The morning sky pulled me out of a warm bed

and completely captivated me 

as it showed it's brilliant colors for an introduction of a pretty day.

The next morning, I once again ignored the cold chill as I watched the sun sit on top of a covering of fog across the prairie........

The next morning.......the sun stayed in bed, while Sophie and I  braved the spitting of snow  , 

We got a little snow..............

I really mean.........."a little" snow.

Just enough to make a tiny snowman.

and not enough to make this hungry Cardinal stay away from the feeder.

Now we are getting the "Arctic Blast" sweeping across parts of the country, leaving the trees and what is left of their leaves, coated in ice.  

And now this year is fading away and a new year will be shining through , 

filling me with hopes of more beautiful sun rises and serene sunsets. 

Here's wishing you a very 

happy new year filled with the same!

Happy New Year!

May Peace be your gift at Christmas and your blessing all year through

Christmas is forever, not for just one day,

for loving, sharing, giving, are not to put away

like bells and lights and tinsel, in some box upon a shelf.

The good you do for others is good you do yourself...

~Norman Wesley Brooks (U.S. design engineer, 1923–2002)

Merry Christmas everyone!

I have posted a wonderful Christmas cookie recipe on my cooking blog

just click onto this link

Cherry Almond Snowdrops

Moonshine is keeping me out late at night..........

The moon was so huge tonight that all I could do was  just stare in awe...........I 'm hooked..........

it's intoxicating!

and I wanted to share my moonshine with you!

Have a great weekend everyone!

There is an oak tree in the back yard

that is  dressed in it's finest and colorful dress,

shimmering in the sunlight

and looking breathtaking against a clear blue sky.   I t wont be long however before these leaves fall to the ground, brown and dry......and the tree sleeps it's cold winter sleep. 

Once again, the long limbs grow from the bottom of the tree's trunk.........no matter how much we have tried to stop them......so once again the limbs get trimmed away.........

Instead of tossing them into the compost.......I take them in and place them in vintage vases to decorate the dinning room table..........

the various rooms 

\

and bathroom counters.  Just these simple twigs and leaves bring such beauty to a space......

don't you think?? 

Out in the greenhouse the flowers are completely unaware of the cold weather that is whistling around the corner........the snap dragons from this spring are in full bloom

as well as the various containers of moss rose. 

The geranium that had been so tired and frazzled from the past hot summer is budding and growing taller.

The tomato vines that I planted in large containers just for the greenhouse 

are giving me a wonderful bounty each week as I visit.

The cyclamen that stay in the greenhouse during the cold night, go out into the window boxes during the day when the sun pleasant this time of year. 

The migrating Sand Hill Cranes fly and call to each other in the late evening sky as they head to their roosting place in a wet land pasture a few miles away.

The evening has turned chilly and it is perfect for sitting around a fire and talking with my sweet one about the tapestry of our life that we have weaved for ourselves. We both wonder...........

where have all of the years gone??

It has been a sweet life and we reflect on that, as the fire crackles and glows.

How about you?

Are your trees showing off their brilliant colorful leaves?

Do you like to sit around and evening fire........inside or outside?

I would love to hear!

Wishing You A Wonderful Thanksgiving

I kissed his head and told him he was the prettiest bird ever............

for the last time.......

Today, Cookie,  this sweet little bird of 32 years .......that's right.......he's been with us since 1983..........

has died.

Monday morning I found him lying on his back in his cage. I scooped him up and wrapped him in a soft towel and made him comfortable in a box and fed him drops of water and baby food throughout the night hoping he would get stronger. He lived through the night........which gave me hope so I started seeking information and help yesterday......

After talking to 2 vets, who told me they do not handle "exotics" and could not help me, I found 2 bird rehabilitators and breeders . They were shocked to hear that this bird has lived so long. They have raised birds for over 20 years and have only seen them to be 8.  After hearing about how he was acting.......they told me he was shutting down and was preparing to die.. 

 This morning, I placed him in an old tin and buried him underneath a stone in my garden path.

I have posted about this wonderful bird in our life a few years ago.

You can read his story by clicking onto this link

I Am Pretty Bird

I am heart broken..........although I knew this day was going to come.......

bye, bye, sweet birdie.

For Halloween, I wanted to show you something...............

Scary

something vintage

and something to make you laugh.........

and it is also the perfect time to show you the pumpkins and gourds 

 from my gardens this year.

The main reason I started growing pumpkins was because I wanted a lot to decorate with

and really could not afford to pay for that many...........

but once I started growing them............I fell in love with the whole plant. I love the large leaves and how the vine stretches completely over the ground. 

Even if I do not get a big harvest.......or the biggest pumpkin.......

I  love the whole growing pumpkin process.

Gourds have also caught my attention and I only get a handful of these pretty little ones 

and only a few large ones.........

but for me

it is enough...........and I am happy.

Here's wishing you a very happy and safe 

Halloween!

My farmhouse kitchen has been finished!

Cleaning out and stripping an old dollhouse of it's wallpaper and old flooring is just as time consuming as doing a real house.....many of you probably already know this........

for me, it was a learning session,  but I got it done!

As I was stripping away the wallpaper , I discovered that it was just like an old house, there were layers of different wallpaper in the rooms. This one particular picture I loved

and as I mentioned in my previous post, I want to keep some things that were already there in the dollhouse. I carefully cut away from the picture and hope that I can find some wall paper to go around it or maybe I might paint around it.......

what do you think??

I already had a design for the kitchen in my head when I first discovered this dollhouse and decided that this would be the first room I would renovate. I still decided to keep the little curtain that is hanging between the cupboards. I  removed the vinyl from the cabinets and scrubbed the kitchen floor

which turned out to be a lovely red vinyl! I then printed off wallpaper that has the same design pattern as my favorite set of dishes I use and  the background to my embroidery blog. I only wanted to wallpaper the upper part of the room and I wanted the kitchen to have a bead board look at the bottom.........is that the right word ??......beadboard??  I used craft sticks and glued each one..........it took me forever............

and then I panted them white and placed red ones on the top and bottom of the boards.

I also framed the other window in red board and made a little curtain.

I  placed craft sticks on the cabinets and stained them a dark brown, and then I made the farm house sink with the top of a jewelry box, and then painted it.

I wanted to keep the whimsical lights set throughout the house, so I made a lamp shade for the kitchen one.

I hand crocheted a rug for the floor

I also made a little curtain for the bottom of the sink and a matching hand towel.

The hardest decision for me to make was whether or not to paint the cabinets, but I wanted a bright cheery kitchen........so goodbye drab brown .........

and hello .........cheery!!

 Now my farmhouse kitchen is finished.......except for the furniture, which I am either going to make or purchase. I want to get all of the rooms finished and then try to get furniture that matches with the whole house. 

 I am planning on starting to work on the large living room.........which I might make half into a dining room. 

What do you think??
Would you just make a large living room........or make a dining room on the side??