Brimfield goodies

A friend of mine gently reminded me that I hadn't shared any of my goodies from Brimfield....here you go Heather. My favorite find of the day and 1st purchase...a big wooden letter S. Here it sits in its new home on our mantle. Not everyone gets it, a couple of people have told me they think it is weird.I love it...S for the Simmons family!

these are just some of the pretty beads I scooped up. They were dirt cheap & I have big plans for them...necklace with multi strand and bracelt/earrings with teal strands.

I also bought a long recipe box of dove-tailed wood (love it), more beads, ribbon, trims, an embroidered pillowcase and an embroidered tablecloth. I'll try to remeber to take pictures of those soon.

flowering goodness

I had a few minutes in between rain showers yesterday to snap some photos in the gardens....this is a beautiful white lilac planted next to our house...

Purple petunias I planted in pots all around the house....love the deep purple centers...

the last tulip of its kind (poor baby) that I planted the year we built the house. I love tulips but hate that they don't last very many years. I'm a lazy gardener; if I plant something I want it to last forever :-)

happy Anniversary!!!

Patrick & I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary last week...well, it fell on Memorial Day this year so we haven't actually celebrated yet :-) Our parents all gave us cards and we received a Royal River Grillhouse gift certificate....the spot of our 1st date back in Jan of 2000. I love you babe!

sad puppy

After spending ALL day outside yesterday, swimming in the river, chasing tennis balls & lounging in the grass, poor Murphy is feeling a bit cooped up. I'm cleaning up in my scraproom and getting work done....this is Murph in the doorway of that room looking sad.

t-ball glory

this is my wonderful niece, Katie (I'm pretty lucky...I have a great bunch of neices and nephews!). We braved the cold windy yesterday & had our own Simmons cheering section at her t-ball game last night. Honestly, watching 6 yr olds play baseball has its own entertainment value. We were so impressed with Katie, as she was one of the few girls actually paying attention during the game.....one of the outfielders amused me by twirling in circles than sitting on the ground :-)

painting .otherwise known as the project that keeps on giving

So, the painting project is 99% done. Just need to touch up a few spot where I went a bit wild with the paint. I ended up doing 2 coats of grren on the walls (think Kermit the Frog) and 2 coats of white on the trim....and now realize I should do the ceiling too...later this summer if I still feel the urge. Still putting the room back together and need to add our blue headboad we received for Christmas. I'll post pics when it is complete. So happy to love our bedroom....used to be the ugliest room in the house and now I wake up each morning and smile at out cheery room.

quilt progress

I am happy to be making steady progress on my latest quilt. I machine-quilted for the 1st time....and was really happy with the results. Now, I need to do the binding...the part I'm looking forward to the least! But, I am dying to get that quilt on the back of my couch so I'd better get crackin'! I also have about 8 sewing projects planned so I have to keep moving on.

Brimfield madness

We had a blast on our roadtrip to Brimfield. A leisurley drive down with stops at a couple of scrap/stamp stores was just what the doctor ordered. After a gut-stretching dinner at Olive Garden (seriously on a WW points vacation too!) we settled in for early bedtime b/c we wanted to hit the show early....well, I was deterred by the "Biggest Loser" finale until 11pm. The next day, we were walking the show by 7am! To say there were a ton of vendors is an understatement. We shopped for a steady 7-8 hrs and didn't even hit half of the show. Man, I was glad i brought my Crocs for the drive home...my dogs were seriously barking.

A very cool booth of buttons, beads, trims, etc....we all loved it but the prices were outrageous....no one bought from this one.

Catherine & Karen posing at the beginning of the mile stretch of road full of fields and vendors...they're smiling b/c it is just the beginning!

All of the cool stuff we bought in the back of my car...

Visiting a scrap/stamp store in Mass...sorry your head is cut in half, Karen...hopefully you got a better shot.

I'll post pics of the cool goodies I brought home..need to clean them all up today.

thank you's

a few thank you notes I whipped up out of scraps I had on my desk from my last card project (I actually finished the Easter cards I started 2 months ago....I'll be saving them now for next year :-) I had a wonderful b-day a few weeks ago & my Mother's voice reminding me to send thank you notes was ringing in my ears.....

flowers are blooming

my tulips are blooming, undeterred by the torrential rains we had last week.....love 'em!

roadtrip

I'm off to Brimfield,MA to explore the HUGE antique show they have going on all week. Driving down with friends, Catheine & Karen, and hoping to make a few stops at scrapbook stores along the way :-) Spending the night and at the shows early...they actually open the fields at dawn, but I'm not seeing us be that crazy. I'll be sure to post pictures & give you the scoop when I get back!

Happy Mother's Day!

I was lucky enough to spend the day with my Mom today. We talked about future Disney trip, baby/adoption updates, and just enjoyed the day. I made her dinner & these yummy molasses cookies....her recipe is MUCH better though so I'm switching to that one from now on!

I'm pretty lucky to have such a great husband & 2 adorable doggies that call me Mama.....they gave me a card and a gift certificate for a massage at my favorite spa. Yep, I'm a lucky gal.

Hope you all had a wonderful day being a Mom, celebrating your Mom, or having a relaxing Sunday.

my backyard

just a few photos from my backyard when I was in a photographing mood. This hug granite ledge raises our house above the river.

a mourning dove during her afternoon snack at our birdfeeders.

one of the waterfalls....

and the other waterfall. I have to say, I truly love our backyard!

garden blooms

I am determined to take photos of all of my flowers this year....I'll share some of my favorites along the way....the above photo are grape muscari and a vinca vine that grows throughout my front gardens.

the last tulip left of its kind....I hate that they die off after 5 yrs or so, especially since I loved this kind so much.

my new clematis, planted at the base of one of my rose bushes, hoping it will climb the trellis and bloom all summer.

some craft room favorites

I've been asked from time to time what my craft room looks like. hough it is ever-changing, some parts remain the same....I 'll post some pics today and some at a later date. My row of ribbon jars is always growing. I LOVE ribbon & use it on almost everything.

I have 2 of these wire displays on the walls. Some of my favorite pieces of art, inspiration, and generally things I love.

A newer addittion to the room....a bookcase to hold the evolving collection of fabric & sewing books. Yes, I have yet another obsession. This bookcase has followed me since holding my books as a kid & probably has 10 coats of paint on it :-)

more pics later of my desk, sewing table & more

tulip season

I love this photo of tulip fields in Holland! Look at the rows of gorgeous flowers....

my pups

Patrick is still recovering from his surgery, so all of my household chores have fallen by the wayside. While he slept yesterday, I took the opportunity to hang some laundry on my clothesline and the dogs sunned themselves on the deck. Oscar (top pic) and Murphy (bottom pic) both have their moments when I would happily pass them off to the 1st bidder (ex. Oscar covered head to toe in dead-fish-smelling beach mud).......but they always have a way of knowing when their mom needs some comfort and love :-) Gotta love my boys.

a quilting-fiend

I've been a quilting fiend lately....started with this quilt for our couch in the LVroom, but I joined a Quilt Shop Hop & now have fabric stockpiled for numerous future projects.
I'm now machine quilting this quilt...loving the bright colors...its my 1st time actually doing the quilting part. Note to self....do not a)quilt while tired and being distracted by Biggest Loser and b)try to move the fabric directly under the furiously jabbing needle :-) enough said