A few weeks ago, Walker had the treat of attending Vacation Bible School at my parents’ church…he wasn’t technically old enough to go this year, but as his birthday is just past the cut-off, they let him {and cousin Alexa} come anyway…he had such a fabulous week!  They played games, played outside, learned about Jesus, did [...]]]>

A few weeks ago, Walker had the treat of attending Vacation Bible School at my parents’ church…he wasn’t technically old enough to go this year, but as his birthday is just past the cut-off, they let him {and cousin Alexa} come anyway…he had such a fabulous week!  They played games, played outside, learned about Jesus, did crafts and activities…one of his favorites was listening to a recording of various outdoor sounds (barn door creaking, crickets at night, horses neighing and then matching up the sound to the picture of the item on a card in front of him.  He was enthralled!  He had a blast and has continued to talk about it ever since…and for me, such a delight to have him experience Bible School in the church I grew up in…God is good!

Photo by dcjohn

As we approach the 4th of July…I am particularly grateful this year for the wonderful country we live in…is the USA perfect? umm…I think we all know the resounding answer to that question is NO…however, I believe it’s undeniably still the best place to live.  We have the ability to voice our opinions…to direct [...]]]>

Photo by dcjohn

As we approach the 4th of July…I am particularly grateful this year for the wonderful country we live in…is the USA perfect? umm…I think we all know the resounding answer to that question is NO…however, I believe it’s undeniably still the best place to live.  We have the ability to voice our opinions…to direct our own paths…to follow our dreams…many countries don’t have that privilege…and I do believe it is a privilege.  I’m thankful that God planted me here.  Where else can you pursue any opportunity you desire?

Our family is excited to be on a new path…to be trying new things…to claim our piece of the American dream & God is blessing us tremendously!  We started our Etsy shop in May of 2009 – not even 14 months later and we’ve already hit 270 sales.  WOW! As a thank you to our country & everyone who has supported us this far…we’ve decided to run a little 4th of July Sale!  From now until midnight on the 4th…everything in our shop is BUY ONE GET ONE 1/2 OFF…thanks so much for helping us pursue our dreams!

To take advantage of this sale…place 2 (or more) items in your Etsy shopping cart & check out…submit payment via Paypal.  Once your order & payment is received, we will refund your discount via Paypal (in most cases, within 24 hours).  Custom orders are excluded from this sale.  Feel free to email or convo me with any questions!

Finally added a few silhouettes to the shop…hope to continue to add to our collection in the coming days!  What kind of silhouette would you enjoy?

Happy Father’s Day to you [...]]]>

Happy Father’s Day to you & yours!

Last week we went to a Drive game to celebrate Mimi’s birthday…a good time was definitely had by all!  In the 6th or 7th inning, Walker suddenly looked down and there was a baseball a few feet away from him…no idea how it got there, but a definite treasure to him!   Thanks to Mr. [...]]]>  

Last week we went to a Drive game to celebrate Mimi’s birthday…a good time was definitely had by all!  In the 6th or 7th inning, Walker suddenly looked down and there was a baseball a few feet away from him…no idea how it got there, but a definite treasure to him!   Thanks to Mr. Adam, we got to ride a trolley to & from the stadium…that was icing on the cake.  Thanks for such great birthday fun Mimi!

Last Saturday we went to one of our local farmer’s markets and I was delighted to find a gentleman selling cut flowers…I picked up this bunch of snapdragons for $3 & 2 stems of dianthus for $1 apiece.  I was delighted!  And after almost a week, the snaps look almost identical to when we bought [...]]]>  

Last Saturday we went to one of our local farmer’s markets and I was delighted to find a gentleman selling cut flowers…I picked up this bunch of snapdragons for $3 & 2 stems of dianthus for $1 apiece.  I was delighted!  And after almost a week, the snaps look almost identical to when we bought them…love that!  We’re looking forward to going to a different market tomorrow…which also means cinnamon scones from Great Harvest Bread…my favorite!

We had dinner with friends of ours tonight at a new restaurant in town…so good to hang out & fellowship.

Brad sealed the slate floor on our deck-to-screened-in-porch project…it is gorgeous!  We are getting closer & closer to finishing.  Can’t wait to be able to start using the space!

What are you looking forward to this weekend?

It’s no secret…I {big pink puffy heart} hydrangeas…I counted…I have 10 {and it should be 11 if Mr. Employee-of-the-Month hadn’t run over one last year with a Bobcat…grrr} but I digress.  I drive my sweet husband crazy…every time we go to Lowe’s or Home Depot, I must walk through the Garden Center and I always drool [...]]]>

It’s no secret…I {big pink puffy heart} hydrangeas…I counted…I have 10 {and it should be 11 if Mr. Employee-of-the-Month hadn’t run over one last year with a Bobcat…grrr} but I digress.  I drive my sweet husband crazy…every time we go to Lowe’s or Home Depot, I must walk through the Garden Center and I always drool over the hydrangeas, and truth be told, I would take one home with me every time if I had it my way.  And while I never used to cut any blooms to bring inside {because I didn’t want to waste any…what was that about??}, last year’s prolific bounty had me cutting every week or two, which was so delightful!

We built our house back in 2005, and if I remember correctly, I snapped up several hydrangeas ASAP & plopped them in the ground…in full sun…and hardly ever watered them…they did not grow…they did not flourish…I was super bummed.  I remember reading a story about a fabulous gardener in Southern Living a few years back – she claimed that you didn’t really know a plant until you’d transplanted it and killed it several times.  She gives me great confidence & hope!  So I moved my hydrangeas closer to the house, but water was still a problem.  It wasn’t convenient to their location, probably happened haphazardly, and still…hardly any blooms.  Then last year, the pieces started to fall in place.

Five small, 1 gallon hydrangeas from Lowes turned into this gorgeous mass of blooms, pretty much in 2 years.  Our secret was much by accident.  Hydrangeas typically call for part shade – hello – we don’t have much shade where we live.  We get sun, sun & more sun.  After planting my hydrangeas on the side of our house where they get full afternoon {read hot, blazing} sun, it suddenly occurred to me; more water was the answer.  After all…they are hydrangeas.

We were walking through Home Depot one day and spotted this self-timer by Orbit.  It was around $50 & we figured an investment well worth making {‘cause while I mean to water every night…it gets hot, and the kids stay up too late, and then I’m tired}….boy were we right!  We have a hose bib literally right behind my hydrangea bed, so we hooked this baby up & programmed it to turn on for 15 minutes around 6 every morning & again at 6 every night….and then we connected a soaker hose to it that we wound around the base of all the hydrangeas {we also have a weed preventer fabric around them, though with as thick as they are, I’m not sure it was super necessary}.  On hot summer days, in the afternoons, the plants will sometimes wilt a little, but as soon as the water comes on that evening, they perk right back up and are happy as can be.  They have grown gangbusters, and this year is only the second year of their cushy treatment!

When you’re at the garden center – remember that all hydrangeas are not alike.  You will see a price range of $5-$15 for 1 gallon plants…3 gallon containers can go to $25+ YIKES!  I always buy 1 gallon hydrangeas – I would rather have 2 smaller plants than 1 bigger plant, because I know that in no time at all my smaller plants will hit 3 gallon size…and I’d rather have more!

I also splurge for the new varieties of rebloomers {Endless Summer and Forever & Ever to name a few}.  Old school hydrangeas only bloomed on “old growth” or last year’s growth – if last year’s stems all get broken over the winter or you have a late freeze {after buds have set} your hydrangea won’t bloom at all.  Rebloomers bloom on both old & new growth – hallelujah! one of the best plant revolutions ever!  With an old school hydrangea, once all the original buds became flowers, that was it.  With rebloomers…cutting blooms to take inside causes the plant to grow more, and put on even more blooms…so even though it costs a little more upfront, to me, it’s worth it every time!

How about you…are you ready to give hydrangeas a try?

Last Saturday I got the opportunity to go hang out with The Nester {and a group of fabulous ladies} in her beautiful home for the afternoon for a Blessings Unlimited party…hello!!  I love a road trip…for me it was a no-brainer…I {heart} The Nester…and her mad decorating skillz…I stalk her blog pretty much daily.

While [...]]]>

Last Saturday I got the opportunity to go hang out with The Nester {and a group of fabulous ladies} in her beautiful home for the afternoon for a Blessings Unlimited party…hello!!  I love a road trip…for me it was a no-brainer…I {heart} The Nester…and her mad decorating skillz…I stalk her blog pretty much daily.

While we were there…in conversation, I mentioned my love of hydrangeas & found out that The Nester loves them too…I didn’t know that it was possible to love her anymore than I already did, but come on…HYDRANGEAS!!

In addition to great food, fun company & a beautiful house to drool over…Blessings Unlimited & DaySpring gave out gifts just for coming!  I snagged this fun set of dessert plates…peace…trust…hope…joy…{love them!}  I’m thinking they’ll look great on the wall outside when the screened-in porch gets finished unless, of course, I ever manage to get some white china, and then I think they’d be fabulous on a day-to-day basis…might even need a second set!

While we were looking at all the pretties during the Gathering…The Nester made a great point…one I think lots of us {especially decoratingly-challenged} often overlook.  She encouraged us to not always know “the place” that an item is going to go in our homes before we buy it…if we have the $$ and love it…go for it.  Then enjoy the journey of trying it in different spots and finding a perfect spot for it…but it’s not necessary to have it all figured out on the front end.  And that, ladies and gents…is why she’s The Nester…genius…pure genius!

But back to hydrangeas…I fell in love back in 2001 about the time Brad & I got married…I used them in my bridal bouquet and then really was smitten.  I’ve had them in our yard for several years now, but really stumbled onto the key for great success last year.

If you want to learn how to go from here:

to here:

come back and join me tomorrow…and I’ll let you in on a few hydrangea tricks & tips!

What’s your favorite flower?

Start out with an inexpensive flower pot, bucket, glass piece…the possibilities are endless (think Wal-Mart, Target, Lowes, Home Depot, the dollar store…) & then decorate with a monogram & polka dots.  To take the [...]]]> Need a quick gift?  maybe it’s the end-of-the-year teacher gift…a birthday party…a shower gift…this monogram & polka dot set is just the ticket!

Start out with an inexpensive flower pot, bucket, glass piece…the possibilities are endless (think Wal-Mart, Target, Lowes, Home Depot, the dollar store…) & then decorate with a monogram & polka dots.  To take the gift a step further, stuff the flower pot or bucket with additional gift items!

Available in 4 different monogram fonts & 20+ colors.  Check out our Etsy store to pick yours up today!

What gift-giving occasion do you have coming up?

we started our seeds indoors back in late March…probably a little later than we should have

we’ve had them in the ground now for a few weeks…can’t wait to see all we learn this year! hope today’s hail storm didn’t do too much damage.

what’s in your garden [...]]]>

we started our seeds indoors back in late March…probably a little later than we should have

we’ve had them in the ground now for a few weeks…can’t wait to see all we learn this year! hope today’s hail storm didn’t do too much damage.

what’s in your garden this year?