Summer is slowing slipping into Autumn....

          but I will enjoy my shells for a couple weeks more! 

 Above a shelf made by my dad, is an old print of Mary and Jesus.  I found this treasure at the Alameda Flea Market!  It was the end of the day, and as a vendor was packing up, I saw it.  The frame had large chips out of it, but i loved it anyway!  And it was only ten dollars!

     When I brought it home, I just dabbed on two shades of gold paint....and voila!   The chips hardly show!

      To complete the shelf grouping, I added some shells, a well-worn, old family Bible and a lamb.

     I wonder what I will place on the shelf as the days turn golden?

Fun with Words!

As I have mentioned in an earlier blog, we live in a late 1940's ranch-style home....but I really want to live in a cottage.

So....we named our home "Grace Cottage" and know what? After 26 years of calling it a cottage.....it is a Cottage!

The above photo is our front porch....I call it the Veranda!

Just sounds lovelier than front  porch!

This is our back patio which is called the Terrace!  Ah, the power of a word!  Kevin and I feel quite elegant having a Terrace and Veranda!  We usually get confused which is which, even after all these years!

Now we have a new project...part of our front lawn has died under a big cork oak tree.  Wanting to add a french touch to our Cottage, I informed Kevin we needed to cover this area with gravel, add a bistro set and some potted ferns.  I've never been to France, but I have seen French homes with gravel.....Anyway, I suddenly thought - what are we going to call this new area?  Surely not the front gravel area!  After some hard thinking....we will be having a French Courtyard!

Oh the silliness!  Photos of the new French Courtyard with be coming soon!
   

Summer

This is a little art project I did a few summers ago which was inspired by an article in Sommerset magazine.  My  theme of "Pearl of Great Price"  came from one of Jesus' parables.  I love unpacking it from the Summer box each year!

Hope you're enjoying your summer.  Ours has been filled with lots of relaxing days....puttering in the garden, hopping in and out of our little pool, enjoying our grandbabies and a new kitten!


A belated Happy Fourth of July!  We are still have all of our little flags up....inside and out!

Dinners on the table!

Summer and patty pan squash, tomato and lemon cucumber from here!

Green beans from here!  Plus red onions from here which were harvested earlier .

A few eggs from here!

and we have dinner! 

 (except for the 

avocado and cheese, all my dinner ingredients came from our backyard! Love it!  Maybe I should get a milking goat and an 

avocado tree!)

Where did those chickens go?

The other day the chickens were out and about in the back garden.
Suddenly, there wasn't a chicken to be seen!  It's not easy for 7 big chickens to disappear!  

Found them in the Secret Garden (a fancy name for our side yard which is not frequented very often!  They seemed quite happy to be foraging in different territory and I'm happy they hadn't disappeared for good!

A New Addition to the Peter Rabbit Garden

While shopping with my sweet friends, Cathy H. and Cathy R., I found the perfect "faux" carrots to hang on the gate into the Peter Rabbit garden!  They look almost real enough to fool an hungry bunny!

What $33 Worth of Fabric Can Do!

I went to the local fabric store with the measurements for my dining room window and  ask how much fabric I would need to make new curtains.

My mom said they saw me coming when she saw the vast amount of fabric I came home with!

But as it turned out, I so glad I came home with such a armful of fabric!  I made my dining room curtains and had enough fabric to recover my four dining room chairs and my ottoman!  All for only $33! ....because my mother graciously did the reupholstering for free!

All this extra redecorating was a surprise blessing!

Peter Rabbit's Garden

   

Welcome to Peter Rabbit's Garden!

Really it's just my vegetable garden, but I thought the grandbabies might enjoy being in nana's garden more if Peter Rabbit lived there!

I found Peter at Michael's at Easter time for 40% off!  Yay!  His jacket is green though not blue.  But of course, he lost his blue jacket and it is now hanging up to keep the birds from eating nana's onions (found the blue sweater for 75 cents at a thrift store and the shoes belonged to Kevin's sisters' dolls!)




 I found some wonderful white paint in a tube at Hobby Lobby so I could print out lines from Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit story.  Liam can read the one that says "Peter Rabbit's Garden."  We will have fun learning the words on the other signs.

I added Chamomile to my herb garden for some Peter Rabbit tea!  Already had parsley, lettuce, radishes and beans.  Carrots will be planted soon.  It was fun to read the story and then try to plant as many of the plants mentioned as possible.   Of course, I had to have pots of geraniums and a watering can!  If  I could only convince papa I need a real bunny!

One of Peter's mouse friends lives in a flower pot at the garden's entrance.  He enjoys reading the newspaper in his snug little home!

I think the chickens think all of this is silly business.  As long as they stay on there side of the garden, all will be well!  They tend to eat more vegetables than Peter ever would!