Oh, Baby!

The nursery for my new granddaughter, Charlotte Ruth, is finally complete. Yeah! I had a lot of fun with my daughter Dana yard sailing this spring and then helping her pull it all together these last few weeks. She was aiming for an understated barnyard theme from the book Charlotte's Web and I think she nailed it.

Isn't that pig adorable? Dana's friend Crystal brought these paper medallions to the baby shower and they just happened to fit the pink, green, and white theme.

The lace doily belonged to Dana's Grandmother Sandy and the gingham lamp shade was also passed on from her. The pink panels at the window were originally hung in Dana's very first bedroom in Frederick, Maryland. So here's to holding onto things!

When our free-wheeling, big-spending yard sailing days were finally over, we had a lot of projects to complete! First up was transforming this unfinished table gifted from Laura:

Into this:

Next was transforming this lamp base from puke green to antique white:

We then spray painted some wooden letters from Hobby Lobby:

So Charlotte's name could be spelled out in ballerina pink lights:

The changing table was picked up for a mere $15 at a yard sale. Dana's brother Sean and his fiance' Robin  got her the cute butterflies. After all, what's a barnyard without butterflies? Dana hung this bird wall hanger for Charlotte's towels that also matches the little bird house she has. Yep, that little missy/princess already has her own towels!

That lil princess also already has her own laundry basket:

No barnyard would be complete without some lambs though, so Dana scored these adorable sheep on one of our yard sailing expeditions:

She also found this cute critter God knows where and displayed him on the window sill. No, I don't think he's creepy. Really! He adds to the Charlotte's Web barnyard theme. Hey, at least it isn't a spider!

These sweet white frames hung over the crib where had from Ikea. Dana filled them with quotes and illustrations from the book Charlotte's Web.

This picture just does not do justice to the frames or this gorgeous quilt that Graham's mother purchased for the baby. It will be a heirloom for sure! 

We would also be remiss not to send a shout-out to Susan, who gifted Dana the crib, teeth marks and all, which we think to be very adorable. Thanks, Susan!

It was a busy, busy month indeed. As I was painting and running around, I too, was working on some heirloom gifts for Charlotte:

We are hoping to use the crochet hat for a debut picture real soon. So that's a wrap on the decor, now we are just waiting, or is that expecting?

She is going to be soooo mad at me for posting this. Sorry doober, I still call a mother's prerogative on you. You think you look fat, I think you look gorgeous! 

Here's to joining that exclusive and blessed grandmother sorority. I can't wait to meet Miss Charlotte!

Never a Dull Moment

It's been surreal these last few weeks. Since losing my job, I have been at turns excited, frightened, and busy. It's also disconcerting to have my days wide open, sort of. It seems that when people know you are available, your dance card fills up pretty quick.

For someone who is usually disciplined, I can't seem to stick to a daily plan. Is this normal? Any hoo, I am just hopping from one project to the next. So here is what I have been up to in a schizophrenic sort of way:

I adore by brand new and tacky pink flamingos plucked straight off the shelf at Big K. Can we say, "Whoo-hoo!"

I can perform girl magic with a staple gun and some duct tape. I am also pretty handy with spray paint. Here are my etsy knock-off wine bottles. I just have one more to spray paint and then I am going to stencil them.

I also started stripping the dark Bombay stain from my coffee tables and end tables and here is where they stand now:

The goal is to sand them and try my hand at white washing. In the meantime, I finished spray painting my $7 chalkboard from Hobby Lobby for the dining room. 

While I have been trying to get my projects complete, I have been helping my daughter get her nursery ready for the new grandbaby (photos coming!) and it is the height of the growing season. Here's how my garden is growing:

And between all this there were two baby showers and a beach trip!

Unemployment is not for the lazy! I also have a mound of photos I am still organizing and scanning from Mom.

I got my first batch of photos scanned and mailed off to my cousin in New Mexico. Only thousands more to go, sigh! Then there is my brother's website that I promised I would try to integrate Word Press with, which I would be working on now except I can't get the passwords straight. What the heck was I thinking!

Oh yeah, then there is the job interview I went on, publishing the magazine, lunching and catching up with a lot of friends, and my trip to the Billy Graham library in Charlotte with my son and his girlfriend. It is no wonder I am crazy and unfocused. 

All of which brings me to this conclusion. I NEEDED these pink flamingos, yes I did. You see, now I can sip cocktails after dark and bask in a pink glow while slowing losing my middle-aged, I am most definitely in a crises, mind. Care to join me?

When I Get to Heaven

I'd like to believe that, since God knows the desires of my heart, He is custom building my mansion just the way I'd like it. Why not? I'll never on this side of the sky live in anything this beautiful:

via House of Turquoise

Breathtaking, really. And maybe a few gorgeous leather turquoise chairs like this thrown in for good measure:

via Shelterness

Truth be told though, this old gal would be happy with a crab shack and a fishing pole:

Yeah, I could totally do it. Float down the river all summer and bird watch and cocoon during the holidays:

 

Course, something in between with a view wouldn't be too shabby either.

via Cottage Blue Designs

I am totally happy with what God has seen fit to give me here on this earth. And mighty thankful, too. But when I get to heaven....

Baking is a Beautiful Thing!

Here is my strawberry pie I made this evening from local berries I picked up from the Bush-N-Vine.

Homemade pies always look so much more interesting, don't you think? Imperfection is perfect in my book. The fun was that I pulled the recipes from my grandmother Zelda's Betty Crocker Cookbook. Can we say, really old? Some of the pages were so worn you couldn't read all of the pie crust directions and the spine is falling apart.

Makes me want to cry thinking about her in the kitchen. And let me tell you, she lived in that kitchen. Cooking twice a day, sometimes three, and canning what came out of her garden or baking for the holidays. They didn't call it housework for nothing, ya'll.

So in order to compensate for those tasty strawberry calories I am about to partake in, I made a chicken salad for tonight's dinner. It was good but a little on the tart side because I used greek yogurt instead of mayo. I would suggest using maybe a tad more honey.

Here's the ingredients:

     1 1/2 cup diced chicken
     1/2 vadilla sweet onion, diced
     1/2 teaspoon curry
     1/2 teaspoon paprika
     1 tablespoon pure honey
      handful of red grapes, cubed
     1/4 jar of artichoke salad (contains olives, artichokes and peppers)
     small container of greek yogurt

Garnish with balsamic dressing. Yum!

Summer Scheming

My fondest childhood memories were spending time with my family at the beach or boating on the Potomac River or Chesapeake Bay.

I mean, don't my grandparents look happy?

So it is about this time of year that I start scheming on how and when I'm going to make my escape. It also doesn't help that I am reading Dorothea Benton Frank's novel, Folly Beach (highly recommend), and it is hot in South Carolina today!

I can already hear the sound of the surf, the feel of a fishing pole between my fingers, the hot sun on my shoulders, and a cold beer in my hand. Oh, Yeah!

Niece Rita & Me, Folly Beach, SC

Sigh! I am in a dark cubby at the moment, so I'll just have to placate my surf longing with a few lovely water-inspired designs.

 

via  BB&B

I actually don't like too many themed items in one room, but these turquoise bucket lamps stopped me in my tracks. I like beach done subtle, so I would probably lose the coral and whale and...

  

via classiccasual home

This is a photo of a restaurant design but you could use the same vinette in a home--understated nautical print, white bead board, rope shade, and round mirror. Yep!

via coastal living

Iron bed frame and white bead board equals just plain classic and casual.

via coral cafe

If you have ever been to the beach when it is cold or damp (and I have!), you can imagine how cozy this would be.

Tired yet of the turquoise dresser that appears virtually everywhere on the blogosphere? Not me. Can't get enough.

via belle maison 23

I love this touch of glam (waterfall chandelier) with a tired (and beautiful) rustic table.

 via coral cafe

I am not into the glam factor much but this coral table is really smoking hot.

Me? Not so much! Happy summer dreaming anyway, and I'll see ya'll at the the beach!

Friday Finds

So I have been wandering aimlessly all over the internet looking for inspiration just because it is that kind of a Friday. Here's what I found:

via Cbell

I love the pattern and painted white legs. It just needs to be in turquoise!  I want to salvage two wing back chairs this spring/summer and recover.

via Traditional Home

I like this driftwood floor lamp but all of the driftwood lamps are so expensive. If I lived somewhere where I could find driftwood, this would certainly be on my DIY list.

 via Southern Living

I am in love with screened porches and this would be gorgeous on my new mountain retreat home that I don't yet have. Decks are highly overrated for actually living in the outdoors. Too many pesky mosquitoes in the South.

via House of Turquoise

I mean, shut up! Who would of thought some stenciled numbers on a rugged dresser would do this for me. In fact, rustic mixed with glamor pretty much makes my toes tingle.

via Woodland Creek

This little humble beauty would look gorgeous with some upholstered chairs in my woodsy cabin.

via Woodland Creek

This octagon table would look awesome on a contemporary rug or, at the opposite end of the spectrum, an oriental rug. Just PLEAZE do not put it in a log cabin. Too, too, much people.

 

via Traditional Home

This is just a sweet look and I am VERY fond of the white weathered paneling done horizontally. Would also look great in a woodsy cabin.

See a theme here? Again, at the risk of repeating myself, you must mix your rustic with your glamor. It is the unexpected that makes it so spectacular. I know the whole chandelier thing is a bit overdone, but hey, it makes my point, doesn't it? It was so unexpected that people fell in love with it.

Well, have a great Friday everyone. I promise to stop day dreaming about my woodsy cabin if you'll promise to work on those home projects you've been stalling on this weekend. Okay? But I could live here:

 

via Northern Cottage