Quiet Days

 This week is looking like it is going to be pretty quiet so I thought I would go ahead and get this tour finished up before things start changing. I think all we have left to see are the two bathrooms and, not much has changed in either.

The guest bath provides a bit more opportunity for decor but, since I will be having some company here over the holiday, it needs to be kept where real life people can actually function in here. lol It seems as if I am leaving the $Tree lantern here all of the time now. I actually like the bit of glow the battery candle gives this room at night.

Since blue is not a favorite color of mine, I don't have many decor items in that color and this would be the only time of the year that I would use it so I am not prone to buy much in those color ways. But, when I needed something a few years ago, I realized that there were a number of bottles being recycled in my house that would give me the color that I needed. I think this large bottle is from a Riesling wine and I actually love the way it looks here. It gives the feel of a more expensive Italian glass for none of the cost. Lol

I did have this sign left over from somewhere else so I propped it here in the corner where it is out of the way-I hope-but brings a bit of a pop.

This shelf turned out to be an ode to the American flag with various interpretations.

And just a hint of the holiday in the primary.

This poor paint stir stick star also lost its previous home and, honestly, it was easier to put it on the window sill than to pack it away somewhere so here it sits. Lol

As promised, not many changes so not much to "talk" about but, I still enjoy having a bit of each holiday/season in all of the rooms that I go into the most. The guest rooms are the only ones usually left untouched except for major holidays when they will see lots of action.

I think that wraps up this year's tour and no decor changes will be happening until after the 4th so I'm not sure what will keep me busy until then. I will be grand dog sitting once again-and, I just realized, decorating with my next theme while he is still here because he will be with me through July 12! Of all of my grand dogs, he is the one least likely to follow me every time I move so I should be good to go even with him here. If it had been my Vel-Cro dog, Hazel, I might have had to wait because she is under foot at all times but I don't mind because I love her so much!

I will be back to share as soon as I have something for you. Until then, stay safe and stay tuned.

Quick Pop-In

 As we are nearing the end of our 2026 4th of July decor tour I remembered that we never caught the front porch. I was waiting to see if Lowes ever got in their red, white and "blue" pots-and they did-so I grabbed one and with the "blue" petunias with white accents left over from spring and Easter, the "red" geranium and the blue daze-which isn't blooming much at the moment- I have enough out there now to set the scene so let's go.

I will say that keeping the potted plants happy these days is difficult. If they don't get watered at least once a day, they begin to quickly show their stress.

I grow my herbs in pots also. I keep them outside the side door towards the pool and even though this area is a bit shaded, the herbs need to be babied as well. So, whenever they start getting big and beginning to flower, I go into my "Mother Nature" mode and cut them back, bring them into the kitchen and come up with something-and, with the basil, it is almost always a pesto if I'm not just ripping them onto a pizza or pasta.

I have been making pesto for many years and when I started, I made it the traditional way using pine nuts. But, over the years, the price of those things has gone crazy high so I explored other options and I found that making it with either pistachios or pecans was just as good for my taste.

This is really the simplest recipe. Using a food processor makes easy work of it. Basically, it is 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup pistachios, 4 cups fresh basil leaves, one clove of garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Make sure that you use freshly grated cheese-NOT the stuff from the cardboard box! I always have a hunk of cheese in my fridge because I like to grate it over all kinds of things-even my roasted veggies!

And then the small tarragon plant I bought at the Master Gardener's Show back in March got huge as well. I love the smell and look of tarragon but except for tuna salad and, again, as a seasoning on my roasted veggies, I don't cook with it a lot unless I'm making a special dish for guests. But, the plant needed to be cut back so I trimmed off a lot and bundled it up and hung it over my kitchen window until it had dried. Then, I pulled it down, peeled off the leaves and chipped them very finely. I made a tuna salad and really only needed about a teaspoon so I have the rest in an air tight container for when I roast my next large batch of vegetables tomorrow night. I wish you could smell my kitchen! It is just beautiful and it makes me feel like an earth mother. Lol Imagine how good I would feel if I could actually grow ANYTHING real! LOL

That's all I have for today. I think the only things we actually have left to catch are the two bathrooms and this year's tour will be over. I will get back with that soon but until then, stay safe and stay tuned.

Almost Done

My car is now at the service center and I got a lovely surprise as neither my daughter nor my son-in-law-who are the usual suspects-picked me up to bring me home this morning. It was sweet granddaughter #5. It still takes me aback a bit to realize that she is now, too, driving. She is having a pretty quiet summer although she did fill me in on her "float" down the Rainbow River yesterday. She said the place was packed which, with our temperatures these days, does not surprise me! In any case, after a nice catch-up chit chat, I am home and thinking we will head into the family room today.

I'm still kind of proud of myself for the "knockoff" Statue of Liberty watercolor that I did a few years ago. I love watercolor but, quite frankly, have never been able to master it so, when I saw this print on sale somewhere, I came close to buying it. Then, upon closer examination, I thought I could probably figure out a way to get a close copy with no expense.

I ended up finding a die-cut image and cutting it out of Con-Tact paper that I carefully adhered onto a sheet of watercolor paper. Then, I simply wet the surrounding areas, dropped on watercolor paint and "smeared" it in for the background and then splattered water to make the spots. When it was fully dry I peeled off the Con-Tact paper "mask" and had just what I wanted.

I usually use the white round tray here but, because I am still pulling in some antique gold in this room, I left the gold tray in place. Those "My Texas House" hydrangreas are just too pretty to put away just yet so I put them in my large PB urn and added a few red geraniums and an old blue hydrangea. 

This is the first year in many that the mantle does not have lights. Both sets of star lights blew out and the last few years I have strung the twinkle lights through another red, white and blue pip berry garland that I had but, every year it got harder and harder to hang and get right so, this year I just gave up. I put a simple pip berry garland on top of the mantle and called it a day. Then, I took the old garland and cut it up and twisted it into circles to use as candle rings that you will see in other spots around this room-waste not, want not. Lol

Those who know me or have been visiting my blog for awhile know that I am not a fan of dolls. But, for some reason, last year everywhere you looked people, were featuring the Uncle Sam doll. I had bought a set of the round boxes to make my drum that is in the dining room and I had the largest box left over. Again, not wanting to waste it I thought it would look cute as a riser for something so I decided to give the Uncle Sam a try. I did not have a pattern so there was much hit-or-miss and he is nowhere near perfect but, that is the point and probably the only reason I gave him a try. Being he is supposed to look primitive, you almost can't go wrong. He may not last as decor forever but he did make the cut again this year. Lol

This wreath is one of my most viewed and copied images on my blog. Daughter #3 made it for me many years ago when her children were much smaller than they are now. The only thing I did after receiving it was to remove each little handprint and laminate them so they would stand the test of time...and they have!

I still like this pillow cover I made from a very inexpensive cover from HL and acrylic paint. Again, I did the Con-Tact paper masking and just painted over the stars and removed the mask at the end. 

For whatever reason, I never remember to get a picture after it is fully dark outside but, you can see what it looks like as the candles all start coming on-albeit without me getting up to turn on the small chargeable lights. This is my view every evening and it takes a LOT to get me up once I am cozied in. Lol

Not much more to go and then, I will have to admit, one of my favorite decor themes is next. Because I dislike summer so much, when I bring out the "sun"flowers for summer along with the citrus and Mediterranean decor, even though it is 150 degrees in the shade outside, my brain seems to remind me that "this too shall end" and autumn WILL come again! I seriously ask myself why I am still living in Florida. Lol

Still haven't heard anything about my car-the longer it takes usually the more it costs so fingers crossed the phone rings soon. Lol Stay safe and stay tuned.

One of Those Days!

 When last we "spoke" I mentioned that daughter #3 and I had been invited to a book launch-the first one for me-and I was excited. As the time got closer, my daughter mentioned that she had a huge presentation scheduled for today so if I could meet her at her office, she could work a bit longer. And so, that is what I did and I assumed that after we left the launch, she would be going back to work and I would be headed home for dinner on my own. 

But, as sometimes happens, the day went differently and it could not have been more wonderful! And that started with us finding the MOST PERFECT parking spot right downtown almost in front of the venue so no walking for blocks in the unrelenting heat...and, believe me, at this time of the year in Florida, that is a HUGE PLUS!! Lol

The book launch with signing was a fabulous success and we visited with so many old friends and Jen introduced me to so many new ones. Our initial thought was to buzz in, chitchat a bit, get our books signed and head out. BUT, as usually happens, we got deep into conversations with everyone and before we knew it, we were closing down the place when Jen suggested we head to our favorite (Harry's) for dinner. And, a quick text to my son-in-law saw him joining us. I got home much later than anticipated and I was tired but the really good kind of tired. What a wonderful, albeit unexpected, day!

The author of the book is a childhood friend of my daughters and just a beautiful human being. To say that we are happy for her would be a vast understatement!

And her illustrator is a friend of many years. I met her when she was a teacher at my girls' middle school and then we did some craft shows together. She is such a talented lady. She went on to be an incredible elementary school principal and when she retired, she went back to her artistic talent and has become very successful in that endeavor and her work in this book is absolutely perfect for the theme!

These three have been friends since elementary school and the tales they tell and the things they  remember when they're together are truly heart warming and hilarious. Their lives are all so different now but when they get together it's as if no time has passed.

The story that this book tells is beautiful and the way we should all try to live our lives-children as well as adults! "Bee" kind, "bee" patient, "bee" thankful, "bee" courageous, "bee" honest! What a wonderful world it would be if we all just were!  I hope it finds incredible success!

So now I am on to today. We had a storm last night with lots of rain so everything looks green again outside-finally, But, since I really don't have anything left out there to tackle momentarily, I have just been piddling around inside and, for whatever reason, two things-that really have nothing to do with anything-caught my eye.

The first is the very large picture display that I have had on the side of the pantry ever since we had it added to the kitchen. I don't normally post pictures of it because it truly isn't all that attractive. That is what actually got me looking at it. I thought about taking it down in my "simplify" mode.

When the pantry was added years ago, that very large white expanse bothered me so I added a bulletin board that I covered in the fabric that was also on the stool cushions and the "curtain" on the front of the kitchen desk area. And, when that wasn't large enough, I added some fabric covered foam core board that made the display pretty much the whole size of the area.

For many, many years I would change those photos out monthly to match the theme but, as time went on, I had family Christmas cards photos that I wanted left there and then other priceless photos that I wanted left there and, before I knew it, I was leaving SO MANY photos there all of the time and then just taking the "themed" ones and sticking them in willynilly until, I have a huge mess!!!

One plus in this predicament is that even though I have changed the fabric in the kitchen twice since doing this except the fabric on here-which would require taking down all of those photos and, well...!-  there is so much "stuff" on here that you can no longer tell what fabric I started with. Lol

So, once again I am thinking about removing this "treasure". The question then remains, "where will I put all of those memories"? There are not enough frames in the world nor enough space in my house to display said frames if there was so???? I'm guessing for now, this will just go onto a back burner and we shall see. 

And then, as I was getting out of bed this morning, I once again realized maybe why I enjoy decorating so much-little things just make my heart happy...and, for whatever reason, this glimpse is one of them...

My plan is always to add a bit of the current holiday/season theme here as well as other places in the bedroom but I could not bring myself to do that here. For whatever reason, this little glimpse just makes me feel at peace.

And so, that is all of the "feels" for me today. I am off to photograph the family room and I hope to be back soon with that. My car goes in for servicing early tomorrow so I will be "stuck" at home until I get that back so I am sure I will be anxious to visit again soon. Until then, stay safe and stay tuned.

Feelin' GOOD!

 I am feeling pretty good about myself right now. I have almost completed everything on my "TO-DO" list-both inside AND out. I still have one more garden to weed but I am hoping to get it done this afternoon when there is a bit more shade on that side of the yard. Of course, right about the time I finish it all, it will be time to start over since our summer rains have caused the weeds to GROW in double time but that is for another day! Lol

I am feeling extra good about myself because I had one more visit from Towanda. The older I get, the less it seems she comes to help out. It is a long story and, again, one best left for another day but, suffice it to say that after MANY unsuccessful attempts, I was FINALLY able to get all of the pieces of one of my concrete fountains back together and the new pump installed. I have been moving this thing around ever since the day I first brought it home but, somehow, ,magically, it seems to have taken on MUCH more weight. Lol In any case, it is now back where it belongs and running beautifully. There is just something about water sounds in the yard that make my heart happy and my blood pressure to go down.

So, with all of that being said, let's get on to the reason I am here...the sunroom ready for the 4th. And, you know what I am going to say...things are once again at a minimum so that we can utilize this area quickly. It seems to be a favorite hangout when anyone comes over.

I still love this guy so much. He was super easy-even my youngest grandchildren were able to make one-and he's just cute.

The console holds the lantern and a photograph sent by granddaughter #3 to my husband one Father's Day when she couldn't be with us because she was on a school field trip to D.C. and they were at the Planting of the Flag at Iwo Jima statue in Arlington National Cemetery. She made a sign to send her greetings and, next to having her here, it was the next best thing!

Granddaughter #5 cringes every time she comes over and sees this but I love it. She made it for me after returning from a weekend here at my house with one of her brothers where they painted "interpretations" of the American flag. She got inspired to do this all on her own. I wish I had had her sign and date it but it was awhile ago and even though her talents have come far since then, I just love the honesty in this painting-and the fact that she made it for me because she knew I would like it. 

Memories from 2018...sigh!

I kind of chuckle every time I see a picture from this time. Grandson #2 LOVED his hair like that-and, he didn't really get any resistance from me because I have lived through many, many hair fads and, in my opinion, if it makes the person feel better about themselves, who cares-it is just hair. But, now that he is a handsome young man of almost 19, he questions why any of us ever let him do this. Lol You're damned if you do and damned if you don't! HA-HA!

Not sure where I am headed right now since there is "nothing" left for me to do around here-LOL-but, I know I will be back and we will get this tour wrapped up. Tomorrow I am heading to a book launch.

One of daughter #3's childhood friends has had a children's' book published and it is being launched locally tomorrow and we have been invited. The other fun part is that the illustrator is also an old friend-she was one of my girl's favorite teachers from middle school and she is now a locally recognized artist. We love them both so much and will be wishing them nothing but success on this new journey. And, it is being held at one of our favorite downtown spots for lunch that is, sadly, leaving their downtown location and moving quite a bit farther away. We will, I am sure, visit them at their new location but there is nothing quite like the downtown vibe when we are looking for a place to eat and visit-everyone you know seems to walk into or by this place while you are there and it is sad to see it go!

Until we meet again-stay safe and stay tuned.