Heather's Blog-o-rama

"IT MAKES CENTS TO ME FRIDAY" FOR FEBRUARY 10th

2012-02-10T13:46:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone :) :) :)

It's time for another week of "It Makes Cents To Me Friday". Right now my goal is to simply track what I spend my money on. That includes anything I spend on items for myself, for my father, for us as a tiny family. I had a bit of a difficult time this week. I'm still buying "treats" for myself and my dad. These are actually things that are nice to enjoy once in awhile. However, these are definitely not needs for me right at this point in time. In any case, here's what I did for the week of February 4th (Saturday) till today, February 10th (Friday).

These are just a few things that I puchased yesterday and today. The Cottonelle wipes and the batteries were purchased at Rite Aid. The clementines and oranges were purchased at Whole Foods this morning:

Friday - February 4th at Whole Foods: Total spent $46.82

--- 1.11 pounds of trail mix (from the Whole Foods trail mix bar) This is really nice, especially if you like trail mix. You can pick from all these different things, to mix it to your tastes
--- 1, 20 oz drip coffee with cream and sugar "want, not a need"
--- 2 organic dark chocolate bars "Want, not a need" One for my father & I. The other one was for the friend who gave me the ride to the store. She wouldn't take gas money from me, but she did take chocolate ;) :)
--- 1 Clementine gift box
--- 1 Classic rotisseri chicken, from the hot deli counter "Want, not a need" especially since I have fresh, frozen chickens in my freezer. Once in awhile we just don't want to cook. Today was one of those days.
--- Almond meal flour, Bob's Red Mill
--- 1/2 pound of fresh raspberries
TAX: $0.72

Tuesday - February 7th at Whole Foods: Total spent $32.44
--- 2 organic dark chocolate bars "Want, not a need" One bar for my father & I. The other bar for another friend. Same situation: this friend wouldn't accept gas money, but I could pay her in chocolate ;) :)
--- 1 jar of raw raspberry honey
--- ** Parissa cold wax strips It's a cheaper solution than going to the salon. I prefer going to the salon for waxing, but I can't afford it right now. So this is the next best option :) :) :)

--- Lemongrass deodorant (Tom's of Maine) I bought this, just in case my coconut oil dedorant didn't work. It actually turned out perfect. So now I have two options for keeping myself smelling great :) :) :)
TAX: $1.09

My camera batteries were almost gone, so I decided to buy some more batteries yesterday. My digital camera uses AA batteries. Normally I buy just regular Duracell Coppertop batteries. However, I have found that they don't last very long. At the rate I take photos, batteries that last a long time are a MUST. So I purchased lithium batteries. They are more expensive, but they last a LONG, LONG time. I'm also keeping track of how long they last versus regular batteries:

Wednesday - February 8th at Whole Foods: Total Spent $21.36

--- 2 pastries "Want, not a need". One was for my father, the other for me. Oh, and did I mention that I'm GLUTEN FREE? Well, I'm struggling with that this week, too
--- 3 squares of dark chocolate "Want, not a need"
--- Classic rotissere chicken from the hot deli counter "Want, not a need". Oh, I just realized that I bought one of these the other day. I have fresh, frozen chickens in the freezer. So add to my list "learn how to roast a chicken for myself"
--- Local newspaper "Want, not a need" However, I do like to keep up with local happenings every once in awhile.
--- TAX: $0.78
Apropos chicken, I've got a whole, organic chicken (from Trader Joe's) slow-cooking in my CrockPot. It will be ready in another couple of hours. This is one of those items that I had in my freezer already, so I didn't spend any money on that this week. The price for this chicken was $2.49 a pound at my local Trader Joe's. The photo doesn't look like much right now, but it's sure smelling good in the house:

Oooopss, looking at that last photo made me realize, I need to CLEAN...sigh.. :) :)

Wednesday - February 8th at Safeway: Total Spent $10.36
--- 4 of those 2.something gallon containers of drinking water
--- $0.40 cent recycle deposit
This I consider a need, especially if you don't have a clean source of drinking water. Our water here is clean and okay to drink. It's just the taste that I don't like. It's a little too salty for my taste. Plus we also have hard water in our area. So I purchase this for drinking. It's a great alternative.

Thursday - February 9th at RiteAid: Total spent $47.15
--- $19.99, 8 pack of AA Lithium batteries Whenever I load my cameras with new batteries, I ALWAYS have a spare set in my camera bag. These are expensive, but they last a VERY LONG TIME. I'm keeping tracking of exactly how long they last. The goal is to see if they really do last a lot longer than a regular set of batteries. That and if they do, does it justify the cost? So far, the answer is yes. Only time will tell.
--- $7.99 ea. 140ct of Cottonelle flushable wipes, 3 sets - $23.97 I stocked up on these because my family uses them quite a bit. That and I want to have plenty on hand, in case there's time I can't get to the store.
--- TAX: $3.19

Thursday - February 9th at Whole Foods: Total spent $11.23
---20 oz. drip coffee with cream and sugar "Want, not a need"
---2 breakfast sandwiches (from the hot deli counter)
"Want, not a need". I could classify anytime I buy either of these things as "wants" and not needs, especially since I can easily make these at home. My father really wanted these yesterday. However, it's something I'm working on/struggling with. It's one of those things I LOVE to purchase, but don't HAVE to have.

Friday - February 10th at Whole Foods: Total spent $33.90
---3.76 pounds of organic navel oranges These are only $1.49 a pound. That's not bad for organic produce, in my humble opinion.
--- 1 pound of lean ground beef
--- 1 pound of bulk dry rub applewood bacon
--- 1 Clementine gift box This was really expensive at $7.99 for a box. I just threw them in my cart, because I know how much my dad loves to eat these. When I got home, I told him the price and he felt bad. I told him it was OKAY!!! I was happy to purchase them. However, from here on out, it'll be oranges, unless clementines go on a super sale!!!!
--- 2 small breakfast sandwiches, from the hot deli counter "Want, not a need". This is a want and not a need.
--- One local newspaper "Want, not a need"
TAX: $0.41

That's everything I spent my money on for the week. I spent a total of $203.90. Of that money, $139.63 was spent on food (including the items I classified as "wants" versus "needs") So divided between my father and myself that works out to $69.82 per person. That's way too much. So I overshot my goal by quite a lot. Lesson learned...and I'm just going to keep plugging away at this and move forward.

That's about it for today :) :) It just started sprinkling outside. It's what I jokingly called a "California downpour". I'm so glad for the rain. We really need it, even here next to the ocean. Lots of farmers in our area, who grow really good food. They need that good rain.

Thanks for coming to visit me everyone. Your visits and comments always make me smile :) :) Have a great weekend!!! That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

FEBRUARY'S JOY DARE FOR FEBRUARY 9, 2012

2012-02-09T12:18:00.000-08:00

Update: I haven't been able to leave comments on some blogs. It's only the Blogger blogs that require a word verification, in order to leave a comment. I think it's just a glitch. It should work itself out on its own. However, if you have trouble leaving a comment on my blog, would you please let me know? Thanks!!!

Hi everyone,

This is a surprise post. I was at a women's Bible study last Tuesday. One of the ladies there had printed out Ann Voskamps "A Year of Graces" from her site A Holy Experience. Click here if you would like to visit. She also printed a copy of January's Joy Dare, even though we're in February :) :) So when I went home I printed out the Joy Dare for February. I've decided that one of the things I want to foster this year is an attitude of gratitude for the small and big things. Each day is filled with different things to look for. Today is:

"3 gifts that were surprises - unexpected grace":

The first surprise was receiving this beautiful card with a quilted teacup on the front from my sweet friend Dorothy. Click here if you'd like to visit her blog, Notes from Mémère. I love all things vintage, including quilts.

The second surprise came when I opened the card. There was a lovely bag of Scripture tea. I won't open it till I'm ready to drink it. When I do, I'll let you know what Scripture verse is on the tag:

The third unexpected surprise came when I saw what was on the back of the card. This made it even more special, because I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE vintage things. When I saw that this was a repurposed quilt, I immediately wondered about the person who lovingly put the fabric pieces together. Now I have a piece of that quilt, an unexpected blessing:

These are the unexpected gifts that I've found today...so far. I just had to share this with you all right away. I couldn't wait.

Tomorrow I'll be sharing about what I spent this week. I think I might of went a little overboard, but it's all a learning process. There was one item that I stocked up on.....well, actually it was two items. More on that tomorrow, too.

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

COCONUT OIL DEODORANT

2012-02-08T15:04:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

How are you all today? I'm doing fine. We were supposed to have some rain yesterday, but all we got were some sprinkles. Maybe it will come later this week. We could really use the rain, even here on the coast with the ocean nearby :) :)

In my effort to lead a healthier lifestyle, I am also learning how to make more beauty/healthcare products at home. Why? It saves money. I know exactly what goes into the product. It is less toxic for my skin and body. Also, since I'm still "in between" jobs, this really helps to stretch my dollar a long way.

So one of the things I've made in the past is deodorant with coconut oil. There are quite a few websites with excellent recipes on how to make this for yourself. I followed the recipe that Amy blogged about over at Homestead Revival. Click here to visit the post. She's a really nice lady who is really doing a lot to be more self-sufficient at home. Plus, her blog is a delight to visit and you'll be glad that you did. Oh, and if you're on Facebook, you can visit her here. Either way, let her know that I sent you over :) :) :)

You will need the following three ingredients to make this homemade deodorant:

YOU WILL NEED THE FOLLOWING THREE INGREDIENTS: BAKING SODA, CORN STARCH AND COCONUT OIL.

What proportions of each of the three ingredients do you need to measure out:
Baking soda - 1/4 cup
Corn starch - 1/4 cup (you can also use arrowroot if you prefer)
Coconut oil - 5 to 6 Tablespoons ( or up to 8 Tablespoons. It depends on how thick you want to make this. I also use unrefined virgin coconut oil. There's no reason for that, other than I really like it and it smells FABULOUS.)

First, I measured out 6 Tablespoons of coconut oil. At room temperature it is a bit hard, so my measurements weren't totally exact, but for this project, it's okay. I haven't noticed any issues with the quality of the deodorant when it's finished. Now the last time I made this, it was really hard to mix the coconut oil and the other two ingredients together. So this time, I put the 6 Tablespoons of coconut oil in a glass measuring cup. Then I placed that measuring cup in a warm bowl of water. The gentle heat from the water will help to soften the coconut oil. That's okay, but when you're done it will solidify back to it's former state.

WHILE YOU ARE LETTING THE COCONUT OIL SOFTEN UP A BIT, I MIXED THE BAKING SODA AND CORN START TOGETHER.

While the coconut oil is getting softer (and easier to mix later), I mixed together 1/4 cup of baking soda and a 1/4 cup of corn starch together in a plastic container. Now plastic is what I have on hand. However, when I find a good deal on a Mason jar or glass storage container at the thrift shop, then I'll buy that. This is what it looks like when you mix the two powders together. Real exciting..not..but for being so simple, this work FABULOUS:

Now it's time to mix the coconut oil together with the corn starch and baking soda. I use a fork to mix everything together really well. Once it's all well-mixed together, it kind of has the consistency of vanilla frosting from a can. This is what mine looked like:

This makes up under a cup of homemade coconut oil deodorant. You can store it in a small glass Mason jar or other container of your choice. I did put the lid on mine and placed it in the refrigerator. That helps to firm it up again. I took it out this morning and let it sit at room temperature. That's how I'll store it, too. It'll be easier to use that way.

This morning I took my shower. After I was finished, I applied some of the homemade coconut oil deodorant. I take a very small amount and apply it with my hands. I let it sit against the skin for a few seconds to let it melt. It will start to melt with your body heat. Then I rub it around to cover my underarm area very well. That's it.. It works great. It smells fantastic and it's better than anything I've ever purchased in a store.

The baking soda cost me less than $1. The corn starch was just over $1. The coconut oil cost me about $9.99 at Whole Foods. However, coconut oil has MANY uses, so it's worth the cost. You don't need much for this deodorant. It's also good as a moisturizer on the skin. It's also fantastic to use in cooking, as an alternative to butter.

If you make this, let me know how it turns out. This stuff smells nice and does the job very well.

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather

IT "MAKES CENTS TO ME" FRIDAY.

2012-02-03T14:10:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,
So I really struggled with what to call this post. I've been noticing on a few blogs, people are keeping track of their spending, some just on food, others on anything they spend money on. So that got me to thinking. Maybe I can keep track of what I spend my money on for the next three months...no strings attached...and then after that, I'll see where I can start saving money.
OH, and I had a hard time coming up with a catchy title...but I came up with "Makes Cents To Me". My aunt (my dad's sister) helps pay most of the bills, since we're living in her house. She's been so good to us during this really tough time for my little family. Once certain bills are paid, my father and I have a really limited budget to work with. This budget has to cover food, gas and maybe other incidentals for the entire month. My "month" started today on February 3rd and will end around March 2nd. Although that might be subject to change. Also, my dad and I are both "in between" jobs, so that adds an element of excitement to the mix. Hey, being out of work is no fun, but it is vitally important not to lose our sense of humor :) :) :)

Here are a few of the items that I purchased this morning at Whole Foods market. There was quite a bit MORE in today's purchase, but I'd put most of it away, before I realized that a photo would be needed for today's post:

My father and I are on a real food journey. We're committed to eating organic food, as much as possible and staying within budget. We believe that you can't put a price tag on healthy eating/living, especially since the alternative (hospital bills) can be exhorbitant. If you can't afford organic food, don't worry. The primary goal is to shop the perimeter of your supermarket, buy fresh produce and meat. Make all of your meals at home. It will automatically be healthier and save you money.

I know that I'm forgetting to write down some stuff here, because I'm really excited and really nervous about this post. Excited, because I know that it's possible to live healthy on a really limited budget. Nervous because I am putting myself out there. However, I hope to encourage you because I'm just your everyday person trying to make it work in a recession. That and I also want to prove that it's possible to live within your means and still be happy :) :) :)

Budget for the month of February: $Not sure if I want to reveal that just yet. Once the bills are paid, there isn't much left over for food or other incidentals, like the phone ;) :) Maybe later...

Monday spent so far this week: $146.50 (for food and non-food items)

This is what my purchase included today:

--- 3 dozen organic brown eggs

---3, 8 oz packages of Kerrygold Irish butter (for making ghee, which is clarified butter)

---12 oz of organic, cherry tomatoes

---**Martha Stewart Living magazine (a want/not a need)

---**20 oz. organic drip coffee, French roast (a want/not a need)

---2, 32 oz bottles of ultra-purified drinking water with bottle desposits included

---1 jar of Himalayan pink salt

---1 container of Trail Mix from the trail mix bar

---1 pound of organic, grass fed ground beef

---1 pound of bulk dry rub applewood smoked bacon

---2 Dagoba, organic dark chocolate bars

---1 botle of leave-in conditioner from 2Chic by Giovanni

---1 bottle of Aubrey Organics "rosa mosqueta" shampoo

---1 tube of natural whitening toothpaste

---1 small tub of organic cottage cheese

---organic, salted butter (Whole Foods brand) for Dad

---2 packages of frozen, organic blueberries (really overpriced, but I didn't have a chance to buy the 10 lb. organic bags of frozen blueberries at Costco)

---1.28 pounds of organic carrots

---1.54 pounds of organic broccoli crowns

---1 bottle of Earthworm family-safe drain cleaner (more on this stuff in another post...fantastic product, great price and safe around pets and children)

---2 cans of canned wild salmon

---2 cans of wild albacore tuna

---7.56 pounds of organic, navel oranges

---**2 fresh croissant breakfast sandwiches from the hot deli bar(a want/not a need...but so tasty good when you don't want to make breakfast in the morning)

---Organic silk, dental floss

THIS HIMALAYAN PINK SEA SALT IS REALLY NICE. I LOVE THAT IT IS PINK. HOWEVER, SEA SALT HAS A LOT OF HEALTHY MINERALS THAT ARE SOMETIMES REMOVED FROM TYPICAL TABLE SALT. FOR A LINK TO SOME OF THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF THIS TYPE OF SALT, CLICK HERE.

I bought the Himalayan pink salt for my father. It came recommended from our naturopath, as a healthy salt that my dad can consume. Last month he was in the hospital because he had an arrythmia fibrillation of the heart. The hospital put him on a low-salt diet. It's not so much about low-salt as it is about "healthy" sources of sodium. So we decided on this for my father. It is really flavorful, and because of that you use much less of this type of sea salt, than you do with regular table salt. When I make my organic chicken/vegetable soup, I always add a teaspoon of Celtic sea salt. It's fabulous....and provides wonderful flavor.

What else? Well, let's see...the non-food items were a total of $38.34. That is $38 dollars and 34 cents...Blogger fonts make it hard to see the "dot" seperating the dollars from the cents :) :) :)

So I actually only spent $108.16 on food itself. So divided between my father and I for the week, that's $54.08...that's not too bad for the week. Also keep in mind, that we still have a lot of food in our refrigerators and pantry, so that's going to help cut down on our food expenditures for the month.

Remember, I am new at this...so be kind to me, especially if you have advice/words of encouragement :) :)

These are some Whole Foods market freebies. They have a monthly health magazine, FREE to customers, whether you make a purchase or not. They also have a bi-monthly coupon booklet as well. So look for those two things, when you go to your local Whole Foods store (or any store, look for the store's sale ads). Whole Foods also has a weekly sales sheet, that I grab as well. Although today ,there weren't any available.

I am learning how to carefully study the sales ads. Even at stores like Whole Foods, it is possible to eat healthy and stay within a budget. So that's what I'm setting out to do. Oh, Whole Foods also has a really cool booklet that comes out that includes a few meals/recipes. They each can feed four people for under $20.

Why am I shopping at Whole Foods today? Well, I'm studying to get my California driver's license. I'm in my 30s and never learned to drive...Shocking, I know...but I'm just a late bloomer and that's the simple, plain truth when it comes to my driving. My dad cannot drive for another three months. That is a mandated CAlifornia state law for people who experience a heart problem (like my father did)..so I'm relying on the generosity/loving kindness of my neighbors and church family. So I'm really careful to limit where I shop to save gas. Whole Foods has everything I needed for this week, so I didn't need to go to the produce market in Pacific Grove, like I normally would. Does that make sense?

In any case, that's my "It Makes Cents to Me" post for this Friday. I'd love to hear your thoughts and your ideas. I realize that eating organic is not for everyone, whether it be personal choice or because of finances. However, I know we all like to save money. So I'd welcome any thoughts and comments. Just keep it kind towards me and the others who comment here :) :) Also, I'm just a young lady trying to make it work in a recession. You can have "champagne" tastes and still live well-within a soda pop can budget :) :) :)

I'm participating in the following blog-hops this week:

Living Well Blog Hop over at Common Sense Homesteading.

Your Thriving Family. Click here to visit. Or check out the the blog button on my right sidebar :) :) :)

Raising Homemakers. Click here to visit or check out the blog button on my right sidebar :) :) :)

Thriving on Thursdays at Domesblissity. Click here to visit or check out the blog button on my right sidebar :) :) :)

Lil' Suburban Homestead. Click here to visit.

The Homestead Barn Hop over at The Prairie Homestead. Click here to visit. Or click on the blog button on my right sidebar.

There are lots of really cool blog posts. If you have some time, check out some of the other people participating in this link-up :)

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY FATHER AND YARD SALE TREASURES

2012-01-30T11:53:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

My dad returned home from the VA last Thursday. I was really happy to see him. Here is a pic of my father and I together. A friend of the family picked him up at the VA and brought him home :) :) She kindly took the photo for us. Here it is:

THIS IS MY FATHER AND I JUST A FEW MINUTES AFTER HE CAME HOME. NOTICE THE SMIRK ON HIS FACE? I THINK MY DADDY WILL BE JUST FINE.

When I saw my father pull into the parking lot with our family friend, I started jumping up and down and clapping. I was so happy to have my father back home. Even the dog could tell something was different about that day, because she kept sniffing around the house looking for him. When my dad walked through the door, the dog's tail started wagging so fast, you could have used it as a fan :) Isn't my daddy handsome?

Oh, just a sidenote, in this photo I have lost a total of 60 pounds. You can't tell very much, because I've had that faux suede blouse since BEFORE I started my healthy living/weight loss journey.

I was having a bit of cabin fever and wanted to get out of the house this weekend. My friend P. told me that she had some errands to run. I asked if I could come along. She said yes. Then we were coming back to the house to watch Downton Abbey on Netflix. So we found a yard sale on the way home, and yes, I bought two things. Here's a look at what I found...all for $2.25.

The first item was a super cute satin pink pajama set for $2. It actually fits me. I washed it and now I feel really pretty and feminine when I go to bed :) Here is a glimpse of the fabric:

THE PAJAMA BLOUSE IS A REALLY BEAUTIFUL PINK DAMASK STRIPED TOP. THE PAJAMA PANTS ARE JUST PLAIN PINK SATIN. I REALLY LIKE THIS SET BECAUSE IT'S PINK. WHEN I WEAR IT, I FEEL REALLY FRILLY AND FEMININE.

The next item was just a small Christmas item that I spotted. This was only $0.25. It's actually a dark green pillow with an embroidered center that was hand-stitched. It says "Christ is Born!" I gave this to my father, because I knew he would LOVE IT...and he does. It's sitting on his desk, in front of some books.

I'm working on a pair of socks for my aunt's really, really , really late Christmas present. I started them back in November. So when I actually finished them, I'll post a photo for you and maybe a tutorial, too, in case you want to make a pair for yourself :)

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today...speaking of which, the weather has been a really interesting mix of sunshine/rainy clouds today. I really like it a lot. Love and hugs, Heather :)

DAD IS HOME !!!!!!

2012-01-27T14:29:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,
Dad came HOME yesterday afternoon. I'm so excited :) :) He looks really good. He's out and about and moving around, albeit a little slowly...but he looks wonderful :) :) I'll post a pic this weekend :) :) :) That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

p.s. I'll have more vintage, crafts and other stuff up next week :) :) Thanks for visiting me. I LOVe visitors. You are always welcome here :)

HEATHER'S BLOG DESIGN ADVENTURE UPDATE

2012-01-22T14:37:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Wow, I finally managed to use up all my image storage space on Blogger. So I had to go back to my Picasa web album (which I forgot I even had still) and delete a bunch of unused photos. Plus, I deleted all my blog posts from my first month of blogging, to create space without having to pay for extra storage. I just can't afford to purchase more space, even though it's really cheap.

Have any of you ever experienced this? Well, the one good thing is I've figured out how to create my own header ;) :) So that is a step in the right direction :) :)

I did finally figure out how to add my own background image to Blogger. Now I have to figure out how to make it fit the whole screen instead of repeating itself over and over. Uggg..I hope you don't mind my experimenting with my blog layout and design :)

If you want to read the update on my father, you can click here.

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

DADDY UPDATE - ALIVE AND WELL

2012-01-21T12:51:00.000-08:00

I'm working on changing the look of my blog. I'm trying to upload a personal photo to the background template, but for some reason it's not working. Can any of you help me? Until then, I'm going to have a really plain blog :) :) :)

Hi everyone,
It has been awhile since I posted anything, let along give an update on how my dad is doing. The good news is that my dad is alive and doing very, very well. He is recovering nicely.

THIS IS MY FATHER, "BIG POPPA", ON HIS WAY TO THE VA REHAB FACILITY.

I wanted to start with that photo first, because, my daddy is so handsome :) :) That and the fact, that I was so happy to see him doing so well after all that he's been through. This photo was taken last Wednesday. My father is a veteran of the Army...and because of that the VA payed for his entire hospital stay. However, the doctors determined that my dad would need intensive speech, physical and occupational therapy and that could only be found at the VA facility about 1.5 hours north of where we live.

At first Dad didn't want to go, and I didn't want him to go, either. There were so many unknowns. However, everyone that has had any experience with this particular VA has had nothing but high praise. It's the most modern facility in the entire VA system AND more modern than most hospitals in the private sector. So the free medical transport came to take my dad up to the VA rehab facility. The hospital was really sweet and brought my daddy a bagged lunch for the ride up there.

He "graciously" let me take this photo of him with his lunch in his lap, and the driver taking him up north. That driver is rather good-looking. As he was wheeling my dad out to the van, I started singing the "Leave It To Beaver" theme song. My dad rolled his eyes and started laughing. I say he "graciously" let me take his photo. In truth, I told my father he owed me one, because I saved his life :) :) Yeah...so I got a really nice photo. My dad is shy with the camera. Isn't he handsome and looks so healthy :) :) :) His anticipated release date is sometime this coming Friday. I'm praying so hard for his safe return home.

Here are a few pictures from when he was still in the hospital, that I wanted to share with you.

Our next door neighbor brought these jumper cables as a "get well" gift for my dad. He said that "For the man who has everything, I brought you these. If your heart gives out on you again, I'll hook one end to your chest and the other end to my car engine. Then I'll give you a boost" My dad started laughing so hard...and that made me laugh. Laughter is really good medicine :) :)

These are my daddy's precious hands...more like the size of bear paws...but stil precious, all the same :) :) He was using my aunt's computer laptop. He was still having some trouble with hand coordination and getting his fingers on the homerow of the keyboard. He's gotten so much better since this photo was taken. He LOVES doing Bible studies on the computer. Having this computer with him in the hospital was really good for brain stimulation.

This is literally my dad's favorite Bible. He made the leather cover himself years ago. He likes to insert his own notes inside, between the verses and extra page inserts...sort of like his own personal Bible commentary. It's really sweet. This was one of the first things he asked for when he woke up out of the medically-induced coma.

This is one of the pages inside my dad's Bible. He made this page insert himself. That tiny photo at the bottom, is a photo of me and some friends at a Christian retreat when I was in college (in Germany). This is the same Bible that my dad carries everywhere with him, even to the grocery store. His reason is "You never know when you'll need a Bible...even at the grocery store" :) :)

My father's anticipated release date is this coming Friday. He's getting a minimum of 4 hours day of combined physical, speech and occupation therapies. That's so awesome. He's got his own personal flat-screen computer...like a giant iPad, that hovers above the bed in his room. He's so occupied now, that he hardly ever calls. Now in our family "no news is good news" I'm so happy that they're keeping him busy. I'm so thankful for the VA, because they are covering the entire bill for my father. Without that, we would have been in a world of financial hurt. God really provided for my tiny family in so many different ways.

There's so much to say, that I have forgotten. Feel free to ask questions. If you need prayer, for anything, feel free to email me.

It rained so hard last night. So much so, that I was afraid the water would come through the ceiling. Now it's wet outside, but sunny :) :) My next door neighbor, Lisa, has been so good to give me rides when I need them, till my dad gets home.

Thanks so MUCH for all of your prayers and good thoughts coming our way. My dad and I have appreciated all of them :) :) That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

DADDY UPDATE FOR THURSDAY - JANUARY 12.

2012-01-12T09:01:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

if everything went according to schedule, the doctors should have started my dad's procedure this morning at 7:50 a.m. Pacific Standard Time. They are putting in a new pacemaker/defibrillator. The procedure will take anywhere from 2.5-3 hours. Please pray that the doctor/nurses working on my dad will have clear minds and skilled hands.

Oh, my dad has been saying some really funny things in the hospital. He's also been saying some really profound things, too. I'll see about sharing some of those stories soon.

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

DADDY UPDATE

2012-01-10T06:26:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I'll try and write some more later today, but I wanted to give you all a short update on my father. He is getting better a little bit every day. Yesterday the nurses removed the tube in his mouth. That was great, because my dad didn't like the tube at all. He can follow basic commands and he knows who I am. He now knows where he is and what happened to him, although in a really basic form. I think when he is more alert, if he asks me details, I'll tell him what happened, since I was there. I'm going to go visit him again today, to see how he is doing. Thanks so much for your prayers !!!! They mean a lot to me :) :) That's the news from the ocean shores of California this morning. Love and hugs, Heather :)

PLEASE PRAY FOR MY SWEET DADDY!!!!

2012-01-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

Update: I called the ICU a little bit ago...about 10:30 p.m. on Friday evening tonight. They are gradually letting him warm up/helping him to regain consciousness. The nurse said he did open his eyes and wriggle his toes...and I"ve never been so happy in my entire life. That is a very good sign. Please continue to keep him, myself and my aunt in your prayers. I'm really tired...need some sleep...but thanks for the prayers. They make a difference. Love and hugs from the ocean shores of California, Heather

p.s. I'm very lucky to have my aunt here, good friends and neighbors!!!!!
Hi everyone,

I am asking you to pray for my daddy today!!! I'm going to make this brief...shortly before 3:30 p.m. yesterday (Thursday) afternoon, I heard my dad scream. He was upstairs in his room, I was downstairs making tea. I called his name multiple times and he wasn't responding. When I went upstairs, he was slumped over to the right in his chair, unresponsive and purple...He wasn't repsonding to my voice or my touch. I called 911 right away. They were here at the house in less than two minutes.

It wasn't a heart attack. It was not his pacemaker. They don't know what caused his heart to fibrillate. He's in a medically induced coma right now...and they may wake him up/warm him up out of that today.

Please pray for him...pray for me, because I'm having a hard time keeping it together. Pray for my aunt (his sister). She'll be flying in this afternoon. That's all I feel like sharing right now. There are things that I need help with now. I've got fantastic neighbors helping me...and my dad will need more care when he wakes up. Pray that he will not be afraid or too disoriented, because I"m not even sure if he was aware of what has happened to him. Please pray!!!

Thank you. I may update from time to time on my blog, but other posts will have to wait.

Love and hugs from the ocean shores of California, Heather :)

SLOW-COOKER CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE SOUP

2012-01-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I've been doing really well on my journey into eating gluten free and eating real food. The GAPS diet has been a really good, extremely healing diet for my ulcerative proctitis. Ulcerative proctitis is a minor form of colitis, which is an auto-immune condition. I'm going to try and make Thursdays the day I talk about healthy eating, my weight-loss journey and anything else related to those two things :) So, pray for me, because this is something that I really believe in. It's been very healing for my body...and I hope, that in some small measure, sharing my story with all it's ups and downs, will encourage you all in some way :) :)

I'm now on Phase 4 of the Intro Diet for GAPS. I'm feeling better all the time, although I do still struggle with coffee. It is an addiction for me...a happy one, but one that is not at all good for my body. So I'm still struggling with that, but let me tell you about something totally yummy and delicious.

Homemade chicken broth/soup with vegetables is really easy to make. Prior to starting the GAPS diet, I usually avoided the kitchen. Thanks to GAPS, I've had to spend more time in the kitchen, learning how to cook real food on my own. This is how I made my yummy soup:

THIS IS A PICTURE OF THE VEGGIES I USED IN MY CHICKEN SOUP. THIS ISN'T THE BEGINNING OF THE RECIPE. I JUST LIKE THIS PHOTO BECAUSE IT IS FULL OF COLOR.

FIRST, YOU GET A SWEET, OLD DOG TO HELP SUPERVISE ALL THE MEAL PREPARATIONS. IN THIS CASE, ROSIE "HELPED" ME. THIS PHOTO WAS TAKEN AFTER THE CHICKEN WAS FINISHED IN THE SLOW-COOKER. EVEN ROSIE KNOWS REAL GOOD FOOD WHEN SHE SMELLS IT :) SHE HAS ARTHRITIS, SO SHE SITS A LOT. ROSIE ALSO EATS A LOT,BUT THAT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH HER DOGGIE ARTHRITIS.

FIRST, YOU NEED A WHOLE CHICKEN. I USE A WHOLE, ORGANIC CHICKEN FROM TRADER JOE'S. IT REALLY IS UP TO YOU WHAT KIND OF MEAT YOU CAN AFFORD, BUT FOR ME IT IS SIMPLE. YOU ARE WHAT YOUR ANIMALS EAT, SO I CHOOSE TO SPEND A LITTLE EXTRA FOR A NICE, ORGANIC CHICKEN. IT COMES WITH GIBLETS.

Now my chicken came wrapped in plastic. Inside, it has what looks like a chicken maxi pad covering the "butt" area to catch all the chicken juices. The giblets will be inside the bird, in a closed paper bag. Remove the giblets from inside the chicken. You will include the giblets when making your broth. The giblets have lots of good stuff for the body, plus it helps the broth to form a nice gelatin when you put it in the refrigerator.

So once you've removed the chicken and giblets from their packaging, place all of it in your slow cooker. Now add some water to the slow-cooker. You have some options here. I added six cups of purified water to the chicken in the slow-cooker. It's up to you. You can adjust the water, more or less, according to your needs and what you like :) :) I add lots of water, because it helps stretch this out for many, many meals :)

Also, add one teaspoon of either Celtic seal salt or pink Himalayan salt.

Slow-cook the chicken on "low" for 7 - 8 hours. I let my chicken slow-cook for a full 8 hours. About an hour before your chicken is finished, add some fresh, chopped garlic to taste. I add four cloves of fresh, chopped garlic. However, this time, I forgot, so I added the garlic after I had cooked the chicken and vegetables.

AFTER YOUR CHICKEN IS FINISHED COOKING IN THE SLOW-COOKER, IT SHOULD LOOK SOMETHING LIKE THIS. OH, YEAH, YOU CAN'T TELL HERE, BUT IT SMELLS SO G-O-O-D IN HERE.

NEXT, PREPARE YOUR FAVORITE VEGETABLES TO ADD TO YOUR SOUP.

While my chicken is in the slow-cooker, I like to prepare my vegetables. About 30 minutes to an hour before your chicken is done, gather your vegetables. For this particular batch of soup I used fresh, organic red onions, rainbow carrots and organic broccolo florets. Chop them up and put them in the steamer. Steam your veggies until they are nice and soft. With my steamer, I find that 35 minutes is a good amount of time. They veggies are nice and soft.

ONCE THE VEGGIES ARE DONE STEAMING, PLACE THEM IN A NICE STOCKPOT OR SOUP POT.

When the vegetables are done steaming, I put them in a nice, large pot perfect for soups or stews. I also added four cloves of fresh, chopped organic garlic. This should have been added when the chicken was in the slow-cooker...but I forgot. You can add the garlic whenever you like. Garlic adds a nice aroma and flavor to your cooking.

FRESH CHICKEN STRAIGHT FROM THE SLOW-COOKER.

By the time your vegetables are fully cooked, your chicken should be ready. I deboned the chicken and put all the good meat into the stock/soup pot. I used a fork and knife to seperate the meat, because I wasn't interested in touching it with my hands :) :) Rosie, the dog, made sure to catch anything that fell to the floor. Nothing fell to the floor, but I did give her two small pieces of chicken. She ate it up right away.

HERE I AM STRAINING THE BROTH BEFORE I ADD IT TO THE SOUP.

Once you have removed all the meat from the chicken, it is time to strain the broth. I place a fine, mesh sieve over the soup/stock pot. Then I used a measuring cup and slowly strained the chicken broth. This allows you to get all that yummy, healthy chicken broth without all the extra gross bits like cartilage etc. I also added the chicken liver to the soup as well. Just chop it up super fine. You don't taste it. The chicken liver is also really healthy and good for me, so in it goes.

HERE IS MY BOWL OF FRESH-MADE CHICKEN BROTH, WITH CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES. DOESN'T IT LOOK OH SO TASTY GOOD?

Now at this point, what you do, is up to you. I placed some of that fresh made chicken/vegetable soup in a bowl. Sorry that my bowl is messy...but that's real life, folks. I don't have people to wipe it up neat for photos :) You can heat everything through again if you want, too. However, it wasn't necessary, since the broth and the veggies were still hot.

What to do with the leftover soup? Well, that is also up to you. This is what I do and it works well for me.

I PUT THE LEFTOVER CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE SOUP IN CANNING JARS. THEN I PUT THOSE JARS IN THE REFRIGERATOR.

All I do is place the extra chicken/vegetable soup in canning jars. Those jars I place in the refrigerator. I don't know how to can/put up stuff. Besides that, I eat a lot of this soup, so it doesn't last very long anyway.

To make this soup even more tasty/healing for my body, I add two teaspoons of clarified butter (ghee) and a 1/3 of a mashed avocado, and 1 tsp of sauerkraut. The avocado is something I'll usually add at dinnertime. I do the sauerkraut in every bowl of soup.

This soup is really easy to make. It's very healthy for you and it tastes super good :) :)

Why do I add clarified butter to my soup? It's a healthy fat that has all the casein elements removed. My body doesn't tolerate regular dairy very well, so I make clarified butter, which give me the best parts of the butter without the casein bits that irritate my tummy. I'll post on how to make clarified butter soon. It is really easy.

Why do I add avocado to my soup? It's another healthy fat :) :) I use an organic avocado.

Why do I add 1 tsp of sauerkraut to every bowl of soup? It is a natural probiotic.

I'm sure you all have some questions. I'm still on the learning process myself...but if you want to ask questions about why I decided to take this journey, feel free to leave questions here, as long as they're nice :) I'm not a doctor, so I cannot give medical advice. This is a choice that I made for myself, after much thought, education and discussion. It's a plan that really works for me. I would highly suggest talking with a naturopath or other medical person of your choice before embarking on any kind of new eating plan.

That's the news from California today. Love and hugs from the ocean shores, Heather :)

P.S. I'm linking up with the following blogs this week. See below for details... Also check my right side-bar for blog buttons to their sites.

Thriving On Thursdays at Domesblissity

A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Our Simple Country Life

Homemaker's Cottage

MY TEA THINGS FOR JANUARY 4th, 2012

2012-01-04T13:21:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,
Let me share my latest teacup and saucer with you today. Before I do that, let me give you a short update on our "plumbing" problem here at the house. YOu can click here to read the original post. We finally had the plumber out for a third time in a week. They ran a camera down the pipe and discovered that the pipe was an old "Orangeburg" (sp?) pipe that was installed when the house was originally built back in the 1940s/50s. The pipe runs 24 inches below ground, underneath the garage. When my aunt had the house remodeled, they never found that pipe, because they never looked. When they installed new water pipe, it was installed only 18 inches below ground..so they never discovered the old pipe. Basically, the old pipe is very small and is collapsing in on itself. It will need to be replaced, eventually...but for now, my dad and I can use the upstairs bathrooms just fine with no problem. So, we're okay for now :) :) That's is a total answer to prayer.

Okay, now for the fun stuff. This teacup with matching saucer was given to me as a gift by my aunt's friend. She had purchased it at an auction. My aunt's friend said that it was in a box full of junk. It was like finding a diamond in the rough.

HERE IS A VIEW OF MY LOVELY PINK ROSE TEACUP WITH MATCHING SAUCER, AS SEEN FROM THE TOP. IT IS A LOVELY SHADE OF PALE PINK, WITH BEAUTIFUL CHUBBY, RED ROSES AND OUTLINED IN DELICATE GOLD

WHEN YOU SEE THE NEXT PHOTOS, YOU'LL UNDERSTAND WHY I TOOK THIS PHOTO FROM THE TOP VIEW.

THIS IS MY TEACUP AND SAUCER AS SEEN FROM THE SIDE VIEW. YOU WILL NOTICE THAT THE TEACUP ITSELF IS A SIMPLE, PLAIN WHITE WITH A DELICATE GOLD STRIPE RUNNING AROUND THE CENTER OF THE CUP. ALL OF THE DETAIL IS ON THE INSIDE OF THIS BEAUTIFUL TEACUP.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE TEACUP. IT SAYS "BY APPOINTMENT TO HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN - CHINA POTTERS - PARAGON - FINE BONE CHINA - ENGLAND REGD" THERE IS ALSO THE LETTER "P" ON THE CUP. I'M NOT SURE IF THAT IS SIGNIFICANT OR NOT. IT DOES ADD A BIT OF MYSTERY TO MY TEACUP.

HERE IS A CLOSER LOOK AT THE SAUCER. IT IS REALLY LOVELY. I THINK PINK IS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL, ROMANTIC AND VERY FEMININE COLOR. IT ADDS A TOUCH OF BEAUTY TO THE EVERY DAY THINGS OF OUR LIVES.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE SAUCER. IT IS THE SAME AS THE ONE ON THE TEACUP. THERE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL MARKINGS. I DON'T UNDERSTAND THEM OR THEIR MEANING. IF YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT IT COULD BE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.

Thank you for joining me for tea today. I love having visitors. Your comments also make me smile :) :)

Oh, as most of you know, I live by the ocean. This is what the waves looked liked yesterday (Tuesday). Isn't it just dreamy?

I NEVER GET TIRED OF LOOKING AT THE OCEAN OR TAKING PHOTOS.

AT ONE POINT, THE WAVES WERE GETTING SO BIG AND SO FAST, THAT THERE WERE MULTIPLE WAVES CRASHING AT THE SAME TIME.

That is the news from California today. Love and hugs from the ocean shores, Heather

TINY PRAYER REQUEST

2011-12-27T07:33:00.000-08:00

UPDATE at 12:29 p.m.

Well, the plumber came out again and used the metal pipe snake. Everything is fixed ....again...for now. However, they will come back Thursday to put a camera down the pipe to see how our water pipe was connected to the city pipe when the house was remodeled about 13 years ago. So we'll have to pay for that. So I'm just not going to worry and trust God that He'll fix it ;) :)

Love and hugs from the ocean shores of California, Heather :)

Hi everyone,

Just a quick prayer request. The water pipe to our house is clogging...AGAIN. We thought it was "fixed" a few days ago. Everything seemed fine and we were glad to have the money to pay for the repair. Now it's clogged again. My dad is trying to run a pipe snake through the pipe to see if it will fix the problem. We do NOT have the money to pay someone to look at it again.

I know it's a small request compared to some of the others out there right now..but this is going to really hurt us financially, if we can't get this fixed on our own. Pray that this problem will resolve itself!!!

Love andhugs, Heather :)

CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE SOUP

2011-12-22T11:09:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

It's been a long time since my last post. I'm so sorry. I've been really busy. I'm doing really well on my weight loss/healthy living journey. As of last Tuesday, I had lost just over 48 pounds. About two weeks ago, I started the GAPS diet. You can click here to learn more information. It's a really super healthy program that is not just for people with mood disorders...but also for people like ME, who have auto-immune conditions. In my case, I have ulcerative proctitis, a minor form of colitis. Anyways, here are the materials that I work with...I'll blog more about them later. My main reason for posting today is tell you my easy recipe for chicken vegetable soup.

THESE ARE THE MATERIALS THAT I WORK WITH. MY NATUROPATH IS A CERTIFIED GAPS PRACTIONER, AS WELl. I HAVE A WORKBOOK WHERE I RECORD EVERYTHING I EAT AND DRINK, THERE'S A BOOK, A WONDERFUL COOKBOOK AND A DVD WHICH DEMONSTRATES HOW TO MAKE THE VARIOUS RECIPES.

Now I have a super easy recipe for chicken and vegetable soup. I will be posting about this again, because I forgot to take a lot of pictures when I made this soup.

First, I place a whole, organic chicken in a slow-cooker and add about 4 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of Celtic salt. My slow cooker is really small, so I can only make one chicken at a time. Also, if it comes with giblets, make sure to include those in the slow-cooker. It really enhances the flavor.

Set the slow-cooker on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Once your chicken is done cooking, pull apart all the meat from the chicken and place in a big stock pot. Optional is to include the giblets such as liver and gizzards...chopped up really fine, they're good for you...extremely good for you, and you won't taste it in the soup.

Once you've pulled apart all of the meat, you strain the broth into that same stock pot using a fine mesh strainer. This lets you keep all those yummy chicken juices and healthy fats without adding all the gross bits like tissue and bones :) :)

Okay...so when my chicken is about 30 minutes from being finished in the slow cooker, I add chopped broccoli, purple onions and rainbow carrots to my steamer. You can add whatever veggies you like. I like a lot of color ;) :)

When that's done, add those steamed veggies to the stockpot with the chicken broth and meat. Put that on the burner on medium heat and heat it through to your liking.. :) :)

This is what my soup looked like last night.

THIS SOUP TASTES AWESOME AND IS TOTALLY GOOD FOR YOU. I USED ALL-ORGANIC INGREDIENTS. YOU CAN USE WHAT YOU LIKE.

I also added three little "fingers" of fresh, organic and chopped garlic. So good and the house smells awesome :) :)

Well, that is my simple recipe for chicken and vegetable soup. I eat this quite a bit as part of my diet. It's healthy and the fats and veggies are good for the gut, they help add healthy bacteria to the gut.

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :)

p.s. I also added a tablespoon of bacon fat to my bowl of soup and one egg yolk....from an organic egg. It won't work with regular eggs....but that's a story for another time. I am also making yogurt from fresh, raw cow's milk. That will be ready sometime this afternoon.

MY TEA TIME TUESDAY AND TEACUP & TEA THINGS TUESDAY FOR DECEMBER 1st.

2011-12-01T14:51:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Okay, here is my tea post for this week. I tried to get it up yesterday and totally forget. Here is the last of my tea things that I purchased at auction a few weeks ago. The cup and the saucer are from the same designer. The plate is from a different designer. However, the patterns are so similar, they fit together nicely :)

THIS IS THE TEACUP, SAUCER AND PLATE THAT I PURCHASED AT THAT AUCTION A FEW WEEKS AGO.

HERE IS THE PLATE. IT IS REALLY INTERESTING WITH THE BEAUTIFUL SCALLOPED DETAIL ALL THE WAY AROUND THE EDGE OF THE PLATE. NOTICE THE PRECIOUS LITTLE ROSEBUD IN THE CENTER OF THE PLATE.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE SCALLOPED ROSES PLATE.

NEXT, I PLACED THE SAUCER ON TOP OF THE PLATE. DO YOU NOTICE HOW WELL THE ROSES ON BOTH ITEMS FIT TOGETHER? IT IS REALLY AMAZING.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE SAUCER.

THIS IS THE FLORAL MOTIF ON ONE SIDE OF THE TEACUP. IT HAS A VERY SIMPLE GOLD DETAIL ON THE HANDLE.

THIS IS THE SMALLER FLORAL MOTIF ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TEACUP.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE BOTTOM OF THE TEACUP.

I really enjoyed sharing some more of my tea things with you. Now the trick is to find a way to display them beautifull in my home. Right now, it's just random placement wherever there is space in my room :) :) :)

Oh, Friday I'll be sharing some vintage finds that I found this week. You'll have to tune in Friday for that. I've really committed to buying things at thrift shops and antique shops, when I can afford it.

Thanks for stopping by my blog to visit. I LOVE visitors and comments :) :) That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2011-11-24T09:12:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my fellow Americans ;) :) :) Enjoy your day today :) :)

My dad and I took my aunt's dog for a walk this morning. Then we took a scenic drive along the ocean. Afterwards, we stopped at Whole Foods, so I could buy some coffee. Now we're home making breakfast. We'll be cooking the turkey later today.

We got our turkey dinner from Whole Foods this year. Believe it or not, this will be the first time that Dad and I have cooked a turkey ourselves. It should be easy. It's an organic turkey that's already fully cooked. We just have to heat and serve it, but still.... :) :) :)

That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

GIVEAWAY WINNER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-11-16T07:16:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Okay, we have a winner for my first ever giveaway. Here's how I picked the winner. I couldn't figure out the Random.org site, so I just wrote out a paper slip for each individual entry on my giveaway post. It was easy since there were only five entries. All the slips of paper were the same size, and had each comment's name written on a seperate slip of paper. I folded them over, so I couldn't see the names. This morning I grabbed those slips of paper, closed my eyes, and just shuffled for a couple of minutes. Then I picked one...and the winner is?

Wanda Lee :) :)

She has two blogs. Click here or here if you'd like to visit. She hosts some awesome tea parties every Tuesday...real tea with beautiful china :)

Here's what she said about the giveaway:
"What an amazing contest with this fabulous software. I would love to win this also!.., I am a follower as well."

Wanda Lee, please send me a private email. I'll make sure you get the code to download your free copy of this software ;) :) It's a lot of fun :)

Thanks EVERYONE for participating in my giveaway :) :) It was fun. I think I've caught the "give-away" bug now...so I'll see about hosting some more of these giveaways :) :)

That's the news from the ocean shores of the California coast for today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

MY FIRST EVER GIVEAWAY. THIS IS GOING TO BE FUN.

2011-11-09T05:08:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: I AM EXTENDING THE DEADLINE TO ENTER THIS CONTEST TILL 10:30 P.M. PACIFIC STANDARD TIME :) :) THE REASON? I REALIZED I WON'T BE AT MY COMPUTER AT 9 P.M...SO THAT GIVES YOU ALL AN EXTRA HOUR AND A HALF TO ENTER TO WIN THE GIVEAWAY :) :) :)

Hi everyone,

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy....this is a huge occasion for my blog, because I am hosting my FIRST ever giveaway. What's the reason? Just because I can :) :) :)

What a story. When I first was approached by the MyMemories company, it was via email. I had NEVER heard of this company before. So I asked my friends on Facebook about this. My sweet friend Patti of Fill my Cup with Beauty told me of two blogs that had previously hosted a giveaway for MyMemories digital scrapbooking software.Those two blogs were, Blessings of a Stay at Home Mom, and Homesteader's Heart. Feel free to visit their sites and see what beautiful creations they came up with.

Here are come of the creations that I came up with.

THIS WAS MY VERY FIRST PAGE THAT I MADE USING THIS DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKING SOFTWARE FROM "MY MEMORIES". I MADE THIS PAGE AFTER CHURCH ON SUNDAY. THIS PAGE SHOWS SOME SHOTS OF THE FAMOUS CANNERY ROW IN MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA.

I sometimes think of myself as a "technological peasant" when it comes to computer software. I've never really understood it. However, this software was really easy to use. It was a lot of fun just exploring all the different scrapbooking options available. Let me tell you, there are a LOT of them that come free with this software.

One of the first things it will ask you, when you open it up is to choose which kind of page you want to design. They have pre-made templates or you can create your own, or browse the web for more selections. I chose to create my own pages. Oh, here's another cool thing, MyMemories digital scrapbooking software, then gives you the option of choosing a square page, an 8 1/2x11 page, or a landscape page layout for you to work with. I chose the 8 1/2x11 page, since that is what I use in my own personal scrapbook of ideas, recipes, etc.

So you can choose from their abundant selection of templates, create your own page (like I did in the previous photo). Here's another "create your own" page that I made. This time, I used one of my own photos as the background, selected a photo layout and added more photos of my own, with text. This is what I came up with:

THIS IS ALSO CANNERY ROW IN MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA. I USED ONE OF MY PHOTOS AS THE MAIN BACKGROUND, ADDED SMALLER PHOTOS FOR THE LAYOUT AND ADDED THE "CANNERY ROW" TEXT.

MyMemories digital scrapbooking software lets you do MORE than just scrapbooking. You could design really cute pages for a recipe book. Here's a full 8 1/2" x 11" page that I created. I don't cook a lot, however, I do LOVE to make my own cleaning supplies at home. This is a recipe page for homemade laundry powder.

THIS IS A SAMPLE OF WHAT YOU COULD CREATE FOR YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS. THIS WILL FIT EASILY INTO AN 8 1/2 X 11 INCH SHEET PROTECTOR. OH, PLUS IT'S A REALLY USEFUL, MONEY-SAVING LAUNDRY POWDER RECIPE.

Here's a fun video demonstration from My Memories, that shows you a really nice variety of things you can create with this digital scrapbooking software.

Now for the super fun giveaway details. You can win a copy of this digital scrapbooking software from MyMemories for your computer. Here's what you do to earn entries into the giveaway (Please leave an individual comment for each entry. It'll be easier to choose a winner at random that way.):

1) Be a follower of my blog

2) Go to the MyMemories page, take a look at all of their background templates and layouts, and tell me which one you like best.

FOR EXTRA ENTRIES:

3) Follow the MyMemories blog

4) Follow MyMemories on Facebook

5) Blog about my giveaway on your blog or Facebook page. Make sure to post a link to my blog giveaway post.

Here's a link to the MyMemories channel on YouTube. There are some wonderful video tutorials that really showcase all the things you can create with this wonderful digital software. Click here to pay a visit.

If you don't have a blog, no worries. Just make sure you give me your name and email address, and leave a comment here for each of the entry requirements. This giveaway is open to all of my lovely blog friends :)

I have a special coupon code that you can use. It gives you $10 off the purchase of the MyMemories Suite Scrapbook software AND a $10 coupon towards the MyMemories.com store. Just use the following special discount code: STMMMS50832 here, if you decide to place an order.

You can also share that special discount code with your friends and family.

The contest will end at 9 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on Tuesday - November 14th. I'll pick a winner at random on Wednesday, November 15th.

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave me a comment. This is my very FIRST giveaway...so I'm kind of nervous. I'm also super excited. That's the news from the ocean shores of California. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY TEACUPS AND TEA THINGS & TEA TIME TUESDAY POST FOR NOVEMBER 8th.

2011-11-07T14:56:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

So I totally forgot about last Tuesday. Something in the California air has really done something to my sense of timing. Ever since I moved to California, the days just seem to run together so fast. So TWO weeks ago, I showed you the Royal Albert sugar bowl and creamer that I won (as part of a mixed collection) at an auction. Today, I'm going to show you a little bit more.

THESE ARE ALL THE TEA THINGS THAT I WON AT THE SILENT AUCTION BACK IN SEPTEMBER. IT IS A REAL MIX OF DIFFERENT PIECES. ALL OF THEM ARE SO LOVELY.

The items that really caught my eye were the Royal Albert "Old Country Roses" creamer and matching sugar bowl. The other items that caught my eye were the violet teacups, saucers and teapot.

These are the violet china tea things that I wanted to share with you all today. If you look really closely, you'll notice that one of the teacup's, with matching saucer, is slightly different than the others. Oh, and to my surprise, the teapot was made in Japan, while everything else was made in England. Here are some close-up pictures of my lovely china:

THIS IS A CLOSE-UP VIEW OF THE LOVELY VIOLET DETAIL ON THE TEAPOT.

EVEN THE LID ON THE TEAPOT HAS LOVELY DETAIL. ISN'T IT JUST BEAUTIFUL? YES, IT REALLY IS. THERE IS JUST SOMETHING ABOUT VIOLETS.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE VIOLET TEAPOT. THIS CAME AS A TOTAL SURPRISE, BECAUSE I KNEW THE OTHER PIECES HAD BEEN MADE IN ENGLAND. THE DESIGNS MATCH ALMOST PERFECTLY.

HERE IS A CLOSER LOOK AT THE BEAUTIFUL VIOLET TEACUP AND MATCHING SAUCER. THEY BOTH HAVE A LOVELY SCALLOPED EDGE WITH GOLD DETAIL AROUND THE RIM.

WHEN YOU TURN THE TEACUP AROUND, THERE IS A SOFTER VIOLET DETAIL ON THE OTHER SIDE. THIS IS SO DELICATE AND BEAUTIFUL.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THOSE "SECRET" FLOWER DETAILS ON THE INSIDE OF THE TEACUPS. IT REALLY ADDS A TOUCH OF SOMETHING LOVELY.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE VIOLET TEACUP WITH THE SCALLOPED EDGING. I THINK SOME OF THE MARKINGS ARE VERY INTERESTING. HOWEVER, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY SIGNIFY. IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS, LET ME KNOW.

A LOVELY AND DELICATE VIOLET SAUCER WITH SCALLOPED EDGING.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE VIOLET SAUCER WITH THE SCALLOPED EDGING.

THIS WAS THE OTHER VIOLET TEACUP WITH MATCHING SAUCER. HMM...ON CLOSER INSPECTION, THEY MIGHT NOT BE VIOLETS AT ALL. IT'S CLOSE ENOUGH FOR ME. IT HAS A VERY GENTLE SCALLOPED EDGING WITH GOLD TRIM.

HERE IS A CLOSER LOOK AT THE LARGER VIOLET DETAIL ON THE TEACUP AND SAUCER.

HERE'S THE VIEW OF THE SOFTER FLOWER DETAIL ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TEACUP AND MATCHING SAUCER.

FINALLY, HERE IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THIS TEACUP...

...AND THE BACKSTAMP ON THE MATCHING SAUCER.

That completes my tea collection for today. I'm really curious about the person who owned all these tea things before they came into my possesion. Whoever that person was, she must have had excellent taste and a love for flowers.

Oh, exciting times coming up on Wednesday. I will be hosting my very first give-away. So you'll have to come back Wednesday to have a look-see. I'll post it as soon as I wake up on Wednesday morning.

Thanks for visiting me today. I love visitors and messages, too...so feel free to leave me a comment. That's the news from the ocean shores of California today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

MY TEATIME TUESDAY AND TEACUPS AND TEA THINGS POST FOR OCTOBER 25th.

2011-10-25T17:31:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone :) :) :)

Okay, so here are my tea things for today. It's been so LONG since I've been able to participate in some of the beautiful tea parties here in blogland. I went to an auction about a month ago in Pacific Grove, California. There was a set of various assorted china tea things. I placed a bid and WON the auction for those items. That was so cool. I'm not sure where the "group" photo of all the items is. When I find it, I'll post it next Tuesday. Until then, here's just part of what I have to show you all today :) :)

I finally have some Royal Albert china...in my FAVORITE pattern, too "Old Country Roses". This is my beautiful Royal Albert "Old Country Roses" creamer and matching sugar bowl. It was such a joy to finally have some of this for my home :)

THIS IS A CLOSE-UP VIEW OF THE CREAMER. THE RED AND YELLOW ROSES ARE SO BEAUTIFUL AND DELICATE AGAINST THE WHITE BACKGROUND.

THIS IS THE FRONT OF THE CREAMER. THERE IS A DELICATE LEAVES AND ROSES DETAIL. ISN'T IT LOVELY?

HERE'S A SLIGHTLY BETTER VIEW OF THE DETAIL ON THE CREAMER. I JUST LOVE THIS PATTERN. I NEVER GET TIRED OF LOOKING AT IT.

HERE IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE CREAMER. EVEN THE BACKSTAMP IS BEAUTIFUL. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO MANY ROSES.

HERE IS THE TOP OF THE SUGAR BOWL. NOTICE THE HANDLE IN THE CENTER. THE CIRCLE RING IS DESIGNED TO NATURALLY FIT THE FINGERS, FOR EASY HANDLING.

THE FRONT OF THE SUGAR BOWL. IT'S SUCH A NICE PATTERN.

HERE'S ANOTHER VIEW OF SOME OF THE SMALLER ROSES DETAIL ON THE SAME SUGAR BOWL.

That is all for the moment. I hope you enjoyed my Royal Albert "Old Country Roses" creamer and matching sugar bowl. I think "Anne of Green Gables" would have used this for her tea. Don't you think? Stay tuned next Tuesday when I show you some more beautiful tea things from the auction :)

Oh, wait, one last thing. A friend shared this video on Facebook and I'm sharing it with you. It's a beautiful song from Tracy Chapman called "The Promise" with a video montage of soldiers coming home to their families. It was on this program called "Wretched". The video is beautifully done. It's a reminder of the men and women who sacrifice so much so that we can worship as we please. I also agree with the host that it's a small taste of what heaven will be like, when we are reunited with our loved ones. The song is beautiful and I've been listening to it over and over today.

That's the news from the ocean shores today. Love and hugs, Heather

p.s. Watch the video below:

TEA COMING SOON TO A BLOG NEAR ME :) :)

2011-10-25T16:21:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone :) : :)

Okay, now I feel like I'm finally getting back into the swing of blogging. I'm working on a belated post that is about tea. I found some really neat tea things at an auction about a month ago. So I'll be sharing those over the next few weeks.

In the meantime, enjoy this photo :) :)

THIS IS A NEW SHOP CALLED "OLIO". IT IS FULL OF VINTAGE CUTENESS. IT'S DOWNTOWN ON ALVARADO STREET IN MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA.

THIS IS ALSO THE HISTORIC "RODRIGO OSIO" ADOBE. THERE IS A LOT OF HISTORY HERE IN MONTEREY.

That's all for the moment. I have literally hundreds of photos to get processed. Plus I want to show you some new tea things that I recently acquired :)

Thank you for visiting me. Please come back soon. Love and hugs from the ocean shores, Heather :)

TIMEGOES BY SO FAST !!!!!!!

2011-10-05T13:08:00.000-07:00

HI everyone :) :) :)

Golly, it's been almost a MONTH since my last post ;) :) I've been busy here and LOVING my new home ;) :) I've got lots of photos...and if I'd eventually write a proper post, you would get to see them :) :)

Let's see..I'm still job hunting. I did interview for a job as a bank teller. I didn't get the job. That's okay. This LORD or something better. The "something better" is obviously what God has in store for me :) :)

I've also been working on losing weight. As of this morning I've lost a total of 22 pounds. Wow, it's gone fast...but my aunt introduced me to a naturopathic doctor. It is an alternative medicine for sure. However, I wanted to try it, because she explained her healthy eating plan to me. It's all science and no fluff. She also believes in eating meat. That's GOOD, because I LOVE to eat meat :) :)

She had me take a blood test, which revealed that I'm severely anemic, can't absorb protein, there's an infection in my gut and some other things that I can't remember. So I've been following her healthy eating plan. It's really similar to an elimination diet, where all the bad stuff is stripped away. I followed that for 5 weeks...and now I"m slowly reintroducing things back into my diet.

This is the best I've felt in over 10 years. My naturopathic doctor told me of another patient who had Crohn's disease, who followed her eating plan, and also went "GLUTEN FREE" for five years...and after that time her Crohn's went into complete remission...AND she's able to eat regular breads with gluten now and everything is good.

I have ulcerative proctitis, a minor form of colitis,...and so I'm going to try the same thing. We did figure out that I have an intolerance to gluten and dairy. So that was my decision. So far, so good, because my healthy eating plan is naturally gluten free right now. When I start reintroducing bread into my diet, that will have to be gluten free. I've been reading books and magazines on the topic. There's a lot to learn. There's also a LOT of variety, so I definitely won't be without goodies to eat ;) :) :)

The weather has been rainy and sunshine...all in ONE day, for the last TWO days...so it's interesting. I never can tell what to expect.

That's all for the moment. I'm still trying to figure out my new "sign off". That's the news from the ocean shores today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

FINALLY....SOME PHOTOS OF THE NEW SURROUNDINGS.

2011-09-09T21:22:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I have lots of photos to share. I'll only share a few today. Mainly because I'm running out of room on my USB drive. It's time to buy another one soon :) :) So here's just a taste of where I live...

One of the first things I did was take a trip to Pacific Grove. It's right next to Monterey. There's a knitting shop there that I remember visiting years ago. It's still in business :) :) Yes, of course, I bought some sock yarn :) :) Here are three more photos of the place.

The hydrangeas are just gorgeous and pink. I love pink.

This is part of the Lighthouse Produce stand here in Pacific Grove. They have some really good organic produce, as well as international foods. This particular produce stand operates in a former repair shop for cars.

You'll also notice a sign for "The Farm Hen". It's the cutest little shop that sells the best vintage stuff I've ever seen. I'll definitely plan to visit this place again, soon :)

Most of the produce is sold inside the former garage/mechanic repair shop.

The rest of the produce is covered by these tents. I think that's very thoughtful. It keeps the fruit from getting burned by the sun.

The rest of these photos are of the ocean in Monterey, California. The weather is really shifty here. We do get sun. We also get lots of mist/fog from the ocean, since we are a city built on the ocean.

These particular shots are of the old fisherman's wharf here in town.

Those are all my photos for the moment. I would have shared more, except my USB drive is running out of space :) :) Good thing, otherwise, I would have posted a boatload more worth of photos here today :) :)

That's the news from the Pacific Ocean today. Love and hugs, Heather

p.s. I'm working on different "sign offs" for my blog. If you think of any ideas, please let me know :) :) :)

I'M STILL HERE :) :) :)

2011-09-09T10:38:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone :) :) :)

I just wanted to let you know that I'm still here. My dad and I are settling down some. I've taken a proverbial boatload of photos already. So I'll make sure and get a new post full of photos up by this weekend :) :) How are you all doing?

I really love the weather here in Monterey. It's consistently in the 60s. Now we are by the ocean, so we get a lot of ocean mist here, too. It's really beautiful.

Monterey has a very interesting history. If you click here, you can read a Wikipedia article about Monterey. It was founded June 3rd, 1770 by Father Juanipero Serra and Gaspar de Portola (then governor of Baja and Alta California). There is still a lot of Spanish/Mexican influence all over this area. It's just breathtaking...that and the fact that I get to see the ocean every day :) :)

Well, since I"m not in Oregon anymore, I'll have to change my "sign off" for my blog posts :) :) What do you all suggest? That's the news from the California coast today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MOVING WEEKEND

2011-08-27T05:59:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone :) :) :)

Just a quick update. Today a bunch of people from church are coming over to help my dad and I upload the moving truck. So it will be a busy day. We'll actually leave tomorrow - Sunday. Pray that we get lots of strong people to help out. Pray for safety, a fast move, etc... This will be my last post until I'm in California and completely moved in. That's the news from Oregon today. Extra special love and hugs to you all, Heather :) :) :)

GOING BACK TO CALI

2011-08-21T16:24:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
It's Sunday afternoon and what a beautiful day today. It's around 90 degrees Fahrenheit and feels like a bajillion outside...However, we've got nice air conditioning in the apartment. What a blessing :) :) :)
Church was really great today...and more special because next Sunday will be my last Sunday there...and we are literally pulling out of the church parking lot with the car and moving truck after service is over.
Our storage unit is completely cleared out and empty. Praise God, because it was a lot of work. Let me see if I can find you all some photos....

I don't remember what the exact dimensions where on the storage unit. It was about 9 feet by 8 feet or something like that, and really tall, too. You can tell from this photo about how big it really was. We had it packed FULL of stuff. My dad worked really hard to get rid of a lot of things. He donated 22 boxes of popular Christian books to a local Christian private school. We threw out lots of junk. Then our pastor and his boys came to help my dad haul some stuff away. What a blessing. So on this day, my dad and I went back to pick up the final leftovers. Dad swept the storage unit clean.

My dad finally shut the storage unit door for the LAST time. Oh, what a feeling of relief. It was a real blessing to be out of there. It's something I'd been wanting my dad to do for over a year now anyway. It just happened that with the move, we finally got it done. No matter, it's cleaned and empty...that is so perfect.

My daddy broke out into a "happy daddy" dance where he's playing air guitar with the broom. He was so happy that we were finally leaving the storage unit for good. Isn't my daddy just the cutest? He's so funny :) :) :)

The last time we will ever have to drive by the storage facility offices. The people who own and run this storage facility are wonderfully nice people. Still it was money out of our pockets each month. It's a relief not to have that responsibility anymore.

The last time I will ever see this gate...

The last time I will ever see this sign, too....

So that's about it for today. I'll be taking photos like a crazy woman all the rest of this week, even as we're pulling out of the driveway to head to California. I hope I have enough space on my memory card for the digital camera. Maybe I'll buy an extra card just in case :) :) :)

Pray for us the rest of this week and on the drive down south. It will be a long drive...and we're praying that it's completely uneventful. I'll see if I can get one more post up before we pack the computer away. oh, it's really happening...and I've been going through feelings of excitement about moving, sadness because I don't want to move, and right now a touch of indifference.

Thanks for being patient with me during the last few weeks. Moving is a process...but it's worth it, because when it's done right, everything runs smoothly :) : We'll have lots of help from our church to get boxes loaded onto the truck.

Oh, how will I "sign off" on my posts now? I won't be in Oregon anymore...so that will have to change after next Sunday. Any thoughts on how I can sign off in future posts? Let me know what your thoughts and ideas are on that matter :) :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

"NEW" HAIRCUT AND VINTAGE SALON STUFF

2011-08-20T14:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
Oh my, the move to California is only about a week away. Wow. My dad and I have a lot packed. There is still so much more to do. I went clothes shopping with my friend April today. That was so much fun :) :) :) She helped me to consider some things that I would have never thought to try on before. Plus, we saved a ton of money.

Oh, well, I did get my haircut back around August 12th. Here are some photos. My hair hadn't been cut since last February. So it was high time to get that hair cut and styled :) :)

This is the sideview of my new haircut. It is really similar to what I had before. It's just a little bit shorter, because I asked my friend to cut off the yucky-looking ends. It was starting to not look very pretty. Now I have volume and lift. It's easy to style or just leave it alone :) :)

I really like the layers in the back. It's a lot of fun. Plus, my hair has a natural tendency to want to curl just a bit back there, anyway. It feels really good to go to the salon for some much needed pampering :) :) :)

Here is a series of photos I took while at the salon. It was built sometime during the 1920s. The salon owner decorated it with vintage things. I thought you might enjoy some of this. I'll let the photos speak for themselves:

THIS IS A SALON CHAIR FROM THE 1920S. IT WAS MADE BY THE EMIL PAIDAR COMPANY OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. ISN'T IT JUST GORGEOUS?

HERE ARE SOME VINTAGE SHAVING AND HAIR CARE ITEMS THAT WERE DECORATING THE SALON.

OH, THAT'S ME IN THE MIRROR, TAKING A PHOTO OF THE VINTAGE GE FAN. EVEN THE FAN IS SUPER CUTE.

Well, that is all for today's post. I'll get one more post up before I leave for California. Oh, my, the time is just flying by so fast. That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

GOD IS SO GOOD TO ME

2011-08-13T23:28:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone ;) :)

Wow, things are getting crazy here...but crazy good. I've had trouble getting a post up. Oh, nothing bad at all. It's all good, as a matter of fact. My dad and I have been really, really busy packing boxes in preperation for our move to California. We're moving at the end of August. Howev er, my dad wants everything completely packed and ready by August 21st. He wants that last week to just relax. Quite frankly, so do I :) :) :) So I've literally not had much time to do anything. Pray that I can get at least one really good post up before I leave ;) :) :)

Oh, God really blesses and he blesses in a practical way :) :) I've been wanted a fancy big kid/adult camera...w hat I call any camera that costs a few hundred dollars...You know what I'm talking about? Something super duper. Well, a couple in my church gave me theirs for FREE. I had used this camera of theirs to take baptism shots a couple of Sundays ago...Wow, and tonight... I'd mentioned in passing a few days earlier, that if I ever could afford a camera like this...I'd give my current camera to another lady at church. She doesn't have a digital camera. So God answered and I'm waiting for my friend to come back from vacation to suprise her with a camera :) :) It's the one I use to take all the photos I post on my blog. Now I've got a camera that can do so much MORE than my current camera ;) :) What a blessing...proof positive that God blesses....He takes care of our needs and wants :) :) :) Wow...I'm shocked and happy :) :) So now to take a boatload of photos :) :) :)

I've got to get read for church tomorrow. That's the news from Oregon today :) :) Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

ANOTHER UPDATE

2011-08-05T08:20:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone,
How are you? No worries.....I"ll be getting a blog po st up soon :) :) I'm actually going to start packing some boxes today, in preparation for moving at the end of the month :) :) Now "moving" isn't my favorite at all, but it's really nice to be doing something ;) :)

Hope you all are having a really nice day today :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

QUICK UPDATE

2011-08-03T14:27:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
this is just a quick update for those of you who signed up for the Beyond Organic Insider opportunity. I received an email the other day that says the launch date is officially on November 1st. It looks like in order to stay "active" you have to purchase one of their marketing packages. I totally believe in what this company is doing in terms of its product. There is no question about the quality. However, I'm not in a position where I can buy any kind of marketing packages, since I am in between jobs. So I will be letting my membership go into an "inactive" status. Plus, I'll be emailing the company to have them remove my name.
You may want to check your emails, because that email arrived in my inbox a day or two ago. So IO just wanted to apologize, because I didn't think there would be that much of a cost involved, especially since they said it as free to join. So I can no longer justify taking part in this opportunity, for myself...I'm only speaking for myself here. Please pray about it and decide what you want to do...I just wanted to let you know where I am at on this situation :) :)
Other than that, I am proud to say I have packed ZERO boxes. Oh, did I mention that my dad and I are moving back to California? Surprise ;) :) :) Oh, I'm excited to see what opportunties God will open up for us here :) :) Okay...everyone...I hope you are all having a great day. It's in the low 90s here in Southern Oregon. It feels more like 110, but that's okay :) :) Summer is only a short season, than Fall arrives ;) :)
That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

SPIRITUAL SUNDAY

2011-07-30T16:06:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

How has your week been? Mine has been really good, and full of some ups and downs. More on that at the end of this post. Here's the link to Week Three and Four of the Girl Talk 2011 series. This is part of the Virtue for Women series for the summer from Harvest Church. Click here to view the videos. There are so many good topics. Right now I'm listening to the videos in the background while I'm working on my blog :) :) Later today or tomorrow, I'll actually watch the videos and take some notes. The topics range from friendship and fitness to biblical perspectives on food. There's so much goodness here.

DAD AND I WENT OUT TO THE AIRPORT TO LOOK AT PLANES. IT IS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL DAY. WE WERE FORTUNATE TO SEE SOME TAKE-OFFS AND LANDINGS. IT'S JUST AMAZING.

Dad and I went out for a small drive this morning. He loves airplanes, so we went out to see what we could see today :) :) Plus, this is our favorite viewing spot. This old tree has probably been around for a very LONG time, a long time before this airport was even built. It's so gnarly and old..I wonder what kind of stories it would have to tell.

My sweet friend Linda wrote about the latest happenings in the process of her son and daughter-in-love adopting Vitaliy from the Ukraine. Click here to read about it in Linda's post. Also her daughter-in-love Tonya has a precious blog called Come Rest At His Table. She's selling some really super cute pendants to help raise money to bring Vitaliy home. Please pay her a visit. If you feel led, consider buying some of her pendants. They are really cute and the money is going to a great, great thing :) :) :)

THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE COFFEE SPOTS. HERE IN THE NORTHWEST OF THE UNITED STATES, THERE ARE A LOT OF DRIVE-THRU COFFEE STANDS. WHY? WELL, IMAGINE A REALLY COLD WINTER....WOULD YOU WANT TO GET OUT OF YOUR CAR? NO. IT'S NICE TO HAVE SOMEONE HAND YOU NICE, WARM COFFEE THROUGH YOUR CAR WINDOW.

After we watched airplanes, my dad took me to The Human Bean. I love this coffee spot. The coffee is great, the baristas are really nice AND....here's the best part, they have treats for dogs. So it's really funny to watch, because anytime a car pulls into the drive-thru that has dogs...well, the dogs really start becoming really animated. They KNOW that there are doggie treats to be had here :) :) It's sweet ;) :)

DID YOU KNOW THAT TIRES MAKE GREAT CONTAINERS FOR HOLDING GROCERIES? YES, IT'S TRUE....(INSERT SMILE AND LAUGH HERE)

God has been so good to my dad and I...always. We are going through a time of transition right now. First, I'll tell you about the tire. A really sweet couple in our church paid for four BRAND NEW tires for our car. The tires that were on the car before were starting to wear really thin. In fact, so thin, that we could no longer drive on the freeway/highway, because we were afraid the tires would shred. So it was only driving on surface streets. In any case, we were able to get four nice, new tires. What a gift. Tires aren't cheap. Now we feel safe to drive on any type of roadway. After the mechanic was done changing the tires, my father asked to keep one of the old tires. My father kept the "best" of the old, used tires as an emergency spare. We just put it in the trunk of the car. Well, here's where the funny blessing comes in, because later that day we went to the grocery store. We put the groceries in the trunk, saw the big, used tire and had the idea to use it to keep the groceries all in one place. So the moral of the story is that not only is it good to have an emergency spare tire, it also makes a great container for groceries ;) :) :) It keeps the groceries from rolling all over the trunk of the car ;) :) Isn't this just the most hysterically funny thing ever? I think so :) :)

THIS IS ONE OF MANY, OLD BUILDINGS IN JACKSONVILLE, OREGON. DON'T YOU JUST LOVE THE OLD ADVERTISEMENTS PAINTED ON THE BRICK WALLS? IT IS SO VINTAGE COOL.

Okay, so back to the time of transition that my father and I are going through right now. As many of you know, my father and I have both been unemployed for some time now. We finally came to the point about a week ago, where we needed to make a decision to stay in Oregon or move in with my aunt (my dad's sister) in California. So we've been praying about it for awhile. We even shared the prayer request with the elders of our church, since they were meeting at our house last Sunday. We thought we had an opportunity for a place to live, that would have been perfect for our financial situation. It was a gorgeous place and we were grateful for the offer and excited about the possibilites that God could make happen here. That was earlier this week. Well, we continued to pray...always in prayer, that God will guide our every decision and give us wisdom.

Yesterday, it appears that God really shut the door for us. I won't go into more details, simply because it's not the time to share too much. However, we were praying...and God has at this time clearly shut the door to this particular living situation. So as of now, it appears that God is closing that door and opening up the door to move in with my aunt. She's a really neat lady and has been more than gracious/helpful towards us :) :) We are so thankful. So unless God changes our direction again, we will be moving back to California most likely sometime in August.

SOME PRETTY FLOWERS IN JACKSONVILLE, OREGON.

I know this post might sound really random today. All this to say, that sometimes life is boring and slow. Then sometimes, stuff comes at you all at once from every direction. Trust God because He is faithful and He always keeps His promises. Sometimes life is doing absolutely nothing. It's totally quiet, boring and still. You're in a season of waiting. Then God tells you to "Go"....be ready to go :) :) Again, trust God because He is faithful. He always keeps His promises.

So in this time of transition, keep us in prayer. Right now, we are planning on moving back to California, unless God clearly shuts the door. You know when God shuts one door, He ALWAYS opens another door. That is for sure. When God opens a door, nobody can shut it. When God closes a door, no one can open it. As things progress, I'll keep you updated. Right now we'll be starting to pack boxes and get rid of anything we don't need. My plan is to sell some items on Craigslist and/or have a yard sale.

SEGWAY OF JACKSONVILLE IS A NEAT LITTLE BUSINESS. CLICK HERE TO VISIT THEIR WEBSITE AND FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION.

That is about all for today :):) :) Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and a really great week. That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY 8TH & 9TH "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR JULY 27TH

2011-07-27T14:07:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER WITH JESUS" SERIES OVER AT THE PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. CLICK HERE TO VISIT AND TELL LINDA THAT I SAID HELLO.

I AM ALSO PARTICIPATING IN "HEARTS 4 HOME" OVER AT "OUR SIMPLE COUNTRY LIFE". YOU CAN CLICK HERE TO VISIT OR CLICK ON THE BUTTON ON MY RIGHT SIDEBAR.

Hi everyone,
Oh, it feels good to be back to blogging. I think I've been away for a little over a week. If you read my last post, you know there has been a little bit going on. Not just for me, but for so many of my church family and friends. So much has been going on, it seems unreal. So I missed last week's "Building Our Homes Together" series last week. In any case, it's been quite the week and month. So much I don't understand, but God is faithful. That much is for certain :) :)

So here's my entry for today. These are reusable cotton rounds:

My sweet blogger friend, Nicole, over at My Mad World posted these recently on her blog. These are reusable cotton rounds. They're about the same size as the cotton rounds you buy at the store to remove mascara and other cosmetics. So I made some of my own. There's a site called Ravelry, which is a wonderful resource for all things crafty, especially knitting and crochet. You can click here to view the pattern for yourself. My Ravelry friend Heidi Bringhurst wrote up this super cute and super easy pattern. You do need to create an account in order to view their patterns. Some are for sale. some are free. This pattern is free. It's also free to register and I highly recommend it, especially if you do a lot of needlework. Otherwise, I'll copy the pattern here. This is NOT my pattern, this pattern is written out by Heidi Bringhurst. I copied it here for you because she explains things so well:

Materials

Size G (US 6 [4mm]) Crochet Hook

1/10 oz.(≈ ¼ yd) Worsted Wt. Cotton Yarn

Abbreviations & Explanations

st = stitch

rep = repeat

rd = round

yo = yarn over

ch = chain

sc = single crochet

dc = double crochet

bs = bean stitch

Bean Stitch: Insert hook in desired base st, yo, pull through base st (2 loops on hook, as in sc). YO, insert in same base st, yo, pull through base st (as in dc. You now have 4 loops on hook). YO, insert in same base st, yo, pull through base st (6 loops on hook). YO once & pull through all 6 loops on hook. Ch 1 to finish st.

sl st = slip stitch

ea = each

Pattern

Base: DO NOT slipknot onto hook. You are going to make a “Magic Ring” (Google for a variety of photo and video tutorials):

Make a hoop about 1 ½” in diameter with your beginning yarn, with the tail behind the working yarn, and leaving a fairly long tail beyond what’s involved in the hoop (I like to leave a good 6” at the beginning of every project, anyway).

With your crochet hook, draw the working yarn through the hoop, so you have one loop on the hook.

Ch 3. This counts as 1st dc for rd.

Dc 8 more in hoop, making sure to crochet over tail in ea st.

Untangle tail from hoop, if it has curled around it, and pull to close ring. Your ring should look like a circle with a pie slice cut out. If it doesn’t, make sure you crocheted over tail properly. If you didn’t, you’ll have to unravel and try again. If you did, the yarn probably just got a little hung up on itself. Some cottons do that. Just shift the stitches on the hoop with your fingers until it looks right, making sure to keep the “drawstring” (tail) pulled tight.

Sl st in 1st Dc of rd to close circle.

Rd 1: Ch 2. Bs in same dc as sl st. Ch 1.

*Bs in next dc, ch 1,* rep * to* to end of rd. (9 total bs ch 1 sets, incl. that in same dc as sl st, above)

Sl st in ch 2 space at beginning of rd.

Rd 2: Ch 2. Sc in ea ch and ch space (including top st of bs) around. (27 sc)

Sl st in ch 2 space at beginning of rd.

Ch 1, fasten off, weave in ends.

That’s it! Enjoy.

Thank you, Heidi, for making this pattern available for free. Not only is it super cute, it's super practical and a great way to save extra money. You may want to wash the cotton rounds before you use them. I used a Size H crochet hook, so my reusable cotton rounds came out a bit lacier than Heidi's version. The next batch will be made with the proper crochet hook :) :) :)

Here's the link to Week Two of the Girl Talk 2011 series over at the Virtue for Women site, sponsored by Harvest Church. Click here to view the Week Two sessions. This week is SO good...there's a really nice message about women and finances, plus other things that includes a really neat fashion show, how to use the produce from your garden and making your own baby food...all really great topics. I'll include the link here to the session about women and finances. There are some super simple and practical ideas:

So, that is what I've got for you today. There is lots of fun and practical advice. Let me know what you think. Have a great day. That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MEDIA MONDAY

2011-07-25T08:25:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
How have you been doing? This past week has been one of the most difficult of my life. Oh, my family is okay, just nothing that I am liberty to talk about...other than our church has been going through some difficult things this month. We'll be okay, because God is faithful. That is for certain:):)

Here is the link up for this week's Media Monday series from the Women Living Well blog. It's about  media and children. Since I don't have kids, I'd love to know what your thoughts are.

Sorry this post is so short today. I'll be up and going again on Wednesday for the next Building Our Homes Together series          over at Prairie Flower Farm...

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MEDIA MONDAY - WEEK THREE

2011-07-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

THIS IS JUST A TYPICAL STREET HERE IN MY HOMETOWN.

Hi everyone,
How was your weekend ?   My weekend was pretty    good. I'm behind on my crafting. So I won't be spending that much time on my blog or on Facebook today.
Today is Week Three in the "Media Monday" series over at the Women Living Well site. Click here to visit this week's link. It's about media and our spouses.

Now, I am NOT married. I'm still single, so I have absolutely no street credit when it comes to talking about this subject. However, there is one point that I can identify with and that is spending so much time with technology, that you don't spend time wth your loved ones.

As most of you know, my dad and I share an apartment. It saves on expenses. Plus, my dad and I get along, so at this season in my life, there is no reason to live in seperate places. Also, my dad and I very much have our own lives. That's a good thing and very important. Well, I was beginning to notice, that the computer was taking up a lot of time, in my life and my dad's life. So much so, that we'd cook breakfast,  and my dad would take his upstairs      while he was working on the computer. I'd be left to sit downstairs by myself . Sometimes I was the one who had breakfast upstairs.

Long story short, it was really starting to get on my nerves and make me sad. We are not so busy that we can't turn off the technology at least during mealtimes. We all have the same amount of time in the day. If our loved ones really are the most important, do we show it? So my dad and I agreed that we would eat together. No computers, no nothing. It's been working out great.   We talk more. Dad tells many more silly jokes. It's really nice :) :)

Again, as Courtney points out in her post, technology is a-moral. It's what we do with it, that it could be used for good or bad. I think anything that starts to detract too heavily from personal interactions with other people can be too much. So at least for me and my little home, we'll not be using the computer during mealtimes ;) :)

MY GREAT-GRANDFATHER'S OLD SHOP SCALE, WITH SOME ADDED LACE AND A VINTAGE-LOOKING PIGGY BANK : :) :)

That's about it for today. The weather has been really cloudy and in the 70s the last few days. It's been a welcome relief from the heat. I know so many people need rain. I'm praying for rain and lots of it.

I've got a lot on my mind today..or so it seems. This post is shorter than usual. Knitting and crocheting are on my list of things to do today. Oh, I have this craving for a nice juicy cheeseburger, today. Not sure if I'll actually get one, but I still want to eat one :) :) Have a really great Monday everyone. That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

SPIRITUAL SUNDAY - ANYONE INTERESTED IN AN ON-LINE GROUP BIBLE STUDY?

2011-07-16T11:57:00.000-07:00

THIS PHOTO IS COURTESY OF LEAON OVER AT SHABBY OLDE POTTING SHED. CLICK HERE TO PAY HER A VISIT :)

Hi everyone,

How has your week been going so far? Mine has been really good. It's also been a heavy week, too. It seems like there was one specific day earlier this week. It was a day of lifting up lots and lots of prayers. This is what I said on my Facebook page about that:

Yesterday (Thursday) was a really "heavy" day for so many of my friends. It seemed like prayer requests were being lifted up left and right. Prayers were flying to heaven so fast, that I could have used it as an air conditioner :) :) Seriously, as I was reflecting on yesterday, this song popped into head. This encapsulates PERFECTLY how I felt ( I'll post the link to the song in just a moment" )

Prayer is given and when anyone asks me to pray for them, whether friend, family or "stranger", I pray..That's just a given. I was just wishing I could comfort everyone. It wasn't possible for me, but it IS possible for God :) :) With HIM all things are possible :) :) Here's the song I thought of (referring to my Facebook post) that I thought perfectly describes how I f elt that day and about anything I don't understand:

Newsboys has been a favorite band of mine ever since I was in high school. I actually saw this particular concert in 2008...not live, I wish...NOpe, rather I saw the concert after it had been recorded and made available on DVD. Here are the lyrics to the song:

You are the author of knowledge.
You can redeem what's been done.
You hold the present and all that's to come
Until Your everlasting kingdom.

Lord, I don't know where all this is going
Or how it all works out.
Lead me to peace that is past understanding,
A peace beyond all doubt.

You are the God of tomorrow,
Turning darkness to dawn,
Lifting the hopeless with hope to go on.
You are the rock of all salvation.

Lord, I don't know where all this is going,
Or how it all works out.
Lead me to peace that is past understanding,
A peace beyond all doubt.

Oh, Lord You are the author,
Redeeming what's been done.
You hold us in the present,
And all that is to come.

Lord, we don't know where all this is going,
Or how it all works out.
Lead me to peace that is past understanding,
A peace beyond all doubt.

THERE'S NO PARTICULAR REASON FOR THIS PHOTO. THIS IS MY LITTLE VINTAGE PIGGY BANK. I NAMED IT "JASPER" YES, SOMETIMES I GIVE NAMES TO OBJECTS. I AM LITERALLY SAVING ALL MY PENNIES IN HERE FOR A RAINY DAY.

One of the things I'm going to start doing soon is posting links to the women's Bible study at Harvest Church. Greg Laurie is the pastor. Click here to visit the church's website. All of their messages are available to watch LIVE online or archived. They have a WONDERFUL women's ministry called Virtue for Women. Click here to visit that website or you can view the video below and get an idea of what it's about:

It really is a great site for Bible study, food, faith, crafts, recipes etc. I've been really blessed by it. They'll be doing a Bible study this year that will studying some of the Psalms.
Psalms. So I'm really looking forward to that. When you browse around the Virtue for Women site, there are links to past Bible studies. Everything is archived, plus the studies come with downloadable PDF files with notes/questions for inductive and deductive Bible study, whichever you are best suited for when reading/studying your Bible :) It's really neat ladies. They always post the videos online about a week after the actual study. So as soon as they're available, I'll post the links here.

There's also a summer series that they do called GIRL TALK. Here's the link to view the video sessions from Week One. I especially liked Jeanine Hardgrave who had some really cool, economical party and gift ideas. It's everything from studying the Word to crafts, tips etc...everything that is of interest to us as women both practical and spiritual. Here's a little video about the GIRL TALK 2011 series:

That's about all I can think of today. I know.....that's a LOT..but God has put a lot on my heart. So please let me if you'd like to participate with me. It will be lots of fun. It will be even more fun, if some of you would like to join me here every Sunday. That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

MY SEVENTH "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR JULY 13TH

2011-07-13T10:02:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER..........WITH JESUS" OVER AT THE PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM BLOG. CLICK ON THE LINK HERE TO VISIT LINDA. TELL HER I SAID HELLO. OR YOU CAN CLICK ON THE BLOG BUTTON ON MY RIGHT SIDEBAR.

Hi everyone,
Oh, How is your week so far? Mine has been good. I'm busy crafting and knitting. I've also been making a concerted effort to spend less time on Facebook. So far, so good.

UPDATE ON THURSDAY - JULY 14th: I'm also going to be participating in the Simpy Homemaking series over at Our Simple Country Life. Click here to view the latest link-up. Otherwise, you can click on the blog button on my ride sidebar :) :) Have a blessed day everyone :) :) Love and hugs from Oregon :)

I was going to share a simple pattern for a bath mitt today. Well, something happened on the way to grabbing those knitting needles. I'll still share the pattern with you. However, let me share an unexpected little project along the way. Sometimes things don't go my way when it comes to crafting.

THESE ARE THE SUPPLIES I GRABBED FOR THIS PROJECT. ONE THING I FORGOT TO INCLUDE IS A WOODEN RULER TO MEASURE MY KNITTING.

Here's a list of the supplies I would need to make my French knit bath mitt:
* some paper. I used a composition book.
*Lily N Cream cotton yarn
*Set of 5, double pointed knitting needles (3.5 mm/ 4 US)
*Scissors
*Pen, to write with
*Row counter
*Row marker
*Yarn needle
*Needle gauge
*Wooden ruler (not pictured here - to measure knitting)

So it's always a good thing to knit a test swatch to figure out what your gauge is. How many stitches would you knit per inch. So I went to find the tail yarn on the inside of my skein. That's where the "accidental" part comes in. Some skeins of yarn just aren't put together very well. This is what happened. When I thought I'd pulled out the tail yarn, literally half the skein popped out. It took me forever to untangle everyone. This is what I had once it was all fixed:

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DON'T FIND THAT INSIDE TAIL YARN. I ENDED UP UP PULLING OUT HALF THE SKEIN OF YARN. NO WORRIES. IT DIDN'T STOP ME FROM MY KNITTING PROJECT.

I took two of the double pointed needles to make a test swatch. I cast on 25 stitches on TWO double-pointed needles held together. That helps keep the tension when you're casting on nice and loose. No worries. It will tighten up naturally as you knit.

I just knit one row, and pearled back. That is called "stockinette stich". I ended up making a little 5 inch x 5 inch square, mainly because I was still working out some frustration from the crazy yarn ball . Then when you reach the desired length, simply bind off loosely. Or you can undo the yarn and reuse it in your knitting project. However, it turned out quite nice. It's a coaster or mug rug of sorts ;) :) The edges will curl just a bit when you knit this way. It's just the nature of the yarn to do so, even if you knit with wool. I might take an iron to it. I haven't decided yet.

Here's what my little gauge swatch turned "patriotic mug rug" looks like with a teacup sitting on top of it. I added some vintage effects to the photo. Isn't that just the cutest?

I'm working on another pattern for a coaster. It will be just as pretty, if not prettier. Plus, the way I'm knitting it, it'll lay FLAT. When it's all done, I'll write up the pattern and share it here with you all.

After the fiasco with the yarn, I decided I needed a treat. So I made a java chip coffee ice cream rootbeer float. Trust me, this works together. You will need the favorite coffee ice cream and rootbeer of your choice. You can use any flavor ice cream that you like. I just happen to LOVE coffee ice cream, especially java chip.

Choose a favorite mug or glass. Scoop out a nice, large healthy amount of ice cream into your mug. Then add your rootbeer. Now be careful when you pour, because it is a soda. The soda will foam up quite a bit. Just pour a little bit, let the foam go away, then pour some more. And enjoy a nice cold treat on a warm summer day.

Oh, my that java chip  rootbeer float was GOOD!!!! Did I mention that I love coffee and coffee ice cream? big smile :) :) :)

What I meant to show you originally today was my pattern for a simple knit bath mitt.   You'll need all the supplies that I mentioned at the top of this post, with the exception of the pen and paper. However, I like to take notes on each knitting project. It's like keeping a journal of sorts. It can actually be very helpful to you, if you have to stop your work or if you have questions later on about something you did.

HEATHER'S KNITTED FRENCH BATH MITT

Finished mitt should be 5 inches wide x 7 inches tall. Remember, this is knit in the ROUND...so you will actually be knitting a 10 inch continuous circle.

Also, this is just general instructions. you can manipulate this pattern any way you'd like to. Also, depending on what needles you use and your knitting style, your gauge might be different. There's no right or wrong with this pattern. That's what's really great about it.

So this is how I made mine. After I knit that gauge swatch turned coaster...I took a wooden ruler and measured the stitches per inch. It came out to approximately 5 stitches per inch. So since I"m knitting in the round a 10 inch circle, I multipled 5 stitches per inch times the 10 inch circle and came up with 50 stitches total.

Here's where there's some more wiggle room. I wanted an even number of stitches on each of my four knitting needles, so I rounded DOWN to 48 stitches. That would give me 12 stitches per needle. Also, I LOVE to use 5 double pointed knitting needles when knitting in the round.   I have the yarn project sperad out over four knitting needles, and I"m always knitting in with the fifth needle. This is less stress on the yarn when k nitting in the round. you get a much smoother finish than you do when just using 4 needles.

Okay, so hold two double-pointed needles together and cast on a total of 48 stitches. Remove just ONE of the double pointed needles and begin to knit evenly in the round. I placed 12 stitches on each needle. Don't worry if there a little gap when you first join the ends together. It will tighten up a s you   knit. Plus you can use th e tail yarn to weave together any loose spots at the end of your project.

Make sure to have a row marker at the beginning of your row, so you know where  the end and beginning of your rows are. In this case, since I'm using double-pointed knitting needles, I placed the row marker one stich in from the beginning of the row. This prevents the row marker from falling off as your knitting :)

Just continue to knit in the round for a total of 58 rows OR until the piece measures 7 inches long. I forgot to write down how many rows I actually knit when I was finished. However, 58 rows sounds about right. Then do a combination of knitting the stitches together/binding off loosely. Weave in the loose ends on the wrong side of the project. This is what my project looks like, with some vintage touches added to it.

If you want or need more detailed instructions, let me know. I will also be doing another post on my French bath mitts sometime in the near future, with clearer instructions. However, this pattern is fairly simple and straight forward. Again, if you have any questions whatsoever, please let me know. I'll do my best to answer them. I like this project for it's versatility. It makes a great bath mitt to use in the shower or bathtub. you can even put a bar of soap inside, and it's a soaper/scrubber all in one ;) :) OR you can use it to help with washing dishes. It makes a hand dish mitt, too :) :)

Today in my devotions I was reading through Leviticus where God is telling Moses and the people about keeping certain days as well as specific rituals to be maintained in the Temple. Now, it was a LOT of detail. So glad that I live under grace now, because all of that detail would be a bit overwhelming for me :) :) That was Leviticus chapters 23 and 24.

Then I read Psalm 24. These verses stood out to me. Right now I'm highlighting ALL verses in the Bible that have to do with the tongue, whether it be about lying, deceit, gossip, anything that talks about our speach and what we should or shouldn't be doing. So these verses stood out to me today:

3) Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place?
4) He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.
5) He shall receive blessing from the Lord, And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

Now, we know that our salvation is based on accepting Jesus Christ as our LORD and Savior. He is the one who cleanses us from sin :) :) What stood to me here, is that even in the Old Testament, God makes it very CLEAR that He does not deceit. Swearing deceitfully is the same as lying. So that'll be added to my list of verse that refer to the "tongue". I'm also writing down all verses that refer to money, because I want to know what God has to say about that, too.

My final passage for today was Acts 21. The short version is that Paul is chilling with some fellow believers. He goes to Jerusalem. They don't want him to go. A man prophecies that he (Paul) will be bound in Jerusalem and delivered to the Gentiles. Paul "No problem, I'm going to go anyway and preach the Gospel" (that's my interpretation" :) :) Paul loves Jesus, more than his own life. I'm not sure I'm that strong ,to be honest.

Anyways, that's where I'm at in my Bible reading today. I'm going to try and journal some more of that with you on Wednesdays. So bear with me, if I sound like I'm stumbling over my own words a bit. Paul did, too, right?

Well, thanks for joinging me today. I love it when you stop by and visit me. You are all welcome here :) :) Oh, Dairy Queen here in Oregon is having a sale on their 4-piece chicken strip baskets. Only $3.99...holla...Dad and I are SO going to enjoy that today. That's the news from Oregon today. Extra love and hugs, Heather :)

MEDIA MONDAY - WEEK TWO

2011-07-11T12:17:00.000-07:00

FEEL FREE TO SHARE THIS SCRIPTURE PICTURE ON YOUR FACEBOOK PAGES OR ON YOUR BLOGS. IF YOU DO, PLEASE LINK BACK TO MY BLOG. THANKS BUNCHES.

Hi everyone,
            How are you all today? Did you have a good weekend? I had a great weekend. I discovered that rootbeer floats not only taste good with vanilla ice cream. It's also fantastic with coffee-flavored ice cream, too :) :) Oh, imagine a rootbeer float with java chip coffee ice cream :) :) Yummy :) :)
            I didn't have any photos for today. So I'm just pulling out random photos for you to day, to enjoy. Today is week two of the Media Monday series over at the Women Living Well site. Feel free to visit that site. It's a wonderful place to visit. You'll learn a lot, too and receive godly encouragement. Even if you are a single lady like me, you can still participate. There's a lot we can learn from married ladies. Plus, there are certain things about our Christian lives that apply to all of us as women across the board.

           Week Two's post was entitled "iPad, iPad, iPhone or The Great I AM" It was a wonderful post.   Oen of the things I like is that it isn't preachy. It's one woman's heart to live a life pleasing to God and how that figures into our everyday lives, including the use of technology. Click on the above link or on the "Media Monday" button on my right sidebar to read the article for yourselves.

THE PLAZA IN DOWNTOWN ASHLAND, OREGON. IF YOU EVER HAVE A CHANGE TO VISIT, IT'S A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE CITY. ONE THING THAT STANDS OUT, IS HOW EASY IT IS TO GO FOR A WALK. IT'S SO PRETTY, YOU HAVE TO GO FOR A WALK TO ENJOY THE SUNSHINE.

I'll share some of the points that I found especially interesting. I really found the whole article very interesting :) :) When I was younger, the way I communicated with friends far away was to write a good old-fashioned letter - pen on paper ;) :) Now with technology, I hardly ever do that any more. I really miss that and will work on getting back into real letter writing. One really good point that Courtney makes in the opening paragraph is that technology is a-moral. It's neither good or bad. It's what we do with the technology, that really determines whether it's bad or good. Do you use it for good things, like reaching out to others, sharing Christ, sharing your tips on homemaking etc? Or do you use it to bring people down, gossip etc? Those are just a couple of things to think about.

PINK SAUCER MAGNOLIA TREE. THIS TREE BLOOMED VERY EARLY WHEN WE HAD A STREAK OF WARM WEATHER BACK AROUND MARCH. OH, YEAH, THIS IS OREGON WEATHER. IT'S ONE OF THE ONLY STATES WHERE YOU CAN EXPERIENCE ALL FOUR SEASONS IN ONE HOUR........LITERALLY :)

I struggled with doing my devotions on a daily basis. There's so much to do. I want to get all the items on my list checked off and finished. So when I get so busy, I forgot to read my Bible. For me at least, reading my Bible in the morning, really sets the tone for the entire day. It affects my mood and how I react to stuff. So with the pull of my Facebook page or emails, there's a strong tendency to check that first. Remember, it's not bad in and of itself. However, I want my first thought to be spending time in reading my Bible and prayer.

THE BUTCHER SHOP IN JACKSONVILLE, OREGON CIRCA 1854. IT IS NOW A CLOTHING STORE. JACKSONVILLE IS LIKE A WILD WEST TOWN. NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED IN 150 YEARS.

I have been so extremely blessed to find some awesome Christian sites in blogland and on Facebook, plus other sites that are fun, informative, filled with craft projects etc. So for that, I'm so greatful. Courtney points out that technology can be a time stealer, I totally agree with that. As many of you now, I'm still unemployed looking for a job. So for someone in my position, it's especially tempting. There were days when all I'd do the whole day was sit in front of the computer or sit in front of the tv. Then I'd complain that I got nothing done. It was making me miserable. So I've worked hard to change that. I have to make a concerted effort to turn those things off after a certain time.
Courtney is going to be keeping a literal logbook everyday of how much time she spends using technology. So what I'll be doing for the next 7 weeks to record how much time I spend on the computer, Facebook, tv. It will help me get a better picture of where I"m spending my time. Now I'll tell you something interesting, when I lived in Germany and Norway, I NEVER had a television. What? Yes, it's true. No tv, no access to email, except very limited use at the library. I maybe watched tv when I'd visit friends, or if a friend when on vacation for a month, I'd "babysit" their tv. You know what? I didn't miss it. I spent so much time doing things with friends. Every night was filled with something involving other people :) :) I might have to try another tv fast sometime.

THIS IS A PHOTO I TOOK OF MY FAVORITE FABRIC BAG. I WAS TRYING TO RECREATE A VINTAGE LOOK. IT CAME OUT A BIT DARK.

I would love to know what your thoughts are about this subject. What do you do? Is it a struggle to make a wise use of time when it comes to technology and your daily devotions? How do you integrate the two together?

Oh, welcome to the new followers. I've noticed you here. Thanks for joining my blog. You all make me smile big :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

MY SIXTH "BUILDING OUR HOMES" TOGETHER FOR THURSDAY - JULY 7TH

2011-07-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER...WITH JESUS" SERIES OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. IF YOU LIKE TO PARTICIPATE OR JUST PAY A NICE, FRIENDLY VISIT, CLICK HERE. I ALWAYS ENJOY SPENDING TIME AT THE FARM.

Hi everyone,

How has your week been so far? Mine has been good . I'll talk some more about that at the end of this post. I'm feeling especially crafty today. In truth, I'm feeling "especially crafty" EVERY day :) :) Today, I thought I'd share a really cute, easy crocheted flag pattern with you. I'm making up a bunch of these. It's fun, easy and quick. You can make one in a day...actually way less than that, but I haven't actually timed it. I'm just enjoying this.

THIS IS WHAT'S ON MY MIND TODAY. OH, AND YES, THIS IS MY DINING ROOM TABLE. DO I USE IT FOR DINING? NO. IT'S A CRAFT TABLE NOW ;) :) IN THE FOREGROUND IS THE CURRENT CROCHETED FLAG TABLE MAT THAT I'M WORKING ON. I'LL BE EXPLAINING ABOUT SOME OF THE OTHER STUFF YOU SEE HERE, TOO IF I FORGET, JUST LEAVE ME A COMMENT, AND I'LL RESPOND.

I found this pattern on the "Create and Decorate - The Blog" site. If you click on the title it will take you to the pattern. You can find the instructions there, if you'd like to crochet a flag for yourself. Let me tell you, I'm a beginning crocheter, and it's an easy pattern to follow, even with the three different colors. Oh, check out the "Create & Decorate" magazine, too. Here's the link to their website. If you click on the magazine tab, there's info there if you want to subscribe. I have been subscribing to this magazine for awhile now. It's FULL of really cute projects.

In the background of the above photo, you'll see my Human Bean coffee granita cup with Hershey's syrup sitting on top of a flag that I crocheted. The mats aren't big, but just the right size to act as a mat for your cups and maybe a small plate of snacks. It's fun. We have enough patriotic holidays in this country, that you could use these multiple times a year, or everyday, especially if you like Americana. I'm starting to really LOVE it ;) :)

THIS IS THE FLAG MAT THAT I'M CURRENTLY WORKING ON. IT'S FUNNY BECAUSE, IT'S SO ADDICTING AND FUN, THAT I LOSE TRACK OF TIME. I KEEP TELLING MYSELF "I'LL JUST CROCHET ONE MORE ROW". AN HOUR LATER, IT'S TIME FOR BED ;) :) :)

I used different colors than what the pattern called for. In addition to that, I used a different brand of cotton yarn. The pattern calls for Lily's Sugar N' Cream yarn. I purchased Lion Brand cotton yarn instead for two reasons: 1) I didn't have enough gas to drive across town to Joann's Fabric store to purchase the yarn 2) My local Fred Meyer store is much closer. They have Lion Brand cotton yarn. It was on sale, I get more yarn, and it works great for this sort of project, too.
This pattern is especially nice, because you can manipulate it in different ways. Just have some fun with it. Here are the yarns I used. I'll just post the photos, since the information on there will be self-explanatory if you have any questions. I tend to like the darker colors, or jewel-toned colors. The reason I chose these colors in particular, was because that is what was available at the store at the time. I would have preferred a slightly darker red, but this works great:

Those are the yarns that I'm using for this project. The yarn is really sturdy and it's knits/crochets up wonderfully. It's also 100 % cotton, so it's perfect for household projects that you might be working on, too.

These are a few of the extra supplies that I'm using:

I like to use an old-school wooden ruler with the metal blade to measure my work. It's consistent meauring every time. It won't stretch out like a flexible measuring tape is wont to do. A good pair of scissors are handy for cutting yarn, when it comes time for that. Oh, yeah, a crochet hook is helpful when making a crocheted flag... hee hee hee :) :) This particular crochet hook is a Size H8 - US / 5 MM. Depending on your yarn choice and which size crochet hook you use, your flags may come out different that mine. That's perfectly okay. If you like your project and it makes you smile, it's good.

THIS IS WHAT I ACTUALLY BOUGHT WHEN I FINALLY MADE IT TO JOANN'S FABRIC STORE. I LOVE LILY'S SUGAR 'N CREAM YARN. IT'S FUN. THEY DO NEED TO MAKE SOME MORE JEWEL-TONED DARKER COLORS. HOWEVER, THE CURRENT SELECTION IS ALSO REALLY NICE.

This will be turned into a different project, which I'll probably share with you next week :) :) It knits up in really nice red, white and blue stripes. Oh, tip, save the labels from these skeins of yarn. They always include a free pattern. You can save them and maybe print them out for your own personal pattern book. It's a great reference source for gift ideas.

THIS IS THE BACK LABEL ON THE YARN, IF YOU NEED IT FOR INFORMATION. IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, THIS PARTICULAR LABEL INCLUDES A PATTERN FOR MAKING YOUR OWN PLACEMATS.

So that's what I'm up to today. I've been keeping up with my devotions. It really does make a HUGE difference in my day. It keeps me sane and really puts a focus and direction on my day :) :) :)
            I had errands to run yesterday and today. Yesterday, I was really complaining about having to leave the house. I do like going out, but yesterday, I just wanted to stay home. However, there are things in life that HAVE to be done, including paying bills etc ;) :) Well, the errands went much more smoothly than I had anticipated. It was a gorgeous day. Everything went so FAST.
            Today I had some errands to run. I had to get money out of the bank to pay rent.   That went really smoothly, too. So now I'm home and working on my craft projects and enjoying the air conditioning. Summer is officially here in Oregon. It's in the 90s today...and it's HOT. So I'm staying indoors and keeping as many lights off as I can. It helps to keep things cooler :) :) Oh, I think I need a nice iced tea right about NOW :) :)
            Oh, I almost forgot, here's a close-up photo of Linda Stubb's Americana flag fabric. You can find this at Joann's fabric. It's a gorgeous fabric. It's Americana, it's vintage. I purchased two yards of this fabric. I'm not sure what I' ll make with it, yet. It's so pretty, that I just keep looking at it. Click here to visit Prairie Flower Farm and Linda. She's the fabulous lady who designed this fabric.

Thanks for visiting me. Oh, yes, welcome to the new followers. I'm so happy you are here. Feel free to leave a comment and say hello :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

MEDIA MONDAY & HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

2011-07-04T12:30:00.000-07:00

FEEL FREE TO BORROW THIS IMAGE. A FRIEND OF MINE LET ME BORROW IT FROM HER PAGE. I LIKE HOW IT REFLECTS OUR COUNTRY AND VINTAGE STYLE ALL AT THE SAME TIME :)

Hi everyone,
To all of my fellow Americans at home and abroad, Happy 4th of July :) :) I hope you are all having a super fun day today :) :) For the rest of you, I'm wishing you a great day as well, whatever you are doing :) :)

There's a website/blog that I have been following for awhile on Facebook and here called "Women Living Well". It's a really interesting place to visit. It is primarily geared towards married women. I'm am definitely NOT married...but I still enjoy reading the things on this page. There are things here that are still applicable to even us single ladies.

In any case, there's an 8-week series that they'll be doing called "Media Mondays". Click here to visit the post from yesterday. It really caught my attention in a big way. There's also a blog button for their series at the top of the right sidebar here. It is something that has been on my heart for awhile now.

I really do love modern technology. It has opened up things to us, that we might not otherwise have had access to. It has allowed me to forge new friendships with lovely people all over the world. I've learned new things, too. Blogging...I LOVE blogging...for sure. That's where I feel most comfortable right now.

However, lately, I've been really feeling something pressing on my heart. For me personally it's Facebook. For others, it will be something different. In any case, I was really feeling sad and do still feel sad a bit, about how much media has intruded into our lives. How do we use it to reach out, while not having it affect our literal day to day interactions with the people arounds us - at work, at home, at church.

I'm just speaking for myself here. Here was a response I'd written to my post on Facebook. It's "short"...well, short for me..you know how much I LOVE to talk...even on the computer:

‎"Women Living Well" is more geared towards married ladies..BUT I think there's a lot of application for us single gals, too :) :) I've been thinking a LOT about the role media plays in our lives. There's a lot of good that comes with it.... My only real concern is that when it becomes more important than actual human interaction, that's when it's gone too far. I think it's affecting peoples abilities to relate to other people. Oh, in the Christian church especially, I think it's so much easier for people to do a check-in on Facebook, than invest any of their time in someone else. That is something I'm going to try and avoid, because people are important. So I'm praying about that. Those are just some of my initial thoughts. I'm going to add this to my blog series tonight. In any case, thanks for leaving your comments ;) :) I really enjoyed reading what you have to write :) :) :)

So I've been praying about that. People check in on Facebook or wherever, instead of actually calling up the person. Or we get irritated because someone needed us, while we were sitting in front of the screen. For me personally, it's come to the point, where I really need to take an active step. I just don't know what yet. Closing down my Facebook account completely is not the solution. It's great, because it lets me keep in contact with people who live far away. However, with people who live here locally, we never call each other. We never spend time together during the week. It's easier to "like" a comment or "leave" a comment, because it doesn't force us to climb out of our comfort zones. It lets us be "social" while keeping our rears in our seats at home. There's something wrong with that..I think...

In any case, those are just thoughts. I'm really looking forward to the topics during this series. I think a good portion of you are married, so this series would be especially applicable to you. If you're single, like me, I still think there's benefit for us, too. Start thinking about how we can make applications in our lives as women - married or single..and how media affects our everyday interactions with people. I'd love to hear from all of you. I think there's something we can all learn from each other...and encourage each other, too :) :)

Okay, that was a bit of a more serious topic, but it's so pressing on my heart, I just can't hold it in any longer. NO worries, I'll still have cool crafty stuff and vintage antique finds :) :) Not talking about that would be like asking the sun to stop shining. It just isn't gonna happen :) :)

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

MY FIFTH "BUILDINGS OUT HOMES TOGETHER" FOR WEDNESDAY - JUNE 29TH

2011-06-30T16:07:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE WEDNESDAY "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER...WITH JESUS" OVER AT THE PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM BLOG. FEEL FREE TO PAY LINDA A VISIT. SHE LOVE VISITORS. TELL HER I SAID HELLO :) :) :)

Hi everyone,

How are you this week? I know it's Thursday, but I still wanted to reflect Wednesday in my blog post today. No particular reason, other than to try and keep my self on task. Each new "Building Our Homes Together" series starts on Wednesday :) :) I am so LOVING this series. Every week, ladies are posting really cool things from Scripture, from their homes, DIY-projects, recipes etc :) :) It's a lot of fun. Do you remember that curio cabinet that I wrote about awhile back. Well, it is now repainted. Here's the journey it went on or "Heather the Weather's Adventures in Painting".

IT STARTED WITH THIS SMALL WALL CURIO CABINET. I PURCHASED IT AT A YARD SALE A FEW WEEKS AGO. THAT'S SOME OF MY CRAFT STUFF JUST STREWN EVERYWHERE. THAT'S TYPICAL TO FIND CRAFT STASHES LIKE THAT ALL OVER THE APARTMENT ;) :)

I saw this curio cabinet at a yard sale a few weeks ago. The lady selling it wanted $5 for it. However, I was able to talk her down to $3.50 since that was literally all I had in my wallet. Truth be told, I didn't do a lot of "talking down" in the bargain sense of the phrase. All I said was literally "Would you take $3.50 for the cabinet. It's all I have in my wallet" It was the truth, too :) :) :) The lady said yes and home I went with a "new" treasure :) :)
When I first saw this, I knew it would look really cute repainted in softer colors that are romantic, shabby chic, cottage, country, Victorian, rustic etc..you get the idea... :) :) :) So that was my first step. Also since I'm working on becoming totally debt free I had to wait until more money was available to buy paint supplies.

IN THE FOREGROUND ARE THE PAINT SUPPLIES THAT I PURCHASED FOR THE PROJECT. I WENT TO MY LOCAL HOME IMPROVEMENT STORE. NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT, I PROBABLY GOT SUCKERED INTO BUYING SOME THINGS I DIDN'T REALLY NEED. HOWEVER, I WAS REALLY GLAD TO HAVE IT ALL. THE SEWING BOX, THE STUFF ON THE SEWING BOX AND THE ROSE PITCHER AND BOWL WERE NOT PART OF THE PAINT SUPPLIES :) :) I ALREADY HAD THOSE ITEMS.

I had to wait until more money came in to buy paint supplies. Remember, I'm trying to redecorate and work my way out of debt all at the same time. Random, I know, but it's a conviction and a commitment that I intend to keep. So when I got my new smartphone back in April, I filled out paperwork to get the rebate card. Once the rebate card arrived in the mail, it made my smartphone totally FREE. The rebate card arrived earlier this month and off I went to the store. Here's a list of what I bought:
- 400 SandWet sandpaper
- plastic dropcloth (don't want paint flying everywhere)
- roller brush/paint pan thingy
- paint brush with angle bristles
- primer (tried Zinser since it was the least expensive option)
- Behr interior semi-gloss paint in "Paris White" (more like pale pink)
- paint can opener (not necessary, but fits under the lid way better than just using a screwdriver. trust me on this one. It was absolute heaven to open)
- face masks

The paint chip card and the paint stick were freebies.

Originally, my plan was to go with a nice antique white paint. However, once I arrived at the store, the pale pink was calling my name. Well, not literally, but that is what I was automatically drawn towards. So I went with my gut and picked out a very pale, pale shade of pink called "Parish White". It's that very top strip on the paint card. It's a nice soft shade.
I LOVE vintage, shabby chic, cottage, romantic, Victorian, prim, country, feminine fru-fru, lots of frills and furbelows and simplicity or any combination of all of those. Does that make any sense? Oh, add farmgirl style to that too :) :) In any case, I had this vision in my head of what I wanted to do to this curio cabinet. The cabinet was probably made in the 1970s. Did I mention, that I have absolutely NO EXPERIENCE with refinishing furniture of anykind? None. I just went ahead and did it anyway.

My dad pointed out that the  door frame was seperate at the joint on the upper left-hand corner along with a small crack in the frame in the lower right-hand corner. We used some wood glue, a clamp, and some tape. Now the tape is unconventional, but I'll get to that in a minute. It's all about using what you have to ge the job done.
             I don't know much about "tools" as such. My dad had this clamp that can be fitted with different lengths of galvanized pipe, depending on what size clamp you need for the project. This seems to me like it could be a real money saver, since you don't have to buy multiple clamps. Don't quote me on that, though. So we went to our local Ace Hubbard's hardware store to look for a 24-inch length of galvanized pipe. Oh, I think the pipe diameter was about 3/4 inch? In any case, they didn't have the size we needed in the pre-cut pipes. The associate custom-cut some pipe for us. That was really cool. It only cost us $1.99 a foot and she threaded the pipe, too. That was nice :) :)
           So we applied some wood glue in the joint at the upper left-hand corner of the frame and clamped it tight. Perfect. Only, there was that other crack in the lower right-hand corner to fix. No problem. It was a small crack. We applied more wood glue. we tried to use a pile of really heavy books to weight it down/hold it together. Okay, we tried using my dad's John MacArthur Bible commentary and three Jon Courson commentaries. That didn't work really well, because the books just fell off. So we used package tape instead. That was totally unconventional, but PERFECT. It did the job perfectly and we didn't have to spend extra money.

MY DADDY'S HANDS HELPING TO SAND THE CURIO CABINET. HE STARTED THE SANDING. I FINISHED IT.

I bought a 400-grit SandWet sand paper. Again, it was what the store associate recommended. I did NOT wet the sandpaper, preferring to leave it dry . Why? No reason. I just didn't want to bother with that. The sand paper was so smooth. All I needed to do was take just enough varnish off in order for the primer and paint to stick to the surface. This was hard to do because there were so many nooks and crannies that were hard to reach. Not to mention those spindle thingies. Those were really persnickety to sand. As my 6th grade teacher once said "American ends with "I can"...and I did get the job done :) :) Now for the fun stuff :) :)

THIS IS THE CURIO CABINET AFTER I APPLIED THE PRIMER.

I got a little happy with the primer and applied TWO coats. The transformation was so amazing that I literally forgot what I was doing for awhile. I just kept applying more and more primer. However, I'm glad that I did, because I wanted the color to go on as smoothly as possible.

THESE ARE THE PAINT BRUSHES THAT I USED ON THIS PROJECT. THE ANGLED-BRUSH AT THE BOTTOM HERE WAS THE ONE I PURCHASED MYSELF. THE OTHER TWO WERE BORROWED. NEXT TIME, I'M BUYING SMALLER BRUSHES.

I was able to use the larger brush to get the larger surfaces painted. I also borrowed an angled foam brush to reach into the corners. Those were really hard to reach with the bigger brush. It took patience and some agility with my arms. However, it was worth the effort.

HERE IS MY BEAUTIFUL CURIO CABINET ALL TRANSFORMED. DOESN'T IT LOOK REALLY DIFFERENT WITH A NEW COAT OF PAINT? IT HAS NEW LIFE BREATHED INTO IT.

Depending on your tastes, one coat of final paint may be enough. I decided to use two coats of paint. Remember, how enthralled I was with the primer? It was more so with the actual paint. When I saw the color go on so smooth and shiny, I was hooked. I applied one coat of "Paris White", let it dry over night, and then applied a second coat. This was right after I had applied the second coat of paint. Such a beautiful pale shade of pink :) :)

HERE IS THE FINISHED CURIO CABINET IN MY ROOM. THE BLUE MASON JAR IS A YARD SALE FIND AS IS THE MASON GLASS DRINKING JAR.

This is the finished curio cabinet. It's sitting on top of my dresser drawer. Oh, the dresser drawer is narrow with five vertical drawers. It was also a yard sale find for $5. OK, let me get back on track here. I don't know what I'll put on it yet. It couldn't wait until it was all decorated to show you. I had to show it off today :) :) I'm going to be really thoughtful about what I place here. It should be useful, but also cute at the same time. For me, the everyday stuff of life needs to have an element of beauty attached to it. So it's worth it to wait a little bit and see what strikes my fancy. Once the shelves are full, I'll do another post. Let me know what you think :) :) I might add painted roses at a later date. For now, it's going to look like this :) :)
There are probably some mistakes that need to be fixed. In fact, I know there are...but I'm not going to tell :) :) They're on the other side of the cabinet...where no one can see :) :) Oh, and "What happened to the glass door" you ask? Well, when I purchased it at the yardsale it was completely detached from the hinges on the door frame. So I removed it. I decided NOT to reattach it to the cabinet, optioning to repurpose it as a display tray for my teacups, instead. See the photo below:

            This what I ended up doing to the door from the curio cabinet. I temporarily used it as a display tray for some teacups. Yes, also yardsale finds along with the doilies they're sitting on. I loved i t so much, I decided to leave it that way. Now I am tempted to repaint the frame. Although, it does have some vintage charm the way it is, too.

            I got a little behind in my daily Bible readings. So I've been spending some of today getting caught up on that. If you are looking for a neat on-line Bible to read OR you want a cool Bible app for your smart phone, I highly recommend the app from Lifechurch.tv.  You can click here to visit the site. They have all versions of the Bible in English, plus multiple other languages. It's a handy tool if you want to read the Bible on-line or on your cell-phone. I'm currently reading through the Bible in a whole year.   It really helps keep me focused. I'm also much less grouchy when I spend regular time reading. What's really cool about doing my devotions online is that after each day's reading is done, I can check mark the box to say that it's finished. It keeps track of what I've read. It even tells me, in percentages, how close I am to finishing my goal.

Well, if you have any questions about repainting my curio cabinet or about the on-line Bible devotions, just leave me a comment :) :) This post would have been a lot LONGER if I had told you the backstory with my painting adventure :) :) Thanks for visiting me today. Oh, welcome to the new followers, too :) :) Please come to visit again and again and maybe leave some comments, too. I love to hear from you.

Oh, just on a random note, I'll have to reorganize the "tags" for my posts. I have way too many and need to condense them. If you have any helpful ideas, leave them here, too :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

YARD SALE TREASURES.

2011-06-23T13:16:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
Okay, so this post will be FULL OF PHOTOS today. There are lots of yardsale finds to tell you about. I've learned to be a bit more judicious in my spending when shopping at yardsales ;) :) So here's my latest round of goodies...

THIS IS A BATTENBURG LACE DOILIE THAT WAS $0.50.

It's actually kind of funny how I purchased this. When I bought the two Japanese teacups (pictures to follow later in this post), I needed something to cushion them, so they w ouldn't get scratched or chipped. It just so happened that there was a set of four doilies, one cream Battenburg and the three hand-crocheted white d oilies. They were originally priced at $2 EACH...but the guy said that was too much and gave all four to me for $2. That's a good deal. When you break it down, it comes to $0.50 per doilie. These are the real deal and hand-made. I do use them in my house to line plates in the cabinet. It keeps the plates nice and scratch free.

THIS WAS A SET OF FOUR BATTENBURG LACE PLACEMATS WITH FOUR MATCHING BATTENBURG LACE NAPKINS. ALL EIGHT PIECES WERE JUST $2.

Did I mention how much I LOVE Battenburg lace? It's just the right mix of vintage, country, romantic charm. So whenever I see Battenburg lace at a yardsale, I buy it up quick. This set was purchased at a local church yard sale.

THIS IS A SWEET, VINTAGE LOOKING "PIGGY BANK". IT HAS A SL IT ON THE LID, WH ERE YOU CAN DROP IN COINS. I'VE ALREADY STARTED PU TTING MONEY IN THERE. ISN'T IT JUST SO MUCH FUN? THIS WAS ONLY $0.25

A SMALL WOODEN CORNER SHELF FOR $1. THE TEACUPS WERE ALSO $1 EACH.

THIS IS MY CURIO CABINET WHICH WAS $3.50. I POSTED THIS SAME PHOTO YESTERDAY. YOU'LL BE SEEING THIS A LOT, AS I AM WORKING ON REPAINTING IT. CLICK HERE TO VIEW YESTERDAY'S POST. I TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW I'M GOING TO REPAINT THIS CURIO CABINET :)

THIS IS THE DOOR TO THE CURIO CABINET. IT NOW FUNCTIONS AS A DISPLAY TRAY FOR MY TEACUPS. YOU WILL ALSO RECOGNIZE THIS FROM AN EARLIER POST.

THESE ARE THE THREE CROCHETED DOILIES THAT WERE IN THE SAME SET AS THE CREAM BATTENBURG LACE DOILIE. ALL FOUR TOGETHER WERE JUST $2. THAT WORKS OUT TO $0.50 A PIECE ;)

A VINTAGE TRIPLE-SCREEN FLOUR SIFTER THAT IS IN PERFECT WORKING ORDER. IT WAS ONLY $0.50. OTHER THAN SOME OBVIOUS WEAR AND TEAR ON THE OUTSIDE, IT'S PERFECT. I'LL PROBABLY ACTUALLY USE T HIS ONE FOR BAKING OR FOR DISPLAY....OR BOTH :)

A TEACUP WITH GRAPES, APPLES AND PEARS ALL AROUND THE OUTSIDE AND INSIDE THE TEACUP. NOTICE THE FAN PEDESTAL AT THE BASE. THIS CUP WAS $1 AT A YARDSALE.

THE BACKSTAMP ON THE FAN PEDESTAL TEACUP.

MY VIOLET TEACUP. THIS WAS PURCHASED AT THE SAME PLACE AS THE PREVIOUS TEACUP. NOTICE THAT IT HAS A DOUBLE-RING HANDLE AN D IT SITS ON A THREE-RING PEDESTAL. THERE WAS NO BACKSTAMP ON THIS CUP. IT WAS ALSO $1.

MY DAD REALLY LIKED THIS. IT'S A WOODEN WALL HANGING FOR STORING LETTERS, BILLS ETC. I LOVE THE VINTAGE LOOK OF IT. I AM CONSIDERING REPAINTING THIS COMLETELY. THIS WAS ONLY $0.50

THIS LONELY TEACUP AND FOUR MATCHING SAUCERS WERE ONLY $1 FOR EVERYTHING. THAT WORKS OUT TO JUST $0.20 A PIECE...THAT'S PITTANCE ;) :) I'M NOT SURE THAT I'LL KEEP THIS, BUT I COULDN'T PASS IT UP. I DID SEE A PATTERN SOMEWHERE FOR TU RNING A TEACUP INTO A SEWING PIN CUSHION. MAY BE THAT'S WHAT I'LL DO WITH THIS.

THIS IS A CLOSE -UP OF THE TEACUP SAUCER. THERE WAS NO BACKSTAMP ON THIS, SO THE ORIGIN IS UNCLEAR. HOWEVER, THESE MAKE GREAT TRAYS FOR SOAPS AND OTHER THINGS BESIDES TEACUPS :)

AN OLD GLASS BOTTLE THAT LOOKS VINTAGE CHIC. I'LL DECORATE THIS AND PUT IT ON MY BOOKSHELF FOR DISPLAY. IT WAS $0.50.

THIS IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE SMALL GLASS BOTTLE. IT LOOKS VINTAGE TO ME. IF ANY OF YOU KNOW HOW TO READ THIS KIND OF THING, LET ME KNOW. IN ANY CASE, THE BOTTLE IS SUPER CUTE.

Those are my vintage finds for the last two weeks. Aren't they great? I have been more careful to buy things I know that I' ll actually use this time :) :) It's so much FUN looking for hidden treasures :) :) All total, I spent $12.25 for everything. That's a great bargain for all the practical beauty that has just graced my home :) :)

This is what's on my mind today. If you'd like to participate, feel free to visit Rhonda over at Down to Earth. She's a lovely lady from Australia. Her blog is full of recipes, tips, craft projects...life stories. It's really a delight to visit.

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY FOURTH "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR WEDNESDAY - JUNE 22ND.

2011-06-22T13:28:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE WEDNESDAY "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER...WITH JESUS" OVER AT THE PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM BLOG. FEEL FREE TO PAY LINDA A VISIT. SHE LOVE VISITORS. TELL HER I SAID HELLO :) :) :)

Hi everyone,
What a week. Summer has finally arrived here in Southern Oregon. My dad and I broke down and finally turned the air conditioner on. It's spendy, but so comforting in this hot weather.

Today will be a short post, because I have lots to do. I just wanted to show you where I'm at in repairing/repainting the curio cabinet.

THIS IS A SMALL WALL CURIO CABINET. I PURCHASED THIS AT A YARDSALE FOR $3.50.

I purchased this curio cabinet a little over a week ago at a yardsale. The lady wanted $5 for it. I was able to talk her down to $3.50, since that was literally all that I had in my wallet at the time. Making your home look nice, doesn't have to cost a lot. In fact, I try and find all my items at yardsales to save money. So this is where it's at right now. I had to fix the little door frame. My dad helped with that. We applied some wood glue and a clamp. The tape was to hold down a light repair on another part of the curio cabinet. It's unconventional, but it works. We didn't have money to buy another clamp. Today, I'll be taking off the tape and the clamp and sanding it. Wish me luck. It's my first refinishing job.

THIS IS THE DOOR TO THE CURIO CABINET. IT IS NOW A DISPLAY TRAY FOR MY NEWLY ACQUIRED TEACUPS...WHICH WERE ALSO YARDSALE FINDS.

I was going to share about my yardsale finds today, but there is so MUCH stuff, that I'll save that for another post. One way to save money is to repurpose stuff. Before you throw something away, ask yourself if there's a way you could reuse it for something different. In this case, the hinges attached to the door were completely off. The only thing that was holding the door in place was tape. I decided not to purchase new hinges because of cost. So I just removed the door, added some doilies and teacups...and voila, now I have a display tray :) :) The door hinges are attached to the frame with tacks or something. They aren't easy to remove without ruining the frame..so I'm just going to leave them there. Isn't it vintage cool? The doilies were part of a set of four for $2 at a yardsale. The teacups were $1 each, also purchased at a yardsale.

I'M GOING TO PAINT THE CABINET IN "PARIS WHITE". THAT'S THE LIGHTEST COLOR AT THE TOP OF THIS SAMPLE CARD.

I bought just one quart of "Paris White" semi-gloss. It will do the job nicely. It was too expensive to buy more colors. So this will be perfect for now. What's really cool is that I can always add more colors/designs later if I choose too :) :)

ON THE TABLE ARE SOME MORE OF THE PAINT SUPPLIES THAT I'LL BE USING TO REFINISH THE CURIO CABINET. ALL THE STUFF IN THE BACKGROUND IS NOW CLEARED OFF THE TABLE :) :)

I'll keep you posted about the progress of this project as it comes along.

Pray for my dad and I. Apartment living isn't always easy. There will be an apartment complex wide inspection on June 30th. They are inspecting all the patios and balconies. My dad went to the manager's office to ask for details and the manager wasn't very friendly. That's just part of apartment living. So keep my dad in your prayers. He's feeling a bit stressed. We are having to completely spring clean the house in just a few days. It was a project that was going to take us longer. Plus, my dad's heart gets tired easy when he's stressed. He's feeling stressed now. We would really like to move. God is having us stay. We don't understand...but He does and that's enough for the moment ;) :)

Oh, if you like good church apps for your smartphones, another one to try is from Pastor Greg Laurie of Harvest Church. It's free to install and comes with lots of extras. I'll share more about that next week I was enjoying reading my daily devotional right from my smartphone today while out running errands. My dad was a real sweetheart and let me stay in the car with the air-conditioning while he ran some errands.

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather :)

MY 30TH TEACUP AND TEA THINGS TUESDAY AND TEA TIME TUESDAY FOR JUNE 21ST

2011-06-20T19:08:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

It's been awhile since I've been able to participate in any of the tea parties. I love to visit everyone on Tuesdays...any day, actually. However, it's also a great pleasure to have something to share with you all, too :) :)
Oh my, I went to a couple of yardsales this past weekend. I found a couple of really interesting treasures. Here are some really neat teacups that I have to share with you. Now one of you sweet ladies has a teacup(s) just like these...or a very similar style. Well, before I talk too much, let me show you what I have to share today:

THESE ARE TWO OF THE TEACUPS I FOUND AT A YARDSALE THIS PAST WEEKEND.

I am working on a couple of posts for this month, so I'll go into detail about the other items in these photos another time. Today it's all about tea :) These two teacups were yardsale treasures that I found for just $1 each. These cups are so unusual, that I just had to buy them. I seem to remember one of you sweet ladies finding similar teacups as well :)

THIS IS WHAT I CALL MY "VIOLET" TEACUP. IT'S GOT THIS SAME VIOLET PATTERN ALL THE WAY AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE CUP.

This cup is the most unusual in my collection so far. It has a double-ring gold handle. It also sits on three little mini gold rings. Plus, it has a pearlescent sheen to it. It reminds me of abalone shell.

The cup has this pearlescent sheen to it. It reminds me of abalone shell. There was no backstamp on this teacup. So I'm not able to identify it's origin. Oh yeah, that's my seriously warped reflection you see in the teacup. I was trying to get a good photo with my camera.... :) :) :) :)

HERE IS ANOTHER VIEW OF MY VIOLET TEACUP, JUST BECAUSE I THINK IT'S SO PRETTY. I LIKE THE VIOLET DETAIL. USUALLY I SEE TEACUPS WITH ROSES..THIS MAKES IT EXTRA SPECIAL.

NOTICE THE THREE SMALL GOLDEN RINGS THAT THE CUP SITS ON. THEY SORT OF REMIND ME OF MINIATURE WEDDING RINGS.

THIS IS THE OTHER TEACUP THAT I FOUND AT THE SAME YARDSALE THIS PAST WEEKEND. THIS ONE HAS A FRUIT THEME WITH GRAPES AND PEARS.

This teacup is also really beautiful...and quite romantic and regal, too. Notice the pedestal fan base. that is quite unusual. I've seen more modern Asian teacups with pedestal bases. The handle has a bit of a thumb rest, too...of course, this also has gold and the same pearlescent sheen.

THIS IS A CLOSER LOOK AT THE DESIGN ON THIS CUP. IT LOOKS LIKE GRAPES, PEARS AND APPLES. THIS SAME PATTERN IS ALL AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE TEACUP, AS WELL AS ON THE INSIDE.

THIS IS THE SAME FRUIT MOTIF ON THE INSIDE OF THE CUP. I LOVE TEACUPS THAT HAVE "SECRET" SURPRISE MOTIF ON THE INSIDE. THIS IS THE LARGEST ONE I'VE EVER SEEN

This teacup is really neat because of the beautiful fruit drawings on the outside and inside of the cup. It has the same sheen as the other teacup with the violet flowers.

HERE IS THE BACKSTAMP ON THE TEACUP. IT JUST GIVE STHE PATTERN NAME, THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN AND THE YEAR IT WAS PRODUCED.

This has a lot of similarites with the violet teacup. I'm guessing that one is also made in Japan. If any of you have more information on this teacup, please let me know.

HERE ARE MY BEAUTIFUL TEACUPS AGAIN. I JUST HAPPENED TO PLACE THEM ON THIS "TRAY" WITH THE LACES. HOWEVER, I RATHER LIKE THE LOOK, DON'T YOU? IT'S REAL VINTAGE CHIC.

Thanks for stopping by for tea today. I really enjoyed visiting with you. Again, if you know anything further about these two teacups, please let me know. They are quite lovely. I have another teacup to share with you next week :) :)

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY 3RD "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR WEDNESDAY - JUNE 15TH, 2011

2011-06-15T16:17:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" SERIES OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. IF YOU'D LIKE TO JOIN ON IN THE FUN, PAY LINDA A VISIT. THIS IS A SUPER FUN AND VERY ENCOURAGING SERIES.

Hi everyone,
How has your week been so far? Mine has been very good. I've really been experiencing a burst of craft inspiration the last few days. I'm not sure if it's coming from getting my house in shape. That leads to a less stressed-out Heather...and I have more time to think about fun stuff, like knitting. Today is going to be a bit of a hodge podge of craft stuff.

I'm not sure if I mentioned this small wall curio cabinet that I purchased at a yard sale last Saturday or not. This is going to be a redecorating project for me.

THIS IS THE SMALL WALL CURIO CABINET THAT I PURCHASED AT A YARDSALE LAST SATURDAY. YOU CAN SEE SOME OF MY CRAFT STUFF JUST LYING AROUND EVERYWHERE. THAT IS USUALLY WHAT THE LIVING ROOM LOOKS LIKE...STASHES OF CRAFT ITEMS ARE EVERYWHERE....INSERT BIG HEATHER SMILE HERE, PLEASE (PHOTO HAS NOT BEEN RETOUCHED)

One of my goals in making my home beautiful is by using items that I've purchased at yardsales, garage sales etc. Why? Mainly, it's because I'm "in between" jobs, so I can't afford to pay retail. Also, I like to keep as much money in my wallet as I can...job or no job :) :) So I saw this curio cabinet and just had to have it. The lady wanted $5 dollars for it. However, I only had $3.50 in my wallet...literally. I asked her if she would take that and she said YES :) :) Score!!!! What a treasure and such a great price. If you go to Ebay's website and type in "curio cabinet", you can find similar ones and even an exact replica selling for quite a bit more. It reminds me of something from my childhood.

It's not very pretty now, but it's got possibility aplenty. My plan is to sand it, prime it and repaint it using creams and pinks.. making it romantic, country, shabby chic, etc. You get the idea - totally feminine and totally frufru :) :)

THIS IS A TEA BAG COZY THAT I KNIT A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO. IT JUST SO HAPPENS, IT WILL FIT IN NICELY WITH A PROJECT HAPPENING OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM :)

Linda over at Prairie Flower Farm and some other incredible blog ladies are working on a project to help and encourage women in Joplin, Missouri. Click here to read Linda's original post on the project. It's called "Purses with Promise" You can find out all the details there. There is also a link to Angie's blog "Berry Homespun Primitives". She's also a sweetheart of a lady, just like Linda. She recently drove through Joplin, Missouri and took some photos of the devastation. Folks, this doesn't even begin to describe the difficulties the people are going through there. However, we are a country of resilient people. Just look at all that was accomplished by those that came before us. We come from sturdy stock, that's for sure. In any case, Angie's photos really show just how much the people have lost...literally. Both blogs will give you some perspective as well as information on what this love project is all about :) :) It's a simple way to encourage the ladies of Joplin, Missouri. It's also an opportunity to use our talents to help others.

THESE ARE SOME OF THE SMALL CROCHET FLOWERS THAT I'M MAKING FOR THE "PURSES WITH PROMISE" PROJECT OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. YOU CAN SEE THE ORIGINAL COLOR OF MY KNITTED TEA BAG COZY. (THIS PHOTO HAS NOT BEEN RETOUCHED)

The three crochet flowers on the left, were my attemps at crocheted flowers. Not too bad, but not what I was looking for. Linda of Prairie Flower Farm is fabulous lady who loves Jesus. She sent me a link to an earlier blog post with the pattern for Miss Clarice's crocheted flowers. Click here if you'd like to try this pattern out for yourself. It's really easy.

HERE'S A CLOSE-UP OF MY REPRODUCTION HERSHEY'S COCOA TIN. THIS IS NOW THE OFFICIAL "HOME" FOR ALL OF MY SMALL CROCHET FLOWERS. ISN'T THIS JUST THE CUTEST. CAN YOU IMAGINE A WHOLE TIN FILLED WITH LITTLE FLOWERS IN DIFFERENT COLORS?

These small crochet flowers taught me a lot about not being so concentrated on perfection. I was a little frustrated when I first started crocheting these. It's funny really, but true.. I can crochet doilies, knit lace edgings, socks, mittens, hats...and I couldn't crochet a simple flower. You know what? That is okay. We aren't expected to be perfect. God doesn't expect perfection from me, but He wants me to give my all to HIM...and that's what I did. I prayed and asked God for help, because this project means so much to me..and I want the ladies who receive these to be blessed and encouraged :) :) God came through and once I layed my worries at HIS feet, the project automatically started getting easier. I'm still "new" to crochet in general, but these flowers are sure a lot of fun to make :) :) Give them a try.

THIS IS THE TOP OF THE HERSHEY'S TIN. IT WAS MADE IN ENGLAND IN 1982. I PURCHASED IT AT A YARDSALE FOR JUST $0.50.

Remember what I said about this post being a hodge podge of craft stuff today? :) :) :) You can find all sorts of cute ways to store things in your home. You don't have to use plastic or stick with boring colors. Yardsales and garage sales can be great places to find vintage tins, bowls etc, that can be repurposed as storage units for all the bits and pieces in your home :) :)

FLAG DAY IS CELEBRATED EVERY JUNE 14TH IN THE UNITED STATES. THIS IS A LITTLE FLAG TABLE MAT THAT I CROCHETED YESTERDAY AFTERNOON.

Flag Day came and went yesterday. However, if you love fun and easy craft projects, this is for you. Click this link to visit Create & Decorate magazine blog. Here you can find the instructions for making your own flag. The pattern is from Vickie Zelizo. It's a really cute pattern and very easy to crochet in an afternoon. I used slightly different colors, because that was all I had on hand. This would also be a perfect project for the upcoming 4th of July holiday :) :) So start working the yarn and crochet needles :) :) Oh, if you'd like to subscribe to Create & Decorate magazine or just find out more, click here. It is a fantastic magazine full of super cute projects from front to back cover. I subscribe and it is worth EVERY penny :) :)

I PURCHASED SOME COTTON YARN AT MY LOCAL FRED MEYER STORE. THIS WILL BE CROCHETED INTO SOME MORE FLAG TABLE MATS.

The pattern calls for a really fun "Lily's Sugar N' Cream" cotton yarn. That yarn is really fun and comes in some fun colors. I usually purchase mine at Joann's Fabrics or Michael's. Both stores are on the other side of town, so I settled for Lion Brand cotton yarn at Fred Meyer today. It's much closer and not as much gas was needed to get there. Although, now I've got a hankering for "Lily's Sugar N' Cream" yarn...so eventually I will have to make my way to that part of town :) :)

AFTER ALL THIS YARN SHOPPING AND GROCERY SHOPPING TODAY, I NEED A NICE GLASS OF WATER :) :)

Alright, that's my post for today :) :) After buying the yarn, buying groceries, and running other errands, I needed to sit down for a bit. So I promptly sat myself down in my dad's nice cushy recliner and grabbed a nice glass jar and filled it with water and ice cubes. This is the good stuff and so simple :) :) :) Oh, doesn't the water look cuter in a Mason jar than in a regular cup? Again, simple things that we can do to make everythings look more beautiful :) :)

I'm a bit behind on my devotions - by two days to be exact. So I'll be catching up on my reading today. I'm telling you what...ladies..it's so important to have a regular devotion time, even if it's just a few minutes every day. It makes a huge difference in my day. It's a noticable difference. So if you'd pray for more regular quiet times, that would be AWESOME. I'll do the same for you, too :) :)

Oh, this was a really long post. I also experimented with most of my photos today. In fact, all of them were retouched in some way, except for those where I said "This photo not retouched" in parantheses. I'm obsessed with vintage photography. So I'm playing around with photos, to try and create a "vintage" look :) :)

Thanks for coming to visit me :) :) I always enjoy when you come over here...and even more so when you leave comments :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

MY 28TH TEACUP AND TEA THINGS TUESDAY & TEA TIME TUESDAY

2011-06-14T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

It's been awhile since awhile since I've participated in any of the tea parties :) :) I had a lovely little tea for myself last week, however life happened and it just wasn't something I felt like sharing.

Here's my simple and unusual tea for Tuesday. This is how I have tea for myself most days. Well, correction, when I'm having ICED tea, this is usually what I do.

I HAD A VERY SIMPLE TEA TODAY. A NICE MASON GLASS JAR OF ICED RASPBERRY TEA AND MY FAVORITE WALKER SHORTBREAD BUTTER COOKIES :)

I think this is the most unusual tea I've ever done. That "teacup" is certainly very unusual, wouldn't you agree? Hee hee hee..I think it's funny, but it works. That iced tea was so GOOD. Where are the ice cubes, you ask? I FORGOT!!! Again, it's all part of my unusual tea.

Add to that, that all the Walker cookies insisted on breaking in half. So I wanted nice cookies for my photo...but ladies, let me tell you, they still tasted GREAT!!!!

The cookies are in a little dessert plate. It's made by a company called Pope-Gosser. I'm not sure of the pattern name. However, I do like it's creamy white background with the beautiful pink petals.

What do you like for tea when it gets warm outside? Yesterday, it was in the high 70s..maybe 78 degrees Fahrenheit. That's actually a nice summer day . However, in Oregon it can also be very humid. so it felt like it was hotter than it actually was. I had the windows open and the lights turned off.

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

2011-06-11T10:48:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
How is your Saturday going so far? I think June is a strange weather month here in Oregon. It rains a LOT here....from about October through June :) :) Yesterday it was a high of about 71 degrees Fahrenheit. It was also overcast and very muggy/humid. So the heat felt much "hotter" than it really was. This morning it started raining. It was beautiful. It has stopped raining for the moment. It's getting muggy/humid again. That's okay. I have the fan going and it feels really nice in here :)

YESTERDAY WAS LAUNDRY DAY.

My weekend is shaping up to be rather quieter than usual. I did laundry yesterday. There's a laundry room at the apartment complex, which is wonderful. We do have to pay to use it. However, I love the convenience of not having to leave home to wash my clothes. I keep my homemade laundry powder in a big plastic container. This glass latch/hook jar is what I use when I go to the laundry room. I refill it when needed. Click here if you like to read my post on how to make your own homemade laundry powder. If you have any questions on that, let me know. I'll answer them as best I can :) :) This laundry powder is saving me a boatload of money :) :)

FLOWERS RIGHT OUTSIDE MY FRONT DOOR.

One of the joys of spring and summer is when things start to bloom. There is color everywhere. There's this little bush right outside my front door that has these lovely pink blooms. The blooms are about the size of my thumbnail...very tiny. However, this is a close-up so you can see the detail :) :)

MY NEIGHBOR ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE HAS A BEAUTIFUL ROSE BUSH.

The neighbor across the fence from me has a gorgeous rosebush. The roses are just starting to bloom. In a few weeks this bush will be so laden with roses, it'll start to bend towards the ground :) :) This is what I photographed yesterday. Aren't they pretty? I think so. These roses are so lush and just packed full of beautiful, pink petals :) :)

THS IS SHERBERT, THE HOMELESS CAT THAT ROAMS THE APARTMENT COMPLEX. HE'S ONE OF A FEW HOMELESS CATS THAT HAS ADOPTED THIS   APARTMENT COMPLEX AS HIS HOME.

Sherbert decided to check me out as I was leaving the house yesterday. I love these light purple flowers, too. aren't they just gorgeous in full bloom? Sherbert used to belong to one of the other neighbor's here in the apartment complex. The neighbor's moved out and just left him behind. That is actually a good thing, because they didn't treat him right.

He tried to "adopt" my add and I. However, in an apartment complex, we have to pay a pet deposit in order to have a cat (or a dog). It's more than either of us can afford. It makes me sad, but in an apartment complex there are rules that have to be followed :(. We also don 't have money to feed him . So Sherbert ignores me now, because I don't feed him.    Although he still likes to nap by the tree right near my front door ;) :) My next door neighbor feeds him...so he's not totally without. Sherbert gets better love/care/food from my next-door neighbor, than his previous owners. However, this day, he looked so cute near the purple flowers. This is actually a good photo of him.

As soon as I find my dad's store receipt from Costco, I'll tell you all about that. We went shopping there on Thursday. It was an experience. We didn't buy a lot because we have a small refridgerator/freezer. We did score some great deals on meat and vegetables.   That's for another post.

I also found a really interesting little curio cabinet. It's probably from the 60s/70s...and it's a "not pretty brown". That will be sanded/painted white or cream...to reflect my love of all things vintage, country, romantic, Shabby Chic...etc. You get the idea ;) :) I'll post about that later, too :) :)

Oh, thanks so much for visiting me today. I've noticed the new followers, too :) :) You always make me smile...and thanks for liking my blog enough to come visit :) :) You are always welcome. God is good and I'm thankful for each and every one of you :) :)

I do need to organize my "subjects", so people can more easily find older posts. What would you suggest? I could use some advice, because I don't know what would work best. How do you feel about one of those "search" gadgets, that let people type in a word and it brings up all-related posts with that word in it? Let me know. This might be my "computer" project for the week :) :)

That's the news from Oregon today. Extra special love and hugs, Heather :) :) :)

HELP - CAN'T SEE MY FOLLOWERS LIST & UPDATE

2011-06-09T14:58:00.001-07:00

UPDATE (Friday - June 10th): Yippee. ..I was visiting a Norwegian blogger friend. Click here if you'd like to visit "Franciskas Vakre Verden" (Franciska's Beautiful World). It is written in Norwegian, but it is absolutely lovely. You can use the help of Google translator to view it in English. I speak Norwegian, so I read it for practice. In any case, while I was reading her blog, I noticed I could hear music :) :) So after I left my comment on her blog, I went back to check mine. YIPPPEEEEE!!!! My blog followers are back for the mo ment ;) :) So I will be glad for this :) :) That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :) :)

Hi everyone,
Oh no...when I went to my blog today, all of my followers are missing from my blog list!!! When I go into my blog, it still tells me how many followers I have, but when I click on that, the page comes up blank. Has anyone else had this same problem? what did you do?

thanks. Heather :)

BEAUTIFUL JUNE DAY!!!

2011-06-09T14:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

How are you today? I'm doing well. Today my father and I went shopping at Costco. Wow, what an experience ;) :) If you read my previous post from yesterday, my dad had an angiogram last Tuesday. He's fine, thankfully. My dad pick up his prescriptions at Costco because he got the best price there. Needless to say it was just a gorgeous day . I love driving by the Hillcrest Orchard/Roxy Ann Winery. Here are some photos I took as I drove past. It's just such a beautiful, perfect day. This is what's on my mind today. I'm linking up with Rhonda over at Down to Earth.

Rhonda's blog is a really lovely place to visit. That's the news from Oregon today. Extra love and hugs, Heather

MY SECOND "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR JUNE 8TH, 2011

2011-06-08T12:49:00.000-07:00

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUIDING OUR HOMES TOGEHTER" SERIES WITH LINDA OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM.

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the "Building Our Homes Together" series. If you 'd like to visit or find out more, click on the link below the photo at the top of this post ;) :) I tried to get this blog written yesterday. However, blogger wasn't letting me upload photos. So it had to wait till today. Oh, there's also a fun offer from The Girlhood Home Companion Magazine. Look for that at the end of this post today :) :)

THIS IS THE WOODEN BENCH THAT I PURCHASED AT A YARD SALE LAST SUMMER. IT IS SOLID WOOD. THE BEST PART IS THAT IT ONLY COST $5.

I don't know about you all, but I'm already LOVING this "Building Our Homes Together" series...for the practical and spiritual encouragement ;) :) I've got a lot of things that I want to do and only two pairs of hands :) :) So one of the things I'm doing this week is trying to decorate more. It is those extra little touches that really make a difference. One thing that I was working on this week was my bench :) :) There is a really nice storage space underneath. It is solid wood and needs a nice paint job at some point.
The bench is solid wood. Up to this point, it was simply a space to dump stuff like mail and books. However, I wanted to clean it up and pretty it up a bit. So one thing I did was to clean all the junk off the bench. I added this cute pillow sham. That sham was a yard sale purchase for $0.50. It will eventually function as a pillow case. It just so happened that I just "threw" it on the bench and it fit perfect. What do you think? It's a bit plain.

HERE'S THE SAME WOODEN BENCH WITH A FEW ACCESSORIES. I WILL PROBABLY CHANGE IT UP AGAIN.

I thougth it would look better with a few accessories. Hmm.. it's not bad. Yet it's not quite what I want it to be. I have a vision in my head of a cover I can make for this. It was just something that I thought of yesterday. I'll sketch it on paper and share it with you next week. What do you think? One rule of thumb is to decorate with those things that make you smile :) :) These things make me smile. Any tips? What would you do with this bench? I'm open to ideas ;) :) :)

I bought this eBook not to long ago called " 31 Days to Clean - Having a Martha House the Mary Way" You can buy the book and download it to your Kindle or as a PDF file. I purchased it and it's been great. You get a LOT of good stuff for the price..definitely worth every penny and then some. That's one of the sources I've been using to help me get my house into shape ;) :) I'm giving this review of my own free will :) :) Why? I LOVE the concept and it fits in perfectly with this series. So feel free to check it out. There's also a companion page on Facebook. If you have Facebook, you can click here to "like" the page.

ANOTHER THING YOU CAN DO TO ADD A LI TTLE SOMETHING SPECIAL TO YOUR EVERYDAY IS WITH FUN-SHAPED ICE CUBE TRAYS. I HAVE A RUBBER ICE CUBE TRAY THAT IS HEART-SHAPED.

Why have regular ice cubes when you can have heart-shaped ice cubes? Aren't they cute and romantic? I like romantic ice cubes. The rubber ice cube tray I used for these was purchased at Ikea years ago. Once the ice cubes are frozen, I turn the whole thing upside down and run some hot water over the bottom. It helps to loosen up the ice cubes. Then I just pop them out and place them in nice bowl in the freezer. Or in this case, I displayed them on some Depression glass, because it was prettier than a freezer bowl :) :)

I'M NOT SURE WHAT TYPE OF FLOWERS THESE ARE. HOWEVER, I NOW KNOW THAT THERE ARE CERTAIN FLOWERS THAT ARE SO BRIGHT, THEY CAN NEVER TRULY BE CAPTURES ON CAMERA.

I have tried over and over to get a good photo of t hese flowers. God is so awesome. He creates us with eyes that can see detail that not even a camera can replicate :) :) I know, I've tried ;) :) It's such a bright magenta color, it's almost neon.

Another thing that I do is daily devotions. Do any of you have a "smart phone"? there is a really neat on-line Bible resource called YouVersion.com. Click here to visit their page. It's a really simple on-line Bible resource. What's awesome about this is that it has EVERY translation of the English Bible available to read, plus other foreign languages. You can create an account and choose a Bible reading plan that fits your needs...and here's the best part, there is a nice smartphone app for that. You can also just follow the reading plan for the day , without signing up for anything, too. It's up to you and what will fit into your life best :) :)

I have this app on my phone. You can click here and look at a news segment about it that aired recently on CBN/The 700 Club.

Or try clicking on this link.

If you look for the app on your phone, simply type in "Bible" in your application search engine. Get the one that says it's from Lifechurch.tv. It's free to use. You do NOT have to create an account to use it. You can just read the Bible on your phone or on-line :) :) However, if you want to create a personalized reading plan, an account is nice :) :) That's what I do. It works wonderfully for me. I'll talk more about it next week, too, as I'd like to keep myself accountable in what I"m reading ;) :)

This is perfect...if you love King James or the New Living Translation etc..we all love a goog smartphone app. This is great. Can you imagine being able to read your Bible while you're waiting to pay for groceries at the store? It's a wonderful app and Lifechurch.tv has done a wonderful thing by making this free to people everywhere. So if you try out the app or the website, let me know what you think. It has helped me to read more!!! It also has the Norwegian, French, German, Sp anish and a whole bunch of other foreign language translations.

My dad had an angiogram yesterday. He's doing well . God answered our prayers. My father doesn't need a stent or surgery. He'll need to make a few lifestyle changes...but all in all, it was a real blessing. He had a good doctor. The doctor was also cute, too...but that's besides the point ;) :) My daddy is doing well :) :)

THIS IS A REALLY SWEET PROJECT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE GIRLHOOD HOME COMPANION MAGAZINE. IT'S A PROJECT FROM LINDA OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM.

The Girlhood Home Companion magazine is hosting a June giveaway. For every blog linking to the giveaway, they would love to bless you with a free project from Linda of Prairie Flower Farm. Trust me , ladies, Linda knows how to do it up right ;) :) It's so super cute ;) :) The free gift includes an audio interview with Linda that is incredibly inspirational and encouraging. It's definitely a must-listen for all the women you know in your household and outside of your home. Please make sure to link the giveaway to this address. When you've done that email Jill at jillenovak@gmail.com so she can send you your free gift. Also, write her a note of hello and thanks for the giveaway. This is so awesome. I'd love for her and Linda to know how much you love and appreciate this wonderful gift ;) :)
Thanks for visiting me. Thanks to all the news followers, too :) :) I am humbled that you like my page :) :) Thank you :) :) I hope I can be a joy and encouragement to you :) :) Feel free to email me to say hello or if you need prayer. I'd love to pray for you :) :)

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)