Did you know that flowers always, always make me smile and make me forget my worries . I come from a circle of flower loving peeps. Our clan loves all flowers. They can be roses, hydrangeas, asters, tulips. We will even take a good looking dandelion. Some bouquets last longer than others, and I just get so aggravated when some of the bouquet begins to fade and some does not. You know how that goes, and when that happens the bouquet is just plain awful. It seems that it would be easier if they would all fizzle out or give it their all. Best way to handle a bouquet that is half alive and partly dried up is to discard the old and trim down the surviving flowers and make mini arrangements. Somehow trimming those dwindling stems down and pulling off those old dead leaves seems to revive them and they get a bit of a second wind. Fortunately I inherited many vases, because my Mom and her Mom always, always had flower gardens and those magical gardens were ever so prolific. Blooms began in ear

Is there anything better in the world besides fabulous fabric, friends and a  sewing project? Truly there is not except, perhaps a good book,  a great pair of high heels and chocolate... Well, there was not going to be any sewing projects in this house until I found my sewing machine.  I had hunted high and low for her and n aturally she was in one of the very last boxes to get unpacked. I am not really a true sewing sort of person, I struggle with proper measuring and following directions. In fact, I made a cute table runner that required not a single stitch-  DIY-no sew table runner . I think I like to sew out of the lines, and that does not make for a straight seam. But I can put together some simple straight stitches and create a few interesting projects. I would like to be a more competent seamstress...as many of you lovely ladies are. I marvel, coo and drool when  I see the things you sew, you are amazing and inspire me! So, I will start out with small, simple p

We have taken the big leap on creating, decorating and even putting holes in the new walls. Yikes! I feel as though I might have never taken the plunge if it hadn't been for my husband.  Every day he would ask me,  "what are we going to do with all of those pictures and things in that bedroom?" Every day I would say, "oh, decorating takes time dear, not sure." I had been spared another day from making a decision on where to place pictures and things, because the weather had been so nice. Hubby had been outside tinkering around on his new two acres. But then the rain came pounding in, hubby came in and..decision time had arrived. I had been avoiding on how I was going to handle this tall and wide wall in our great room. We have two very nice large oil paintings, but they just did not seem right for this wall and  truthfully are just not the direction I want this room to go in. I want our new home to tell a story, right from the very beginning. I also knew that in

I may have mentioned before that I come from a long line of cake bakers. My Mother, My Grandmother and My Aunt all made cakes for all of life's many events. There was the vanilla cake for those who had lost loved ones, chocolate cake for  out of town guests and oh the Lady Baltimore cake or Italian Cream cake for  births and Birthdays. I can give a personal testimony to the delicacy of these cakes and at one time the figure to prove their wonderfulness! No regrets either...smiles... Seems cakes were just the perfect way to take away the sting, or add to the joy of whatever  Life Event you were going through at the time. All of this baking was done matter of factly, over the soft hum of the little blue radio that sat in the corner of the kitchen cabinet and the whirl of the mixer. I have shared many cake recipes over the past few years I picked three of them to include in this post because of Spring being just around the corner. If you make the Valentine Banana Cake, I would persona

You know how the trend has been to reclaim wood, tin containers, metal containers,  subway tile. I just know that you know where I am going with this because of the Title...smile... Well I am reclaiming the 50's and the girl that lives inside of me. I mentioned in my last post that she was  fading fast-a shadow of sorts, well she is being reclaimed. It isn't going to be as easy as it might seem because, I am not as young as I used to be, and yet I am not as old as I will be. So, I suppose the time seems just about right. I made a commitment to bake fresh bread, once a week, beginning January first of this year. I was so excited to read your comments and see that many of you are already making similar efforts and are well on your way to living plain and simple. Whether it be organic food from the local grocery or growing your own. Clothes lines that are make shift or the real mccoy, it all is a community effort of living a life with intention, it is a legacy you are creating for

Last year at this time we embarked together on Aging with Style. We explored what this  idea meant to each of us and how to incorporate a few different principles of Aging with Style into our lives at any age of life. We all agreed that often times it is difficult to hold onto concepts, but when we work together as a community holding one another close we will all grow and thrive. This year I am challenging myself to live plain and simple. If you would like to join me, just leave a comment or send me an email and we will journey together. I am going back to the basics, as much as I can, I am going back to the way I was raised.   Just like aging with style, living plain and simple is a mindset, combined with an intentional lifestyle. I grew up on a wheat and potato farm in Idaho and I LOVED it, I loved my Mom and Dad, mashed potatoes, the scent of hayfields, my yellow thongs, (the kind you wear on your feet.) Riding by blue schwinn down the dirt road, swimming in springfed ponds, tro