BARGAIN HUNTING (and chatting) WITH LAURIE

A HEARTFELT POST

2012-01-29T19:20:00.001-06:00

Those hearts on the backs of the chairs are made of felt, so that makes this a “heartfelt” post. (It’s hard coming up with post titles, so there are no limits to what I might resort to when I title my posts!) Since I only have six of the heart-shaped plates (from Target several years ago), I used these patterned plates for the the place setting on each end of the table (can’t recall where

OH, THE THINGS I COULD ACCOMPLISH

2012-01-24T17:16:00.002-06:00

Oh, the things I could accomplish if I’d get off of Pinterest. I just see SO many good ideas on there. I have to check in often, so I won’t miss anything. Howevah, I’ve been pinning all of these ideas to my boards – you know, things I thought I might do in my house, but I just couldn’t pull myself away from Pinterest long enough to try any of the ideas I was pinning! The other day, I said, “

LOVE GROWS ON TREES!

2012-01-19T18:54:00.003-06:00

Well, at my house, love is growing on trees. I’ll admit, I’m using a very broad interpretation of the word,“tree”, in this post.The trees of love on my mantel have been planted in champagne buckets.Trees of love are growing out of table tops.One even sprouts from the fireplace hearth.They are growing out of cones on my doors.To prove how broad my definition of “tree” is, I’m even counting this

EVENING IN PARIS

2012-01-14T22:03:00.002-06:00

I told my sweetheart I wanted to go to the City of “Luv”, for Valentine’s Day. His loud and long laughter led me to believe I would not be going to Paris, sooo, what’s a girl (I use that word very loosely) to do? Create an Evening in Paris tablescape, of course. Now I’m not sayin’ that a tablescape can replace a trip to Paris, but I did have fun doing it, and the grands said it was the best

OOPS! VALENTINE PARTY

2012-01-09T09:04:00.002-06:00

Oops! I am late sending out my invitation! When Kathleen at Cuisine Kathleen and Debbie at Mountain Breaths inquired about whether or not I was going to have a Valentine party this year, I realized that Valentine’s Day was rapidly approaching. How kind of you two to think of my party, and how glad I am that you reminded me that I need to get with the program! I’d love for all of you to help

SILVER AND GOLD

2012-01-01T23:30:00.003-06:00

“Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.”As we begin the new year, I am reflecting – in my mind and heart as well as on my table. (Get it? I used mirrors and silver and gold on the table – I know, I’m lame.)I’ve been blogging for more than three years! When I type those words, my mouth is wide open in shock. Who would ever have “thunk” it? Certainly not me! I

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2011-12-30T10:23:00.002-06:00

New Years is a wild and crazy holiday, so it’s the one time of the year that my wild and crazy decorating really fits in. I was so excited when I recently found a box of vintage party hats and noise makers at an estate sale. I purchased the box for $5, and most of the mess on my mantel came from that box.It’s still Christmas in the rest of my house. I’m waiting until Epiphany (or maybe later)

TELL ME IT ISN’T TRUE!

2011-12-26T09:44:00.002-06:00

There is a rumor going around that Christmas is over and Christmas trees, Santas, villages, and even nativities have to be put away for a year! Please tell me that is just a rumor. I just got all of this Christmas décor out. Please tell me I don’t have to start putting it all away! I know Santa ate all of the cookies we decorated (even though the icing and sprinkles were thicker than the

STILL AUDITIONING

2011-12-18T12:35:00.002-06:00

I’m still auditioning my house for the next Griswold Christmas movie. I apologize for the number of photos in this post, but if my house has a shot at getting this movie, the directors have to see the volume and all the glory tackiness of our Christmas décor. I also apologize for the photo quality. For some reason (I can’t imagine why), my camera battery began to die!Our Front Entry Hall:Our

NO, MY LAST NAME IS NOT GRISWOLD!

2011-12-11T19:33:00.002-06:00

They haven’t contacted me to use my home for the next Griswold’s Christmas movie, but I do think it would provide the perfect excessive and tacky Christmas décor. Some blog visitors have asked that I show close ups of my Santa collection. You had no idea what you were asking! Warning! There are a lot of pictures in this post! There is no escaping Santa’s watchful eye at my house. He greets

YIPPEE! THE TREES ARE DECORATED!

2011-12-05T08:33:00.002-06:00

Look who already stopped by to escape the noise of busy elves. S-h-h-h-h, he’s taking a little nap. (My sweetheart asked me if Santa was drunk!) Have you been to this site yet? You upload a photo of your Christmas tree, and you can pick from a large selection of Santa figures to put Santa into your photo. So much fun. Click here to go check it out. Thank you so much for taking

DEJA VU

2011-11-27T17:42:00.002-06:00

If you experience a little déjà vu as I post my Christmas décor, it’s because I don’t change it much from year-to-year. So, if you were visiting my blog last year, I apologize. There won’t be much difference in the photos you see this year! I have begun with the mantel. (I say “begun”, because although I put everything in the same place every year, I tweak all of it until Christmas Eve!) I

GETTING READY FOR THE GATHERING

2011-11-22T19:13:00.002-06:00

Some of you know that we host 30 family members in our home for Thanksgiving, so I’ve been doing a lot of preparin’ for the gatherin’, and I’m sharing some of my preparations on this post. Table for 10 in the family room. Table for 8 in the sunroom. I love using these Fall platters as chargers/placemats. Some of you may recall that I got them at an auction last year for $6.00 each.

BLESSED BEYOND MEASURE

2011-11-16T12:16:00.001-06:00

I am definitely giving thanks, even more than usual, this week. You see, last week was sort of a bad week for me, but thanks be to God, all is well that ends well, and this week is a great ending to last week’s traumas. It all started on Tuesday of last week when my 7 year-old grandson cut off the tip of his finger in the hinged side of an industrial door at school. The bone and nerves

THE PILGRIMS HAVE LANDED

2011-11-07T22:00:00.002-06:00

Of course, the pilgrims were met by the Indians. (Christine, there is the rest of my duck knife-rest set like yours.) And the Pilgrims and the Indians met a lot of turkeys (Of course, not many turkeys survived the meeting). And they discovered the bounty of the land. (Obviously, they discovered a time machine that allowed them a glimpse of the horse-drawn

FALLEN CLOCHES

2011-11-01T17:28:00.002-05:00

No, I don’t have any broken cloches to show you. I did break one recently, but I didn’t think about taking a picture of the glass pieces on the floor. Although I am no longer joining weekly memes, I still join Blogville parties, and I am happy to be linking the Fall Cloche Party at A Stroll Thru Life. Obviously, these aren’t cloches, but Marty is soooo kind and lenient about what qualifies

HELP! I’VE FALLEN…

2011-10-30T19:30:00.002-05:00

AND I CAN’T GET UP! Fall has definitely arrived at our house, and I can’t seem to stop. I’m afraid I may not get all of the Fall décor put away in time for Christmas! Some of you may remember that, since I am a wannabe crafter with two left hands, I purchased somebody else’s home-made placemats at an estate sale a couple of years ago. This is the underside of the placemat. I really

A HALLOWEEN PARTY FOR THE LITTLES

2011-10-27T20:57:00.002-05:00

I had a little Halloween party for my grandchildren. I was inspired by a box. When I ordered some dessert forks, I just couldn’t throw away the boxes without using them for something. (I know, I have a problem)So…I used photos of my grands in their Halloween costumes and turned the boxes into place cards for the party table.I should be ashamed to show you what else I haven’t thrown away

SPOOKY WORLD SERIES

2011-10-24T07:58:00.002-05:00

One reason I like baseball is that I can watch a baseball game and eat at the same time. If I get up to get a snack, while watching most sports, I inevitably miss the touchdown or the basket. While I’m stuffing my face, I hear everyone yelling and cheering, and I know that I missed another exciting play. But baseball gives me plenty of time to stuff my face snack and still catch most of the

WHO LET THE GHOSTS OUT?

2011-10-16T19:45:00.002-05:00

My friend, Susie, made this “BOO” banner. S-h-h-h-h. Don’t tell her I told you this, but the first time she made it, the banner read, “OOB”, but she quickly figured it out, and rearranged the letters! Susie also gave me this great Halloween pillow (yes, she’s a very generous friend), and I placed it on my “new-to-me” sofa, that I purchased at half price on the last day of an estate

BAD HAIR DAY

2011-10-11T19:34:00.002-05:00

If you’re having a bad hair day..Put a big hat on your head, or put a cat with a hat on your head, and..Go play with paper dolls, and..Get their Halloween costumes ready for trick-or-treat night,.. Because these little people don’t care what kind of hair style, hat, or cat you have on your head!Thank you so much for coming by to get my “professional” advice about what to do on those days when

THINGS GOT UGLY AT THE PARTY!

2011-10-02T12:50:00.002-05:00

When I left for work the other day, I accidentally left a window open. I came home to find a witch party in my house. They had flown in the window, stolen my brooms, and were all over the house.They even brought the musical group, Cool Cats, to play for their party!I guess this old hag has lost her broom-riding powers, so she rode in on a pig-powered cart! If I wanted to try their spread on a

HAPPY EIGHTH BIRTHDAY GRANDDAUGHTER

2011-09-26T08:08:00.002-05:00

One of my granddaughters is eight-years-old today. She will be having a birthday party with her friends later. Last night, we celebrated with a family dinner. I am sharing the children’s table from last night’s dinner. Reversible napkins (dots to stripes) from Tuesday Morning. I recently ordered this plastic stemware from One Kings Lane. The grands loved their

THERE’S A NIP IN THE AIR

2011-09-19T19:09:00.002-05:00

Must be time for Laurie to change her mantel décor again. Yep, if the temperatures change, so does my mantel (and sometimes even if the temperatures don’t change). It’s my favorite thing to change (no heavy lifting involved, and no husband wondering where his favorite chair has gone, but probably a few bloggers moaning “not again”). I just love seasons of abundance.

STILL IN A DAZE

2011-09-08T23:27:00.003-05:00

My back-to-school daze, which began with my mantel on my last post, continues with a tablescape on the “teacher’s desk” for a self-serve hors deserves party I hosted. (Photos taken before I filled the “cafeteria trays” with hors deserves.)Thanks so much for coming by for a visit. Hopefully, I won’t still be in a dazethe next time I post! Laurie

SCHOOL DAZE

2011-09-05T10:33:00.002-05:00

Yes, around our house, we are having School Daze. With our youngest beginning pre-K this year, all four of our grands are now in school, so we celebrated being in the daze of going back-to-school and starting school.When our youngest grand came by my office after her first day of Pre-K, I asked how her first day went. She said, “It was good, but I thought the teacher might talk about Ronald,

THE SKY IS FALLING...

2011-08-11T17:01:00.003-05:00

THE SKY IS FALLING, THE SKY IS FALLING! Yes, that's an exaggeration, but it is almost as bad. I've missed sweet Shelia's rooster party! So....I'm re-posting an old post, just so I can join the party. If you haven't seen all of the roosters around Blogville, be sure to go to Note Songs for the links. Thank you for hosting Shelia, and I apologize for being so tardy. Thanks to

CAPTURING SUMMER

2011-07-18T07:52:00.002-05:00

Yea! It’s a party! Although I’m not linking to weekly events anymore, I can’t pass up a party, so I’m linking this post to the Summer Cloche Party, hosted by the talented and sweet Marty at A Stroll Thru Life, . I’m so glad you came by for a visit. Don’t forget to go get links to see more Summer cloches at A Stroll Thru Life. Laurie

DREAMING OF SAND AND WAVES

2011-07-09T17:16:00.002-05:00

Thank you for stopping by to see my vacation on the mantel. Is this what is meant by a “staycation”? I can tell you right now, I’d rather BE there! Laurie

PATRIOTIC SOAPBOX

2011-07-07T21:54:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone in America had a wonderful 4th of July celebration. Please forgive me while I get on my soapbox and do some of that chatting that I advertise in my blog title. I especially apologize to visitors from other countries. Some of you realize that, in my job, I am often involved with the court system. My contacts with our American court system have taught me that it is far from

MORE CHEERS!

2011-06-30T13:34:00.004-05:00

CHEERS FOR THE RED WHITE AND BLUE

2011-06-27T07:54:00.002-05:00

Fresh tomatoes are one of my favorite red things. I couldn’t resist posting a picture of them, so I put them on a blue and white platter to fit the red, white, and blue theme of this post. Thank you for coming to see some of my red, white, and blue. I don’t know if I’ll post again this week, so in case I don’t, I want to wish each of you a SAFE AND HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

SPICY MINOR MEDICAL FIX

2011-06-20T07:07:00.002-05:00

The older I get, the more meds and the more vitamin supplements the doctors tell me to take. It’s a good thing I’m healthy. I’d hate to see how many pills they’d have me taking if I had a medical problem!I’ve been keeping my pill bottles in a round cardboard box for awhile. (I have to keep them all in one place, so that I won’t forget one~another indication of my age). In addition to not

The Chatting Segment of My Blog

2011-06-14T17:21:00.002-05:00

I would like to begin this post by thanking all of you who were so supportive and so kind when I took my recent blog break. Some of your comments brought tears to my eyes, and all of your comments made me feel so much love and encouragement. When I took that break, I wasn’t sure if I would return to blogging. In analyzing why I considered abandoning my blog, I realized that, for me to enjoy my

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER WEDDING!

2011-06-11T14:59:00.002-05:00

No, nobody is pregnant! I am just very late getting to Stephanie’s party at Angelic Accents. I hope she’s okay with “better late than never”.Stephanie, thank you for letting me link up so late and for hosting all of this wedding fun. Thank you to my visitors for staying late at the party! laurie

ARE Y’ALL STILL OUT THERE?

2011-06-07T17:23:00.002-05:00

I'’VE MISSED Y’ALL! ( What? ~ You hadn’t noticed I was gone?!! That’s okay. I wasn’t gone very long. It just felt like it to me.) Thank you for still being there AND ESPECIALLY for visiting here! laurie

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!

2011-05-30T08:25:00.002-05:00

WITH TEARS IN MY EYES

2011-05-15T13:12:00.002-05:00

For a long while, I have felt like I have run out of things to share on a blog. I am going to take a blog break. I feel pretty sure that it won’t take long for me to come running back to post something on my blog (since I’m not known for being able to stay quiet for very long), so I’m not going to shut down BH&CWL. I’m sure I will be visiting your blogs, because I love doing that, and I don’t

SIMPLE SPRING SMILES

2011-05-13T12:39:00.002-05:00

I don’t know about y’all, but when Blogger went down, I felt a little lost and disconnected! I did get a few things done around the house, but I kept feeling like there was something fun and exciting going on, and I couldn’t get connected to it! As the hours drug on, my imagination took over..what if Blogger never comes back; what did I do BB (before blogs); is this an attack by foreign powers to

STILL SPRINGING AT MY HOUSE

2011-05-10T19:32:00.005-05:00

Click on buttons to visit blogs that I am joining with this post. Thank you for visiting me. Please come back to link up for Favorite Things Saturday. The link up will be here on Friday. laurie

ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL

2011-05-05T17:47:00.016-05:00

This is a repeat of a post I did in August. Many of you have already read it. I do not expect you to re-read it. It is just what was on my heart today, and I wanted to re-publish it. I am linking to Sunday Favorites at Happy To Design.In my previously published post, I served tea with this story. Therefore, the post is accompanied by photos of my tea.Two little girls, ages two and three, huddled

BUTTERFLIES ARE STILL FLITTING AROUND IN MY BRAIN!

2011-05-04T18:05:00.002-05:00

That’s better than “Bats in the Belfry”, right? This past weekend, we celebrated the last of our April family birthdays. Our daughter and our son requested a Mexican dinner for their combined birthday celebrations. I served Taco Soup in the individual casseroles I bought at Trees, Trends and More last year. Following the soup, we ate tacos, tostados, refried beans and Mexican

INSPIRED BY THE LETTER “B”!

2011-05-02T19:05:00.002-05:00

When I took the Easter décor off my mantel, I had Birds, Butterflies, Blooms, and Bows on the Brain! (And you thought I didn’t have a brain! Yeah, declaring, in writing, that I have a brain is probably stretching again!) I didn’t really have blackouts on the brain, but we had one shortly after I got all of these b’s cluttering our mantel (due to the bad weather), so I lit

COMPETITIVE SPORT

2011-04-29T12:24:00.002-05:00

I hope you don’t mind visiting our Easter egg hunt. Thank you for coming to see my favorites today. Please go visit the links to other favorites. I promise you, there will be more interesting favorites than my grandchildren (and one extra extended family member- the basket eater). laurie

THE “CLUTTERIST” IS THRIVING!

2011-04-18T19:53:00.002-05:00

Y’all know that I am normally a “clutterist” (as opposed to minimalist). When we are celebrating a holiday, the clutterist in me gets a little carried away, because I just add holiday stuff to my already junky cluttered shelves! I’m linking this post to I hope my vintage postcards (which are hanging from a ribbon in front of my family room shelves) and my tacky vintage Easter

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2011-04-15T12:15:00.004-05:00

At our home, it is often difficult to tell what holiday we are celebrating. Maybe that’s why my nephew and his wife gave me this plate for Christmas one year. If you have been visiting my blog for very long, you know how much I love my Christmas trees. Well, it’s baaaack! This aluminum tree does not stay in my holiday closet for very long. It comes back out for a lot of different

THE PARTY MONTH ~ APRIL

2011-04-13T18:59:00.005-05:00

Michael Lee West and her husband came to our little town last night. They were both so nice and so much fun! I wish all of you could have come to meet them. I also wish I had not run out of time to take some photos of the table. Even though there wasn’t much to the table, if I had taken pictures of my pitiful table, I would have posted them for Tablescape Thursday. “Howevah”, I DID get a

FLEETING MINIMALIST PHASE!

2011-04-08T13:05:00.004-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I posted my fireplace mantel during my minimalist phase. I know you are not surprised that the minimalist phase was short-lived on my mantel, but it’s not my fault! The Tablescaper left a comment telling me to get out some Easter bunnies for my mantel. Well, those bunnies in my holiday closet must have read her comment, because some of my favorite bunnies started

IF I’D KNOWN THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW!

2011-04-04T20:57:00.001-05:00

When we remodeled this house, I had grand intentions for this built-in I had drawn on a piece of paper for our builder. I told him I wanted glass doors, so that I could beautifully display some of my favorite pieces of china. That china display lasted about a month after we moved in. As you can see, my collecting obsession hobby took over my plans for a beautiful display! I’ve considered

A very small METAMORPHOSIS

2011-04-03T23:11:00.001-05:00

When I bought these chairs at an estate sale years ago, I really didn’t have any problem with the fabric on the seats. It just didn’t seem to fit with the room. “Howevah”, I’ve lived with them that way for years. (Please excuse the dining table in the background ~ I was using it as my work table.) I really bought the chairs, because I loved the carving on the backs of them. I have

THRIFTIN’, VISITIN’ ‘N GIFTIN’

2011-04-01T08:11:00.002-05:00

I had a hard time posting favorites this week, because I’ve had a tough week. My beloved dog, Elsie, an English Setter, was hit by a car Tuesday evening. It was touch-and-go for a couple of days, but the vet told me Thursday that she is “out of the woods", and that she may be able to come home early next week. I haven’t slept well, and I haven’t been able to concentrate on much other than

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDSON!

2011-03-29T22:15:00.002-05:00

This past weekend, we celebrated our 7 year old grandson’s birthday. He loves color, so we had a VERY colorful tablescape. Have y’all seen these plastic bags/vases? This is how it looks before you fill it with water. After use, I just dump the water, let it dry a bit, and store it flat until I want to use it again. Who thinks up these things, and why can’t I

INSPIRE ME~PLEEEASE

2011-03-25T12:56:00.002-05:00

In my last post, I told you that I have nothing post-worthy. I may have lost my mojo (if I ever I had any); or I may have lost my muse (but she’s never really hung around me much anyway); I may have lost my nerve (I had very little to begin with); or I may just have Spring fever. Whatever the problem, the solution for me is to revert to my bad habit of stealing other bloggers’ mojo/muse/

DRIED UP OLD QUEEN!

2011-03-22T20:59:00.002-05:00

I’ve completely dried up! No ideas for blog posts. No ideas for crafts (as if I ever had any of those). No ideas for photos from my home. No ideas at all! HOWEVAH….. I do have some news. Recently, I became a queen! And I have proof! I was crowned Queen by Laura at Décor to Adore, when I linked to her wedding party. I earned the crown by posting bridesmaids dresses that were judged pitiful

SPRING NOTES

2011-03-18T12:31:00.003-05:00

I am linking this post to Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper. Thank you for looking through my Spring notebook with me. I loved getting out in our yard, finding blooming flowers, and snapping these photos. If it’s not already there, I hope Spring will be in your neighborhood soon. Please go visit other favorites shown in the links below. laurie

WANT TO KISS THE BLARNEY STONE?

2011-03-14T23:24:00.003-05:00

It’s here! It’s here! And I’m crawling, are you? Today’s the Blog Crawl at Cuisine Kathleen, and I’m so glad you crawled over to my blog! Dinner plates: Ascot by Wood & Sons, Alpine White Ironstone Grandchildren’s table Wait! I saw something moving in the grass! What was that? Look! It’s a little Leprechaun! Maybe he can lead us to the pot of gold! HE

CAPTURING SPRING FAVORITES

2011-03-10T20:26:00.003-06:00

Yea! It’s time for the Spring Cloche Party at Marty’s! “Favorite Things Saturday” is here early, so that I can link to Marty’s Spring Cloche Party. April showers bring May flowers. And a lot of my other Springtime favorites, like…. Birds chirping, Bunnies hopping, (Pretty little glittery houses purchased from Celestina Marie Designs Larearose Etsy) Trees

THROW ME SOME BEADS PLEASE!

2011-03-07T19:19:00.001-06:00

My family celebrated Mardi Gras early with a Jambalaya dinner served buffet style this weekend. Even the crockpot got into the spirit of Mardi Gras. I couldn’t serve a King cake with one baby doll inside, because I would have ended up with some sad grandchildren when all of them didn’t find a baby in the cake. So, I put a baby on top of each Mardi Gras cupcake. You are not going to

HAVE YOU FOUND A COPY YET?

2011-03-04T11:34:00.003-06:00

I have been anxiously awaiting the appearance of the new Flea Market Style magazine, because it is one of my favorite things. I was so excited to see it in my local drugstore recently. Do you have a copy yet? It is filled with fun ideas! (Photo from Flea Market Style magazine) I’ve already told you that, this month at my house, if it’s green, it’s Irish. So, with the addition of green

OH MY GOSH! SHE’S CHANGED IT AGAIN!

2011-03-01T23:10:00.001-06:00

Last week (yes, I just posted my mantel last week, and I’m doing it again!), Mary at Mary’s Meanderings left a comment saying she was sure that next week I would have St. Patrick’s Day décor on my mantel. Mary, you know me better than I know myself!! The French had taken up residence on my mantel last week, and this week the Irish have moved in! I’m thinking of putting a Statute of Liberty on

EVERYBODY IS A STAR

2011-02-27T09:23:00.008-06:00

This post was originally published last year. I am re-publishing it, so that I can join Sunday Favorites at Happy to Design and Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper. The Favorite Things post is below this one, and you can still link up for that. Please be sure to scroll down to read my exciting news in my Favorite Things post. We have an Oscar night dinner each year. I’m sure I’m the only person

I’M JUMPIN’ UP AND DOWN WITH EXCITEMENT!

2011-02-25T12:28:00.002-06:00

I don’t know what it measured on the Richter Scale, but I apologize if you thought we were having an earthquake. That was just me, jumping up and down with excitement about the news I’m going to share in this post. I’ll try to not cause any after shocks, but I’m not making any promises, because I am SO excited to share this news with you. One of my favorite things in the small town I call

THE VILLAGERS MADE ME DO IT!

2011-02-23T18:36:00.001-06:00

I have to admit that blogging has made me put more effort into tablescaping for family meals. This past weekend, my husband cooked burgers on the grill, and our children, their spouses, and our grandchildren came for dinner. I’ve always used cloth napkins and plates for this kind of meal, but I probably would not have added chargers or candlelight to the table “BB” (before blogging). (I really

FRENCH VILLAGERS HAVE TAKEN OVER MY MANTEL!

2011-02-21T19:10:00.001-06:00

Apparently, my fireplace mantel is prime real estate! Last month, there were those lovey-dovey Valentine people living on my mantel. This week, the French villagers have taken over my mantel (as you may have already noticed in my header). Some of you may remember when my husband bought me the fisherman and old woman Santons at an estate sale. Santons were originally used in nativity

BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

2011-02-18T12:30:00.003-06:00

I’ve been up to my old tricks of “borrowing” inspiration photos from other blogs. You may click on each photo to be taken to the blog from which I “borrowed” the photo. Don’t forget, if I have “borrowed” one of your photos, and you have not had me arrested for it, you may take the “Laurie borrowed” button to display on your blog. If you’d rather your photo not be displayed on my blog, please

BLOG SWEATING

2011-02-16T09:23:00.002-06:00

There really isn’t much to my little tablescapes that I am posting this week, so I hope I can get away with doing some chatting between photos. Isn’t blogging wonderful? If Laurie gets wound up with that chatting she’s so fond of, you can just skip the chatting and look at the photos. (Sorry, but I don’t even have much of a tablescape to show you on this post. I’m afraid there’s more chatting

YOU ARE THE SUNSHINE OF MY LIFE!

2011-02-13T22:53:00.012-06:00

Wow! I hope everyone got a chance to go visit all of the Valentine Party links. I just want to tell you that YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS ANY OF THESE LINKS. They were amazing! A huge thank you to all who participated by linking up, and to those who visited my blog and the other linkups. I can testify that our corner of Blogville knows how to party! Please check out this slideshow for a sample of what

CELEBRATING “LUV”!

2011-02-10T19:50:00.003-06:00

XO HUGS AND KISSES XO

2011-02-07T07:42:00.002-06:00

VALENTINE TREATS (SWEETS FOR MY SWEETS) I am linking this post to Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life; The Colors of Love Coast to Coast at The Little Round Table; Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch, and Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper. XOXO laurie XOXO

I’M IN LOVE WITH TOM (and that’s NOT my husband’s name)!

2011-02-04T12:28:00.005-06:00

My sweetheart (who is NOT Tom) had to attend a business meeting in Memphis last week, so I got to tag along for some junkin’ therapy. Normally, if I drive alone in Memphis, I have to stay on one major street, where there is a little bit of shopping, because I am directionally challenged. Although I have been going to Memphis since I was a child, I cannot find my way around (I can’t find my

SHARE THE LOVE

2011-02-02T08:30:00.002-06:00

This past weekend, I shared the love with my family, as we shared a meal (my family thinks that having a meal cooked for them any time of the year is sharing the love). For the salad course, I turned my leaf-shaped bowls in a direction that I thought suggested a heart. I used a Dollar store red charger under my white metal chargers. Dinner plates are Fitz and Floyd Country Plaid. A

WHERE IS SPRING?

2011-01-31T22:05:00.002-06:00

For some, the first snow of the Winter season is exciting and fun to see. Snow and ice are beautiful, sparkling on the limbs of a tree. Familiar surroundings become strange, foreign places, And some leave their homes and seek warmer spaces. It can sometimes be a scary sight, even when the limbs look like delicate lace, We who laughed at the first snowflake now beg for

THE BOTTOMLESS PIT!

2011-01-27T22:50:00.002-06:00

I try to keep it real on my blog, so I’m going to begin this post by telling y’all that my husband refers to my purse as the “BP” (bottomless pit). I have the same philosophy about my purse that I have in my home…You NEVAH know what or when you might NEED something! Of course, this has advantages and disadvantages. When someone mentions something they need, I often shout (with some pride),

TABLELESS TOP-SCAPE!

2011-01-24T18:19:00.001-06:00

Oh, the weather outside is frightful! But the fire is so delightful, And since we’ve no place to go, Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! If we are dining on the floor, without a table, is the post still eligible for Tablescape Thursday? I know Marty has told us that our posts for Table Top Tuesday do not have to be on top of a table. (I do think the implication was that

IT’S NOT A CHRISTMAS POST!

2011-01-21T10:51:00.002-06:00

Some of you, who are very observant (if you didn’t notice, somebody would have to hit you over the head with a Christmas tree to make you notice), may have noticed that one of my favorite things last month was Christmas trees. (Just when you thought Laurie was through posting photos of Christmas trees, she’s got more of them on her blog!) So, to keep from having withdrawal when I took

WHAT I SHOT AT HUNTING CAMP!

2011-01-18T18:43:00.002-06:00

As I said in a previous post, I went to hunting camp with some of my family this week. The guys were hunting duck. I shot a lot more ducks than my sweetheart and our son shot! (I enjoy my kind of shooting a lot more than their kind of shooting!) I also shot other wildlife. I took a day trip, and did some more shooting. And I took some shots at a (very bright) sunset. I’m

ANOTHER HOLIDAY–ANOTHER MANTEL FULL!

2011-01-17T19:43:00.002-06:00

My mantel has gone from this cluttered look… to this cluttered look! When my husband, who has only been married to me for 43 years, saw the Valentine’s mantel, he said, “I thought maybe with Christmas and New Years behind us, the mantel might go back to an uncluttered look”! After 43 years, he still has hope! What a guy! I’m sure that, even if you’ve only visited my blog a few times, YOU

JUST WALKING AROUND, SNAPPIN’

2011-01-14T13:07:00.005-06:00

I walked around, looking for some of my favorite things, and snapped a picture when I saw one of my favorites. So, the only connection that my favorite things today have is that they are some of my favs. All of my Christmas décor really HAS been put away, but one of my favorite things is a Christmas decoration I just ordered from Lynn at The Vintage Nest. I just love this paper cut out of

INTERNATIONAL BLOGGING!

2011-01-10T23:15:00.002-06:00

My laptop is on a desk in the corner of the breakfast area in our kitchen. Last week, the shelves on the wall next to my desk looked like this. This week, they look like this. I am surrounded by costumed people – I have French folks on Quimper from France and reproduction Quimper along with an American Blue Ridge plate (that looks like Quimper, which I ordered from Linda at A La Carte), and

I’VE BEEN INSPIRED (AGAIN!)

2011-01-07T11:38:00.002-06:00

I’ve gone back to my bad habit of stealing inspiration photos from other blogs. Don’t blame me – blame these inspiring bloggers. Who can resist copying a photo for their inspiration file when there is so much beauty in Blogville.? (I will not be offended if you do not want your photo on my blog. Please email me, and I will immediately remove it. If you allow me to use a photo from your blog,

WILD NEW YEAR’S EVE PARTY!

2011-01-03T18:00:00.002-06:00

When you are a party animal like me, New Year’s Eve is THE time to REALLY break out and celebrate. In her comment on my last post, Cherry Kay at Entertaining Women said that the only time she decorates for New Years is when she is having a New Year’s Eve party. Little did she know (heck, little did I know) that we were hosting a New Year’s party! We invited the wildest, loudest, most fun

MORE IS BETTER??

2010-12-31T08:21:00.003-06:00

I think one of the reasons that Christmas and New Years décor are some of my favorite things is that I am sadly a junk crammed everywhere “more is better” kind of gal. During Christmas and during the New Year’s celebration, I feel like people are much more accepting of the junk excess stuff in our home. After getting wound up with the Christmas decorations, there is no hope for me by the time

TABLE FOR 35 PLEASE

2010-12-27T17:32:00.003-06:00

Yes, I know that Christmas is over and that everyone is tired of seeing my Christmas décor. HOWEVAH, as slowly as I’m moving toward taking down the Christmas décor, I may not be doing another tablescape for several months! So, I’m sharing my Christmas Eve tablescapes today. (Note: I did not put wine stems on the tables, because, on Christmas Eve, people who are drinking wine already have their

GLORIA IN EXCESS!

2010-12-17T00:21:00.009-06:00

I’m sure you thought you had seen all of my Christmas décor. WRONG! I’m tellin’ y’all, I do Christmas in Excess every year. This year, I have done less Christmas décor than usual! Since Christmas décor is a favorite of mine, today I am sharing the rest of my excess of décor! WARNING! An excess of photos in this post! You don’t have to look at all of the pictures now though. (Of course, you

I'VE BEEN DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS…

2010-12-14T21:18:00.002-06:00

I have been dreaming of a white Christmas tablescape, but the reality never looks as fabulous as it did in my dreams. Cuisine Kathleen is hosting a White Tablescape Party, and I wanted to come to the.. But tablescaping in white is not my forte’. We are having guests for dinner Thursday night prior to going to a party at a friend’s home. Because of Kathleen’s white tablescaping party in

THE REASON FOR THE SEASON

2010-12-13T19:42:00.002-06:00

I already did a post about my nativity on the family room mantel, so today I’m sharing some of the other nativities in our home. My sweetheart and I purchased this nativity set that is in our bedroom our first Christmas as a married couple. (Yep! It’s close to being vintage now!) This Mikasa nativity, which I purchased at an estate sale, is on the fireplace mantel in our bedroom. There

YOU BETTER WATCH OUT!

2010-12-10T09:09:00.002-06:00

I have some of the greatest friends. My friend, Charlie Ann, gave me this cute framed needlework, which was perfect for me! I love it! You better not cry, You better not pout. I’m tellin’ ya why… Now that you visited Laurie’s blog, Santa’s watching from your computer! He sees you when you’re sleepin’, He knows when you’re awake. He knows if you’ve been bad or good,

AND TOILE A GOOD NIGHT

2010-12-08T20:09:00.003-06:00

When I posted my two decorated Christmas trees, several of you asked how long it took me to decorate them and/or how in the world did I have so much energy. I have a trick I use to get my two trees decorated. My daughter and her husband and my son and his wife do not pass up a free meal. So…when I’m ready for my trees to be decorated, I invite them over for dinner. (I’ve done this since they left

THE TREES ARE DECORATED…

2010-12-06T23:54:00.002-06:00

And today, I’m sharing two of them. For better or for worse, I’ve been tweaking the vignette on my new sideboard.. and on the mantel, both of which I just showed you last week! Sadly, I’ll be tweaking all over the house until Christmas Eve! It’s so hard for me to leave “well enough” alone. I always THINK it can be better. I usually decide that the tweaking didn’t make any difference

THE CRECHE IS BACK!

2010-12-03T09:07:00.002-06:00

One of the first things I do when I start my Christmas decorating is to place my Fontanini nativity on the mantel, because it is one of my favorite Christmas decorations. (I think I could probably just post the same photos every year for my Christmas décor, because I really don’t change things up much from one year to the next!) Several years ago, I was looking at tablecloths in a closet at

PLEASE LIE TO ME!

2010-11-29T22:08:00.001-06:00

I’ve always said that I would nevah evah order a piece of furniture from an on-line store. I go to sites and look at furniture, and I think “nope, I’ve got to be able to see the color in person and touch the wood and/or the upholstery”. I admire a furniture piece and say to myself… “People do it all of the time, but I don’t know how they do it. It’s just too scary.” If I order a shirt, and I

THERE’S A PATHWAY IN MY HOUSE!

2010-11-25T22:13:00.004-06:00

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. As some of you may know, I host approximately 30 family members for Thanksgiving dinner. Since I also have a full time job, I am one very insane busy person the week before Thanksgiving. I knew there was a local estate auction the Saturday before Thanksgiving, but I also knew there was no way I could spend my Saturday at an auction when I had

COUNTING MY BLESSINGS

2010-11-17T07:38:00.034-06:00

Lynn at The Vintage Nest is having a Give Thanks Party. The things for which I am thankful have not changed since last year, so I am re-posting last year's post. Of course, anything for which I am thankful is also a favorite thing, so this is my Favorite Things Saturday post as well, and I'm linking to Friday Favorites at The Whistlestop Cafe. I will also be linking this post to The Tablescaper

ALL TURKEYS WELCOME

2010-11-15T21:31:00.002-06:00

Marty has caused a huge problem at my house. The first time she hosted a cloche party, I had to use my cake dome and cheese dome as faux cloches, so I could join in the party fun. After that I started looking for cloches. Of course, being a bargain hunter, I couldn’t buy one unless it was a great price. For a long time, I had one cloche. Then I started finding them at great prices. At that

JUST A FEW SNIPPETS

2010-11-12T12:53:00.003-06:00

I’m sharing a few of what happen to be my favorite things today. Tomorrow, these favorites may change! There is no rhyme or reason about why they are my favorites today. As I walked around my home with a camera today, these were the things that made my heart sing. None of them are fine or expensive things. They are just things that make me smile. Do you have some things that make you smile?

CINDERELLA DRESSED IN YELLOW

2010-11-10T17:36:00.002-06:00

Cinderella dressed in “yella” (note: I did grow up in the South) Went upstairs to kiss her fella… Did y’all sing that little rhyme when you were a child, while jumping rope with friends? I can’t remember the rest of it, but because of this rhyme, I always pictured Cinderella in a yellow dress. When I was a junior bridesmaid in a wedding, I received a figurine as a gift from the bride. She

GHOST BUSTER!

2010-11-07T23:51:00.002-06:00

I’m getting rid of the ghosts ... witches and jack-o-lanterns too. This is what one end of my kitchen island looked like last week. It now hosts pilgrim salt and pepper shakers and other Thanksgiving decor. (Yes, this is my current blog header, but you don’t remember that you just saw that, right?). Last week, I showed you a table in our family room that looked like this. Now, it

COOLER TEMPS ON THE WAY

2010-11-05T13:57:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite things is my quilt collection – especially this time of the year! Another favorite is my chair I got for $7.50 at an auction this past weekend. As always, my “mostess” favorite thing is God’s creation. I am linking to Friday Favorites at Whistlestop Cafe Cooking, and Junkin Finds at A La Carte, and Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper. Thank you to all of