Got Forks?

Then create a shelf! I decided to work on decorating our bedroom yesterday. I got to one spot and decided I needed a little shelf - something light and airy. I dug in the bottom of a box and found some pieces of glass shelving. But what to do for brackets?

Why not forks? Hey, it worked! I just bent them, nailed them to the wall and put the glass on top.
I love decorating on the cheap! The mirror - 25 cents at a garage sale. The star - after Christmas clearance at Walmart. Wire nest candle holder - 30 cent thrift store bargain. The scrapbook - priceless! It is the one I created for my Grandma with her 38 great grandchildren.
Here's an upclose of the fork bracket and my little "tiara" that I found at a thrift store. Isn't it pretty? I like all the "sparkle" in this display.
Here is a corner of the bedroom. This loveseat was in Sweet Girl's room in the old house.
The old wooden hanger was a thrift store find this weekend. It has a hotel advertisement on it. And my collage. I decided to keep it. Someone asked me if I would sell it. I can't part with this one, but if you are seriously interested in purchasing one, please let me know. I can work out a price and re-create this to the best of my ability.
Remember my window? I've been debating what to do with it. I still may eventually put photos behind the glass, but I love this look for now. I just printed the words onto vintage sheet music and used double stick tape to stick them to the front of the glass. I just sat it on the bed to get the feel for it. Do you think it is safe to hang this puppy above my bed? It is heavy. What would be the best way to hang it? Any suggestions? Notice we don't have a headboard. Never have. That's why I like to hang something large above the bed.
My basket found a place beneath the window.
This is an old sewing cabinet that belonged to my MIL's neighbor. It still had some of the old notions in it when my MIL brought it to me.
A little birdie and her eggs!
And the scripture for the day!

The Art of Keeping Cool

Wow it is hot! It was 103 today and we have not had rain in a long time. The crunching sound that my grass makes is not good.

Remember when I told you about this estate sale? This is the "scrapbook" that I found at the bottom of a pile of junk. It is actually a sample book for a clothing company. Most of it is covered up with magazine clippings. They appear to be from the WWII era.

I had fun reading through the "ads" for the clothing. You will have to click on these pictures so you can actually read what they say.
Picnic anyone? I love the photos in the book. I think they will be fun to use in cards.
Here is one of the magazine clippings.
The latest fashions....
I thought this was interesting. That was a lot of money back then.
Even horses need a break from the heat!
We had a good weekend visiting friends and going to a wedding - a very fancy wedding. I've never seen so many flowers in one place. It was beautiful. The wedding music was a string quartet. Very romantic! The hard part about being gone for the weekend is coming home and getting back in the groove of things. It was hard to get motivated today.

I'm going to get off the computer and watch Veggie Tales with my kids. No, you can never outgrow Veggie Tales.

{"But blessed is the man who trusts me, God, the woman who sticks with God. They're like trees replanted in Eden, putting down roots near the rivers—Never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit every season." Jer. 17:7-8}

Read for Rett

This is my Sweet Girl. She has Rett Syndrome. You've likely never heard of it. I never had until we heard the doctor say it for the first time back when our baby was about 1 1/2. Rett Syndrome. Those two words changed our life forever. I won't go into details here. If you would like to know more you can go to http://www.rettsyndrome.org/ .

I hope that someday they will find a cure for Rett Syndrome. I wish I had tons of extra cash lying around that I could donate to research. I don't. Each year I try to do a little something to raise money. Last year I made and sold some pendants using the photo and quote from this collage. This year I have not had time to make and sell anything. I did, however, set up an Usborne Books e-show. Anyone can purchase wonderful books for the kids in their lives and I will donate my commission to Rett Syndrome research. All you have to do is go here and start shopping. Usborne books are wonderful! I think you will love them. I hope you will check them out. No pressure.

Okay, that's all for my little "commercial." We are heading out in the morning for Arkansas Children's Hospital. Sweet Girl has an appointment and then we will head on to our old town. We are excited to see our friends. It has only been a little over a month since we moved, but man do I miss everyone. We have a wedding to attend on Saturday evening and then will go to church on Sunday morning before we head back here. Please pray that Sweet Girl's appointment goes well and that we have safe travel. Thanks.

I love pictures, so thought I would add a couple more to the post before I go. I broke this sweet flower off of my hanging basket the other mornig so I brought it inside and put it in my favorite little vase.
How cool is this? I think it is actually a weed. Not sure. My son brought it in to me the other night. I was so amazed at all the intricate details. I love that God even made the weeds pretty!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I'll be back next week!

{Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them. Mark 10:14}

Craft Therapy!

I finally carved out some time to do a bit of creating. I got most of my craft supplies unpacked last week. That helps!

It was fun to make this collage. I was pleased with how it all came together. Blue and birds are some of my favorites lately.
My dilema - keep this collage for the master bedroom or use it as a wedding gift this weekend? I started out making it for a gift, but I sure do like it. Hmmm....
When you are out thrifting keep your eye out for those little boxes of scripture cards. They are great to use in collages and cards.
I also made a couple of cards. I am going to submit them to Lilybean's sketch challenge. I absolutely love everything that gal creates. Man, is she good! Often when I am "stuck" on a project I will go to her blog for inspiration.
This one is a wedding card for a wedding we are attending this weekend. Now I've just got to decide on that gift!

That's all for now!

Thoughts on Blooming

The other day I decided to redo my blog banner. I really had no idea what I was doing and it took me forever. Still didn't turn out quite the way I wanted it. Anyway, during the process I kept re-typing "Thoughts on living life wherever God plants you...." You know what? I really started feeling like a hypocrite.
My blog is titled "Bloom Right Here". Am I truly doing that? Am I even trying? Oh, maybe somedays. But I sure spend a lot of time being frustrated with where I am at. I've still been questioning why God planted me here. See the beautiful bud in the above picture? The tree (some sort of Magnolia?) has quite a few of these. Unfortunately, most of them turn brown and ugly before they fully bloom. It is disappointing. I keep watching for them to bloom. I want to enjoy their full beauty. I guess that is what God is doing with me. Waiting and watching for me to bloom. He will be disappointed if I remain bitter and let my attitude become ugly. He wants to see me thrive, not languish. He wants to see my beauty. Who am I to deny Him that?
A dear friend emailed me the other day with something she had just read from a Beth Moore Bible study. Wow! This is what Beth says: "Let's face it. Most of us have a love-hate relationship with the places we've gotten our mail, but God intended to use every stop to equip us as servants. You have been assigned to your town or your city and, and equally, it has been assigned to you. You may feel like an exile within its city limits, but just as God spoke through the prophet, Jeremiah (Jer. 29:4-7), He wants to prosper you there. His method may not be through what your city can do to edify and serve you. It may be what you can do to build up your city - one neighbor, one teacher, one trash collector at a time. Remember, you don't have to be on the school board or in city government for God to use you. He ministers to cities just as readily by ministering to neighbors. The point is, to understand that we've been called by God's purposes to the places we live." Wow, again!
Do I understand why God planted me and my family here? No. I may never fully know. I do know that I need to look beyond myself. I need to stop wondering when people are going to reach out to me and start looking for people to reach out to. I need to "bloom right here" so that God and others can enjoy the gift that is from Him.

{This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." Jeremiah 29:4-7}

BINGO

I hope you are not completely bored with reading about my garage sale, tag sale, thrift store finds. It's just who I am. Very few things in my house actually came new from a store. It has been interesting decorating this house. There are things I've just had stashed away in a closet that now I am using. They didn't "work" in the old house and they are perfect here. I guess that is why I don't feel bad about buying something (super cheap) and putting it away for awhile. There is always "someday."

In my last post I told you I would share more of my bargains from the weekend. On Sunday I went back to the estate sale for 1/2 price day. I went after church and got a bit dirty digging around in the junk with my church clothes on.

I found this big stack of BINGO cards. You can't really tell in the picture, but there are probably at least 80 of them. I will keep some to use on cards, journals, etc and also may sell some.

Remember my big basket with the old toys and puzzle pieces in it? Well, guess what I found on Sunday?

The puzzle box with the rest of the pieces! Can you believe that? My 7 year old son put it together. I kept telling him that I was sure there would be pieces missing. He was so excited when he got done. There were even a couple pieces where the little "tabs" were broken off, but they were still there. Amazing! The copyright on this puzzle? 1915.

There were these piles of junk outside. Old tools. Broken things. Dirt! Nevertheless, I decided to dig a little. This is where I got my church clothes dirty. Down underneath a bunch of stuff I found this old scrapbook and the pretty little blue composition book. I also got another big scrapbook that I will have to share later.
I think I paid 50 cents for this blanket. My favorite color combo - blue and brown. I actually looked at it the first day but it was so crowded and crazy that I couldn't open it up and really examine it. There are a few small spots and a little tear. Not bad.

Are you really bored now? Sorry. I'm not quite done.

Check out this vintage dress! Sorry for the bad picture. Hopefully if you click on it you can see the details better. The picture also looks funny because the dress is hanging in front of my metal star. Anyway, it is a navy blue dress with white stars and red stitching along the bottom. It also has a white belt (not pictured). No idea what I am going to do with it. Again, for 50 cents I couldn't resist!

Had to sneak in a picture of my Sweet Girl! Notice that she is actually almost looking at me? I bought this pillowcase "shirt" at a garage sale on Saturday. I know, it is probably supposed to be a dress for a toddler. I decided it made a nice little summer shirt. Has anyone ever made these pillowcase dresses? I have some pretty pillowcases. Guess I should give it a try sometime.

Okay, okay. Just a few more things. I promise.

A Big Ben clock. Thought I had it working for a while, but it quit. Still looks cool.
A little wooden table. It is really a bit low for my entry way but that is where I have it for now.
And a couple more aprons (above and below). Did you know that you can never have too many vintage aprons? Just checking.
That's it! Until next time....

{"The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat!" Luke 12:37}

And the winner is.....

Sorry I didn't post a winner for my give away yesterday. My internet was moving at turtle-speed and I didn't feel like dealing with the frustration. It is working much better today!

I know there are some fancy number generator things out there, but that is too technical for me. Instead, I do things the old-fashioned way - paper and scissors. All the names are in this little bowl.

I picked one out and the winner is.....

....from the monkeybox. Shara, I'll send you an email, but if the email doesn't go through, please contact me with your mailing address. I'll send your goodies ASAP. Thanks again, everyone, for all your nice comments.

In my last post I mentioned that creating was my "therapy." Garage saling and thrifting also do good to ease my stress. Yesterday I went out saling in our new town for the first time. There were only a few sales. I found a some clothes for Sweet Girl and a few other odds and ends. Then I stood in line for half an hour waiting for an Estate Tag Sale. So glad I did!

I've wanted one of these baskets for a long time. I come across them in antique stores every now and then but they are too expensive. This one is about 25 inches long and 15 inches deep and is in great shape.
I paid $10 for it and its contents - mostly dirty, old and broken toys. There were a couple neat books, some playing cards and an incomplete wooden puzzle of the U.S. I kept the few "goodies" and tossed the rest. I think I will use the basket in our bedroom to store extra blankets.
I also bought these doilies and a box of old lace and ribbon. There were some old buttons, but there was this one woman just grabbing things right and left. She snatched them up as I was reaching for them. Oh, well.

I found a few other things that I will share in my next post. I went back to the tag sale this afternoon for "half price" day. Stay tuned for more fun finds. Needless to say, my stress level had decreased after a morning of "hunting."

I hope you all had a beautiful morning of worship. Thanks for stopping by my blog.

{This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24}

The Keys to Decorating

First, thank you all so much for the kind words and blog birthday wishes. It has been so fun to read all the comments! I won't do the drawing until tomorrow (Saturday) morning, so there is still time to leave a comment on the previous post.

Remember these keys? I spray painted them black the other day. Much better now, I think. My "main" rooms are just about unpacked and decorated. I think the "key" to decorating is added little touches as you go. Some things look a bit bare right now, but as I find just the right thing at a garage sale or thrift store I can add to what is already there.
We have no mantle! I guess the previous owners never got around to that. I would love to find an old one, but not sure if it would be the right size. Seems to me like the bricks go up pretty high on the fireplace. Does anyone have any creative and inexpensive ways to "make" a mantle? Please let me know. The mantle is always one of my favorite places to decorate. The bricks just aren't doing it for me!
I know the laundry room isn't very exciting, but I am trying to make the most of it. A while back I read a blog post about "creative concealing". I don't remember which blog or the exact title of the post. Sorry. Anyway, I was trying to do that here. Some of my cleaning supplies are partially hidden in my old locker baskets. That basket hanging on the wall is covering up the water lines (sort of). The basket is where I have all my cleaning rags. The old feedsack is hanging over the electrical box.

I put my dryer sheets in the old enamel pitcher. The clothespin bag holds stray socks until they find a mate.
I love these old glove stretchers. I need to find some stocking stretchers. Can you see the "curtain" hanging clear over on the left? That is a sheet I hung up to hide the hideous hot water heater. It is the first thing you saw when you walked in the back door and I was already tired of looking at it.

I think I am going to tackle my craft "room" next. It is actually a large pantry but I am going to use most of the shelving for my craft supplies. I'm feeling the need to be creative and that is hard to do when everything is still in boxes. I keep telling myself that it's not a priority but creating is my "therapy" so I think I better get to unpacking those boxes!

Okay, don't forget to sign up for my give away on the previous post. I'll be back sometime tomorrow or Sunday to announce the winner. Thanks again for all the comments.

{Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17}

My Blog Birthday Give Away

One year ago (tomorrow) I got the crazy notion to start this blog. What fun it has been! I hope you will celebrate with me. I need something to celebrate. The past few days have been difficult. We are dealing with some major plumbing issues in our new home. I miss my friends in my old town. It is starting to sink in that we are in a new place, I know hardly anybody, my kids will be starting new schools in just over a month.....Blah!

Oh, wait! I said I needed to celebrate. Will you join me? Please leave me a comment on this post and I will enter you into the give away. It is for all the things in the above picture. I may add to it as the week goes along. I honestly don't know who reads this blog. You may be reading and thinking, "I don't want any of that stuff in the picture." Leave a comment anyway! I'd just love to hear from you. I'll give the stuff to someone else. Ha!

Now on to other things...In keeping with the patriotic theme of my last post I thought I would show you pictures of my entry way.
I love all my Americana and wasn't sure where it would go in this house. I decided this little room with the piano would be great.
This is above the double doors leading into the living room.
This is right inside the front door. It really doesn't look that crooked on the wall. Oh, the paint color is off, too. The walls are actually yellow. I'd like to paint someday, but that will have to wait.
There is no coat closet, so this little armoire will have to do.

Okay, there are just so many photos I want to share. Sorry for the long post. Also, sorry if the photos and text are misaligned. I tried to do something different. Looks like it did when I started this thing a year ago - like I have no idea what I am doing. So true!

Here are my kiddos on the 4th. No, I don't think I will ever have a shot with all of them looking at me. Oh, well.

It poured rain on the evening of the 4th. Then there was this beautiful rainbow. Much better than any fireworks you will ever see!

Dew on the branches.

A bee on the crepe myrtle.
Deer in our yard on Sunday morning. There were at least six but I couldn't get them all in one shot.

Well, I guess I have been on the computer long enough. Please remember to leave me a comment. I'll draw a name on Saturday morning. Comment any time between now and then. Thank you for visiting my blog!