Pony Rides and Rambling 12/4/2013

I invite you to visit my pinterest to see all the beautiful rooms, gardens and eye candy I put on there. I now have 12,870 images and 10,030 followers. It really is quite delightful to visit there. I have absolutely nothing to gain by pinning or doing it, just the love of seeing gorgeous images and to dream. I just love looking at beautiful things as I'm very visual.
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As Alexandra Stoddard once stated in a pamphlet, "No one should deprive themselves of the joy of color because color choices, unlike most choices, aren't a matter of money. You are free to select the colors that put a smile on your face and edit out the rest. Living with refreshing, life-enhancing colors in your room, in the clothes you wear as well as the paraphernalia in your handbag and and the accessories on your desk can do wonders to your spirit. Color to me is one of the gifts of grace that is ours to select and a tool to help us live beautifully."
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My sweet little 3 1/2 year old great granddaughter is now doing something I taught her. When she meets someone, she is to shake their hand and say, "I'm dazzled to meet you." She picked that up real fast and people are astounded how well-mannered she is. That is NOT to say she's perfect because that little chick is a pip, trust me! She also was treated to a very nice surprise from a friend of mine who lives in Mt. Home, Idaho. She arranged for Caroline and Juliette (1 year old great granddaughter) to have a ride in a pony cart last week. Caroline loved it! She was in a cart that held 3 people and then she got to actually ride the pony. She had the most excited expression on her face and talked about it all night. When we got home Caroline told her mother: "I had a great adventure tonight, mummy."

A sweet red bathroom. It looks tiny but still has space for a cupboard. See what you can do with small spaces? They don't have to be ugly and frumpy. They can definitely be gorgeous.

I don't think there's anything more enticing than ice cream with cherries or strawberries on top. I remember years ago eating them at our local drug store in Norfolk, VA. and having a Coke with it. Those were definitely th' days: drug stores with counters for shakes and even sandwiches.

I just loved this entrance with the curving of the door, the mailbox right outside and a bench to sit on. Gorgeous.

Snow coming soon. I can't wait. I wish it would snow a lot this season. I love snow and it gives me an excuse to stay home and be a slug!

Cute potting room. Maybe it's part greenhouse also. Just look at all those vegetables.

You do know I love sparkly bottles, right? Well, this owner has outdone herself. Beautiful!

Love the lace garment with ribbon/fabric flowers decked across a French wicker chair.

One of many colorful buildings in a foreign country. Looks to be like Italy or France.

A stunning dining room.

And a stunning kitchen. I love a white kitchen. Have you seen the new ranges/ovens that you can put in 3 big cookie sheets? I just saw one the other day in Sunset magazine and lusted for a bit. Just a bit though. Because if I had it I'd have to cook/bake more and that ain't happening!

I could live with this little beauty, but at the moment I'm very happy with the little footstools I've made over with duck cloth. Plus I saved a lot of money doing what I did.

Hold me back!!!! I love chocolate on chocolate on chocolate.

This is one of the styles of furniture I love. Isn't it gorgeous?

This looks like it's cordoned off so I'm guessing it's a display somewhere. But it is beautiful and I'd love having it in my home.

Now, I have to admit that this little beauty and this setting would definitely entice me to go camping. I shan't mention it to Love Bunny or he just might try to go out and find one so I'll camp with him again. But this is a beautiful dinner setting for a trailer.

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Just Jabberin' Today 11/19/2013

This is my laundry room just above the washer and dryer. For years I used a large box of Tide with a handle on top and one on the side to pull it down to use when I'm doing laundry. Well, I've had to tape it with very strong duct tape to hold it together as it's getting a bit flimsy. So I tried a pretty box that was strong to put my detergent in. After a while I thought it might break the small metal handle. So I looked around the internet and found this metal one at Pottery Barn for $29 and hubs said to go ahead and get it since I just couldn't make up my mind. So here it is and it may get painted white and decals put on it. We'll see. But it fits there perfectly at 8" X 8" square, very strong and not so tall that it wouldn't fit in there. Score!!! I love it; however, I didn't throw away the old Tide box. Why do they change styles on things that we love and worked for us? I don't think a mother/woman/executive would design like men are doing now. No, I am not a feminist but women do have a different view as to what works for woman who are homemakers. I absolutely love being home all the time.

Okay, this is my very first foray into buying Cath Kidston. Squeeeeallll!!! I've always loved her style but especially her dishes. So recently with a coupon and free shipping I bought these 4 gorgeous little bowls...

and these 3 cups. Hubby has his own favorite mug to drink hot chocolate out of so I just got three for me. I'm telling you they are simply gorgeous in person. These are called Stanley mugs and are much bigger than one of our "regular" mugs here in the U.S. They had a Crush mug but it was a bit smaller I think and a bit different in its shape. But I chose these Stanley mugs and love displaying them in my kitchen.

I really do like the look of some French things around my house, but I'm not one to go all-white. I love pink and that's what color my home is. I just couldn't have all white as I'd find it too boring. I love color! So after making over those little foot stools with drop cloth fabric (see that post here), I'm also going to make a pillow or two for some chairs. I have so many beautiful pillows I've bought over the years and hate to get rid of them but it might just have to happen. Granddaughter will have first choice when she's here for Thanksgiving and then the rest might go on eBay. Many are feather-filled pillows. Some are beautiful European prints. All are gorgeous. If any of you are interested, send me an email and I'll take pictures of all of them and you can make your choice. I'm not going to bother putting them all on here. I'll just take some pictures and keep them for any inquiries, but I doubt you'll be disappointed in any of them.

I actually love the look of things like this out in the open. I don't have a large kitchen, in fact, it's small, just the size for senior citizens (that's old people to some of you) and people who don't like cooking everyday and love eating out (that's ME!). I don't have enough space in my kitchen to do this, but I have vases and beautiful pitchers holding kitchen utensils in my kitchen.

What a delightfully colored chandelier.

I like the look of this mosaic table but I'd paint it white. I do love white furniture.

Another squeeeeeallll! Isn't this adorable? I saw it on the internet and have no idea who did it but I'd love to have one to hang on my porch.

See what you can do with a plain ol' chest! Jazz it up with stencils. I find it darling.

Now this? Ooooohmygosh. Of course, I love Christie Repasy's art but she outdid herself with this little gem. I'd love to have it but I'm not willing to pay high prices this probably got. My hubby would probably faint if I spent money on something that looks like it's falling apart. He just doesn't get it and never will. ;-)

I'm going to make one of these to hold...something, just haven't figured out what. But if it turns out cute then I'll make one for a giveaway. Wouldn't you like something this cute to hang in your laundry room? I already have 3 darling ones I made hanging in mine but there's always room for a few others. :-)

Yes, I also like these little baskets but I don't have room for a lot of "fluff" around here. I would dearly love to have one though as I'm very visual and just looking at gorgeous things makes my heart flutter and my eyes glaze over.

I'm old enough to remember these drying frames and love seeing my whites hanging on a line drying. The sun actually bleaches them naturally for you and just seeing them out there brings back memories to me. I recently found some indoor drying racks on a pulley system in the UK but they were several hundred dollars and that ain't gonna fly with this chick! They were really nice looking and would be great to have for winter time and if you didn't have a dryer.

I'm not this organized but I love looking at it. I rarely give gifts so I don't wrap a lot of things. But when I do wrap it's on the kitchen table. I hate wrapping packages. I really do.

And I love looking at white linens. That reminds me that I need some new sheets. I have some Lily Pulitzer pink patterned ones and I love them but apparently she isn't selling sheets anymore as I cannot find any. I also love very high thread count sheets and will only sleep on great sheets. I feel the difference actually. My daughter bought 600 count sheets just for her spare bedroom for when we visit. She was taught well by her mother! That would be ME!

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Some Friends Returned from Zimbabwe

We had some friends who had recently returned from a mission in Zimbabwe over for dinner a few nights ago. He brought his computer with a slideshow of their mission for us to see. They loved their mission of 18 months, but said it was definitely time to come home. They did, however, go on a couple of safaris and loved that. They also dearly loved the people of that country. It was quite an experience though.

All the senior couple missionaries lived in a small area with tiny houses close together and were warned to not travel alone, to try and always travel with other couples. The doors and all the windows had bars on them with locks. They were told by their Mission President to be sure and keep them locked at all times unless coming or going. They also had their generator fenced and locked as it would have been stolen immediately. The car also was kept in a locked garage. They were told to never leave anything in the car, whether locked or unlocked. They didn't but one couple locked their computer in their car and it was stolen immediately. The country is very, very poor. Nothing like what we experience in this country. Even the poorest here have more than the poor over there. It's very sad, but they are a happy people in spite of it. They even told us of a village called Landfill People. Yep, it was in a garbage dump. People actually lived there in cardboard boxes right among the trash around them. It was certainly heart rending to see that kind of existence.

But two things happened that turned out to be miracles.

The first one was Thanksgiving and the senior missionary couples fixed dinner for about 100 young missionaries. They wanted to have gravy and someone made it in their home. When Connie (our friends are Connie and Paul) looked in the pot that was about 10-12" tall and not big around, she saw about a third of that pot was full. Well, there was no way that was going to feed 100 missionaries who wanted gravy on their turkey and mashed potatoes. Connie prayed quickly with a lot of hope. When all the missionaries and everyone else finished going through the buffet line, she looked into the pot and there were about 2 or 3 cups left! She said there was no way humanly possible for that to have happened. She was in shock. And all the diners partook of the gravy liberally!

Then another time they were to hand out 300 loaves of bread in the back of their truck to the people. When they saw the long, long line of people wanting bread, Connie told Paul there was no way they would be able to have enough bread for them all. She again agonized on what they would do. Another woman told her to just start handing them out to each person in line and when it was gone, it was gone. Nothing they could do. Again, she prayed. When the end of the line came, and it was a very long line estimated to be about 500, she looked in the back of the truck and there were 5 loaves of bread in there. She was astounded. I think I would have been also, but I do know prayer works.
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What can I say about this dining room? Gorgeous and perfect for the lovers of French style.

I just like the colors and style of the plates. Just a gorgeous setting.

I love this color of aqua or verdigris. Stunning.

A lively vignette with all kinds of color.

Another beautiful setting for an intimate dinner with friends.

This pretty house just struck me as very friendly with the lights glowing from within.

I don't think I've ever seen a chair like this but I'd sure love to find some.

The chairs at the table are exactly like mine with the chair covers over them. Of course, I do love that huge island and its magnificent color.

A cute bunch of flowers brought in from the garden.

While the headboard is very unusual, it still strikes a nice decorating note in this bedroom.

Such a teensy cute kitchen.

Lots of candy colors here.

If only I had this many chandeliers to hand in my windows!

Some beautiful handmade crafts. Darling!

I also display all my aprons in my kitchen. I actually use them also.

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Tidbit:

Opportunity is missed by most people because it comes dressed in overalls and looks like work.
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A Question I Asked Hubby

When my granddaughter was here in March, I had her try on my wedding dress. I just wanted to see if it would fit or, truthfully, see how much larger than her I was as a bride. She's normally a size 2, but is probably a 4 right now because of the pregnancy but she gets weight off so easily I could scream. Ain't so with her grandma! Anyway, it wouldn't even zip up past her hips. Talk about depressing. I thought I'd cry since I was smaller than her when I got married. She's always been tiny even at 5' 4 1/2" tall, exactly like me. My daughter, her mother, is 5' 11" tall. I am the shortest one of our family. Granddaughter is also endowed with the family chest. We all have more than is wanted in that department. Just our heritage as my mother, all my aunts, my maternal grandmother and most of my cousins are well-endowed in that area. Why is it that all of us who have it don't want it and others who don't have it want more? A friend of mine is small and would like a bit more, but I'm always telling her: No, you don't. You really don't.

But that brought me to asking hubby about it. I said, "As a man, why do all of you look at the chests at women?" He, being a man, should know. His very serious answer? "We're hard-wired." I nearly fell over laughing. He's so honest about it. He looks at women just like any other man. I doubt most women are that concerned about the size of their chests.

Oh, and granddaughter? She eats like a horse. I mean she packs it away. Candy? Loves it! Pie, cake, ice cream? Eats it often. Always has to have dessert when we go out to eat. And just like me, if I bake a pie or cake for a special occasion, I have to eat some as soon as it cools from the oven. Drives my hubby nuts. That happened at Thanksgiving at her house. I baked the pie the day before and she and I had some. Hubby just glared at us both. She's so like me, more than her mother really. She just never seems to get fat. Life is not fair!
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A beautiful clearing in a yard for this dining setting and torches walkway, lots of plants and a building with a canvas top. Perfect for warm evening dinners.

Looks like a large kitchen in the mountains if looking through that far window. It looks like snow covered mountains back there. But it is a huge kitchen.

This must be a very northern European country photo of a living room. You get such marvelous light in that part of the world and simple lines of furniture with bright coverings for the furniture.

Another way to store your bedding and laces. Charming.

A sweet setting of flowers on a charming table.

What a tub to bathe in. Lots of room around for setting soaps, towels, bottles of scents and perfumes, and candles.

Another beautiful purple decorated bottle.

Aren't these cute?! A really fun way to jazz up your paper clips.

Has to be in Europe somewhere. Beautiful lavender and periwinkle wisteria.

A door to an old cottage with a purple door, knocker, mail slot and a #10 on its door.

It took a brave person to paint her gate this color, a woman with vision I think. Just beautiful!!!!

Another compact kitchen but elegantly appointed with essentials.

A bed or sofa to dream in with a canopy overhead and done in relaxing white with 2 splashy throw pillows for color.

I. Want. This. Purse! It's the cutest thing I've seen in  froufrou bags.

I'm still working on my 2 French cane chairs. Maybe soon I'll have them all done and can show them to you.

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Tidbit:

Spam filters that catch the cord "Cialis" will not allow many work-related emails through because that word is embedded inside the word "specialist."
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