It's birthday WEEK......

I suppose my post for Monday misled you to believe it was my actual birthday(yes, I really am the big 5-0!!)......truthfully TODAY is my birthday, but I'll be celebrating all week long!! Later in the week is our wedding anniversary and we'll be celebrating 28 years of marriage! Love you, honey!

It's a very busy week as our small church is finally about to move into our brand new home. We've been meeting in a high school for years. We are obviously excited. I've been helping my designer friend with all the last minute preparations, as well as heading up the committee to get our kitchen set up. It is fabulous! I'll try to get some pics to show. We did some art and decorative pieces yesterday as well as watching the grand piano delivered!!! OH, SO, FUN....... AND I got to see my little quint friends, too. What a fun day!
And I'll be looking forward to the day when I can use THIS picture to tell you how old I am!! :)

It's birthday WEEK......

I suppose my post for Monday misled you to believe it was my actual birthday(yes, I really am the big 5-0!!)......truthfully TODAY is my birthday, but I'll be celebrating all week long!! Later in the week is our wedding anniversary and we'll be celebrating 28 years of marriage! Love you, honey!

It's a very busy week as our small church is finally about to move into our brand new home. We've been meeting in a high school for years. We are obviously excited. I've been helping my designer friend with all the last minute preparations, as well as heading up the committee to get our kitchen set up. It is fabulous! I'll try to get some pics to show. We did some art and decorative pieces yesterday as well as watching the grand piano delivered!!! OH, SO, FUN....... AND I got to see my little quint friends, too. What a fun day!
And I'll be looking forward to the day when I can use THIS picture to tell you how old I am!! :)

It's Birthday week..........

Yes, Barbie and I have March Birthdays.........I'm delighted to share "something" with her, because there are not a lot of things we have in common. Yes, she is cute as a button, and doesn't look a day over twenty something.....I like to think I might be as cute as a fastener, but seriously where did that saying come from???? A button? Ok, she's cute, and I'm okay, just not the fashion plate that girlfriend is......she's everywhere and known for her fashion sense. But hey, maybe I would be, too, if I had my own designers and wardrobe consultants. Just sayin'....

And her house......mine might be as famous as hers if I had a staff of re-designers that came in and decorated for me on a whim. I don't know about your barbie house, but mine changed daily, and poor Ken was known to stumble over a few pieces of furniture he didn't expect to be there!
Yes, poor Ken, his feet are a mess after stubbing his toes thousands of times on rearranged home furniture!

Her car......I never really wanted a Barbie car, and I'm pretty satisfied with my car, so I'm ok with that.

Her car: I guess I'm not really into pink cars, nor do I really want a car that has a remote. I like to get a little further from home base than this allows!!!!
So Happy Birthday, Barbie...it's good to be a March Birthday, my friend. I'll be hanging around town if you want to pal around with me. I bet I could teach my friend Barbie a few things about crafting/decorating/mothering/domestic engineering that she doesn't know about. She's going to be glad to hang around me when this week is over!! Let's do lunch and I'll share my birthday cake with you!

It's Birthday week..........

Yes, Barbie and I have March Birthdays.........I'm delighted to share "something" with her, because there are not a lot of things we have in common. Yes, she is cute as a button, and doesn't look a day over twenty something.....I like to think I might be as cute as a fastener, but seriously where did that saying come from???? A button? Ok, she's cute, and I'm okay, just not the fashion plate that girlfriend is......she's everywhere and known for her fashion sense. But hey, maybe I would be, too, if I had my own designers and wardrobe consultants. Just sayin'....

And her house......mine might be as famous as hers if I had a staff of re-designers that came in and decorated for me on a whim. I don't know about your barbie house, but mine changed daily, and poor Ken was known to stumble over a few pieces of furniture he didn't expect to be there!
Yes, poor Ken, his feet are a mess after stubbing his toes thousands of times on rearranged home furniture!

Her car......I never really wanted a Barbie car, and I'm pretty satisfied with my car, so I'm ok with that.

Her car: I guess I'm not really into pink cars, nor do I really want a car that has a remote. I like to get a little further from home base than this allows!!!!
So Happy Birthday, Barbie...it's good to be a March Birthday, my friend. I'll be hanging around town if you want to pal around with me. I bet I could teach my friend Barbie a few things about crafting/decorating/mothering/domestic engineering that she doesn't know about. She's going to be glad to hang around me when this week is over!! Let's do lunch and I'll share my birthday cake with you!

A test for Barb, and a stab at Windows Live, live from SI Casa!!!!

Because Rhoda wrote a post about Windows Live, and then Barb posted about her attempt at it, I finally decided to give it a try !!! And these flowers remind me that all good gifts from the Father above! I hope your Sunday is blessed and you can take some time to meditate on the goodness of the Lord. He knows all things and wants the best for HIS children. Isn't that the greatest news????
So IF I can get this to publish to my blog, I may consider myself successful at Windows Live...that would be so cool!'



Barb, this is a test to show that your directions are spot on, and worked for me! Thanks for the 1, 2, 3 steps....I love it!

A test for Barb, and a stab at Windows Live, live from SI Casa!!!!

Because Rhoda wrote a post about Windows Live, and then Barb posted about her attempt at it, I finally decided to give it a try !!! And these flowers remind me that all good gifts from the Father above! I hope your Sunday is blessed and you can take some time to meditate on the goodness of the Lord. He knows all things and wants the best for HIS children. Isn't that the greatest news????
So IF I can get this to publish to my blog, I may consider myself successful at Windows Live...that would be so cool!'



Barb, this is a test to show that your directions are spot on, and worked for me! Thanks for the 1, 2, 3 steps....I love it!

Easter Story Cookies or Resurrection Cookies

Well, since I told you all about the egg dyeing here, I also wanted to make sure you knew how to make these "resurrection" cookies in case you wanted to use as an object lesson for your children. It's a fun project, and one that teaches the true reason for Easter. You could do them ahead of time as you begin to talk about what Easter really means. If you click on the picture it will enlarge and you can print it off, but in case you can't read it, I'd be glad to email it to you as well.
I'm a little sad that my children are too old (and busy) to do these kinds of home projects any longer....so let me know how you use them and your stories of your children's responses. One day I"ll be a Grammy and do these things with my grands.....



On to more news......she's BAAAACCCKKKK......


..........yep my trusty little camera that I sent off to be repaired is back in factory condition, and thanks to Canon, free of charge! Yippee!!! They were Top notch in Customer care and earn an A+ in my book for taking care of the problem, quickly and relatively painless on my part! I'm so glad she's back, so she'll be helping more with my blogging!
And for more news....next week, I'll be celebrating a rather significant birthday, so I'm just gonna have me another giveaway. The last one was oh.such.fun, that I want to do it again! Check back on next Monday or Tuesday for the BIG 5-0 event...... yep, that's which one it's gonna be......
And tomorrow, Kimba's turning the internet off, and encouraging people to be out in the real world being people, ya know, unplugged, if you will. Well, it's already a VERY busy day for me and I probably wouldn't be around much anyway, but perhaps you've got a little touch of spring fever, and need to go out and play......


Then she's suggesting that we all come back and tell all about what you did, didn't do, what you got accomplished, etc...on Monday. Play along if you'd like.

Easter Story Cookies or Resurrection Cookies

Well, since I told you all about the egg dyeing here, I also wanted to make sure you knew how to make these "resurrection" cookies in case you wanted to use as an object lesson for your children. It's a fun project, and one that teaches the true reason for Easter. You could do them ahead of time as you begin to talk about what Easter really means. If you click on the picture it will enlarge and you can print it off, but in case you can't read it, I'd be glad to email it to you as well.
I'm a little sad that my children are too old (and busy) to do these kinds of home projects any longer....so let me know how you use them and your stories of your children's responses. One day I"ll be a Grammy and do these things with my grands.....



On to more news......she's BAAAACCCKKKK......


..........yep my trusty little camera that I sent off to be repaired is back in factory condition, and thanks to Canon, free of charge! Yippee!!! They were Top notch in Customer care and earn an A+ in my book for taking care of the problem, quickly and relatively painless on my part! I'm so glad she's back, so she'll be helping more with my blogging!
And for more news....next week, I'll be celebrating a rather significant birthday, so I'm just gonna have me another giveaway. The last one was oh.such.fun, that I want to do it again! Check back on next Monday or Tuesday for the BIG 5-0 event...... yep, that's which one it's gonna be......
And tomorrow, Kimba's turning the internet off, and encouraging people to be out in the real world being people, ya know, unplugged, if you will. Well, it's already a VERY busy day for me and I probably wouldn't be around much anyway, but perhaps you've got a little touch of spring fever, and need to go out and play......


Then she's suggesting that we all come back and tell all about what you did, didn't do, what you got accomplished, etc...on Monday. Play along if you'd like.

Going on a fairy hunt.......

I seriously need a fairy today. I have a list a mile long of things I need to accomplish. I seriously want my house to be clean, my errands to be run, my laundry to be completed and meals to be planned and prepared. There is also a ton of yardwork I'd like to twinkle my nose and get done. Forget yard of the month, let's just rid the yard of weeds!!! I'd also love the time to be inspired by my many blog friends, and even a little time to languish in the spring-ness of the air, and perhaps finish my Bible study or read a novel. So I've decided I need a fairy......I'm not sure what she will look like, so it's a mite difficult to locate her. There are all sorts of day workers that hang out waiting for jobs......but fairies don't seem to mingle at the corner looking for jobs. Where do you get a fairy??? She possibly looks like this, although this could be her disguise...
clearly she uses products like these, and with the wave of her wand , things are magically accomplished. I don't know how long it takes her, but rumors I've heard regard her as quite the time manager. I've a lot to learn from her, obviously. I've read Lazy Moms TMT......that stands for ten minute tasks, but according to my watch, the tasks I'm in need of accomplishing will take about 4230 ten minute segments......so where is she, that cute little fairy? I'm off to find her...and in the meantime, I'll be turning on the music (hey maybe that draws her in out of hiding????) and getting some serious order restored to the SI Casa.....

Going on a fairy hunt.......

I seriously need a fairy today. I have a list a mile long of things I need to accomplish. I seriously want my house to be clean, my errands to be run, my laundry to be completed and meals to be planned and prepared. There is also a ton of yardwork I'd like to twinkle my nose and get done. Forget yard of the month, let's just rid the yard of weeds!!! I'd also love the time to be inspired by my many blog friends, and even a little time to languish in the spring-ness of the air, and perhaps finish my Bible study or read a novel. So I've decided I need a fairy......I'm not sure what she will look like, so it's a mite difficult to locate her. There are all sorts of day workers that hang out waiting for jobs......but fairies don't seem to mingle at the corner looking for jobs. Where do you get a fairy??? She possibly looks like this, although this could be her disguise...
clearly she uses products like these, and with the wave of her wand , things are magically accomplished. I don't know how long it takes her, but rumors I've heard regard her as quite the time manager. I've a lot to learn from her, obviously. I've read Lazy Moms TMT......that stands for ten minute tasks, but according to my watch, the tasks I'm in need of accomplishing will take about 4230 ten minute segments......so where is she, that cute little fairy? I'm off to find her...and in the meantime, I'll be turning on the music (hey maybe that draws her in out of hiding????) and getting some serious order restored to the SI Casa.....

It's time to start thinking about Easter eggs!

This is a post from last year, but appropos for the season, so I thought I'd run it again......

We don't really dye eggs at our house much anymore, since my kids are older, but I'm thinking maybe you still do....well, maybe I'll do some this year for myself!!! I thought maybe you'd like to know how to dye them without using all those dyes that have to have a special number attached to them.....like Red dye #47 or Blue dye #23....why not try dying them with REAL food items???I've got some ideas for you and I even did a little Googling for some further research for you and me....Above is a picture of some naturally dyed eggs, and you can find some info here and here. Try looking here, too. You can also tea dye them, too as shown below, and the instructions are found here.Also, here are the instructions I have on hand for Elegant Dyed Easter Eggs using NATURAL food coloring.

Place colorant, from the list below in the pot with 1 quart of water and 2 T. white vinegar. Bring to a boil; let cool slightly. Place dye back in the pot with up to 2 raw eggs, bring to a boil. (If adding more than 2, stir gently to prevent eggs from settling against each other). Leave in dye until desired hue is reached, from 20 minutes up to 2 hours. Remove, pat dry lightly with paper towels; let air dry. Here is the list of colorants to use:
1/2 c. paprika= peachy salmon color
1 c. canned cherries in syrup=red
3 T. turmeric=yellow
1 c. fresh spinach leaves=green
4 c. chopped red cabbage or 1 c. blueberries with syrup=blue
12 medium sized onion skins=orange
1/2 c. grape juice concentrate=purple

For further decoration, take a crayon and make designs on the eggs before dying them. The dye will not absorb into the designs as the wax prevents it from absorbing and leaves the design in place. The process can be constantly repeated with the crayons for multiple effects on the eggs....these give you the look of Ukranian Easter Eggs.
Mostly have fun as you see nature's own hues softly displayed in your Easter Egg Basket Bounty!!! I'll be back next week with the recipe for the Easter Story Cookies, in case you need that one, too.

It's time to start thinking about Easter eggs!

This is a post from last year, but appropos for the season, so I thought I'd run it again......

We don't really dye eggs at our house much anymore, since my kids are older, but I'm thinking maybe you still do....well, maybe I'll do some this year for myself!!! I thought maybe you'd like to know how to dye them without using all those dyes that have to have a special number attached to them.....like Red dye #47 or Blue dye #23....why not try dying them with REAL food items???I've got some ideas for you and I even did a little Googling for some further research for you and me....Above is a picture of some naturally dyed eggs, and you can find some info here and here. Try looking here, too. You can also tea dye them, too as shown below, and the instructions are found here.Also, here are the instructions I have on hand for Elegant Dyed Easter Eggs using NATURAL food coloring.

Place colorant, from the list below in the pot with 1 quart of water and 2 T. white vinegar. Bring to a boil; let cool slightly. Place dye back in the pot with up to 2 raw eggs, bring to a boil. (If adding more than 2, stir gently to prevent eggs from settling against each other). Leave in dye until desired hue is reached, from 20 minutes up to 2 hours. Remove, pat dry lightly with paper towels; let air dry. Here is the list of colorants to use:
1/2 c. paprika= peachy salmon color
1 c. canned cherries in syrup=red
3 T. turmeric=yellow
1 c. fresh spinach leaves=green
4 c. chopped red cabbage or 1 c. blueberries with syrup=blue
12 medium sized onion skins=orange
1/2 c. grape juice concentrate=purple

For further decoration, take a crayon and make designs on the eggs before dying them. The dye will not absorb into the designs as the wax prevents it from absorbing and leaves the design in place. The process can be constantly repeated with the crayons for multiple effects on the eggs....these give you the look of Ukranian Easter Eggs.
Mostly have fun as you see nature's own hues softly displayed in your Easter Egg Basket Bounty!!! I'll be back next week with the recipe for the Easter Story Cookies, in case you need that one, too.

His eye is on the sparrow.....

I've always loved this song, even though it is an old one. And even though these are bluebirds and not sparrows, I still thought of this song when I saw this picture. It all fits together, don't you think?

Why should I feel discouraged?
Why should the shadows come?
Why should my heart feel lonely?
And long for heaven and home

When Jesus is my portion
A constant friend is He
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches over me
His eye is on the sparrow
and I know He over watches me
His eye is on the sparrow
and I know He watches me

I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches me (He watches me)
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches (I know He watches)
I know He watches me

(I) I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches me (He watches me)
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know, He watches me
He watches me
He watches me
I know
He watches me.

His eye is on the sparrow.....

I've always loved this song, even though it is an old one. And even though these are bluebirds and not sparrows, I still thought of this song when I saw this picture. It all fits together, don't you think?

Why should I feel discouraged?
Why should the shadows come?
Why should my heart feel lonely?
And long for heaven and home

When Jesus is my portion
A constant friend is He
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches over me
His eye is on the sparrow
and I know He over watches me
His eye is on the sparrow
and I know He watches me

I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches me (He watches me)
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches (I know He watches)
I know He watches me

(I) I sing because I'm happy
I sing because I'm free
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know He watches me (He watches me)
His eye is on the sparrow
And I know, He watches me
He watches me
He watches me
I know
He watches me.

Tablescapes.......

There just aren't enough surfaces in the world to house all the great ideas for tablescapes. Oh, that's just a fancy word for "stuff on the top of the table that you pull together to make it look pretty"........ So do you use a theme, or use a color, or just how do you pull together a great tablescape? Obviously, you begin with a great statement piece. Then you add filler and fluff to make it just right. Seems like I use that phrase a lot...... Well, today I want to concentrate on a great piece. That's what I love about Southern Living at HOME pieces, by the way, is that the pieces are great pieces and OH SO VERSATILE!!! Take the Jamestown Centerpiece.......it doesn't make a lot of noise, it's been around in the catalog for some time now, and is just a little workhorse. The handle is removable if you like, and it comes with a glass piece in the bottom to give you a surface over the gorgeous wrought iron work that makes the frame. Did I mention that the glass surface also makes it food safe for serving food? You can use it in the bathroom for holding all your toiletries or for towels and soap; you can fill it with flowers for the dining room centerpiece, or you could line it with a napkin to serve rolls/bread. The ideas are endless! If you have one, how do you use YOURS? Currently mine is in the bathroom holding all my bottles, cans, creams, etc. Oh, and it also has precious little votive candle holders to match.....and as we know, just because they are called votive holders does NOT mean that you cannot use it for something else........condiments sit so prettily in them!! You can place butter in them next to that great basket of yummy rolls! As it happens , I DO happen to have a few pics I thought I would share. And again, one of them came from Paula!! She is so creative, I love to save pics of her ideas! Thanks, Paula! She has made a fabulous little spring basket and showcased her little collection of eggs and nests. And take a look at that gorgeous cloth she has laid underneath it. I'm sure this is in her beautiful dining room, which you can see if you go on over to her blog! Mine, shows the way I used it last year for Easter. And then the other picture shows it with bread sticks with the votives. And lest you think that this is only an EGG basket, think again. Imagine it filled with small pumpkins and gourds for fall, Christtmas balls and ornaments, birthday party favors,office supplies on the desk..... So you see, my dear friend, you can use this for decorating seasonally, OR use it for everyday. It's just one of the many choices when deciding how to use this little gem. There are a million and one choices that I didn't list here! You can look on my website, www.southernlivingathome.com/sjathome for additional ideas and recipes!
So what's YOUR idea for this piece? I'd love to see!!!

Tablescapes.......

There just aren't enough surfaces in the world to house all the great ideas for tablescapes. Oh, that's just a fancy word for "stuff on the top of the table that you pull together to make it look pretty"........ So do you use a theme, or use a color, or just how do you pull together a great tablescape? Obviously, you begin with a great statement piece. Then you add filler and fluff to make it just right. Seems like I use that phrase a lot...... Well, today I want to concentrate on a great piece. That's what I love about Southern Living at HOME pieces, by the way, is that the pieces are great pieces and OH SO VERSATILE!!! Take the Jamestown Centerpiece.......it doesn't make a lot of noise, it's been around in the catalog for some time now, and is just a little workhorse. The handle is removable if you like, and it comes with a glass piece in the bottom to give you a surface over the gorgeous wrought iron work that makes the frame. Did I mention that the glass surface also makes it food safe for serving food? You can use it in the bathroom for holding all your toiletries or for towels and soap; you can fill it with flowers for the dining room centerpiece, or you could line it with a napkin to serve rolls/bread. The ideas are endless! If you have one, how do you use YOURS? Currently mine is in the bathroom holding all my bottles, cans, creams, etc. Oh, and it also has precious little votive candle holders to match.....and as we know, just because they are called votive holders does NOT mean that you cannot use it for something else........condiments sit so prettily in them!! You can place butter in them next to that great basket of yummy rolls! As it happens , I DO happen to have a few pics I thought I would share. And again, one of them came from Paula!! She is so creative, I love to save pics of her ideas! Thanks, Paula! She has made a fabulous little spring basket and showcased her little collection of eggs and nests. And take a look at that gorgeous cloth she has laid underneath it. I'm sure this is in her beautiful dining room, which you can see if you go on over to her blog! Mine, shows the way I used it last year for Easter. And then the other picture shows it with bread sticks with the votives. And lest you think that this is only an EGG basket, think again. Imagine it filled with small pumpkins and gourds for fall, Christtmas balls and ornaments, birthday party favors,office supplies on the desk..... So you see, my dear friend, you can use this for decorating seasonally, OR use it for everyday. It's just one of the many choices when deciding how to use this little gem. There are a million and one choices that I didn't list here! You can look on my website, www.southernlivingathome.com/sjathome for additional ideas and recipes!
So what's YOUR idea for this piece? I'd love to see!!!

Check out the Filigree Iron Candle Holder used for the centerpiece on this gorgeous fall table. It is such a versatile SLaHOME piece! I love that it is not too high and doesn't block the view of the people across the table, nor does it interrupt conversation by being obtrusive. It is a brown iron piece that will go with any season, with multiple types of candles and candleholders. I've used five inch column candles, various shapes and sizes of votiveholders, as well as other "outside the box" kind of elements. Recently I just purchased the battery operated votives to try out on this piece. I love that they sort of flicker w/o using any fire!!! It can be decorated elaborately, or very simply, used on the dining table or outside on the patio. Another idea for it is to hang it on the wall, and use the bottom of it to hang a tea towel on. I'll need to photograph that and illustrate what I mean. In the meantime, I'll show you a few other pics of it and show the versatility of this Filigree Iron Candle holder.......it's all FYInspiration. Enjoy!