Go Ahead....Laugh!

Happy (belated) Easter, dear friends! I hope your day was filled with all God's blessings, sunshine & chocolate! The kids and I spent a wonderful day with my brother and his family, in Trumbull. The added bonus was that we were joined by my best (guy) friend, Glenn who always adds a bit of spunk to a social gathering. Lots of laughter, love & food...which always tastes better when someone else is doing the cooking. Thank you to my wonderful sister-in-law for playing hostess...yet again. It's her fault for having such a welcoming home.

The weather was absolutely picture perfect. Segue coming....the things I am compelled to photograph are silly & strange. Yes, I did take some pictures of the kids enjoying their Easter egg hunt and the adults chatting before the feast, but those are fairly unimaginative. What truly captured my attention was a patch of funky green & red moss that was growing on the side of my brother's little fish pond. (I would have photographed the fish, but my brother was pretty sure they'd all perished). What would have been really entertaining is if someone had thought to take a picture of me, taking a picture of the moss! There I am, dressed in my Easter finest (flowing floral skirt, pale yellow top, strappy sandals)...sprawled out in the grass, hiney sticking up...trying to get just the right angle. I could here murmurs of a scheme to push me in, coming from somewhere behind me, but I was on a mission. Fortunately, I did manage to capture a few images before the "Let's push her in the fish pond" plan came to fruition. I also managed to take a few pictures of flowers and such, but they weren't nearly as captivating as that spot of moss!

Easter Swap Goodies!

I was absolutely THRILLED when my name was chosen as one of Monica's Easter swap partners and had such fun putting together a basket of goodies for her. The postal transit time between CT and Italy pushes my patience to the limit, but when her package arrived at my doorstep, it was well worth the wait! Her wrapping job is so beautiful that one is tempted to hold off on opening each package. I may have been tempted, but I am not stupid :-) Inside were such beautiful, carefully selected treasures...all lovingly made by my thoughtful and very talented friend! I started the unveiling with the wonderful Easter card, in which Monica gave me a bit of background information on several of the presents. I was in tears before I even removed a single bow on the packages. Monica, by the way, ties bows that would have Houdini struggling to get through...adds to the anticipation! Prior to taking pictures, this time, I chose the perfect spot for each item. The only exception is the adorable bunny she made, who is sitting in a metal basket that hangs from my kitchen window. I couldn't get the lighting right, so I plopped her on my comfy bed pillows for the photo session. The little, handpainted bell and trinket box have joined another bell, from Monica, on my dresser. The "Wish" bunnies are nestled in their egg, hanging on the curtain rod, in my bedroom. The nest, which Monica found in her garden...and is my absolute favorite...is...where else? In the vintage birdcage I have in my living room. Once again, Monica, you demonstrate an uncanny ability to select the perfect gift. The morning the package arrived, I had been playing around with different items to put inside the cage: silk flowers, different types of greenery, candles, baubles & buttons, ribbons & lace. I got slightly frustrated with cage renovations and decided to leave it empty until I could find something that worked. I laughed so hard when I opened the bird's nest...utter perfection. I'm sure I've forgotten something....ohhhhhhh, the soap cone: a fun, whimsical cone filled with springy soaps...such fun! I love, love, love everything and am so very grateful for the friendship that has evolved all because of this fantastic forum. What an amazing thing it is to come together, in this "vast" arena (special smiles for you, Monica) and make such true friends!

Pink Saturday

I hope Beverly, at How Sweet the Sound, doesn't mind terribly that I'm "joining" her Pink Saturday extravaganza...in a roundabout way. Anyone who has been following my blog knows that this week has been insane for me. I never got a chance to sign up, with Beverly, properly, but felt the need to add my two pink cents. I will sign up for next week, to make it official.
In between tedious chores & trying to keep my mind off my puppy's surgery yesterday, I did squeeze in a few little projects...and they just happen to fit Pink Saturday. I decided the "wart eggs" (as my son aptly named them) were just not going to beautify, no matter what I did to them. Into the garbage they went and I started over.
"Simple, simple, simple", I kept reminding myself. I painted some blown-out eggs the lightest pink, then added a touch of shimmer with some glass sparkle. I plopped them in a ceramic bowl, added a few millinery flowers and that's the end of that!
It never dawned on me that I could change my sweet teddy bear's attire and the blue frock she has always worn was looking a bit off in my pink & white bedroom. I dug through some of my daughter's old baby clothes and found an adorable ensemble that now matches my bedding. Two minutes of creating a new hairbow and I think she's looking like a whole new girl!
My last show & tell required no work, at all. It is my collection of silver & crystal do-dads that sits on my dresser. The pretty pink & gold rose is one from my good friend, Monica, and is the perfect compliment to the other trinkets...don't you agree?

Leftover Coffee is My Friend

First and foremost, thank you ALL for the prayers and support r.e. my dad's health issues. It has helped more than you can imagine! I have a tendency, when life throws me a challenge, to keep a smile on my face so as not to burden others with my problems. The result is, I leave myself running around in my own head: which is one playground I should not be hanging out at, without a chaperone! A very wise friend often says: "A problem shared, is a problem halved". So true! Okay, back to coffee. Heidi has me on a roll with coffee left-over projects. While I was cleaning out my basement, last weekend, I came across boxes & boxes of blown eggs. I called my landlord to see if he wanted them for his kids (Easter projects). He laughed and told me his late Aunt Peg, in whose home I am living, would spend hours blowing out eggs from the farm, but (to his knowledge) she never did anything with them. Since my landlord still has easy access to all of the eggs he could ever use, courtesy of his 100+ chickens, he advised me to "toss them...they've probably been sitting down there for the last 15 years". Toss them, indeed! Into a bowl they went, with my left-over coffee (I really didn't need any more caffeine anyway) and they're now having a lovely bath du cafe! Because of their age, I think, some of them are turning a yummy speckled caramel, while others are transforming with a marbled pattern. I just love this kind of fun, (virtually) free project! I'd love to hear if you have any other uses for left-over coffee or similar projects!