Sunday Sayings

Oh, for the good old days when people would stop

Christmas shopping when they ran out of money.

Anonymous

Happy Thanksgiving

Have a wonderful day with family and friends.

Priorities

The sweetpeas and their mommy are here. The Thanksgiving dishes are washed.

The paperwhites are growing.

The turkey's defrosting.

I'm gonna spend some time with family and friends. Have a fabulous Thanksgiving. I'll see you next week. Mimi

Sunday Sayings

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses. Alphonse Karr

Aprons

Penny at Lavender Hill Studio showed us her apron collection so I thought I'd show you mine. Although I never really considered it a collection until now. They are hanging on an antique rack right off our kitchen area so I can admire them everyday. I use them too cause I'm a messy cook. My dear friend Paula made this one for me one Christmas. It has a vintage button and I love it.

Of course if you find a toile apron you have to buy it.

I got an apron when I volunteered for Festival of Trees. When I wear it I think of the fun time I had and the nice people I worked with.

I have other aprons too and I love them all. Do you have an apron collection?

Here's My Kitchen (Unfinished)

I thought I should show you my kitchen since it's clean for the first time in months. The 2 sweetpeas and their mommy are coming for Thanksgiving. All four of our kids will be here for the first time in probably 10 years. We're so happy about that. Anyway here's the kitchen. It still needs trim under and above the cabinets, end pieces and the baseboard. Also the window trim is missing.I knew I wanted a kitchen island but wasn't too sure about the size or position. I was given this unit to try and I've decided to keep it. It has a butcher block top and some storage. By the way, it's from K Mart.I saw this idea in one of Mary Englebreit's kitchens. Only her rolling pins were in a painted flower pot. This crock came from my grandmother. I used to buy these rolling pins for 2 or 3 dollars. Not anymore. I have a big walk in pantry which I love. On the opposite wall there will eventually be floor to ceiling food storage. We added a counter so that I could keep big appliances like the food processor plugged in and ready to go. But not this appliance. Nope. This kitchenaide mixer stays in the kitchen with me. It's out where I can love it and admire it. My friends come over and covet it. The mister gave it to me for Christmas a couple of years ago.

So that's pretty much it. We installed the floors and the cabinets but had the Corian countertops done by professionals. Hopefully we'll get it finished soon.

I've Got Mail

Look what came in the mail! I ordered a few things from the cutest Etsy shop on the block. It's called Little Pink Studio. I love the Christmas themed bingo cards, gold foil crowns, wings and silver birds. And of course they were adorably packaged. I am a sucker for cute packaging (I once bought a needlework pattern that I didn't really like but it came in the cutest red and white checked container!)
And Cerri sent me a little chocolate bar with her sweet little pink logo on it. I can't eat it, it's too cute!Don't you just love getting packages in the mail?

Sunday Sayings

It isn't what you have in your pocket that makes you thankful,

but what you have in your heart.

Anonymous

There's No People Like Snow People

I was supposed to be doing laundry, ironing, and cleaning house. I was supposed to be helping the mister finish up the guestroom in the basement and washing my car. I was supposed to be making 10 more quilt squares and planting 100 tulip bulbs in the front yard. Instead I was making a big mess and playing with paper mache. It was so much fun!Did I mention it was so much fun?Once I got started, I couldn't stop.
Have you been over to see Joli-Paquet? All month long they're posting festive holiday ideas, recipes, and crafts. Almond truffle recipe today, these snow people a few days ago. It's a lot of fun and more than a little addicting.

If You Don't Like It Change It

I bought the cutest light fixture at Lowes the other day. The only problem was that it was the wrong color. So I got out my spray paint and changed it.

From brown to white.

Much cuter.

Veterans Day

Today I would like to thank all the Veterans of our wonderful country. My grandfather was a veteran of WWI. He lost a lung while he was serving our country. My father and mother are both veterans of WWII. My mom was in the Womens Army Medical Corp and was a Physical Therapist stationed in Hawaii at the rehab center in Oahu. My husband was drafted in 1967 and served in the army during the Viet Nam War. My son was in the Navy and served on the USS Elliot. Thank you to those who have helped us preserve our way of life and the many freedoms that we enjoy.

Getting Ready for the Holidays

I did a little bulb planting this weekend. Narcissus in a jar with tall sides so when they grow they'll have the jar sides to lean against instead of fall over. I poured pea gravel in the bottom and stuck the bulbs on top. Then I poured in enough water to cover the gravel and set them in front of a window. Look, they're growing already. It's kind of tricky to time these things so they're blooming for Christmas. We'll have to see what happens. This is a gorgeous amaryllis that a friend gave me for my birthday. It was already planted and ready to go. I love these plants and are so easy to grow, but again, timing the blooms can be tricky.

Lots and lots of festivities are happening between now and the middle of December. I'm trying to get organized so I can fit everything in and not go crazy. OK, not get too crazy. What do you do to get organized for the holidays?

Sunday Sayings

Sometimes in the winds of change we find our direction.

Unknown

We're Getting There

The weather has turned cold and we've had a little snow so our attention has turned to the inside of Mimi's Cottage. The mister and I are working on the basement so that our little California sweet peas and their mommy will have a place to stay when they come to visit later this month. So we've been mudding, taping, and sanding drywall. Texturing ceilings and sealing and priming and painting. We've been buying carpet and installing baseboards. So much fun.

Quilt Class

On Saturday I took my first beginning quilt class. The class is held in the cutest old house in the cutest old neighborhood. They have wonderful fabric, yarn, and patterns of all kinds. Our class is learning how to make a 16 patch quilt block and I'm going to make a throw size quilt.I've kind of played around with quilting in the past but I thought it would be good if I took a class and learned some handy tricks. So far so good. This is my first block. I'm supposed to take that fabric and make a bunch more before Saturday. Must find time soon. It would really be embarrassing if I failed my quilt class.

Election Day

Fabulous Finds

It seems we're at the end of the yard sale season here in Utah. The weather has started to turn cold so our summertime fun is pretty much over until next spring. Oh, there will be the occasional estate sale, but we all know the real bargains are scored at the yard sales. Sigh. Thank goodness for our lovely thrift stores. I did a little thrifting last week and ended up with some pretty good deals. For example, this little tin tray. Loved the colors and loved the saying. Not to mention there's a little bird on it. $1.50. I'm thinking I want to try for an all white bathroom in the basement. So I picked up this little ceramic fish vase for $1.00.I found these old kitchen cabinets for $2.00 each when I was driving by an apartment building that's being renovated. They had a big pile of cabinets and people were hauling these things off by the truckload. They're going to be installed in the laundry room over the washer and dryer. They need to be painted and trimmed up some. This will be a winter project and they're going to be fabulous!

I've been looking for an extra dresser for our bedroom for a while and found this beauty at our local Deseret Industries for $75.00. This will get a coat of black or cream paint. The veneer on the top has some chunks out of the sides. The mister might have to replace the top, we'll see how it goes. Love the little wheels, love the shape, love just about everything about it.

Now I need to get off the computer and get started on some of these projects!