Blame it on the potato salad!

Tonight, I am missing my mother!

I always miss my parents, especially when I think about all the things they didn’t get to know about me as a grown up, and about my little family,

but tonight I am really missing my mother.

I can’t tell her that I finally mastered her potato salad recipe.

(Well, my remembering of her making it-without a recipe.)

I inherited her cooking by instinct:  eyeballing-tasting-trial and error-and guessing-method.

(For the recipe go here.)

Everyone loved her cooking.  I have been told, (“My friends like to tell me…..”) that I make potato salad just like she did.

(The above reference refers to one of Jane Austin’s overly confident characters.  Unfortunately, I can’t remember which book it comes from.  Emma?  Can any one help me out?)

But,

I think my mom would be pleased.

I can’t tell her that I have incredibly talented, kind,  and wonderful children, or grand children who can sing at the top of their lungs every single word from the movie “Frozen”, and can do all the dance moves that go along with it.

They like to stand on the ottoman (their stage) and take turns belting out the songs. 

Sometimes their turns get blurred and someone might get pushed off the stage before their time is up, but they never miss a beat in the songs.

 

 

I’m pretty sure she would be proud of them, too.

I can’t tell her how sweet little Aubrey fell asleep at dinner tonight.

 

Or how worried we were when little Zachary ended up in the hospital last week with breathing problems.

 

I’d just love to tell her how excited we are to get to go and visit  this cute little guy soon!

I know she would love them all as much as I do!

So, there you have it.

I MISS MY MOTHER!

If you are one of the lucky ones who still has your mother around, please tell her how much you appreciate all she does for you.  Thank her for teaching you how to cook, or sew, or iron a shirt. 

Spend some time with her.

Maybe you could make some potato salad together!

JoAnn

Love you, mom!

Dusk…

There are certain times of the day that seem to stand out a little more than other times.

A moment when something makes us pause and look around, maybe noticing something that we might miss during the busy day.

Some are morning people.

They appreciate the quiet beauty of a sky just starting to fill with color.  They can enjoy the stillness of a house not yet encumbered by the noises of the dishwasher, television, phone, and family.  Our children are grown up and living away from home, but memories of blow dryers, toasters, and someone looking for missing shoes or homework isn’t so far behind us that we forget that morning chaos.

Other people seem to relish the early evening,

when a hard day’s work makes one sit back and relax with a cool drink and a striking sunset.  I love working in the garden, hoping that the last ray of light will give me a few more minutes of pleasure before darkness forces me inside.

Do you have a favorite time of day?

Sometimes it seems like days go by without my noticing those simple, miraculous moments. 

I let myself get caught up in the busy tasks of life.

Frustrations move in and take over that part of my brain that can find beauty and peace, pushing it back where I forget all about it.

I find myself too tired to get up and appreciate the morning sky, and too exhausted to go outside and watch the sun set.

Tonight I just happened to walk by the piano just as the sun was starting to set.  The shadows on the wall made the room look different, a bit foreign, almost like I was in somebody’s else’s house.

The little statues on the piano, gifts from people I love, seemed to call out to me, reminding me that someone appreciates me, and that I need to slow down and enjoy life more.

Tomorrow I am going to seek out more of those moments.

I need to go outside and start walking again.

Soon the weather will be warm enough to allow us to start gardening.

Maybe I will even take my camera along for some new photos to share.

(Yes, there has been a photo drought here!)

 

Wish me luck as I try to refocus.

I hope you find pleasure in those small, unexpected  moments, too!

JoAnn

Ready or not…here is the new bed!

The pillows are done!

That means I’m ready to show off the new bed my husband made.

I’d thought I’d start with a little “Before” picture to make everything look better by contrast.

This is how the room looked when we first started.  It was functional, but not very cozy.  The molding wasn’t up yet and the bed was just a Hollywood frame.  The mismatched bedding had been pulled out from storage, the stool by the dresser was just draped with fabric, and the wall was decorated with a framed Warren Kimball poster and a clock.  The  old dresser (my grandpa Palmer’s) was peeling and in need of some repair.

We were so excited to have another guest room that we tried to overlook the lack of style and just focus on the function.

Before:

These curtains hadn’t made the statement I had hoped they would.

Here is the after:

I love the headboard!  We painted the old dresser to match it and the stool is now officially recovered.  I bought the white comforter at Ikea ($20.00).  Notice the Euro-pillows?  I used the fabric from the catalog curtains to make them, and I had enough red flowered material left from the stool to make one more pillow for the bed. 

 

We changed out the wall pictures from other rooms in the house.

The white curtains were from Walmart. 

We brought a tan recliner down from upstairs to make some comfortable seating.  This room was decorated on a shoe-string budget, but it seems so much more cozy now than it did before.

Now, don’t you think it needs some guests?

 

JoAnn

P.S.  Hope your weekend is fun and relaxing!

 

Hunting, waiting, and surprises!

Who doesn’t  love a good bargain?

We’ve been looking for a headboard for a guest bedroom in our house for quite some time.

Since it wasn’t a real necessity, we only allowed ourselves a small budget.

We’ve checked out the local want ads.

Walked through Ikea.

Checked the want ads again.

Waited.

We actually found one we really liked-but someone beat us to it.

(Somebody got a steal for $40!)

A week ago my husband surprised me with a little creation he just  put together in the garage.

He ended up spending around $70, and some manual labor time, but he surpassed my goal by a long shot.

Here it is before he painted it.

I married a real craftsman!

Actually, he has so many amazing projects to his credit.

Lucky me!

It is now in place, just waiting for a couple of pillow cases to be stitched up. 

(Now, if I could get him to learn to sew!)

I’m hoping to get things finished up this weekend.

JoAnn

P.S.  Do you love making something over, or do you save up for something really nice?

A fun cultural date…

I was invited to attend a Latino Festival last night, to watch one of my cute students dance on the program.

My husband and I decided to make a date out of the evening, and headed downtown with eager expectations.

Don’t you just love that end-of-the-work-week-do-something-fun feeling?

It was a cloudy, but beautiful evening.

We jumped on the freeway and headed North.

 

Recent moisture had left the foothills covered with a light dusting of snow, and the late afternoon sun seemed to showcase its beauty.

 

We headed for the Salt Palace Convention Center, and were lucky enough to find a parking spot right across the street.

This little alley looked fun to explore another time.

Did you know that the convention center covers two city blocks?

We had to do a bit of walking before we got to the right part of the building, but at least it was warm inside.

Doesn’t she look beautiful in her traditional white dress?

(Sorry, I had to blur her face for her privacy.)

The program was lively and colorful, with dancing and singing.

I fell in love with this outfit, too. 

It was such an enjoyable evening.

We finished up the night at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, Su Casa.

I felt honored to be invited to share in a program showcasing her talent, and to learn more of her family’s culture!

Hope you get to do something relaxing and rejuvenating this weekend, too.

JoAnn

P.S. Happy Birthday, Katie!

 

Art, hand-me-downs, and changing my mind

My last post was about trying to create a watercolor from a snap shot using an i-pad app.    Rosella from the blog Rhubarb and Roses kindly shared the names of two apps that she knew about. 

She suggested one called Waterlogue and another called Mobile Monet.  I hope to try them both. 

(I really appreciate her tip.  Thanks!)

Even though this is a fun project, nothing compares to REAL art (even if it is a poster or a copy version) of the master painters.  While we have amazing technology to change, edit, enlarge, and reproduce art, they had the insight and extraordinary talent to actually create it.

One of my favorite styles of art is French Impressionism, and I’ve mentioned before how much I like the art of Claude Monet (1840-1926).

While we were in the process of redoing our bedroom, we chose a Monet to hang on our wall.  We ordered a copy of “The Artist’s Garden in Argenteuil”  on line.  We paid a little bit more to have a framed canvas, but the price was still very reasonable and the shipping was free.

(Buying nice frames, non-glare glass, and mats can add up, so it was a good deal.)

We also lucked out that it was on a two day sale.

It finally came and I really do like it.

It seems to go well above the little gray chair.

(This shot is for you, Holly!)

The red dresser was one of those hand-me-down pieces that we acquired when we got married.  It was passed to us from Ken’s sister’s husband’s parents.  Over the years it has changed color a few times (it was originally blond wood, which we didn’t like), but it is a solid piece of furniture.  We did change out the knobs on the drawers.

Yes, the red color is bright.

Maybe it’s next paint color life will be a more muted shade.

As we were hanging the Monet, we noticed that EVERY SINGLE THING hanging on our walls was black and rectangular in shape.

Everything. 

(Even the mirror above the dresser.)

We painted the mirror red, and found an oval mirror we already had to change out for one of the black rectangles.

Before:

After:

It’s hard to tell from the picture, but the little mirror even matches the finish on the lamps, so it was a win-win change.

If you want to see the original post of the bedroom redo, go here.

While our decorating style (or lack of) may not follow the rules, our humble home is our castle.

We’ve spent many years working on it, one project at a time.  I look at the decorating shows and marvel that the home buyers can change out everything they don’t like all at once!

We are so grateful to have a warm, cozy place to live.

Do you change your mind as you decorate, too?

JoAnn

I took an online decorating style quiz that I found on

21 Rosemary Lane.

My style is 33% traditional, 33% cabin, and 34% Nantucket.  Sounds like a strange combination to me!

 

I Want That App! Or….Fluffy, but not very deep!

When you think of the word “fluffy” what comes to mind?

Light feathery pancakes?

Goose down filled pillows?

Big, soft clouds on a crisp summer day?

Well, the fluffy I’m talking about isn’t that fluffy.

This post is pretty much a fluffy-Thursday-need-a-new-blog-post-but-don’t-have-anything-interesting-to-say-post.  After reading it, I’m pretty sure no one will accuse me of deep pondering or insight as to the mysteries of life. 

I’m even borrowing ideas from others, since I can’t find any original thoughts of my own today.

Yes, I need a weekend!

I’ve been noticing a lot of fun pictures on blogs lately, that have been turned into water colors, using an app that you can download on your ipad. 

I haven’t purchased it yet, but I sure do want to.

I have been trying to get a similar effect using our computer photo program.

It isn’t quite the same.

I still had fun playing around with it, however.

I forgot to notice the name of the filter on the first two pictures I altered.  I think they were one of the watercolor ones.

 

 

This filter is called Eggshell Crackle.  I kind of like this one.

This one is called Metal Chrome. 

It makes the playhouse look a little like an old abandoned shack!

Kind of creepy.

Photocopy- not too much detail shows up.

Pencil Sketch is kind of interesting.

My vote goes to Eggshell Crackle!  I just might have to have a large copy made!

 

Speaking of large copies- our Monet is here and is hanging on the wall in our bedroom.

We really like it a lot!

Hopefully, this weekend I can get some pictures to share.

Have a great evening!

JoAnn

P.S.  Here’s an unrelated thought:

“If you stumble, make it part of the dance.”

-Author unknown