I don't have to worry about dinner. It's already done! My friend at With All My Heart...Deborah, posted about some amazing chili she puts in her crock pot, and I wanted to share this with her. So, while sharing with Deborah, I thought I'd share with you also!

This soup is so good. I used to love Panera Bread's potato soup the best of any I'd tried, but when I found this recipe...well, I changed my mind. This is by far the best I've had, AND, I know everything that goes in it, and when it went in:) Hope you can try it and enjoy it as much as my family has.

I'm also sharing a favorite bread recipe we love with our soup. This is by far the easiest bread I have ever baked. I love making homemade bread and I do it several times a week, but when I plan ahead, this is the easiest and goes well with all types of dishes.Lots of pictures for the bread also:) Have a blessed day! Thanks again to Deborah for inspiring me to post up some yumminess!

Parmesean Potato Soup
8-med. potatoes
6 cups chicken broth
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 jar (7-oz) roasted sweet red peppers (drained & chopped)
1 sm. celery rib, chopped
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. sage
1/3 cup AP flour
2 cups heavy cream, divided
1 cup parmesean cheese, divided
8 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (may use turkey bacon:)
2 Tblsp. cilantro, chopped

*Combine first 9 ingredients in a large crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours till veggies are tender.
*Combine flour and 1 cup heavy cream. Add to slow cooker. Stir in 3/4 cup parmesean cheese, bacon, cilantro and remaining cream.
*Cover & cook 30 min. more. Sprinkle remaining cheese on individual bowls.
*Yields: 12 servings
*Note: I have varied this recipe many ways. I have left out the red peppers and cilantro. And I have used turkey bacon. It is STILL always yummy. The only thing I would recommend NOT doing is, DO NOT substitute any other type of milk for the heavy cream. That will definitely ruin your yumminess:)

Yummy bread to go along perfectly with soup

Artsian Bread
3 Cups AP flour (I use half whole wheat & half unbleached bread flour)
1 tsp yeast
1 1/4 tsp. sea salt
2 cups water

Mix dry ingredients, then add water. Stir together till mixed. This will be a very loose dough. Cover bowl and let sit on counter at least 12 hours. Heat a dutch oven w/lid in a 500 degree oven.Turn dough out onto a floured surface and shape into a circle. Plop onto a piece of parchment paper or wax paper and set in your heated dutch oven. Bake @ 500 w/lid on for 30 min. Take lid off and bake another 5-15 min. till brown.
ENJOY!!

Litttle Things

2011-01-10T19:11:00.000-08:00

It doesn't take much to make me happy. Really. I have lots of projects in mind to do this year. Some large projects and some not quite as ambitious. My mind is always thinking on something I want to do or change. In my kitchen, I would REALLY LOVE to do a total makeover. My house is super large, but the kitchen....well...while it is very functional, it is just not very roomy. I had all these great plans of knocking out more walls.....adding a pantry...so many visions. Mr.T. however, put a quick halt to all my fabulous plans. OK fine.....since he's the one that would be doing all the work....how about a mini make-over....painting all the cabinets...new appliances...hardware, backsplash, countertops??? Weelllll....no. Great OK then......what do I get? Well, let me show you. Here's a picture of my kitchen before.

Like I said. Functional.

Great appliances, but, well you know...stainless!!!!! I want it!!!
Anyway...no new appliances for me. Mine work! All Jenn-Aire and in great shape...sooooo. They stay. I'm very thankful for my things actually (though I know it doesn't sound like it:). Now my kitchen looks like this.

Notice anything different?

Something small truly makes me so happy!

How about a closer look?

Hardware!!!!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!
Also. Another change in my dining room has made me smile.

Before

During

And after.

Yep! Mr. T. whipped out this beautiful mantle for the fireplace just for me! He's so sweet to me. I love it! Makes the room feel so homey.

Well....just thought I'd share my small makeovers with you this evening. We're snowed in here tonight....totally. It's great though. I have thoroughly enjoyed being home, snuggling with the kiddos, getting things done around here. Just being home...it's a very good thing.
Blessings to you all.
Shine

Are you ready for some projects??

2011-01-02T18:18:00.000-08:00

As we dig our feet into the new year, I contemplate new projects. I'll spend some time praying on these things, but I've been thinking.

A kitchen facelift.
New window treatments for my dining room.
A new mantle for my stone fireplace.
A master bedroom/bathroom makeover.
A diet and a new me! :)
Finish my sewing/knitting projects I have started.
Make 6 new quilts.
Knit 6 pairs of socks.
Spend more time on my spinning wheel.

Hmmmmm. Maybe I should stop there, that looks like alot!
Better go and think about getting started.
Blessings dear frineds for a most lovely evening~~Shine

Twenty-Eleven

2011-01-01T12:36:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year dear friends. I pray that this will be such a beautiful year for each and every one of you. That you will discover your dreams and all your most lovely wishes will come true.

Spring will be here soon, and as my sweet daughter says, it's only 358 days till Christmas!!!
Blessing to you all~~~Much love~~~~Shine

Brrrrrr!!

2010-12-29T19:05:00.000-08:00

Like so many others, we had a white Christmas!! It is VERY exciting for us, for while it does snow here, it's been a long time since it's snowed on Christmas. Also, this was a deep snow!

We had eight or nine inches!!! Woohoo!!!!

It was great! We still have snow and are trying to stay warm as it's been only in the 30's all week!

I think it's time for a cup of hot tea and a shortbread cookie. Mmmmmm....I LOVE snugging in, in the wintertime. Stay warm sweet friends and many blessing to you all~~~~Shine~~~~

Traditions

2010-12-07T18:21:00.000-08:00

I am so thankful this year for so many things. I have witnessed a great many hardships over a short time. Hardships in my own family, and so many others. Most of the hardships I see in other families make mine seem small, I have SO much to be thankful for. God has given me so much more than I deserve. When I think of what I actually might truly deserve, it makes me tremble, for it is not much. But although we may have a very meager lifestyle to some, I think to others we may seem like kings and queens! I have four beautiful children. All alive and living very rich and full lives. All awesome human beings and wonderful creations of my Lord. I have an awesome home...filled to the brim with every kind of trinket and lovely thing you could think of. I have a wonderful husband that has been good and faithful to me for 28 years. He has loved me and provided for me and our children without fail. We have never had alot of luxuries, but we have never done without neccesities either. From time to time I have had selfish seasons when I thought only of myself and how much easier my life would be if I had only myself to worry about. But by the grace of God, He has always drawn me back to Him and helped me to see just how blessed I am to have this crazy, busy, imperfect life. I hope He NEVER lets me out of His hand for even one moment, for I fear I would make some terrible, tragic choice on my own. Thank you Father for all you have done for me. Most of all, thank you for your precious son, Jesus.
For many years we have had a few sweet traditions that are very special to our family. Here is a small sample of our lives here in TN. Since my children are classical violinists, they always play Christmas carols at nursing homes and retirement centers during the holidays....oh...and at the Fantasy of Trees!

We also love to make ginger bread houses as a family. When the children were younger, we would have lots of kids and moms over for decorating and fun. Now that my children are getting older, we love to just have a family day and decorate and have a meal. My future daughter-in-law always says "It just doesn't feel like Christmas till we do gingerbread houses!" I always beging baking in Oct. (I have to make 8-10 houses!)
Here are a few pictures from the last couple of years....SO much fun!

Just beginning.

Doesn't take long to get them together, however, the magic doesn't happen till the candy comes out!

Hubby is the Master at gingerbread house decorating!

ALL the kids LOVE this tradition...old and young!

Looking better:)

After ten years of this tradition, I finally tried my hand at one!

Anna's is always such a happy house.

Ms. Kenley is also a master decorator.

Carolina and Coy have an AWESOME house, thanks to Carolina's sensibility:)))

Zeb and Amanda's house is always unique and super cool....just like them!

Even Ben has fun....and his house is super cute!!

Anna getting ready for the crowd.

So these are just a couple of our traditions...what are some of yours?
Have a lovely evening dear friends.

211512

2010-11-17T07:14:00.000-08:00

Whewwee! I think I did it again!! Three of my children's birthdays..two very close friends birthdays....Halloween, and a quick trip out of town with my sweet mother and daughter.Also....two violin recitals and one major concert..... Now....let the festivities begin!!!!!

Don't You Just Love 'Em?

2010-10-23T17:32:00.000-07:00

Nandina Bushes That Is.

I never really paid attention to these bushes before we moved to our current home, but now, they have become some of my very favorites.

I LOVE how their berries are white in the summer, orange in the fall and brillant red at Christmas. Not to mention the fact that the berries are PROLIFIC!

I use them to decorate with all year. Their green and red leaves are great for fillers too.

Think I'll keep several of these in my yard from no on....no matter where we go.
Have a lovely evening friends! Many blessings~~~~Shine~~~~

Ghoolies

2010-10-19T17:54:00.000-07:00

This year I've done something a little different. For years our family really hasn't celebrated Halloween.I just kinda felt it was a little weird celebrating ghools and goblins. Instead choosing to celebrate the goodness and beauty that God created. We have always done lots in the way of "fall festivals"......going over and beyond with decorating and celebrating everything autumn. I didn't think bad of people celebrating Halloween...just thought we were different, and that's OK. This year Anna wanted to craft some Halloween something or another. So.....In the October issue of Country Living they had these super cute ghosts.

There are really good instructions and we had alot of fun spending the afternoon together. We hung them in our dining room on the chandelier and we call them Anna's friendly ghosts. I would truly still rather just celebrate fall and harvest, but I also know that Anna will only be a child a short while. So for now....these little fellows join us at meal time, and school time. Then, before you know it, Halloween will be gone and a little girl will be a little older.

~Autumn~

2010-10-07T17:56:00.000-07:00

I am SO loving this weather. Life is always busy...doesn't seem to slow down for anything, BUT! at least in the midst of the busyness, we have all this BEAUTIFUL weather!!!!! And the smells, just everywhere you go are delightful. Thought I show a few of my favorite things here at home

Here in Tn, the temperature is just now getting cool enough for a cozy fire...so...soon these lights will be replaced with a real flame, but for summer and early fall...they are so cute and can really "homey" up a cold fire box.

Anna and I made these cute pumpkins last Sat. afternoon....quick and easy. Think we'll make lots more....all different shapes and sizes.

Last year a sweet friend gave me these gorgeous flowers. Just dug them out and plopped them in my little pewter pitcher.....CUTE!!!

Sophie likes this snuggie place...also just happens to be one of my favorites too:)

Aren't these warm colors lovely?

Have a beautiful evening sweet friends.

Blessings~Shine

More yumminess

2010-09-29T18:20:00.000-07:00

I told you last week how I LOVE apple pie and autumn...and anything that has to do with this awesome season and it's sights, smells and sounds. Mmmmmm. Anything apple is good isn't it?

These little apple pies are so easy and delicious. Anna and I love making them and the boys LOVE eating them!!

Aren't they pretty? Baked........ so you don't feel QUITE as guilty as the fried version:)

Light and crispy......the crust has powedered sugar and butter so you can imagine it's delicious richness.

They look beautiful set out...that is if you can keep the male species away from them long enough to plate them!

Here's the quick and easy recipe. Enjoy!! And have a beautiful autumn day in the Lord!

With much love,

Shine

Baked Apple Pies

For shell

2 & 2/3 cups ap flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup butter

4 to 6 Tblsp cold water

Mix dry. ingredients well. Cut in butter then add cold water to make dough.

Apple Filling

About 4 cups apples

1 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. butter.

Cook all together till apples are soft. Cool before making pies.

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 to 2 Tblsp. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix and drizzle over pies when cool

To make the pies:

Roll dough on floured surface.

Use a saucer to cut small rounds, then spoon cooled pie filling(about 2 Tblsp) .

Fold over and crimp edges.

Bake pies at 375 about 20 minutes.

Makes about 12 pies.

Bloggy Award!!

2010-09-26T20:03:00.000-07:00

Friday, September 24, 2010. Blog Award
I'm happy to show off the blog award The Charm of Home gave me!

These awards are a great way to show others that you are interested in what they have to contribute to the blogosphere, and showcase some of the people you follow.

The rules for winning this award are as follows:

* Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award.

* Share 7 things about yourself.

* Pass the award along to 15 other bloggers who you recently discovered and think are fabulous.

* Contact the bloggers you chose and let them know about the award.

Special thanks to The Charm of Home for this award. Please check out her site.

7 things about me:

1. I have lived in TN for 22 of my 28 married years. Born in TN, lived in several other souther states.

2. One of my favorite movies is "Pride and Prejudice."

3. I am listening to The Erik Baker Band--on my Bose today.

4. Last night I was listening to Tchaikovsky in conert at The Tennessee Theatre.

5. I have four very musically talented children.

6. When it comes to the written word I have a lot of favorites: The Bible, Gabaldon, Gene Stratton Porter, Edith Holden, Beth Moore, Francine Rivers, CS Lewis, just to name a few.

7.One of my favorite movies this past year was "Robin Hood."

I'll pick a few blogs I read, although I have MANY, just can't list them all. I find new and amazing bloggers everyday and I am very blown away by all of the talent I keep finding in so many of you. It was really hard to just pick 15. I wanted to show case several new ones too. Inspiration abounds! Please forgive me if you don't participate in these things.

Peaches and Posh
Homebody Holly
Domestically Speaking
Moonshine Love
Flower Patch Farm Girl
The Style Sisters
My Home Sanctuary
Daisy Cottage
DebBieDoos
LeChateau des fleurs
With All My Heart...Deborah
It's Just Dottie
Counting Your Blessings
Vintage Linen Treasures
Gypsy (On my Mind)
My Gramma's Soul

Edited to add: If you want to pass along the award, it is okay to copy this post. Just use Ctrl C and Ctrl V to copy and paste the post and insert it into a new post on your blog and edit it as you need to.

Mmmm Mmmm Good!

2010-09-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

I truly love Autumn. It is one of my most favorite seasons....for so many reasons. One reason of course, the cooler temperatures. I am NOT a hot weather girl. In fact, I could probably live in Alaska, but here in Tennessee, well, we have really nice weather. Summers aren't too bad and neither are the winters. USUALLY. Sometimes we have extremes with both. I generally don't like temps any higher than the low 80's, but this has been our hottest summer on record with more days in the 90's than ever...including today!!!. So the cooler temperatures that come with the autominal equinox make me swoon. One of my favorite fall pastimes is making apple pie in a jar with my sweet daughter. Love the smells....and just seeing all those beautiful jars in the cupboard brings joy.

Aren't they pretty? Feels good too, knowing we'll be having warm, delicious pie all winter.

                                                          Apple Pie in a Jar

4&1/2 cups sugar                        Warm jars in oven. Peel, slice and soak apples in lemon water or
1 cup cornstartch                         fruit fresh. Stir 1st. five ingred. together in a large pot. Add water
3-4 tsps. cinnamon                       Cook over med. heat till thick and bubbly. Remove from heat.
1/2 tsp nutmeg                             Add lemon juice and set aside. Pack apples in hot jars leaving
1 tsp salt                                      one in. headspace. Pour hot syrup over apples leaving 1/2 in. Put
10 cups water                              on lids . Place in hot water bath for 20 minutes.
3 Tblsp. lemon juice
5-6 lbs. apples

                                                                 FOR PIE
Prepare crust. Fill with apple pie in a jar. Top with: 1/2 cup oatmeal~1 cup flour~1/2 cup brown sugar~1tsp cin. ~1 stick of butter. Mix all together and crumble over top of apple pie mixture.
Bake @ 375 for 40 minutes.
Oh my goodness good!

                                       Can't you just smell this yumminess???? It was good girls!!
Also made tons of yummy apple butter. YUMMO!! Think we'll have some of that for breakfast.....Ben may have pie:) But apples aren't the only thing I love about Autumn....Love ALL the smells and the cool crisp air~~~this week-end they say we may have a day with a high of only 79!! Yippee!! I'm am seriously excited!! Hopefully I can post about my many favorites I treasure this season. Have a blessed day girls!! And                                                   Happy Autumn!!!!!!!!!!!

Yippee for me!!

2010-09-09T18:46:00.000-07:00

We have been in our city home for almost 5 full years now. Doesn't really seem possible, but it is definitely so. And since we first moved into this home, I have wanted one thing without change.
I have a huge double window in my dining room and it was just BEGGING for this item. A church pew.
With a church pew, I could do so many things. Decorate it...for sure and make it look super cute, but also, it would be such a functional piece. When we have a large dinner here, and I do that quite often, I could use it for extra seating. The kids love to sit and eat somewhere besides the table.

So I never gave up on this church pew desire I had. Seems I could never find just the right one, or if I did, I couldn't afford it.

Then one day, I just happened to be talking to my son and my future daughter in law....mentioning my long, long dream of the perfect bench...when....low and behold, my sweet daughter in law said "My pawpaw has some church pews...he'll probably give you one". Well, initally, I thought she was joking...then I started getting excited! Really????? Could it be true????

Well......turns out it was true!! I still can't believe there are such nice people in the world. In a time when the world is rampant with mean and ugly characters around every corner, there truly are good and decent people still out there. I didn't even know what the bench was going to look like, but, it was better than I expected.

Turns out this bench just needed a little tlc. It's not a fancy one from a big fancy church, but rather a very simple one from an old country church. I absolutely love it. I even love the red seat...it works perfectly with my stuff. I still can't believe how blessed I am. Just when I figured I may never get this bench, here is the perfect one, given to me freely and with love. Thanks so much Amanda. You are such a treasure....in so many ways.

He's Just Your Normal Teenager........maybe:)

2010-08-30T19:12:00.000-07:00

My third son is like his older two brothers in the fact that he is indeed an awesome son. Other than that...well...let's just say he's his own person.

This summer he made some money from playing at a wedding and decided to buy an ipod. I know that seems very normal for a teenager, but what he did next was...well...a little different.

This is all he wants on his new device. Only classical music. No Lady Gaga, no Black Eyed Peas. Just Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Bach, Vivaldi......Holst, Dvorak,Haydn, Beethoven, Bruch, Mahler, Brahms.....just to name a few:)
He is totally obsessed with classical music....and I am absolutely serious. He listens to it non-stop
and when he's not listening to it, he's playing it.

He's a classical viloinist....and a VERY good one. I guess that just kinda happens when you live, breathe and eat a thing....you get REALLY good at it:)

After several years in the Knoxville Youth Symphony, he's just auditioned again. Feels like he did pretty good, and I'm sure he did.

He's a thinker, this one...always "dwelling on the possibilities". Always challenging himself to do a little better, go a little farther.....make a little better mark than the last fellow.

He's only fourteen for goodness sake! Won't it be interesting to watch him grow??????????????????????

Oh...and did I say...he loves his momma? Makes her very proud too:) I am proud of all my children for their different accomplishments, and no matter what, no matter where he goes or what concert hall he's playing in, his mother will always be his number one fan:) Now don't get me wrong, I don't mind his eccentricities at all. I think he's pretty special. Most of all, I hope he will always keep his mind and his eyes focused on God.....everything else will fall in place as is meant to be......normal.....or not. :)

Bloomin wonderful!

2010-08-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

What do 55 crepe myrtle bushes look like when in bloom?

Something like this. Absolutely lovely.

A Brand New Day

2010-08-02T18:40:00.000-07:00

This is the way I like to start my day.......how do start yours???

Have a wonderful day in the Lord!

Sophie's Got a New Doo

2010-07-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

OK....so Sophie is our first indoor pet....EVER! Never thought we'd have one but here she is. We absolutely LOVE this sweetie. I knew we were suppose to have her groomed every so often, but we loved how she looked with her curly locks!

See what I mean? She is just sooooo super cute! Unfortunately...she did not like her fur coat as much as we did. She begin to act REALLY lazy. Like, she wouldn't even walk up a stair. Also....there were a few ugly little matts that I could not get through. SO......off to the groomer's we went. Now she looks like this.

She looks sooooo skinny!!!!! Before the hair cut, we thought she had gotten too chubby....now she looks anorexic! Lol...Well....anyway, she seems to feel MUCH better.

And...I think she's still adorable!!!! Luuuuuuuuuv that face:)

What a summer!!!!

2010-07-22T05:08:00.000-07:00

What a fabulous summer! I have been so busy I have had NO time to stop and post anything, BUT I have been visiting my favorite blogs any spare moment I can grab:) Just a quick note....I just got back from my first cruise ever!!!! And even better yet.....I got to go with my beloved mother, four sisters, SWEET daughter and precious niece.

Do you think we had a good time?????? Yes....we had an AWESOME time!!!! No death illnesses from the ship.....just lots of laughing....dancing and dining. Here's to hoping another cruise will be in my not so distant future!!

Basketmaking 101

2010-06-03T16:34:00.000-07:00

What a fun day! Years ago we made baskets with my oldest children, now again with my youngest

I LOVE basket making. I love all lost arts, so...it's really no surprise. I think I could go from here till my time
is over in this world just making things.....and learning how to make MORE things! SOOOO much to learn!!

I hope my little angel enjoys the fascination of "creating" things...using her God given abilities to put things He gave us together to make something quite unique. She is definitely a budding artist......always doodling on something. I think she very much enjoyed making baskets also......:)

Happy Face

2010-05-27T19:03:00.000-07:00

This makes me SOOOOOO happy. Living in the city with all the hustle and bustle sometimes gets to me. I keep trying to do things to make this feel more like home and one good thing I did was to plant lots of lavender plants three summers ago.

The first summer we had a terrible drought and I lost 4 of the ten I planted. I tried to nurse them along and 6 of them hung in there and made it through the toughest of times.

The second year I only was able to harvest a small amount. The second year I also planted 3 more plants, I thought were the same type. They did great, but turns out....I think they will be white lavender!

So this is my first real harvest from 6 of my plants. I will probably be able to harvest more farther along in the season. Anna and Ben helped to strip it to get it ready for drying. A process that took about 3 hours!

I am SO happy with my harvest!!!! God is showing me ways to make life in the city easier to deal with. He also has been reminding me of Hebrews 13:5 "........be content with the things that you have, for God has said "I will never leave you nor forsake you"

My Life Back

2010-05-15T08:54:00.000-07:00

This has been an unusually busy season for me. I'm ALWAYS busy.....always crazy....but this spring has been even more different and more busy than ever. I think perhaps I'm just getting old. Things are making me more tired than ever and I'm just flat out not enjoying it. I'm looking for ways to try and enjoy more of every day. Every day is a blessing and I want to accept each and every day as exactly that. I'm praying for peace this up coming season. A little serenity. A little time to breathe and hug my children.

May God bless you richly today and may His peace.......the only peace that surpasses all understanding.....find you and embrace you<3

Good-bye Wallpaper!

2010-04-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Today I'm linking up with Susan at www.betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com for Metamorphosis Monday. Be sure to visit her site for tons of AMAZING inspirations.Wooooweee....this paper was really bad. This is our living room, and while the colors were OK, the pattern was ridiculous

So....we ripped it all down, and girls...it is a BIG room.

Sweet children...helping out their crazy parents.

Once we got all of the wallpaper down, you would think we would be on easy street, right? Not hardly. See those two big windows with the ladder beside them? For some reason, underneath the windows, everything was completely rotted out. The wall paper was wet, and the sheet rock crumbled in our hands.

I am sooo thankful to have a husband that knows all about carpentry and home repairs. It took a lot of work, and you know, sheet rock work is super messy, but he did a great job on fixing the whole mess.

So we finally "got her done".

Now the room seems so peaceful and serene. I love the warm colors, they just work perfectly with our stuff. We found the stained glass at an antique shop and it was just the perfect fit for a "needy spot".

As you can see, we love old things and warm colors.

Sophie LOVES my red chair.

I LOVE this old mirror I'd been trying to find a new home for.

This picture is too dark, but I really like the shadows and the glow.

The colors I used were brown paper bag on top and umber on bottom. I am soooo happy to have this room done!!! Now on to my new STUDIO!!!! Can't wait to get that finished and share. Have a great day in the Lord!

Happyfull

2010-04-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

Nothing more fun in the whole world than seeing the happy faces of children.

With spring comes laughter and swinging, chasing butterflies and eating supper outside.

Oh to be a child again......to swing with true happiness.

To laugh with the all your heart just because you're having fun.

I'm so happy spring is here to make little faces fill with inexpressible joy.
My son's girlfriend is from Columbia South America. She is very sweet. Her English is very good, but she has a few "unusual" terms. I think they are endearing. One thing she does is, when she wants to express a very strong feeling, she adds "-full" to the end of a word......any word. Like....if a dish had a very berry taste, she might say it was very berryfull, or......someone made a comment that my son treated her like Edward from Twilight..(never seen this before so I have no idea if that comment is true), but she says, no...he's much better than Edward, but he does Edwardfull things. Today I felt very happyfull, and I think I understand that to it's fullest.

OK....I Think I'm Ready

2010-03-27T17:54:00.000-07:00

Thanks Frenchy for reminding me to link this with Metamorphosis Monday with Susan www.Betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com. Have a great Monday girls!!

Wow, what a BUSY winter we had!!! We did a ton of work in the house. We stripped two LARGE rooms of extreme wallpaper, painted and spruced. Now we're painting another LARGE room to be......MY STUDIO!!!!!! I am SOOOO excited about this project. This is the first house we have ever lived in where I actually had room enough to do my "own thing" in. My space is downstairs where our gallery is and it is very functional. I was totally content with that space, and very grateful for it. Then one day hubby said, "why don't we redo the music room and make it your space. You can do it any way you want". Well...I think I was so shocked that my response was not even enthusiastic. Now however, after dreaming a while....I am all about doing this space. I'm going to do shabby chic, which is going to be so fun! I can't wait! We now have one coat of paint on that room. All the walls and the ceiling. We took down the very out-dated ceiling fans and will replace those with something sweet. We'll paint the concrete floor and then I really get to start playing!!!! I'll definitely post pictures of the whole shabang, but for now, I need to show you our other projects! I'll start with our youngest son's bedroom. He's fourteen and his room was badly outdated. I'll start with a few before pictures. I actually posted these when we first started, then somehow became very distracted :-).

The room has a ton of natural light, but between this dark wallpaper and navy carpet, it felt like a dungeon.

Just taking the paper down made the room like so much bigger!

I had to do something to work with this navy carpet. There was no room in our budget for new carpet and this carpet is in great shape.

I really like this shade of blue, and with the white trim, it feels very crisp and clean.

Fun little nook for gaming.

I really wanted different bedding, but once again, big budget restraints. I did find these navy comforters at Bed, Bath and Beyond on clearance for $10.00 each. Steal.

I later decided to make the throws to go across the foot of the bed. Ties in the browns with the blues and whites. Just need to decide on window treatments and call it done.

Over all, I'm pretty happy with the room. Now if I can just get my son to keep it clean!! Any blogging advice on that???

Next I'll post on our living room makeover and then.....my studio!!! Have a great evening!!

My Baby's Not a Baby Anymore

2010-03-19T19:14:00.000-07:00

Our oldest son turned twenty-five last week. How did that happen? I was twenty-five when he was born and it seems like yesterday. I can still see so plainly those newborn eyes looking up at me in the hospital. There is just no other feeling like that in the world. I love that boy so much sometimes it hurts. I wish I had early pictures to post so you could see how cute he was when he was little...but at least you can see how handsome of a man he has become.

He also has a beautiful girlfriend of 3 years now that is getting ready to turn twenty-one. A beautiful girl inside and out. I love that girl dearly and will be very proud to call her my first daughter-in-love.

Zeb and his two best girls.

Now with his grandfather, my dad, Albert W. Davison
Zeb has grown into such an awesome young man. He has always been very independent that one. He has made us very proud. He bought his first house last summer, totally on his own, with no help at all from us. He has always paid his own way and taken great pride in his work and his conduct. It's funny how I still call him my baby, I'll just always think of him as "my boy". Have you ever read the book "I'll Love You for Always"? That's how my heart feels for my children. I'll love them for always, I'll like them forever...for now and forever my babies they'll be.

A Little Goofy

2010-03-10T17:16:00.000-08:00

OK....so we're acting a little silly with our new Sophie girl. We've never had an indoor dog and we're just beside ourselves with how much fun this little sweetie has brought to our home. Anna is all smiles......always playing "something" with her...trying to dress her up or teach her a new trick. She captured her in these photos during one of their playtimes. She is such a dream pet. Already perfectly trained and so well behaved. We waited a long time for Sophie, but I think we've truly found the perfect pet for us. Hubby said "Well I guess you think I'm weak now that I've given in to a puppy", but Anna quickly came back with "It took six years to talk you into it, so I wouldn't call that weak". The girl speaks truth :-).
Up until we brought Sophie home, I hadn't been doing much blogging. The death of a close friend made me feel like pulling away and just withdrawing. I think now though, I'm feeling sparks of excitement about blogging again. I have done lots of stuff to blog about, so I think I'll get some of them ready for posting. Hope you're all having the MOST wonderful evening.....Leaving you with a loving thought....Shine

                                 Heart of Home

       Lord, let our house be something more
                                              Than just a shelter with a door:
                                              May it's windows glow with light,
   Shedding radiance through the night.
      Not just a glitter of glass and chrome,
     But give it the "feel" of a happy home.

                                        Let it have flowers and a well-loved book,
Soft cushions in a quiet nook,
                                           May it be more than a downy bed,
Or snowy cloth with silver spread:
                                       Lend it some smiles, warm sympathy,
With kindly thought, true charity---
                                         That all may recall, though they roam,
That God was there---in the heart of the home.

                                                   Christine White

Heart strings

2010-03-03T17:45:00.000-08:00

Meet Sophie. The newest member of our family.

She belongs to Anna, but we are all in love.

She's like a little puppy cloud!!

I think she's gonna grab our hearts in a hurry.

Prayerful

2010-02-13T18:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we found out that a dear family we have known for many years lost their beautiful 19 year old daughter in a tragic car accident Sat. morning. We loved this girl dearly. She grew up with our 20 year old son. They took lots of classes together.......just can't believe it's real. Today I have been so grateful for my children. I'm almost afraid to hold them too tightly, but then I've always known they truly belong to the Lord. He has been so gracious to give us so many years with these beautiful children and I am thankful for each and every day. If you're reading this, please be in prayer for our dear friends.......and don't take one moment of time with your children for granted. They are an absolute gift.

Venturing Out

2010-02-02T17:01:00.000-08:00

OK....I have actually been on blogger for a while now. Over a year! Normally I am not a slow learner, but time and other things have kept me from doing very much with my little blogging life. Part of the reason I love blogging I think is for the challenge! I have really had no one to help me. My son helped a little in the beginning, but now he has other things to do, so...I'm on my own.

I put on my big girl pants and started learning for myself!
You've probably noticed if you've been here much that it never looks the same here!
I'm always experimenting and finding new and different things. Now I'm going to be playing with my pictures for a while, so excuse the mess while I make more progress!!

Tblesscape Thursday!!!

2010-01-28T04:57:00.000-08:00

Hello again ladies! Well...I thought I'd try again to share just a little with you on this beautiful Tablescape Thursday. Be sure to go to http://www.betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com to see some super impressive ladies sharing their awesome ideas. I'm really still a novice when it comes to blogging at all, but I keep plugging away, learning a little as I go along. I'm sharing my cute little gateleg table today. I found this sweetie tucked away in an antique shop for only $40.00. It was in pretty bad shape, but I knew it's potential. A little sanding and a new coat of paint made it just perfect for that spot in my dining room I needed a little something. The first pictures are taken where the table generally lives, then you can see....it can be transformed into something totally different! I love pewter and have a small collection I've picked up at antique shops over the years. I think it makes the perfect cozy little table for two. During the holidays, I pull the table out and set it for the children. Four children can have their own private dinner and feel very special indeed. I hope you all have a very BLESSED day today.........
                                                           God Bless Your Home
                                                             God bless your home
                                                              And all within,
                                                             The friends who come;
                                                             Your kith and kin;
                                                             Your sheltr'ing roof,
                                                             Your homely fare.
                                                             Your place of rest,
                                                             Your toil and care,
                                                             Bless absent ones
                                                             And those you love,
                                                             And guard and guide
                                                             Them from above.
                                                             And grant that soon
                                                             Sweet peace will reign
                                                            In this and ev'ry land again.

                                                                         Anonymous

Sweet Little Birdies

2010-01-23T12:35:00.000-08:00

See those sweet little birdies? You can see them along with lots of other one of a kind hand made goodies at our shop blog.http://www.artworkscustomframing.blogspot.com. Have a beautiful week-end!

Tablescape Thursday

2010-01-21T16:15:00.000-08:00

Today is my first Tablescape Thursday. Join www.betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com for some incredible ideas on making your table something very special indeed. Hope someone will enjoy these gorgeous tables set by my dear friend Theresa Clark. Biscotti....tea...handmade quilts...what could be better?

Take a deep breath

2010-01-14T12:50:00.000-08:00

OK....so the bedroom project is still moving....slowly. I've vacuumed so much honestly, the carpet has never been cleaner. Last night hubby sanded the entire room, then spread the first coat of sheet rock mud.

This is the space we are remodeling. After working all day, I started thinking of what would help me wind down and relax.......

It didn't take long to figure it out. Anna helped me set the tray and after a while....all the dust in the world could have settled on my shoulders, and that would have been just fine with me. Ahhh the joys of taking tea.

I'm just sayin'..........

2010-01-12T16:41:00.000-08:00

Before you get into a project.....always be prepared. I thought I was this time. Prepared for it to take a long time, things to be really messy, etc. I think my problem is, I really just don't like the doing of it. LOVE the results, but yuck, the projects just seem to drag too long. I'm really grateful to have a super talented hubby that can do almost anything handy you could think of, but he's too busy! He has to work of course......then there's always a waiting list for him of projects and maintenance things. We got the paper down in the bedroom project in record time. Now, however, we have to wait. Wait for the walls to be sanded, then a thin layer of sheet rock spread and sanded. All the crown and shoe moulding had to be nailed down as it never really was, nail holes filled, sanded scraped and primed. Wowzers. I'm pooped. Can't wait for it too just be to the painting satge, then I can jump back in there and get the ball rolling again. This could be bad since this is the first of three huge projects I hoped to accomplish before the end of Feb. Better suck it in, take a deep breath and quit my belly aching. Life goes on......

Out with the old...in with the new

2010-01-05T12:27:00.000-08:00

Over four years ago we bought this mega house. It's really large...6800+ sq.ft.
We live in this home and also have our business~Artworks & Gift Gallery~ here.
For the entire time we've been here, we've been REALLY busy. Setting up the
business, trying to make the house our home and...oh yeah...homeschooling two
of our four children. We have painted, knocked down walls, re-routed gas lines,
just to name a few of the tasks that HAD to be done. I forgot to mention that every room
in this glorious house was adorned with the latest and most fashionable wall
paper. Now however....the wall paper has got to go. We've done a huge dining
room, a huge bedroom....kitchen, 4 bathrooms and the library. Now for the next
two months, we will be working on another large bedroom, the music room
and our wonderful living room. Here are a few pictures of the bedroom we're
starting on. Stay tuned for more pictures and progress!

These are the colors I'm bringing in....with the blue for the walls............
Maybe one of these blues..........................................
I think maybe this one....We're getting close!!! All the paper and backing
are down. Now for washing walls, sanding, filling holes with sheet rock
mud and sanding again. Priming and painting. Whew.....better go take a nap
first! Be back soon:)

New Year's (yawn........) excitement

2010-01-03T12:42:00.001-08:00

Every New Year's Eve, I always poop out. For 26+ years we've had small
children, so we didn't want to get out in the partying world. I usually just
go to bed, worn out from all the previous holiday partying. Hubster usually
stays up with the children, and they do board games and other silly things.
Like jumping off the couch into the new year......WooooooHooooooo!!!!!!!
This year, hubster was the sleepy one, but son #2 wanted to have his
girlfriend and her mother over to celebrate. I begged him to PLEASE
tell them not to expect much. We were all sleepy, however, I thought I
might just make it longer then the children!
As the anticipated moment drew closer however, they began to liven up
and assume the position.
Faces perked up and smiles poured out abundantly.
We were probably very boring, but we MADE IT!!!!!!! Happy New year everyone!
This year I pray for peace and wisdom. Those are the two things I seek more than
anything.

Christmas Indulgance

2009-12-29T16:14:00.000-08:00

OK....here goes. While trying to post this, these pictures are very funky. I'm hoping they turn out when it actually goes to publish. Here are some of my favorite Christmas moments. This is my mother...the matriarch of our family. She has created an awesome heritage for her family.
All of my beautiful children.
Preparing the Christmas table, but someone wants dessert first!
A Christmas angel.
Surprise music quilts for everyone!!! (That's why I've been too busy to post much!)
Christmas violin music......love it:)
The joy of gingerbread....and lastly, just more
look at all the coziness.

Experimenting...and sharing

2009-12-27T12:30:00.000-08:00

Bucket of snow candles.
Pretty as can be....and not just for Christmas!
Simple and lovely, this is what you do.
Since Santa was so good to bring me a shiny new
Nikon, I thought I should experiment and take
a few shots. This is a super cool idea I found on
The Inspired Room's blog. Super easy and super
cute. The first thing you need is an old metal
vessel. Pot, pan, whatever.
Four pint size canning jars and a bag of Epsom
salts.
Fill your glasses about 1/4 of the way with the
salt, then add a votive candle.
Light the candles and put them all in the pot
together. Snow Candles!!! I'll leave them by
my front door all winter. How sweet and simple
is that?!?!

Still Learning

2009-12-27T05:47:00.000-08:00

Even after over a year of blogging, I am still having trouble figuring things out...BUT!!!! I am learning!!!! For instance.....I've learned how to change backgrounds..headers..pictures....that's pretty good for me! However....in my header, how in the world can I move my blog title around? Then also, I can't seem to get my pictures and captions just right. Sometimes they turn out fine, then sometimes they are really funky. Oh well....I've learned alot and I guess I'll continue to plug away at it till I figure it out! In the meantime....Santa brought me a shiny new Nikon. (Yipee yipee!)So.....when I learn how to use that, I will be in business!!! Happy Holidays everybody!!! Hope Santa was good to all of you!!

No More Blurry Turkeys

2009-12-22T13:25:00.000-08:00

Too busy these days to do much blogging. Quilts
to finish, socks to finish knitting.....labels to sew
on...cookies to bake. And such is the life in my home.
My husband and I have a custom picture framing
business and art gallery/gift shop. Click on my
Artworks link on the left to get a glimpse. Last
week was our Christmas open house and it was
great! This week, we've been recouperating......
and of course finishing last minute details!!! My
life, like so many others, is far too busy. But the
place I draw the line is with the blurry turkey
post. I really did not intend to have those crazy
birds on so long, but.......just got preoccupied. Oh
well.....hope they didn't offend anyone too much!
Five minutes to get them off the screen is time
well spent!!

Turkey Time

2009-11-18T15:51:00.001-08:00

First of all, I have to apologize for the poor quality of these photos. Hopefully....St. Nick will put a nice shiny new Sony in my stocking for Christmas...but...for now...this is all I have. I could not resist posting about these large, large animals.
I never realized that turkeys traveled in herds, but these fellows sure did! At one point we counted over 20 of them!! And to think.....I just committed to paying high dollars for an all natural turkey! These guys wouldn't have missed just a small cousin....:) oh well......I'll remember this next year!!! (Yeah right!!)

Birthday Season

2009-11-05T15:17:00.000-08:00

With so many birthdays comin round, sadness
is somewhat easier to deal with. Three of my
four children have birthdays in a two and a half
week span, beginning late Oct., and the last one
will be tomorrow. First, my third son turned 14!
Whew!!! I'm holding on tight.....been through
this twice already:) Next, our youngest child,
our only daughter turned 11:( Then, tomorrow
our second son will be 20! Thank you Zeb for
giving us a break till March! (He will be 25!)
Five days before our first birthday, my father
in-law passed away at the young age of 74. We
miss him so much! He was always the clown of
the family, and I'm always wondering when
Billy is gonna get here? It still doesn't seem real.
Our two oldest sons and their girlfriends are
truly the best! They would NEVER miss their
little sister's party.

Son #3's birthday is so close to little girl's, he
gets a gift at her party too!!
Childhood happiness is such a treasure.
She didn't expect a true magician's kit!
She loved it! Every day I'm thankful
for all my blessings. Children bless
us in so many different ways.

Coziness

2009-10-25T18:47:00.001-07:00

Just some pictures of my bedroom.
I'm CRAZY about my bed!!! I LOVE it's fluffiness
Check out this cute bed caddy I bought from Inspireco.com
Made from antique linens....I always keep it full.
I DO love a big feather bed. Just one question....
how Do you clean them????? They are large.
VERY large!! Dry cleaners won't take them :(
Any suggestions?

Autumn

2009-10-23T10:42:00.001-07:00

Decided I'd share a few photos of our home and what's going on inside. My husband carved the PEACE pumpkin.....he's always been a little different. Table decorations.....Tom, my fancy turkey.....and my pumpkin friends:)

Corn Hole

2009-10-18T05:41:00.000-07:00

There really is an art to this game. It's similar to horse shoes, but different. Of course, the "corn bags" are lighter than the horse shoes, which is nice. But that is just the beginning. The whole scoring thing is different too.
My mother and my sisters are pretty good at this game, but it's my baby brother and his wife who are the pros. They go to actual "corn hole tournaments!" Imagine that! They even have special corn hole boards, bags...even t-shirts! No wonder they're good. They also have something else that's pretty special....
I thoroughly enjoy having this little guy around.
Nothing like a new baby.....one of God's "most
special" blessings. Even though I may not be any
good at corn hole...I am very good at smootchin
on sweet smelling babies. Corn hole is also good
for family gatherings....just because...I LOVE
family gatherings. So.....bring on the corn hole
competition! I'm up for the playin!!

Sweet Sisters

2009-10-10T15:29:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh... I do have the sweetest sisters you know.
Every year we do a "sister night". Well we should really say sister week now. It actually did start out just one night, but now we're up to about a week together. As we get older, we treasure these getaways more and more. We all look so forward to this time. A time to let our hair down and be ourselves like we can around no-one else. We always sing....dance....and act just a little crazy. That's OK though cause it's just us and we all understand. It's helpful too that our mother always comes with us. Our first retreat, we climbed Mt. LeConte! Mom was 68 at the time and she did GREAT! Now, she's 74, and although she doesn't want to climb any mountains, she still hangs pretty well with us girls! We've been to the mountains...to the beach. On a cruise...and one year back to the place we were all born. Where all our relatives still live. Special and sweet. We may live far apart, but our hearts have never been closer.

Circle of Friends

2009-07-09T13:11:00.000-07:00

I hope that anyone who might read this has been as blessed with their "circle of friends" as I have. Over the years, God has sent a great many awesome ladies into my life. I have indeed been blessed. I have two very special friends I have known for almost two decades by now. When we were younger, they were always there for me. Having baby showers for me, fixing meals for my family when I was sick. Making fabulous gowns, quilts and countless other gift items for me. When my children were young and I was in the middle of 'baby survival", I always had good intentions to do nice things for them...but never had the time. Nowadays, although life is still incredibly busy, I've found that I am better able to make a moment or two to do a nice thing once in a while. I saw this pattern in a book called "Circle of Friends" and I immediately wanted to make it for the three of us. I had a deadline when I needed to have them completed, but as the deadline drew closer, it didn't look like I was going to make it. Originally, I was going to make three of these into pillow form. It just couldn't happen. I did however manage to get the tops cut out and all sewn together. So on my deadline date, which was the Fourth of July, I rolled them up with some extra coordinating fabric and gave them to my dearies as they were. They loved them! These ladies are super talented and insisted they were happy I didn't make them into pillows....they wanted to use them for table runners! So....here's mine, all completed and looking cute as can be. I love the imperfectness of it! Just like the three of us! Imperfect...oh yes...but choosing to "bloom where we were planted"! Cindy and Theresa....thank you so much for all the years of friendship and fun. Looking forward to at least a couple more good decades!!

Midsummer's Eve

2009-06-27T17:09:00.000-07:00

This was the night Anna and I had been waiting for, for months! All day we flitted about reading fairy books and looking for "fairy things". After all, this was THE night, the night you were more likely to see a fairy than any other night of the year. We rounded up all our wind chimes and hung them up close by. We set out lots and lots of candles and strung other lights about just so the fairies would know we were waiting for them! We set out yummy treats, ate our dinner and waited. We said our prayers and hoped that surely, the fairies might come see us. All through the night we listened closely and thought several times we heard suspicious noises. We never actually saw a fairy face to face that night, but we saw small sparkling streaks that could very well have been a fairy buzzing by at record speed. We saw where they nibbled on their treats we left for them, and we even believe that we found what may be a fairy wing. (poor little thing!) But the reason we know they were there really was because they brought Anna a sweet book. They knew she believed in fairies! If you've never celebrated Midsummer's Eve with your daughter, you shoud do some reading and give it a try. One day, a year or so ago, I told Anna, "Now Anna dear, you know there is really no giant bunny that goes around at Easter". She held a brave face and said "Yes mommy, I know." Later, I said "Anna, we need to talk about Santa...and fairies." She said to me, "Mommy, I am not a silly girl, but really, please, let me be a child!" Since that day, we always get ready for Santa...and the Easter Bunny....and Fairies too! Midsummer's Eve is a lovely occasion to celebrate with a child. Give it a try...the fairies just might come see you too!!

It's the simple things

2009-06-04T17:36:00.000-07:00

The itty bitty things in life that can make you smile from ear to ear. Like this awesome cake Anna made for me from moon sand. I love it! The girl definitely has her father's artistic abilities. Also....I learned how to put music on my blog!!! How cool is that! Just a simple girl at heart I guess:)

My brain is still on vacation

2009-05-19T12:33:00.000-07:00

I keep trying to come back to the real world, but I'm having a hard time. Thinking about the beach...cool breezes...family fun, new friends and shrimp and grits! That was the life! The Hominy Grill in Charleston definitely has the best shrimp and grits by the way.
My brother just adopted a yellow lab from the
lab rescue in Charleston. His name is Beau and we are all in love!!

We had a family reunion. A celebration. My nephew

graduated from The Citadel and made us all so proud!

Can you believe that head dress they wear!

Nothing like

getting away for a few days. Just need to do it more often!

From the Mountains to the City!

2009-04-26T17:37:00.000-07:00

Saturday was an amazing day in the city. My nature is to "hideout in the hills", however, I have
children that insist we live in the "real world" from time to time.

The children played at the Rossini Fesitival in Knoxville on Saturday. They closed down Gay Street and over 150 vendors set up with any type of ware you could think of. Sooo many people! Yeepers!

While the younger children played on a stage on the street, Coy,our 19 year old, played inside the Bijou Theatre for the Don Giovonni Opera. (Not suitable for little ones!) Even though I prefer the mountains, I guess the city's not so bad...on occasion!

Mountain memories

2009-04-21T16:17:00.000-07:00

Last week-end we stayed in Gatlinburg (our home for 14 years). We went and walked the Gatlinburg Trail that we used to walk every day and oh my...the memories were sweet. Along the way we made even more memories for future smiles. Ben and Anna used to love to play on this diansaur tree. It is amazing how it resembles a dinasaur. You can even see the "tail"! When we lived in Gatlinburg, the children were younger and we would have to hoist them up on the dinasaur and then sit and hold their hands for fear they might fall. Now, almost four years later, no hand holding needed. They climbed up quicker than I could get off the trail! It was a lovely day. All the wildflowers are blooming, the sun was shining and the mountain air was as sweet as could be. Ummmm.....makes me want to put all my work aside and head back to the hills!

Counting my blessings

2009-04-10T16:37:00.000-07:00

Isn't it funny how we as humans will say, "God, I
pray that you'll give me this if it's your will." And then say we'll be fine if it's not His will, but when we don't get what we want, we pout and whine. I am really bad about doing that, but He is working on me every day. Growing me in His time. We won't be getting our dream spot anytime soon. Our smart guy said it just wouldn't be the smart thing to do. At first I thought, oh no!, I'm going to sulk and pout....wallow in misery for days. That would be my normal response. But it was interesting how God truly gave me a perfect peace. I'm OK!! No pouting, no whining! It's a feeling I can't explain. Maybe He was showing us the awsome possibilities! Who knows?, Maybe
when we do sell our home, something even better
will be out there for us! I have also been in awe
of the beauty in my city yard this spring. I went
outside to sweep the porch one day and this sweet mommy bird almost took my head off! I
had no idea she was there, but knew quickly why
she was there. Right at eye level she had built her
little nest and tucked inside were two tiny eggs.
She's gotten used to us coming and going by now.
She is such a good mommy, she never leaves. And how beautiful she is! My little birder says
she's a dove. All the flowers are coming back to life and "green up" is deffinitely here! I'm thankful for every bloom, every green leaf, every
tiny egg and every special birdie. Most of all, I am
so thankful for my awesome Savior on this Good
Friday. So thankful that there's hope for even me.

Irritation!!

2009-04-07T17:04:00.000-07:00

Just don't know why my post sometimes turn out that way! They look fine in preview, but...oh well....still learning. (Wonder how long I can get away with saying that?) Tomorrow...our smart guy is coming by to tell us if and how it might be possible to go ahead with our dream spot even if we haven't sold our house yet. Hmmmm.....Still praying...still dreaming.

Praying and dreaming

2009-04-03T17:04:00.000-07:00

For this! For the past 3&1/2 years we feel like we've been living out that old sitcom "Green Acres" in reverse. We have this beautiful, HUGE house in the city, but it just doesn't feel right! We are truly country type folks. We found our dream spot. Doesn't look like much, but with a little elbow grease and lots of TLC, we could make that little spot something special. So...we've been praying hard. As bad as we want the place, we only want it if God wants us to have it. If He doesn't want us to have it, we truly don't want it, but oh!!!!! I surly hope He does! BTW....Those shutters wouldn't be purple long!

Different, but good...

2009-03-30T10:13:00.000-07:00

Yep...this was a VERY different week-end than my last one. Last week-end I was eating scones and dainties, sipping tea with nice conversation. This week-end was all about the boys. Coy, my 19 year old and Ben, my 13 year old took part in a music festival @ UT in Knoxville. They studied under great violinists Yuri Mazurkevich, Miroslav Hristov and Mark Zelmanovich. They participated in workshops, saw incredible luthiers, and presented an awesome concert at the end of the three day festival. We feel honored to have been there and we also feel very blessed.It was smelly and the days were long, BUT...while it was a very different week-end indeed, it was a very good week-end.