Revisiting the past

I've been cleaning out the attic the last few weeks and this is not an easy task:) Going through all the old papers, toys, and remembrances is like going back in time. I finally settled on assigning a box for each family member and when I find something that belongs to a particular person, I put it in their box. Then there are piles of toys, doll clothing, small misc items that if no one claims, will probably go in the trash.
Some china finds include some Homer Laughlin pieces.
A wine decanter from the 1960's.
And some pottery by Richard Kale (on the right) and his son.

Life's Blessings

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers!

Life's Blessings

"For today and its blessings, I owe the world an attitude of gratitude." (Clarence E. Hodges)

Trip to Downtown Atlanta!

I had to go downtown this week so I thought I'd take a few pictures. There are multiple ways to get downtown, but during the day the best way is via Marta, Atlanta's mass transit system. 

In the plaza outside the Marta station is a huge sculpture of an eagle. It's very impressive!
This is a picture of Broad Street. Broad St is a short street but it's filled with a bunch of small eateries. You can have just about any type of food you want - Mexican, Thai, Chinese, American, etc. It has the best pizza place in town called Rosa's Pizza. I highly recommend it.
Several of my friends and I ate at a restaurant called "Chow Baby." What fun it was! You go through line picking out different ingredients (i.e., rice, mushrooms, spinach leaves, onion, pea pods, tilapia, etc), adding different sauces, and place them in a bowl. Then the chefs stir fry them and bring the dish to your table. It was delicious!!! PS - it's several miles from downtown so you have to drive to this one, but it's well worth it!

Checking out garage sales...

We had some great garage sale finds this past weekend! The cherub column was $5 and the large picture of the lady was $3. The tiffany-style lamps were $5 and $2. The chenille spread, which does have a couple of stains and a slight tear was 50 cents. And finally, the vintage magazine holder was $2 and the brooches were $1 each. This was so much fun!

Life's Blessings

"Reflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." (Charles Dickens, 1812-1870)

Sweetbrier's blooms

Sweetbrier's azaleas are in bloom.

What's that I see among the white azaleas - is that a pink one peaking out?

I forgot the hostas!

Spring at Sweetbrier Cottage

Spring came to Sweetbrier in stages this year. This beautiful bush bloomed about a month ago. The blooms were a beautiful mauvish color.

Sweeti napping...

It's been a rough few weeks for Sweeti (and the reason there have been no posts). She has CRF which is controlled through diet, but she began having diarrhea. A visit to the vet's and blood tests showed she has hyperthyroidism. We've decided to try the Tapazole first and hope she can tolerate it. In the meantime she's on two other nasty tasting medicines for the "d." 

Finding a bit of sun, she decided to take a nap this morning with one of her favorite catnip mice. 

It's snowing - sort of!

Well, we received a slight dusting of snow this afternoon, the first in two to three years. But we take what we can get:) We turned on the Christmas music, fixed hot chocolate and watched as large white flakes floated down from above. I've attached some pictures although they don't do it justice.  For those of you further north who are blessed with the real thing, please don't laugh too hard, but do keep safe and warm!

Garage Makeover - continued

With every plan there has to be a color selection. Our local JoAnn's fabrics had a sale in January with fabrics half off, plus we had 40% off coupons. Woo-hoo! Since the garage is dark, we decided to paint it a light color and since we had over a half gallon of yellow paint (honeysuckle beige) leftover from painting the hall bath, the plan was to make my new work space and Cassie's domain, yellow and blue. We only had to buy one more gallon of paint, instead of two, and it saved us nearly $30.

Why was fabric needed you ask? My new work space is in need of seating and we happened to have three old table chairs ($1 at a yard sale) that needed recovered. Chairs will be painted off-white and recovered in the fabric below along with pillows from coordinating fabrics. 

Garage Makeover

Our garage serves two purposes, a home for our feral kitty, Cassie, and storage. For the past few weeks, Sweetbrier's garage (Cassie's domain) has been getting a makeover. We have three goals for the makeover: (1) remove all of the "junk" that has piled up over the years - this is sort of a mission organization project, (2) create some catwalks for Cassie to provide more exploration opportunities, and (3) create a work space for my craft projects. Oh, and one more thing - this has to be done on a budget!

Of course the first thing a crafter must do in re-creating a space is draw up a plan. This plan contains space for storage (Christmas, old toys from childhood, items that we can't part with just yet, etc), tools, paint, wood working supplies, and exercise equipment. And of course a desk for doing  the craft projects. Most importantly, there is space for Cassie's gym, AC and heater, TV, toys, plus additional space for her to explore. Whew!

Over the next few weeks, and hopefully not months, I will document the makeover. Wish me luck:)

Happiness is...

Lunch with mother who makes the best grilled cheese sandwiches (she adds sauteed onion and tomato),
Petting a cat on your lap, especially when she's feral and you know she "chooses" to be there,
Or a cup of tea (vanilla apricot) in a beautiful vintage cup and saucer.
What makes you happy?

Finders Keepers

is the name of a lovely antique shop in Lawrenceville, Georgia on Scenic Highway. There are a variety of antiques and collectibles to choose from and the prices are very reasonable. They usually have sale items on the front porch. Shop keepers are friendly and very helpful. Two of the items we picked up this past weekend are pictured below. We also purchased a chalkware cherub holding a dish (no picture available) that was on sale for $10!

Sweeti's horse

Sweeti, our 14-year old ragdoll kitty, has a little toy horse that she adopted when she first came to live with us. She takes the mane in her mouth and carries it around the house as if it were caught prey. She tries to meow with it, but the sound comes out like a muffled growl, and it can be heard any time of the day or night. The horse is usually standing but not always and you never know where it will show up.

In the kitchen...

On the porch...

Or in bed...

Reminders of what is to come...

It's been in the teens at night with wind chills close to zero. For folks in the north, this probably sounds balmy, but for us southerners, it's cold!!! Spring is around the corner, but I'm thinking big - SUMMER! And when we think summer, we think beach. I decided to pull out our shells and take some pictures to remind us of what's to come.

Paths

A friend of my daughter's likes pictures of paths. I found this lovely old postcard today and thought of her. It says, "Thou wilt shew me the path of life" (Psalm 16:11).

I also came across another quote on paths by John Schaar, "The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created -- created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making them, changes both the maker and the destination."

What path are you creating?

Look what I found!

I'm always surprised at what I find when I clean out a closet. Today I found a box labeled "new stuffed animals." Among the contents were three stuffed animals, one made from a piece of needlepoint linen and two from antique quilts.  They look great in the Rose Garden room of Sweetbrier.

A trip to Antiques in Old Town

"Antiques in Old Town," an antique store in Lilburn, GA, has the most fabulous antiques and vintage pieces. Two antiques came home with me, a victorian antique iron clock case and a stained glass window.

The clock case will probably find a home with my daughter, maybe a birthday present, but shhh, don't tell her;) And yes, those are dragons on each side of the clock face.  

The stained glass will be hung on Sweetbrier's porch. The panes have varying degrees of greens, blues and golds - very striking when the sun shines through.

Resolutions!

I made a New Year's resolution, if you can call it that, and I have only faltered once, well, maybe twice. It's all in one's interpretation. What is my resolution you ask? I am attempting to "make" or "repurpose" what I need for Sweetbrier instead of buying it. Actually it's been kind of fun. 

For example, I needed a new wreath for the front door. I can't use traditional flower wreaths because birds like to nest in them. I tried to find a wreath foam form so I could just wrap it with some pretty linens and lace, but stores are sold out due to Christmas. So, I decided to make a banner. I took a vintage towel, folded it in half and added some doilies, lace, ribbon and buttons to make a "shabby chic" styled banner. 

Happy New Year!!!

The quote for the new year is by Douglas Pagels, "Each new day is a blank page in the diary of your life. The secret of success is in turning that diary into the best story you possibly can." 

Words to live by...