Friday, August 28, 2009

Timeless Treasure

Patty and me August 25, 2009

I recently had dinner with a very dear friend of mine, Patty. She and I have been friends since we were 5 years old. Our friendship started when my parents moved from a family farm house to a country setting where finding playmates was a little difficult. Once Patty and I discovered each other, we became inseparable.

Patty lived down a very long driveway back in the woods and I lived down a quiet country road about a block away. I remember thinking it took forever to get to her house while my Mom and I walked down her driveway. Patty and I had completely different lifestyles, her father was an orthopedic surgeon and my dad was a farmer. Her mom was a doctors wife, with an active social life, my mom was farmers wife, cooking, canning, cleaning and working part-time outside the home. We both learned so much about life from each others family. We shared some of the greatest times of our lives as best friends, growing up together. We started as little girls in kindergarten and grew into women with families of our own.

Our friendship continued on into young adulthood. We planned our weddings together and had our babies together. In time we grew apart as our families took priority in our lives. We continued to stay in touch occasionally over the years, however, we didn't spend time together sharing our lives and nurturing our friendship. All that changed a few months ago when Patty and I ran into one another at a restaurant during her daughters wedding rehearsal dinner. A few weeks later we met for dinner and talked for hours! This past Tuesday evening was our second dinner date, this time we included her wonderful husband Dennis. Again we talked for hours, sharing, laughing and enjoying each others company.

Friendship is a true blessing and friends are a gift from God. I marvel at the fact that friends can lose touch for several years and pick up exactly where they left off , as if they had never been apart. Patty is dear friend and a timeless treasure! I love you Patty!

Monday, August 17, 2009

Michigan's Beauty!



Hello again, I just returned from an amazing weekend with the man in my life and had a wonderful time!! We live in the lower peninsula of Michigan and made the lengthy trek to the Upper Peninsula crossing the Mackinaw bridge. Our destination was Sault Saint Marie, Michigan, the home of the Soo locks just across the water from Sault Saint Marie, Ontario.

The weather was phenomenal, we were so lucky! It was in the upper 80's and sunny Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I must admit I was a little apprehensive to leave what little nice summer weather we've had this year in Michigan to travel nearly 4 hours north to a much colder climate. I was pleasantly surprised, the weather perfect!

Saturday we headed an hour northwest to Whitefish Point on the shoreline of Lake Superior. These beautiful rocks were everywhere; I collected a few to bring home for a lasting memory.


On our way back from Whitefish Point we stopped by Tahquamenon Falls and viewed the upper falls. These are a few images of the beautiful nature we experienced during our visit.



This was at the top of the falls. See all the pennies in the water? I hope all their wishes come true!


The falls...also referred to the Root Beer falls due to the brown water from the tannis leached from the cedar swamps.


What beauty God has given us to experience and enjoy! I feel so blessed!!

Have a wonderful day!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Blogging for Bliss...why?

Good Morning,

I recently purchased a book called Blogging for Bliss written by Tara Frey. Today http://www.artsymama.com/ hosted a blog party to celebrate the release of Tara's book. She asked those of us who attended the party to write a post about why we blog and how we got started. So, here goes...

I started my first blog named from House to Home last summer as a digital diary for a house renovation I was working on. So many friends and family regularly asked for updates and were curious about the progress. I decided a blog would be the perfect solution to keep everyone up-to-date. They enjoyed watching the changes (as slow as they seemed at times) and were eager to offer their suggestions and compliments.

As time went on, I began following other blogs that peaked my interest in decorating and collecting. Before I knew it, I had been consumed with daily surfing to satisfy my hunger for wanting more inspiration and enlightenment. I was so impressed with what I saw and what I was learning, I decided it was time for me to create a blog to share what I was doing. It doesn't matter if anyone finds my interests and inspirations meaningful, for me it has become a hobby and a journal to give others a glimpse of who I am and what I love - my life, my home, my family, my beloved pets and my friends! I share bits and pieces of all of these things in my blog.

My House to Home blog has now been converted to Visions Of Vintage at http://visionsofvintage.blogspot.com/. I hope you enjoy what you see and feel free to leave a comment!

Happy blogging...

Monday, August 3, 2009

Favorite Things...

So far, so good...two days in a row of posting to my blog. I have so much to share with all of you; today I'm going to talk about a few of my favorite things. Oh so many, where do I begin?

This sweet little canister was my Mom's. I filled it with antique cookie cutters some of which were hers and some that I have collected. My Mom passed away over 5 years ago at the age of 83. As you might have guessed, I'm the youngest of 7 children. I'm one of 5 girls so I feel lucky to have acquired this piece.



I love these little bird salt and pepper shakers I bought at Anthropologie! They add such a whimsical touch to my kitchen counter.

And...it wouldn't be summer without a luscious quart of fresh strawberries.


These photos show another one of my favorite things along with a plant stand I recently discovered at the local summer antique market. It is perfect for the Christmas cactus that I have been caring for over the past several years. This plant has NOT bloomed in 4 years until this spring when I moved it to the perfect location on this adorable vintage table.

Justify Full

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Summer Love

Okay, it's time to get blogging! I hope to give you updates on a regular basis, in a perfect world that would be daily, however, I must be realistic and shoot for several times a week.

I haven't introduced you to my latest summer love - Mo! Mo was born sometime in March and appeared on Mike's front porch with his brother Rosco on April 15. They were so small they fit into the palm of our hands. Keep in mind I had no intention of adopting another pet, considering I already have two adopted golden retrievers (Josie and Toby) and an adopted cat (Gracie).

I agreed to help feed and pamper both kitties until they were old enough to go to their adoptive homes. Betsie my daughter intended to take Rosco back to Raleigh, NC with her in May and Leah a student from work was eager to adopt Mo and take him to Cincinnati with her. Needless to say, neither kitty ever left Michigan. Mike was convinced they couldn't be split up, they were too attached to one another. So, yep you guessed it, Rosco went to live with him and Mo stayed with me. I have become so attached to him and he is a true love boy! He and Rosco have regular play dates!!

Introducing...Moses - adopted date: 4/16/09
Rosco is the tiger guy in the lower portion of the photo

With his new sister, Gracie