Memory Verse for Sunday - August 15th, 2010

Feel free to borrow this photo and share it with your friends on Facebook or on your blogs. Please link the photo back to my blog.Thanks :) :) :) Do you recognize the hyndrangeas? Beautiful!!!

Happy Sunday everyone...Oh, I was going to write a lot and I think I'm just going to post the verse for today. In fact, I may keep it simple like that every Sunday..:) :) :)

I'm excited and nervous about work tomorrow. It'll be my first real day on the phones. It'll be great!!!

Oh, go over and read Linda's blog Prairie Flower Farm. It's her wedding anniversary on August 16th...and the story she shares is just amazing.  It really brings home how God can make beauty out of ashes...AND this is a great love story between husband and wife and with  Jesus Christ!! Her and her hubby love Jesus Christ!!! Go check it out!!!

Well, that's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

365 day photo challenge from Saturday, August 7th, 2010 till Friday, August 13th, 2010.

Hi everyone, I'm back!!! Yeah...I'm so happy to be here!!! Really and truly. I've missed blogging. I started back to work at Harry & David last Monday. This whole week has been retraining and learning some new things too. It's been exciting, but also busy and tiring...but a good kind of busy and tired :) :) :)

Here's the next installment in my photo series.  This week I have more "bonus" photos for the days I wasn't able to photograph anything. This upcoming week I'll have more time. I'll explain as I go :) :)

BONUS PHOTO Saturday ~ August 8th, 2010  This is "verbenia".  It was such an intense blue, that it was "glowing" and I literally couldn't get a clear photograph, no matter how hard I tried. Isn't God great with colors? :) :) :) :)
It was really good to see everyone again.  There was a small group of 20...18 ladies and two gentleman...and I've been working with these wonderful people for just over two years now. It was almost like the first day of school. We are all excited to see who would be there. We had a lot of fun chatting and getting caught up. Of course, we are all very grateful to be back at work.


Sunday - August 8th, 2010 This was a teeny tiny little yellow flower peeking  through all that bark-mulch in the parking lot at Albertsons grocdery store. This was the only living thing in that entire island in the parking lot.  I had to snap a photo because this little flower was struggling for life and clinging on with every ounce of strength. I love this little flower..struggling but still beautiful!!!!


Monday ~ August 9th, 2010 This is an old-fashioned smudge pot used for keeping orchard fruit warm. This was actually redecorated by someone at Harry & David. I love the vintage feel to it..and it's what it very typical for this region of Southern Oregon...the Roayl Riviera Pears..some of the trees are almost 100 years old and still producing tasty fruit. Yes, I do love pears!!!!

Tuesday ~ August 10th, 2010 Some ducks over at the duck pond at work.  I love it that my job provides this beautiful pond for ducks and humands alike to enjoy!!! I tried to get a photo of all the ducklings..teeny tiny duck babies...but they got scared and swam away...so it's just the adults today!!!

BONUS PHOTO Wednesday ~ August 11th, 2010 This was a photo taken at the phone museum in Jacksonville, Oregon.  I just added "sepia" tones to it, to make it look vintage.  I really love the old typewriter. It's got some class and style!!!

BONUS PHOTO  Thursday ~ August 12th, 2010 A beautiful orange flower in a softer focus!!!!

BONUS PHOTO for Friday ~ August 13th, 2010.  I added some "glow" to this photo, although you almost can't see it..but it does make the colors come alive a little bit more :) :) I love hyndrangeas.

I didn't want to go into too much detail about work...mainly because I'm one of those people who loves to keep my work life and my private life seperate!!  I will say this, that I'm excited about some of the improvements in the computer system. It will enable me to take better care of my customers and to make their shopping experience a happy one. It's so fun to talk to so many different people.  Every day is literally so different!!!

The one prayer request I would have is for hours.  The one thing that is certain in this business is change.  So my co-workers and I were counting on full-time hours every week. It looks like it'll only be about 16 hours for the next few weeks, until it draws closer to the CHRISTmas season :) :) :) Yes, we do say "Merry Christmas" at Harry & David :) :) :)  So, all my "plans" went out the window...but then I'm reminded of a couple of things... 1) If you want to make God laugh, than tell Him your plans...and I'm thinking He's having a gentle laugh at me...I know I'm laughing at myself right now :) :) :) 2) God will provide and this will be another great opportunity to see what God can do in a situation where I'm totally incapable..especially now!!! I'm going to bloom where I'm planted...and I"ll use this as an opportunity to be even wiser with the resources God has given me. Hopefully I can use that to encourage someone else later on down the road. In any case, I would covet your prayers because many of my co-workers, while they understand the "why's", it still puts a strain on everyones budgets. Thank goodness we all know how to laugh about it all :) :)

WELCOME TO: Holly at Banner Haus News. Click here to visit her site. She has some great free images and other cool stuff to look at!!! I don't remember which blogger friend directed me to her site...but today's post has a great image for fall...so cute. Check it out!!!

I've been working on a knitting project...just a simple square cloth made from a yarn by Araucania...It's 100% sugar cane fibres. It's like silk and so shiny. I'll make sure to post a photo of it when it's finished. In any case, I'm making the square cloth as a "placemat" for my travel coffee mug when I"m at work. It beautifies my work space and serves as a way to clean up any potential coffee spills..not that I'm a messy coffee drinker...no way...messy eater, sometimes...but very neat with precious coffee :) :)

Well, that's about it for the moment. It's been super hot weather-wise this week. So the air conditioner has been coming in handy.  Last night was especially warm...even at midnight. I slept with my bedroom window open because it has a lovely screen. That's a small blessing that I'm thankful to God to have!!!!  I was sick last night and went to bed at 9:30 p.m. I feel much better now!!!  My dad made me a special "Daddy Breakfast"...so that always cheers me up!!!

I almost forgot to mention a very IMPORTANT PARTY/GIVEAWAY over at Prairie Flower Farm. Linda is having a super fun giveaway that ends on the 20th of August. Check out the button on my sidebar for more info on the giveaway. Otherwise you can click here to visit her blog :) :) :) There are some great things AND she's been running this fun "write your own story" piece for the last few days. So you'll want to check that out, have some laughs, be encouraged and just feel really good for being there :) :) I love me a good giveaway and I'll enter anything and everything because it's so much fun!!! So pop on over and tell Linda that I sent you and say "hello"!!!!

I'm off to work on my post for Sunday!!! I hope you all had a great week. You were missed and THANK YOU for leaving so many comments on my blog!!! It really made my day...coming home tired from work and then seeing so many greetings on my blog :) :) :) Way cool!!!!

That's the news from Oregon today. Extra love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

My Fifth Tea Time Tuesday & Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday for August 11th, 2010 !!!

Hi everyone...oh, thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your prayers for work. Today went really well and I was very happy to be there!!! I'll write about it more later this week...but I wanted to get out my next tea post...because well, tea....it's just as important as breathing!!! Oh, funny story, I think I was supposed to be AT WORK at 7 a.m. for retraining...NOPE...I got the time way OFF...it was actually 8 a.m. so when my team leader saw me she was very surprised..OH, I'd been waiting at work since 6:40 a.m. Well, rest assured I won't be making that same mistake again. The blessing is that I got some uninterrupted knitting time !!

Okay...let's have a cup of tea, shall we? Now this was a lonely little tea cup I found a couple weeks ago at a yard sale. This yard sale was right across the street from the hospital, so there was no parking in front of the house. However, my dad and I just parked across the street in the hospital parking lot. You'll understand why I just had to buy this sweet little cup. It's more the shape of a coffee cup...but you know what...just like there's oodles of different varieties of tea, there are oodles of varieties of lovely teacups. It's "Wedgwood"...so I figure I earned a pass :) :)

Here's my Peter Rabbit Christmas china tea cup from Wedgwood!!! I LOVE the Beatrix Potter stories and "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" is my favorite.

Now the cup didn't have a price on it...but I had posted a really cute Campbell's soup bowl with matching lid that I'd purchased at the same yard sale. It was only $0.25...so I figured I could ask the same for the cup...:) :) :) So now I'm the proud owner of an orphaned Peter Pan china teacup :) :) :) Here's another view of the cup...It had quite a lot of detail on it!!! It's a Christmas teacup...:) :) :)


I really don't know anyone who doesn't love Beatrix Potter. Oh, and her books, she had them designed small on purpose, so that precious little hands could have books that fit and were kid-friendly :) :) :)

Here's the view on the other side of the cup. It says "Merry Christmas" in two spots and Peter Rabbit is doing something different in each image :) :) :)



The backstamp was lovely, cleary and had lots of detail. Check it out. I don't know about you, but now I want to start collecting Beatrix Potter items...this is so cute!!!

Oh, the day my dad and I had to go to this local church pantry was hard. It took us LITERALLY almost THREE hours to finally get some much needed food...BUT that's okay, because it was well-organised, clean etc...AND here's one of the small blessings from that long day. There was a table of random items...all FREE. So I waited until the wolf pack..I mean, ladies, cleared away..and I decided to take a look. Here was this lovely plate hiding underneath one very ugly bag...Oh, I think God meant this plate for me on that day...Look at it...with all the delicate pink roses and vines. Wouldn't this be especially nice with a chubby slice of cake or better, cheesecake? What's your favorite tea time dessert?

I think one of you dear people has a plate or teacup just like this. I thought someone posted something similar to this awhile back..


This is the backstamp. It's very simple and slightly faded. It had a crown at the top and says "Vienna..Austria. That's it. If anyone knows anything more about this particular design, please let me know :) :)

Now the floral design on this plate is unique...because it's not symmetrical or even...you'll notice there's some "irregularities" on purpose...the common element that ties it all together are those lovely pink roses with the green vines!!! It caught my attention. This plate was FREE.  Here's a couple close-up pictures of the detail on this lovely plate!!! I'm going to make this my dessert plate :) :)

 

 

Oh, today was my first day back at work for Harry & David. I was layed off in February along with all my friends. There was a small group of us that went back for three weeks at Mother's Day...otherwise, we've all been job hunting!!

 

It was so good to see everyone again. Here's the blessing...we all worked in the outbound telemarketing department and I know what most people tend to think of telemarketers. However, we are never pushy...NEVER...and besides, I know the product VERY WELL, so it's one I can confidently tell people about, because I use it...well, eat, is a better word...those Royal Riviera pears...yummy!!!

 

When the department was eliminated two years ago, we all went back to just taking inbound calls and handling customer service issues. Praise comes in the strangest of directions sometimes...the new CEO of the company recognized the value of our department & the money we were able to earn...so he brought our department back. It's a blessing in so many, many ways...the first one being a regular paycheck and pretty much guaranteed 40 hours per week of work. Not everyone gets that...

 

Well, I'm getting ahead of myself and I'm going to talk about it some more later this week.  I'm really praying for a good attitude at work...and that God would keep my heart open to learn something new. I will say this...I don't know where you are at in your working lives, whether it's at home, outside of the home... :) :)...there are skills that are important no matter where you work...honesty, integrity, faithfulness, being on time etc.. :) :) :)

 

Oh, okay...that's not tea related..BUT Harry & David does sell some lovey tea things in their stores and online...so I'll be adding some of that to my collection soon :) :)

 

Thanks so much for stopping by for tea and letting me babble on about work :) :) It's been a real good thing for me...and came at just the perfect time...Hmm..God's timing is ALWAYS perfect!!!

 

WELCOME TO: Teresa of Grammy Girlfriend. Click here to check out her blog. Teresa, thanks for joining my blog and leaving a lovely comment :) :) Your blog is delightful...LOVE the background, too :) :) :)

 

Love and hugs to you all...I hope you have a great week!!! That's the news from Oregon, Heather :)

Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, It's Off To Work I Go & Scripture Memory Verse

Feel free to borrow this and share it on Facebook or on your blogs. Please link the photo back to my blog. Thanks ;) :) :)

Happy Sunday everyone,  I hope you are all having a really great day so far. It's only 7:11 a.m. here and it's already starting to warm up. I plan on taking a walk later today and catching some sunshine. It's good for the hair...makes your hair pretty :) :) :) It's all about the Vitamin D :) :) :) I read somewhere that Vitamin D helps in hair growth. My hair is about chin length and I want it LONG, LONG, LONG...so sunshine is essential :) :) :)

I'm getting my outfit ready for tomorrow. I found a really cute, LONG denim skirt to wear. It's hard to find a long straight skirt...but it was worth the search. The denim skirt will go with just about everything in my closet. So that will help with what to wear :) :)

Oh, I'm excited and I'm nervous with anticipation all at the same time.  It will be good to see all of my work friends again....all of them are women with the exception of a couple of guys.

This really sweet photo is courtesy of Prairie Flower Farm. Click here to pay Linda a visit. She has a really cool "Write your own story..." post. Click on the link for that on my sidebar :) :) :)

Linda, over at Prairie Flower Farm, is having a really fun activity called "Write your own story..." If you click on the button right above the Prairie Flower Farm button on my sidebar, it'll take you directly to that post. She starts it off for us, and it's our job to finish the story :) :) It looks like a lot of fun. I'm definitely going to have to participate :) :) :)

I didn't get a lot of crafting done yesterday except for another dishcloth :) :) :) It looks a bit unconventional, but it will work :) :) :) That means I was a little off in my brick stitch count while knitting. I was also too far along in the project and didn't want to undo it all. So I continued on and fixed it from that point. It actually looks kind of cool :) :) :)

I'll still be participating in the Tuesday tea parties, showing off tea things etc.  Scripture memory verse on Sunday is a given!!!!  After that, I'm not sure when I'll be able to post since I'll be working a full 40 hours a week.  Praise God for a job...I'll be able to take care of so many things that have waited a long time...like getting  a haircut!!! So I hope you all will still read my blog. I'll still be posting things :) :) :)

You ladies are awesome. Thanks so much for all the prayers, encouragement, godly wisdom...all of it!!! I've not only been encouraged but I learn a lot, too!!...besides, you all are fabulous :) :) :) That's the news from Oregon for this morning. Extra bunches of love and hugs, Heather :)

365 Day Photo Challenge for Saturday ~ July 31st, 2010 till Friday ~ August 6th, 2010.

Hi everyone...Did you have a good week? I had a good week. Things are still a little difficult at home, but getting better...I'm trusting God to work it out even though it still hurts at times. My dad is a sweet man and I love him lots... :) :) :) He forgets that I'm a grown woman sometimes..but I still need to love/respect him...because how I treat him,...well, I want to treat him well...and I think that'll carry over into how I treat my husband some day. Does that make sense?

Oh, my goodness...this week was not very good for taking photos. I only got photos for three days. So what I ended up doing was creating some collages from photos I had taken previously.  Next week will have fresh photos.

My dad is so sweet because he's going to "build" me a little table for the mouse and mousepad to the computer...so that I don't have to lift my arm too high.  It's been doing a number on the muscles that go from my shoulder to my neck. What a nice dad!!! Oh, and I'm under strict instructions not to say anything until I've tried out the new idea!!! OH....I love the new idea...Oh, it's so simple...He just put the computer mouse and the mousepad on a chair..no table was needed..and it was free, made from stuff in our home. Oh, sweet relief for my aching shoulder/neck  :) :) :)

Here are my photos for this weeks photo challenge...

Saturday ~ July 31st, 2010 Hydrangeas. There were multiple colors all sprouting from the same bush. This particular one had blues and purples ;) :) :)

Substitute photo for Sunday ~ August 1st, 2010...I learned how to use the collage feature on Picasa to display more than one photo at a time :) :) So cool...and I even made the center photo black & white with a touch of color!!!

Substitute photo for Monday ~ August 2nd, 2010. This is the Segway business that my friend owns in Jacksonville, Oregon.  The original house was built in the latter half of the 1800s.

Tuesday - August 3rd, 2010

Substitute photo for Wednesday ~ August 4th, 2010. These are some flowers that I photographed in Lithia Park in Ashland, Oregon.


Thursday ~ August 5th, 2010 Oh, my friend Cindy over at "Whimsicle Musings" made this beautiful tag for me as a surpise. It even has the letter "H" for Heather ;) :) Thanks for the sweet gift, Cindy. Click here to view her blog. She also writes the blog "I Owe It All To Him" You can find that blog button on my sidebar :) :) :)

Substitute photo for Friday ~ August 6th, 2010...These are some shots of Jacksonville, Oregon. I changed the center one to black and white and the rest to sepia tones!!!

WELCOME TO: natkoplovsky. If you have a blog, could you send me the link or add it to your Google account? Then I can update this post, so people can come visit you.  Otherwise, I'm glad that you have joined my blog :) :) :) Thanks!!!!!

Well that's about it for today. There are some cool giveaways happening over at some of my friends blogs. So I'll make sure to talk about that this weekend. You know I LOVE giveaways. It doesn't matter who wins...it's fun just to enter!!!

I'm so thankful for being able to go back to work for Harry & David for the Christmas holiday season.  There are some logistics that need to be settled by Sunday, so pray for those.  It'll be nice to have a regular paycheck..but the timing is a little off, so it's throwing off my budget a little bit.  Pray that God will meet the few needs that I need to get taken care of before I go back to work. Plus, pray that I'll have a grateful attitude at work..and that I can be someone who spreads joy in the workplace!!! Oh, and no gossip...lots of ladies in a single room sometimes means gossip...so I don't want to fall prey or participate in it either!!! Pray for strength in that area too!! Thanks for being the kind of people I can share some prayer requests with...that's awesome.

Okay...I finished my laundry for today. I watched Perry Mason "The Case of the Wrongful Writ"..and now I'm finished with another post!!! I also read John Chapter 6 and part of chapter 7 today.  Some days it's really easy/joyful to spend time reading my Bible. Other days I feel like I have to drag myself to God's Word like a thirsty person crawls to an oasis in the desert...but the point is that I'm there...so that's where I'm at...but I don't regret coming to God's Word and reading that for comfort!!!! Have a great weekend everyone!!! Lots of love and hugs to you all!!!  That's the news from Oregon today, Heather :) :) :)

I'm Writing With A Joyful and Heavy Heart..Both At The Same Time!!!

Aren't these blooms lovely?  This were on a tree at a local church in my neighborhood. So I had to snap a photo.

Hi everyone, I hope you are all having a good week so far.  Today's post is just a collection of random things that happeneed this week...plus a prayer request!!!

I posted about some things that I bought at a few yard sales last weekend. Well, I decided to take a photograph of the front cover of that 1935 cookbook on home baking. It's really cute. It's chock full of tips and menu ideas for various parties. I absolutely howled with laughter as I was reading the beginning of this little gem.  This humble baking book asserts quite STRONGLY that baking skills are NOT NATURAL AND MUST BE LEARNED...how funny is that? I thought it was funny..and that's why you need that book :) :) :)


During this season of unemployment, my dad and I have to rely a few times on food pantries for things to eat. Yesterday we went to a local food pantry that was near our home and we were blessed with a nice variety of things. The best part was that WE were able to pick and choose what we wanted...so none of this good food will go to waste.  We've had experience in the past where certain pantries pick out the food for you...and alwayss there was something we couldn't eat.  I don't know about you, but one of the things this season has done to me is...I dislike wasting food. Wasting food...well, you might as well throw money in the trash can...so I really try to use everything that's available in my kitchen!!!

Anyway, one of the things we got was a really nice generic box of cornflakes...except I just had to laugh when I saw this box. It looks vintage and the name on the box is really cute. Check out the photo below...

I am loving me a good bowl of "hospitality" cornflakes :) :) Every bowl full makes you more hospitable :) :) :) Good...I need some of that :) :) :) OH I love this and I enjoy cornflakes...I just thought the box was so cute!!!

I think that little house pictured on the upper left hand corner of the cereal box reminds me of Tara plantation from "Gone with the Wind" and The White House :) :) :) Yep, gotta love hospitality cornflakes :) :) OH, that black thing in the upper right hand corner of the photo...that's a sock hanging from my clothes rack..Why? I'm not sure...but I will line dry clothes there, since it's right in front of the screen door. Our apartment complex will not allow us to line dry clothes outside...so the workaround is to put it in front of the screen door. It's inside and it's "legal" :) :) :)...plus with the glass door open, the breeze/sunshine come through the screen door very nicely!!!

There was a table at the church food pantry with various items like cups, plates, water bottles etc. I didn't really look around since there were a bunch of woman surrounding the table like vultures at a 100% off table at the favorite department store :) :) It was really quite funny actually..I waited until most of the people had left and I decided to check out what was left. I found this little treasure of a plate hidden under a really ugly pleather bag...Here's a sneak peak...You'll have to wait till Teatime Tuesday for the full reveal :) :) :) It's super cute and a real treasure. This was absolutely free...


Here's a sneak  peak of the freebie I found at the local church food pantry. Even here, in a place that requires you to have a measure of humility, God still blessed unexpectedly :) :) :)

Today I decided to try my hand at baking something. I used this fluted ceramic tart dish that I've had for at least 15 years now...ever since I lived in Germany. Anyway, a dear Facebook friend in Florida wrote this really great Amish cookbook. Her name is Sherry Gore and she lives in Pinecraft, Florida. It's a very sweet little village near Sarasota...and it's a lovely community of beachy Amish Mennonites. In fact, many Amish love to come here for vacations.  Sherry Gore wrote this delightful and super-chubby cookbook called "Taste of Pinecraft" Click here to visit her website.  You can order the cookbook there. That's what I did...and it's worth every penny. It's full of stories of the locals there..so you really get an idea of the people that inspire all the recipes you see in the book. Oh, the cookbook is "chubby" because it's full of stories, recipes, tips...all the good things you would want in a cookbook. It truly is useful.  It's also a goodly thick size that's easy to hold in your hands :) :)

Sherry Gore also has a blog which you can visit here.  She's a lovely lady. Anyway, the first recipe I tried today is the "baked oatmeal" which you can find on page 97. I used the recipe at the top of the page :) :)
Now this recipe was easy...although I didn't have baking powder, so I used white rice flour instead. It worked!!! OH, skipped the vanilla too...didn't have that in the cupboard either..Yet, it's still super tasty..The baked oatmeal is a really nice mix between hot oatmeal cereal and oatmeal cookies...Yummy, yumm and yummy!!

It was easy to make and this is what it looked like when it was finished...Now remember, I'm much better at crafting than cooking!!! I like it more..but I was HUNGRY and wanted to bake something to make good use of what I had in the kitchen :) :)...

Baked oatmeal is really yummy. I had just pulled this right out of the oven. The fluted tart dish...has been well-used over the years..It's more than done the job!!!

I did try some right out of the tart dish.  I didn't want to wait for it to cool down..so it did crumble a little on me, but that's okay...I "spooned" a slice into a bowl and poured some nice milk over it...Oh, tasty Pinecraft treat...here I come...

It tasted great.  It was just slightly sweet and with the milk, it's the best. How did I like it really?...See for yourself....

I ate EVERY blessed bite of this yummy baked granola. The best part is there are leftovers...so I've got breakfast for the next couple of days. This was easy and very inexpensive to make. All of the ingredients that you'd need to buy can be used for multiple things... :) :) :) Oh, while this was baking, I made good use of the time and "whipped up" another batch of my homemade powdered laundry soap :) :) :) It was perfect timing and I am feeling really domestic...just call me Donna Reed!!

Oh, please visit my sweet blogger friend Dorothy over at "Notes from Mémère". She loves Jesus Christ and she just has a really nice writing style. She shares funny stories, spiritual insights she's learned, yummy recipes etc. Feel free to browse through her blog posts. She's a lovely lady...just like all of you :)  :) :)..I"m guessing only ladies read my blog so far :) :) :) Anyway, if you like her blog, then please join!!! She would love to have some visitors :) :) Thanks everyone!!!

I would ask for prayer for my dad and myself if that's okay :) :) This season of unemployment has been difficult emotionally and financially. My father, when he gets upset/stressed, gets really short with me. Yesterday it was really bad while we were at the church food pantry.  We are grateful for the help because we really needed it yesterday. However, it took 2 hours and 45 minutes from the time we got there to the time we left with food...NO JOKE..It was slower than frozen molasses.

NOTE added 3:46 p.m. I deleted some stuff here because I didnt' want to overhwlem you at all..and I didn't want to be disrespectful of my dad...

He did snap at me quite a bit while we are at the pantry.  Anyway, I won't go into more details...but just pray for my dad and I. Pray that I'll still love/respect him...because quite frankly right at this moment I wish I had my own place.  I feel like my heart is breaking and the argument we had yesterday still makes me cry.

Here's a close-up of some of the hydrangeas I photographed the other day :) :) :) Aren't they beautiful? Notice the two tones of blue and purple :) :)

There is good news to report.  I got a call from my old supervisor at Harry & David. I'll be going back to work on Monday...That whole week will be devoted to retraining and learning some new improvements to the computer system.  The department I used to work in was Outbound Telemarketing..and while not my choice of job, it was steady for the season and regular hours. That department was eliminated two years ago. When the new CEO came in, he brought it back, because he said it was an important part of the company...so I'll be back to my old job!!! It'll be great. It's supposed to last through December. That would be great because then I can get my last two medical bills payed in full...and then the only debt left to pay is my student loans from college.. :) :) Yeah...one more step closer to being completely debt FREE :) :) Pray that it goes well!!!

WELCOME TO: Doni of Faith, Grace and Crafts. She's a new follower to my blog. Click here to see all the lovely things she has. I was really delighted over all the cool vintage items, crafts, Victoriana...it really has it all :) :) I think you'll like her blog.

I also have another follower...but you didn't leave your name :( :( As soon as I find it out, I'll update this post ;) :) :) THanks for joining my blog. I hope you have a great week!!!

My heart is heavy and happy at the same time!!! That's just life sometimes... :) :) Thanks for stopping by to visit me..and sorry if this post is a little "darker" than usual...that's not my norm...but I just really need some extra prayer today :) :) That's the news from Oregon. Love and hugs, Heather :)

My Fourth Tea Time Tuesday and Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday for August 3rd, 2010.

I'm just playing around with making collages and I think I used one too many photos here. What do you think about this as a possible new header for my blog? Let me know what you think!!!! I can also make it black/white with a hint of color...I think I'll play around with this for awhile :) :) :)  Feel free to borrow this photo. Please link it back to my blog :) :) Thank you!!!!

Hi everyone, I can't wait to share a couple tea things with you. Actually, there's one item that I'm not sure if it's used for tea or something else...so you will have to help me out.

Oh first things first...my friend Miss Antoinette over at Practical Simplicity Photography made me a really nice blog button. If you feel led to post it on your blog sidebars, I would love that!!! Click here to visit her blog site :) :) :) She takes awesome photos!!!! Thanks Miss Antoinette for the lovely gift. What a blessing!!! You are such a sweet friend!!! Thanks bunches!!!!

This first photo is a teapot I found at one of the thrift shops that I frequent. It was super cheap...as I'm into buying super cheap, but also super cute items these days :) :) This is a Harry & David limited edition teapot. I didn't photograph the backstamp because it was on a piece of plastic. Harry & David is the company I work for when I'm in the holiday season....:) :)



By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures. ~ Proverbs 24:3-4

I came across that Scripture today while I was flipping through Emilie Barnes' book "Welcome Home" It is chock FULL of ideas for making each room of the house a lovely place to be ;) :) She also has tons of teacups and tea things everywhere!!!! Click here if you'd like to visit her website :) :)

I think the teapot is cute and it actually is functional, too!!! Now, I don't know if this is really truly a "limited edition" or if another company somewhere has the same teapot. However, one thing I can tell you is that Harry & David has not sold things like this in YEARS...They are primarily a luxury fruit gift company..so it does make this teapot a bit rare :) :)

Now the next photo, I'm not real sure about. I believe I found these at the same thrift shop.  I thought it was a miniature pitcher and bowl used for tea..Remember, I'm still new at this tea thing :) :) :)...so I bought it and took it home. The cashier gave me half off on this set ..I think I ended up paying $1.99. There was also a matching mini-bathtub which I did NOT buy..so I took it home. I LOVE it..I love the roses design. It's perfect and fits me to a "t"...Now that I think about it, I'm not sure what these were originally used for. Can any of you help me out here?


There is no backstamp on either item.


This is what I'm currently using this pitcher for...and you'll see how small it truly is!!! At the moment it's a lovely container for my antique silver spoons,....which were purchased at a yard sale :) :) That's no surprise for this lady :) :) :) Does anyone have a good recipe for cleaning/polishing silver?

My friend Stephanie from California came to visit me today. She's going on vacation to Seattle, Washington.  Stephanie and I went to the same public high school together. When my dad lost his job in June 1991, we moved to Oregon. It's been that long since we've seen each other. Of course, we've kept in touch over the years.  Today she was able to stop by for a precious hour and we were able to chat and catch up :) :) :) We also had some coffee at Starbucks.  Stephanie brought her two super cute dogs with her...and that was fun..I love dogs!!!

In any case, I had a really great morning...and I have to say that Stephanie and I both have aged beautifully :) :) :) I'll post a picture, but I want to ask her if it's okay first!!!

WELCOME TO: Valrie of Poems My Way.  Click here to pay her a visit.  She's a really sweet lady who has  a son serving in the Marines in Afghanistan. Please pray for his safety..and for all of our loved ones in uniform!!!

WELCOME TO: Linda of Simple Blessings :) :) Click here to visit her. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better :)

I've been thinking of switching my font to "Papyrus" If you go over to Regan Family Farm you can see what it looks like there. I really like it a lot. What do you think about me switching my font? 

This photo belongs to Prairie Flower Farm AND Peace Creek Collections. Please click on the links in the paragraph below or on my sidebar to visit those sites. This item is super cute!!!!

This is cool. I just had to sneek this in here. My friend Linda of Prairie Flower Farm also makes and sells super cute patterns that are available for purchase. The latest one is a Buddy Bear Snuggy pattern available for download in PDF format. You can also purchase a ready-made version too. Click here to check it out. It really is super sweet :) :) :) Or you can click on the Peace Creek Collections Store button on my sidebar ;) :) :) Linda is a really sweet lady with super cute things :)

Thanks for stopping by for tea and a visit with me :) :) :) Have a great week everyone!!! I'll be praying for all of you this week!!! That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)