Twins

Caleb and Noah just happened to have on the same shirts the other night at Grandmoma's house. We gave Noah this shirt for Christmas last year.

When a kitty thinks he is a birdie

I caught Oreo drinking from the bird bath the other day.

Tablescape Thursday- Practicing for a Bridal Shower

Our family is giving my brother-in-law's bride to be a bridal shower this Sunday. I am practicing the centerpiece for the food table. I wanted something with some height and inexpensive. I used a Victorian Lady that I purchased from ABC Distributing several years ago, some Vinaca Ivy from my yard, Crape Myrtle blooms, Lantana blooms, some faux rose blooms, and votive candles. The day of the shower I will use more flower blooms and place flowers in the teapots. So what do ya think???? Keeper?

Notice my precious salt cellars? Those were a birthday gift this year from my dear friend Kathryn from Bonafide Southern. She gave me four of them and each of one has a itty bitty spoon!

The base plate is my wedding china Pink Tower by Spode. The next layer is the famous blogland Gibson plate (first time that I have used these dishes). The top layer is a paper plate....yes a paper plate of Old Country Roses. I bought a package of these last week at TJMaxx.

Cream and Sugar are Pink Tower by Spode. The votive candle is a thrifty purchase from the Dollar Tree for the bridal shower. The package had two in it for a dollar. I bought two of course!

Stemware: Old Bristish Castles...gift from my moma

Tea Pitcher is an eBay purchased a couple of years ago. Candlelight definitely sets the mood. Thanks for looking at my Tablescape for this week and I appreciate all of the comments and I read all of them. Be sure to check out all of the beautiful tablescapes on Susan's blog. Thank you again!!!!

This is what happens when you bring home a new dog.....

The new viscous dog.....Tootsie. We brought him home for 5 days to "try" him out with the other pets before we made a final decision on buying him. Pepper, our very jealous Australian Shepard, finally was alittle ok with the situation, and Oreo, our 12 year old kitty, adjusted to the new doggy. Tootsie finally got to sniff his butt and say hello on the 3rd day. :)

But......Callie on the other hand NEVER adjusted to Tootsie!!!! She stay away all day long until night time. Friday, Tootsie treed her for about an hour. Bless her heart!!!! She was meowing and really wanting to come down, but Tootsie was waiting patiently on her arrival.

Well, we took Tootsie back to his original owners on Sunday. We were all attached to him. He was sooo sweet and funny to watch. :)

Bountiful Harvest

A bountiful harvest from my garden.....I picked a 5 gallon bucket full of yummy veggies. I have been putting a few things in the freezer and canning pickles.

Mr. Bunny is licking his lips once again over my veggies.......should I share? Did notice a deer last week mighty close to the edge of the garden....bet I have been sharing with him/her.

Look who I caught trying to sneak out with a flower full of veggies.....Mr. Bunny!!!! I caught him going down the back porch steps. If you see him around in your neighborhood, shoo him back home! Thanks!

My Favorite Vignettes

I thought I would share some of my favorite vignettes. It was hard to pick and chose....but here they are! Kathryn from Bonafide Southern requested our favorites since she had posted hers. This is the mantle in the living room. The mantle clock belonged to my great uncle. Of course, I am going to decorate it with some favorite family photos.....recent and from the past....and of course a couple of wedding photos. The mantle is surrounded by some of my blue transferware dishes. There are two things that I LOVE to decorate with: plates and family photos....well, let me add bunnies, candlesticks, anything toille, and etc.

The is my buffet table behind our love seat in the living room. Notice.....decorated with my favorite things: family photos, plates, candlesticks, and bunnies. There are five (six if you count the one on the toille picture) bunnies on this table, can you find them? A lot of these items came from my FAVORITE store....Hobby Lobby. Candlesticks (on either end) were purchased at 80% off when I got them. The larger picture above the table was purchased at a local antique store before I was married. Once again....blue transferware.

This is one of my china cabinets....it is in our kitchenette area. I have diplayed my red transferware (Memory Lane pattern) and my pewter collection along with some other odd and end things in this cabinet. Atop of the cabinet is some more of my red transferware. I change out the top of this often......a girl needs to spice things up everyonce in a while. :) Displayed proudly, one of my favorite pictures of my boys: Caleb was 5 years old and Rylee was 1 year old. Their names were written on the bottom of the picture by an artist and there are some slight watercolor highlights. My dear Mr. Hubby got the frame for me while he was at work one day for about 30 bucks. Aaaahhhhh.....don't just love the picture? My sweet babies!

Just a closer view of the top of cabinet.....notice the white tile thingy? That was my mother's day gift from Rylee.....he made it in his class at school. Painted it with his fingerprints. Aaaaahhhh!

This is a grouping in Rylee's room. I love this grouping......I had the shelves made by a local cabinet maker (copied some from Pottery Barn). Rylee's room has a nautical theme which he wants to change to all Superheroes!!! If you notice, there are a few Spiderman things on the left shelf. :) The pictures were a gift from his great Aunt Debbie......The American Boy one is a magizine cover...it is old but not sure of the year.

This bookcase is in Caleb's room. He is all about sports....mostly football....Auburn, Titans, Colts, Steelers, The Manning brothers, and Brett Favre. His room at one time was all about John Deere....well, we are gradually getting that stuff out of his room but he has SO MUCH!!!!

This is in our upstairs bathroom. I love this wallpaper....antique and victorian looking. Don't ya think? All the accessories came from.....you guessed it.....Hobby Lobby! Once again, two of my favorite things: family photos and candlesticks! By the way, this candlestick was purchased at 80% too. :) The picture is Home Interior from my life-long friend Wendy.

Last but not least.....the grouping on my buffet table in the dining room. I love this grouping because it displays my wedding china and my Memaw's lamp! Wedding china is Pink Tower by Spode. The picture in the middle of the grouping was a wedding gift from my husband's grandmother.....it is of my china!!! So of course, I HAD to have it when I saw it at Castor Knotts.

Well. I hope you have enjoyed a mini-tour of my home and some of my favorite things. Please stop by again and thank you for looking.

Tablescape Thursday...Prince Charming and Lady Awaiting

Prince Charming and Lady Awaiting are peacefully enjoying an afternoon of tea and a soft summer breeze. Welcome to Tablescape Thursday...be sure to check out all of the other terrific tablescapes on Between Naps on the Porch....you will NOT be disappointed!

The teaset was a gift from my mother-in-law when she was just my boyfriend's mother back in 1993....(I think) for Christmas. About 10 years ago, I broke the lid to the teapot...boohoo!!!!! I have thoroughly enjoyed this teaset and I have displayed it proudly since I received it many years ago. Did you notice the bling bling on three of the pieces????? A necklace and a pair of earrings are displayed on the tea pot, sugar bowl, and creamer. They have the same design...basically. The jewelry was purchased at a local antique store a few years ago.

These ladies are enjoying an afternoon stroll....the sun is out therefore an umbrella is a must. The porcelain figurine was my Memaw's.....now it is MINE...lucky me! The other lady w/o a head (it came that way) is a Christmas ornament from Hobby Lobby from my mother-in-law in 2003. The umbrella was separate, but it came from Hobby Lobby and my mother-in-law too the same year. She has good taste...but wait....she also gave me the large pitcher in the background for my birthday in 2003...also from Hobby Lobby. I picked this beauty out. Got it half-price...retail 50.00....my price $ 25.00. The little cup & saucer is from a Victorian Tea Party that I hosted one year from Victorian Trading. Have you ever been to one of those? Good fun, good company, terrific items to order!!!! The silver jewelry box is from an auction several years ago.

Bird's eye view......The doillie is from my late aunt's collection. Almost all of my doillies come from my Great Aunt Mable or Great Aunt Izetta.

Yeah...I know....you get tired of turning your head to see some of my pictures. Sorry, I do not know how to fix that. Some say right click, but my program is STRANGE!!!!!! The small round plaque is from an eBay purchase about 4 years ago. Cutie huh?! The bowl in the background is metal, and I purchased it at a local antique store for about 5 bucks. It is stamped Daher Decorated Ware 1971. Kathryn from Bonafide Southern was with me during this purchase. We married cousins. How about that...folks!

Just a side view....the lamp was a gift from Mr. Hubby for Valentine's Day 2003. Roses die, but a lamp is forever. Do not get me wrong....flowers are nice too....I love roses and lilies!!!! The art work hanging on the wall is The Dinner at the Ritz.

Thanks for stopping by.....enjoy a little bit a tea and a stroll ......take time to smell the roses and enjoy the simple things in life. Smile because you never know who might smile back! :)

Oh, how my garden grows.....

Before picture.......

My garden is producing lots of yummy veggies right now. My tomatoes are just now coming in. I have put up about 14 quarts of green beans and 5 quarts of squash (we are not BIG eaters of squash unless it is FRIED!!!). I will probably can some pickles tomorrow.

After picture......

The other night, I cooked some things from the garden. We had fried okra, stewed squash with bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, and onions, macaroni & cheese, white beans, cucumbers in salty water, tomatoes, and of course cornbread. Good ol' Southern Cookin' and of course I had a Sun-Drop to drink! After the picture, I took the tomato and pepper off of my plate....I do not eat them. :)

Sarabeth, my niece, admiring my tomato plants and pickin' a few.

Thrifty Treasures

Here are all of my goodies that I got Saturday night at our local Hobby Lobby store for 80% off of retail. My mother-in-law and I went to town to do a little shopping at Hobby Lobby and the local mall. Will I keep these beauties for myself or give away as gifts....only time will tell??!!!!

This is a pair of candlesticks. The color is a brownish red with a paisley design. Retail price....$29.99 my price.....$3.00 each!!!! I think these will be given away as a dirty Christmas gift.....if I can let them go.....

This is another pair of candlesticks. They are accented with gold and faux marble. Retail price .....$34.99 each my price......$3.50 each. I may keep these for myself. Do you blame me? Dining room table here we come.....Tablescape Thursday here we come......

Oops....about the size of the photo! The small pineapple is made from very HEAVY cast iron and is a rusty brown color. Actually, I bought two of these cuties! Retail price....$14.99 my price......$1.50 I think is is screamin' Hospitality !!!!! The large gold finale thingy (do not what is it, I just liked it) was originally $34.99.....my price $3.50! They are wanting to be apart of Tablescape Thursday too. Well, I think I did very well on my little shopping spree at Hobby Lobby. I purchased some more items at 50%, but I will save them for another time. Thank you for looking a my first posting of Thrifty Treasures. I LOVE a good bargain....don't you?

Lunch and a Movie

Wednesday, Mary and I took the kiddos out to lunch at Burger King, to the duck park, and to see Ice Age 3. What a funny and cute movie!!! For those of you that have seen all of these movies....does the squirrel get the nut? I am ALWAYS curious and feeling sorry for the little guy. I will not spoil the fun and tell you whether or not he gets the nut.....you will have to purchase a movie ticket to find out. Sid was just as funny as ever!!! Will there be an extra addition to the pack? Once again, have to go to the movie to find out.......You and your children WILL NOT be disappointed with this movie. We laughed all the way thru the movie....cute cute cute!!!!!! I even shed a tear, but that is not unusal for the "Queen of Crying at Movies"! Give it TWO THUMBS UP!!! :)

Fun with the kiddos

Being such a fun Moma and Tot (what my niece and nephew call me), I took the kiddos (my two boys and my niece and nephew) to Chuck E Cheese on Monday. They had 50 tokens a piece to do whatever......well, they spent almost all of their tokens before our pizza arrived. Oh well, we had good food and a good time. They earned lots of tickets and of course earned some terrific prizes!!!! Afterwards, we walked thru Hobby Lobby, The Mall, and If It's Paper. Fun was had by all. Sarabeth was wanting to stay another night with us.

Lake Winnie

We arrive at Lake Winnie at 11:00am.....ready to have FuN....fUn!!!!!

The very first ride (the very very first ride EVER for my boys!!!!! except for the kiddie carnival and county fairs) the swinging Pirate Ship. Did I torture my boys or make them face their fears.....little bit of both. Rylee was SCarEd too death!! Shaking and saying "Moma why did you make me do this!!!!!" He liked it after it was all over with and wanted to ride it again.....so, they faced their fears! :)

Bethany (aka BB), Sarabeth, and Noah riding the Orbiter. My boys would NOT ride it...shucks!

Riding a water ride......still no smiles from Caleb! :)
Sarabeth riding her horse on the carousel.

The gang at Lake Winnie....having fun....you bet!


Caleb strikin' a pose........



Noah hangin' out.....

The view from the Ferris Wheel......I forgot how much I dislike the Ferris Wheel!!!! I do not know if I was feeding off of Rylee's fears of it or what, but it was scary!!! I HATE it when they stop you on top to unload and reload people.....HATE IT!!!! Rylee had to be touching me at all times. Guess I needed it too. :)

The boys riding the Sky Lift across the lake.

Riding the paddle boats....guess who was doing all the work....you guessed it...ME!

Sarabeth riding an elephant.

Rylee strikin' a pose.....

Wheeeeee!!!!!!

BB and Sarabeth riding the Sky Lift for the third time. The boys and I were waiting in line to ride a water ride, and they passed by us.

The boys and I were riding the Tilit A World for the first time....notice their faces! I cannot ride stuff like this like I used too...kinda got alittle sick feeling, but I rode it two more times. :) The boys rode it about six times in all.

Sarabeth and Rylee racing to the end!

Wheeeee.....go Caleb go!