My Valentine Day Decorating

Happy Valentine's weekend, Lovelies!  

Hope you have some special plans to do fun things with your loved ones.  

It's a nice to celebrate LOVE.  

I like to commemorate each holiday decorating the house with my collection of vintage treasures and thrifty finds.  Over the years, we've amassed quite a collection of charming holiday decor.  Mr. Wonderful & I enjoyed spending some of our free time together roaming dusty flea markets & antique shops for cute bargains we could give each other as gifts.

After the arduous task of packing up most of the Christmas decorations the house looks dusty and bare.  I leave out the things that are more snow / winter related like my snowflake lights and keep a few darling snowmen dotted throughout the house.

 Since it gets dark so early in the winter, it's nice to have soft glow to light the way.  I use those clever mechanical timers so at 5pm when the shadows pop out and the sun starts it's decent my snowman blowmold and snowflake lights illuminate the dusky corners.

They are four fireplace mantles downstairs and I've got them all decked out with interesting doodads.  The dining room mantle has built in cupboards so I tuck away dishes and teacups in there.

I picked up that sparkly snowball garland at Target this Christmas and just added a strand of pastel lights, then clipped on some small vintage valentines my sweetheart gave to me.  

I love the graphics of the older valentines and the play on words.  

Aren't they darling?

A sparkly sequined gold arrow, new from Target, 

makes a snazzy display on the den mantle.  

Opposite the mantle in the dining room, sits the computer desk and shelf.  I've grown accustomed to using that soda pop crate to give height to the display with the tiny cubbies to tuck away little plastic candy containers and whatnots.  

Jadite mugs are a perfect fit.  So are those little birthday candle packages in red for the holiday. 

I do like the way a collection looks all gathered up together in one place but I must prefer to use a few pieces scattered here & there through the house.

Finally, in the kitchen, is this giant Hoosier cabinet.  It sits in a dark corner so I'm obligated to brighten it up with some holiday cheer.  This winter I've used it as my hot cocoa station and all the red goes well with the valentine theme.  I just swapped out the santas for heart shaped candy boxes, added a few vintage valentines and festooned with another sweet garland, new from Target.

Love is in the Air!

One of my favorite spots to decorate for the holidays is this darling white cupboard in the kitchen that my Mr. Wonderful thrifted for me and refinished.  

Over the years I've enjoyed displaying & rearranging my various collections on it.  Don't the tiny little vintage plastic snowmen look cute tucked in with the colorful Fiestaware dishes?

 All my oldest and dearest vintage valentines are displayed here.

This one might be my most cherished.  

It is called a mechanical valentine because a little paper lever moves the 

delicate fairy wings, mask & eyes.  

It's colors and graphics are so pretty.  

Isn't it precious?

Around the corner in the kitchen is this pink shelf that I've had since I was a little girl.  I use it to store some of my growing collection of Lovely books.  The top shelf holds any books I find by or about Jane Austen or Mr. Darcy.  I am not only a BiG Fan of the originals but of all the swell fan fiction as well.

So far I have -
Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James
Darcy & Elizabeth by Linda Berdoll
Darcy Takes a Wife by Linda Berdoll
I was Jane Austen's Best Friend by Cora Harrison
Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler
Darcy's Story by Janet Aylmer
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith
Longbourn by Jo Baker

And just yesterday I found, Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler at Goodwill.  It's the first book and Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict is the sequel.

And several copies of Emma, Sense & Sensibility all by Ms. Jane Austen herself, including a volume of 4 of her stories.

I will read them all someday.

Over the kitchen sink is a very large window that lets in a lot of light.  I found these metallic paper star lanterns at Target this Christmas.  I was pretty surprised the copper colored one was so big!  At first I didn't like it and was going to take it down.  Life intervened and I never did get around to it and it kinda grew on me.  I swapped out the Fa La La banner for the XO XO & hearts, both from Target.

Doesn't it look grand?

I spend a lot of time at the sink washing dishes so I feel I must make it look as cute as possible.  It was a real challenge to photograph my window decorations with all the bright backlight streaming in all day long causing everything in the foreground to be in shadow in the photo.  Finally, I just gave up and decided to wait until dark and just use artificial light.  I wanted to capture how magical it looks with all the twinkling lights.
I Love the look so much I will be sad to take it down when I decorate for Easter.  But the days will be getting a little bit longer and that will have to be my consolation.

I've been dreaming of making a big collage with my collection of heart shaped candy boxes.  So this year, as I unpacked my Valentine treasures, I arranged them on the foyer rug.  I wasn't sure I had enough to look like anything interesting.  Some of them are vintage gifts given to me by my sweetheart, Mr. Wonderful.  Most of them are newer but I thought they were interesting and pretty, Some were purchased after the holiday on clearance, filled with tasty chocolates.  Next I think I'll do an arrangement that only has the Godiva hearts I've saved through the years.

Godiva makes exquisite chocolates that cost a fortune and taste like it.  They are my very favorite!  Here's a peek at this year's adorable collection.

Not only do the chocolates look spectacular, they taste amazing, rather fruity I think, richly decadent and to be savored.  And what is even better {to me!} is that the boxes are beautifully detailed and special.  I always save the box.  I'm a collector/hoarder like that.

Really, How Cute are these boxes?!!

What chocolate would you reach for first?

Cuz that sweet little Starfish is Mine!

~ Happy Valentine's Day!

Finally February

January is such a long dull brown month.

Flower shopping.

Aren't Hyacinths incredible?

Their scent is quite amazing, like springtime itself.  When I came across this amazing tableau of all of them gathered en masse at Trader Joe's I just had to document the sight.

Now I use this photo as my wallpaper on my Galaxy S5.

 A visit to TJ's is always a treat. I love how there's the flower display right at the front door of my store, then there's all those beautiful fresh fruits & veg, too.

What I've been eating:

Ihop has had  all you can eat pancake special going on and I've got to eat here twice.  I ordered that same tasty breakfast both times and then went out thrifting afterwards with my fav people.

One morning I woke up with the word 

Nalisniki 

stuck in my head.  I recalled it was a polish word that reminded me of my childhood & my grammy but I couldn't quite recall what it meant, something about food.  
Thought I'd have to give my momma a call but I figured a 5am call would be inappropriate. So I whipped our my trusty Galaxy, said, "ok, Google" then questioned, "What is Nalisniki?"  Try it!
{I LOVE Google!!}
Turns out Nalisniki, say naaa LISH knee key it's Polish for pancakes or crepes. 
So i wonder if i dream on other languages??
Anyway, I've had a hankering for pancakes.
Don't you LOVE going out to breakfast?

Thrifty Finds:

I've found a great deal of nice books lately

I comb the shelves looking for anything that catches my eye, tickles my fancy.  I collect books.  I'm always on the lookout for beautiful old books, books with interesting covers, classic books and books by my favorite authors.  

I like to collect Pyrex & milk glass but only if I can get it for less than a few dollars.  Besides being useful I like the nice bright sunny happy colors of Pyrex.

My eyes almost bugged out when I spied that exquisite glass with the lovely delicate etching, and it was only .25!

Aren't maps cool?  And travel books are nice to thumb through when you want to dream about vacations in far away lands.  

Here's what I'm Obsessed With: 

Trader Joe's version of my beloved old fashioned candy treat, Swedish Fish.  
I think they're new.  
But these are yummier.  
Cool different shapes & flavors, each delicious and I ate the whole bag myself. 

So lots of great finds recently.  I discovered some Dickens, Daphne du Maurier, Jane Austen, Agatha Christie and a few Stephen King I didn't have yet.  Also spotted that pretty minty colored box from Target at the Goodwill.  It will be perfect to store my treasures in.

Here's my List of  -   Stephen King Book I Still Need:

Bazaar of bad dreams 11.3.15
Finders Keepers 6.2015
Joyland - June 2013
XDr. Sleep - September 2013
XJust After Sunset 2008
Green Mile 1997
DESPERATION 1996
INSOMNIA 1994
XDOLORES CLAIBORNE, Viking, 1992,
X THE EYES OF THE DRAGON Viking, 1987
X SKELETON CREW, a collection of short stories, Putnam, 1985
X THE TALISMAN, Viking, 1984 (co-authored by Peter Straub)
CUJO, Viking, 1981
FIRESTARTER, Viking, 1980
DANSE MACABRE, Everest House, 1980
THE DEAD ZONE, Viking, 1979
THE STAND, Doubleday, 1978
NIGHT SHIFT, Doubleday, 1978
THE SHINING, Doubleday, 1977
SALEM'S LOT, Doubleday, 1975
CARRIE, Doubleday, 1974

Just lately I've added some nice checks to my SK List so now,  I need to look for, find & obtain mostly the oldest books and a few of the newest titles.  

I'm a BiG FaN of List Making! 

I'm an idea person.  But I'm not so much a remembering person, so list making is a must. You name it, I have made a List about it!  About the only thing I can think of that I don't have a list for is a List about all my many Lists!

 What do you make Lists of?

I keep a folder on my computer entitled Books I've Read that houses not only my chronological list of books I've finished reading but also more lists of all the names of authors I like and each book they've wrote and year each book was published.  Then I check off the books that I've read, very tidy like.  

What I See When I Walk:

I adore sunsets.

Almost as much as sunrises.  

I like when the light goes all soft and pink and mysterious.

Like so many great moments, it's fleeting.

What's Blooming in my Garden:

I was so thrilled this cute Helleborus I planted a few years ago in the Fairy garden was finally was going to bloom.  With a name like, "Christmas Snow" I though for sure it would be lovely.  But it is quite boring as far a Helleborus go, no cute pink shading, no darling speckles or freckles like some of my other cultivars I grow.  The leaves are evergreen though, like my others, and are among the first welcome blooms.

Go ahead, use that pic for some adorable cellphone wallpaper!

Hello, Snow

January 17 - 24 journal
We got some snow this week.  First, we got the pretty snow.

It was so beautiful to wake up to see snow falling gently against the dawn.  The landscape looked incredible with a delicious dusting of sugar snow.

Spectacular dawn photos taken from inside.  This is the view from my parlor window where I sit and drink my coffee in the morning. 

I Like this one better, better pretty pink sky color but there's the kitty nose print smudges on the window so the snowman blowmold on the porch isn't as clear.

The sunrise was so beautiful I had to get up and take a few more shots from out on the veranda, Brrrrrr.
In my area of the country we usually do get some snow falling in January & February.  There's not much accumulation and even if there is you can count on it melting quickly.  There's this exciting anticipation accompanied by a frenzy of activity spurred by the news reports urging everyone to stay home during the storm which, of course, means folks run to the nearest store for provisions.
Does this happen where you live?

Here's a pic of my Snowpocalypse provisions.  Forget bread & milk!

Snowstorms are crazy but fun at the same time.  This is Daisy out for a sniff after the storm broke.  There was about 6" of heavy icy snow and she just walked on top of it, not falling thru.

It was an exciting busy week preparing for the visit of my brother & his wife Stephanie and also the Blizzard.

We tidied & freshened up guest room, put fresh linens on the bed to make it look welcoming.  I like the way clean white bed linen looks, so inviting!

This little vintage toy treasure now resides in the guest room.   I think a baby doll buggy filled with my old Raggedy Anns and other collectible dollies adds a delightful touch of whimsy and cozy homeyness.  I spent many hours playing with my sister and our sweet Raggedy Anns & Holly Hobbies together.

Little personal touches of interesting vintage cuteness make me smile and I think my guests would appreciate that.  It's been my dream to operate a Bed & Breakfast in my home.

Emily picked out a bouquet of red roses, a nice little splurge, to put on the bedside table as a special little welcome for our guests.  They were only $4 for a half dozen at Aldi.  I thought they looked very pretty as I arranged them while drinking my tea so I snapped a pic to share on social media.

Having guests come to stay is very exciting especially if it's family you haven't seen them in ages.  Unfortunately, A big winter storm swept through the country affecting so many states east of the Mississippi and all along the eastern seaboard.

NC was no exception and not only were their flights cancelled but all the airports in the state were shut down.  So much disappointment! On top of that we were trapped in the house for days while the wintery wind blew and it sleeted, snowed and icy rained.
It's rather disconcerting that despite all our technological advancements we are still very much at the mercy of the awesome power of nature.  

I consoled myself with comfort foods and tv.  I'm putting the finishing touches on a post about it and sharing easy recipes.  Above is a rather wonderful photo shared on Instagram by @newyork_instagram posted by @danilamednikov of Snowpocalypse 2016.

What I've been watching:

I finally used an HDMI cable to plug my laptop into the big tv and was able to watch Sherlock: The Abomidable Bride streaming on PBS for a limited time.  I tried watching it twice when it aired but fell asleep during it, both times.  I Love the show but there's something so hypnotic about it.  There were so many plot twists & things happening in the background, rich scenery, costumes and witty dialogue.  I'm a big fan of Mrs. Hudson and so enjoy the repartee between her and Sherlock.

Season 2 of Agent Carter premiered this week and Ems and I were glued to the tv in the parlor to watch it.  Not only is the storyline intriguing but the 1940's fashions, hairstyles and sound track are a constant source of wonder and delight.  Plus, I think I may have just a tiny crush on Jarvis! He's so suave & classy with that dreamy accent.  I do enjoy the witty banter in this show as well.  Definitely one of my favorite shows.

It feels good to get back to blogging!  My words don't come as easy as they once used to but it's like anything, it won't get done unless you make the effort.  I miss having that archive of my Life.

My To - Do List

Oh my stars!
April has been a very busy, exhausting, delightful month, but at times overwhelming.

Since I haven't had time to blog much I thought I would share my To - Do List, which is
my attempt to reign in the chaos of all the tasks that must be done asap.

I've always been a list maker. Not only does a list help me remember, I think it improves my productivity, keeps me focused.  Even if your list is long it will be very theraputic to see things get checked off, n'est-ce pas?

So here's mine...

To-do list 

Bring out tropical plants, palms, ferns, orchids & hanging baskets

Expand flower bed border, redo rock edge

Plant Easter lilies

Redo hose system

Put air in wheelbarrow tire, but the plastic thing that holds the tire is broke

Build new compost pile with new pavers
Round up trees growing by forsythia out at sw corner hedge, etc

get mower fixed
Mow leaves & grass

Mail birthday cards & pkg to Mary Ann

Germinate moonflower seeds, soak overnight
Finish taxes & file online
Empty ponds, clean leaves & refill

pump water off pool cover & rake muck
Mulch
Call Dr., mom
Change light bulb candle in the windows
Dig up baby redbud transplant to front yard
Dig up pool Japanese maple and transplant to somewhere that gets more sun?
Repot both driveway & hosta fairy garden Japanese maples
Dig hole for new saucer magnolia and plant it

Transplant Encore azalea, hostas

Make apple crisps 

Bake cookies for gifts
Make Buddha soup
Clean Shower
Wash bedding
Vacuum

Dishes

Watch the sunset on the veranda

Are you a list maker?

Easter Week

I was so excited for the Easter holidays and Lovely warm springtime weather bringing all the flowers.  I absolutely Love holidays & celebrating good times with family and friends.

This week started off with a bang.  Sunday night was the season finale of The Walking Dead and then  we always watch Talking Dead afterwards to rehash.  Emily and I Love watching that show and this was quite a finale!  We had loads of fun watching.  Monday we went out for treats & a movie.

Here's what I'm Loving:

Emily & I started off Easter week by having lunch at Starbucks so we could get our half price happy hour frappuccinos.

I ordered the Limited edition Birthday cake flavor which was a delicious combo of vanilla and hazelnut flavors and Emily got green tea.

Both were topped with a generous swirl of raspberry pink whipped cream.  

What a treat!  

Afterward we had a nice shop at Target starting with the One Spot stuff then we stocked up on my very favorite Easter candy,

White chocolate bunnies, 

Dove coconut creme eggs, which are insanely good 

and Reese's peanut butter eggs
~a trifecta of yumminess

What I've been watching:

Oh the costumes were insanely amazing, as was the set design.  The cast was outstanding  And the acting was Divine, every actor was uniquely suited for the role and played it so very well, so very entertaining.

This wedding dress is so dreamy!

Golly, the costumes were really something!

And the hats --perfection!

Helena Bonham Carter was funny & fantastic as the Fairy Godmother.  One of my favorite parts is when she does her magic turning the pumpkins into that glorious gold coach then transforms Cinderella's spectacular outfit.  

Afterwards we went to one of our favorite restaurants and discussed the details over dinner.  We both dreamed of what it would be like to cosplay those costumes.

We Loved every minute of it!

Obsessed With:

Easter Lillies smell like springtime!  

I picked this one up at Walmart along with a ham for the holiday and my prescription.  I plopped it in a cute bucket I picked up at Target earlier in the week.

I got these Ranunculus from Walmart, too.    

The flowers are so cute and perfect and these colors, aren't they dreamy?

Thrifty Finds:

I found a few cute old books and a mini donut pan.  I'm always on the lookout for old gardening books and any cool book with a pink binding.  I couldn't believe my luck when I found the donut pan.  I will surely put it to good use.

I spied these fantastic Retro-Wonderful pumps at my fav Goodwill, size 7, which is Emily's size.  I thought they'd go great with a pretty Easter dress.  Alas, Emily started feeling yucky on Good Friday and soon was running a fever.  So we had to cancel all our fun plans for the holiday weekend.  Even though our Easter was very low key the weather was beautiful, my garden looked dreamy and I just had to count my blessings.

Spring time is so Lovely and I love strolling through my garden every day to see what is poking up out of the earth or coming into bloom.

Here's What I'm Needing:

This new makeup line from Mac!  Isn't it gorgeous?  And the colors are soft pretty pinky beiges and browns that I like and that I would actually wear.  I've got to get to Sephora or Ulta to check them out.  Don't you Love beautiful make up?

Loved this message from the movie.  

It's a great motto.

Have you seen it?