Red, White and Blue

I thought I'd take picture of my pool. I think I got my boat added late in the summer and not sure if I have posted it before. I looked and looked for a boat last summer to add to my fishing shack theme and I found one right under my nose. Mike and I rode around on Sunday evenings driving through alleys and rough neighborhoods looking in peoples back yards for an old boat they might want to get ride of for my yard. we came up with nothing and my sister in laws mom and dad had one they were using as a wind break in a car port area! It was just perfect. We secured it with old pulleys and added nets, oars, baskets and a life jacket. Maybe I'll go out and take some pics and have a whole post on my pool. I love to go out there and read in the evenings. I was mulching tonight and it was so sultry, when I was done I sat in the swing to cool down and I thought what am I doing here? I'm going for a swim clothes and all! The current of the water is set so high that it's like a lazy river and you can lift your legs and just be taken around and around the whole pool! We have a couple of bats in the treetops around the pool area and they dart around your head at times, recently I have heard the owl that lives in the big sycamore tree!

I went junkin alittle today found a few things. Got the stool for $7.50 I may paint it black. The old washboard and galvanized bucket I only paid $1 each for but they are pretty rough, but good enough for my purposes. The material I got at Hobby Lobby and I want to make some pillows for my back porch. The material in laying in a big wire basket $6.50. It's pretty good size. The bread box was only $1 and the enamelware was $3, can't pass that stuff up!! There is a little step stool under the flat enamel ware I got for $3, I have several, they are cute tucked here and there. And the old bucket has some geraniums from HL. My sister in law was admiring my geraniums in a claypot on my front porch so I made her up a couple of pots for her porch. I ran over tonight and placed them on her porch and just left. She called later and said she went out to get the paper and found them! I think she loved them.

I coffee stained some flags from walmart the other day. Took them from the stick and painted the sticks black, hot glued them back on. I placed a few in the old cabinet on my back screened in porch and a few in the meat grinder hanging from the table top. I made the wreath down on the floor with an old flag and a rusty star but haven't found a place for it yet. I tried it on my front porch but didn't like it.

I put a couple in a watering can next to my wonderful old TG&Y basket( I bought for my husband) I love the red white and blue together! Next time I get to Walmart I will buy some more flags. I placed a couple on my mantle of the fireplace too!

Well I had a pretty good day, this evening it was so hot and I decided to put some mulch down in those darn flower beds. Sometimes I think why did I ever make those beds so large. They are so hard to care for. I hadn't added new mulch for several yrs. I had bought some several weeks ago and it has been stacked out by the garage. the other night they had it on sale at Orshlands and I got more. I was out there buying more dowel rods for more firecracker. I have so enjoyed making those. I'll have to post some of those. I tied some up in bundles and I love them!! Anyway, I mulched all my beds tonight and just yesterday had my neck and back popped back into place. I feel so much better! Have a great Thursday ladies!

Memorial Day Tribute

May everyone have a blessed Memorial Day this morning. I have done some summer tweaking around the house the first few days of our summer break. I took all my white wicker to my moms front porch, she was thrilled with that, and I replaced it with some of my old metal chairs and stools. This is on my back screened in porch. I placed some old re, white and blue vintage books on the little red stool.

I have been enjoying my swinging bed on the porch also. My hubby built it for me late summer last yr. and it's been nice late at night. The other night we had a light rain come through and the sound luld me to sleep. That night he also locked the door for the night, not knowing I was out there!!

This is the wall leading into the kitchen. I painted the leaves on there a few yrs. back and had some bird houses and some ivy in a planter hanging near the door but I have such a weakness for enamelware I thought why not put some on the wall! I love old wire dish drains too~ Notice the table next to the porch swing. That enamel table will be going out in my shop someday. but for now it is a catch all for things I buy at tag sales and have no place for yet.

More enamelware with my favorite geraniums on the deck table. Nothing prettier of more summery for me that a red geranium!

My front porch. I think the red just pops. We have plans to redo this porch. We used porch flooring and want to go with a deck flooring and vinyl railing. Finding to the time to so that has been an issue. The hubby and daughter leave in the morning at 3:00 am for Washington DC on a school trip. 6 adults and 33 -14 yr olds!! Pray they have a safe trip! Well I have a few more pics to share tomorrow! Have a great holiday!

Merry Christmas To All!

Merry Christmas Ladies, Well I think we are the only school still in sessions in Kansas!! A few more hours and I will officially be on Christmas Break!! The kids are bouncing off the walls and we are just watching movies. We will have an all school sing along today @ 1:30. Its cold outside, I'm on my lunch hr. and thought I would post a few pics of things around the house. I made up the old pulley decor on my front door from a picture in a magazine. I looked at that and thought Oh how cute and then I thought oh wait I have one of those out on my porch! The snowman is from my Country Sampler $! The old ice cream maker snowman is a favorite. I turn it around during the rest of the yr. I got him 1/2 price at a shop not far from here. It has a snow ice cream recipe painted on it! Ive been working on a couple penny mats. I finished one last night. Ill post it later. I plan on doing a lot of sampler work over my Christmas break. Better go for now. I want to scan the new post of you all while I still have a few minutes. Have a Merry Christmas and enjoy today!

Christmas Decorating

Hi Ladies, it's been awhile. Everyone seems so busy this time of yr. We spent the weekend in Tulsa with my cousin who has had a preemie baby girl. Baby Jasiah Kate is doing better, just wishing her home for Christmas! I have been tweeking my Christmas decor a bit. Adding a small tree here and there. Hobby Lobby had trees half off already, so I brought another pencil tree home to put behind my kitchen table. I bought some wintery woodsy garland to hang from the ladder of enamelware. The cute red canister set I bought at a Alco store. They have the cutest stuff in there. I had seen them but were to pricey, so on Sun. they were half off! Pays to wait. We got sleet last night and its 14 degrees right now, not enough to keep us home from school( darn) I'm on my lunch now. But just enough to make it scary to get out in! well better go. I want to finish reading more of your blogs. Have a great week!

My First Successful Craft Show!

Well Ladies, I did it! My first craft show was held yesterday. I did pretty good. I had lots of great comments on how cute my stuff was. Everyone loved my display of things. I had many other vendors come over and leave with great comments and many bought items from me. Many customers commented mine was their favorite booth!! I set up next to a lovely women who gave me some great pointers and she even bought alot from me. She was demonstrating punch needle and many other stitchery techniques. I set up the night before in our newly remodeled civic center, which helped. I was there the entire hr and half they gave us. Its a lot of work to set up and then tear down, unload at home and put away. I called my husband at 2:00 and said ok come help me get it home. He said you mean you didn't sell it all? No, not all I will have some snowman things to take to school tomorrow to sell, and the rest will go into my shop when I get that done. Another great thing that came out of it was, I was talking with a lady who had crafts made out of barn wood, I told her I was on the look out for some to line my shop walls with. In the course of the day I had two shoppers approach me giving me their phone numbers to tear down one old barn for free and the other had some in her garage all for 25.00 (wide plank) I was thrilled. That's the next fun thing the hubby and I get to do!!!! Well today is our family fun Christmas dinner. There is an RSVP of 88 coming. My mother comes from a family of 16! Not all living now, she being the youngest, but I am practically related to everyone in this small town. Anyway we are having a dinner @ 3:00. My moms family is very musically talented. My mom and her sisters have a small singing group and then there are a few of " us cousins" who do not have a musical bone in our body, we are the ones who after dinner and everyone else is rushing for the mics and instruments head to the table kitchen to clean up and do dishes. Well one yr another "musically challenged cousin" thought it would be cute for us to start a tradition of the "Nothin Cousins" to sing and have our time at the "mic and stage" so the "Nothin Cousins" are also preforming today our silly song at the dinner. Then on Tues. evening we are having our annual Botts Family Concert at our church which is free to the public. That's when all my musical family members will share their real talents with the community! The offering with be donated to our local food bank . And No! the nothin cousins will not be making an appearance!

My daughter will be playing several pieces on her flute. Well I need to get to the store and get my covered dishes prepared. You ladies have a great weekend!

Whatcha Working on Wednesday

Happy Holidays ladies, I'm home today from school starting our Thanksgiving break. Wednesday finds me decorating for Christmas. I've been working a few days on the living and dining rm. Here's a few photos of what I've done.

I'm using two pencil trees this yr. decorating them as one. Many of my ornaments have snowmen with little black hats. Mike found this old hat at a tag sale that looks just like Frosty! I have lots of twinkly lights and greenery everywhere. I've been outside most of the afternoon decorating there. I'll post those later. It must be in the 60's today! Tomorrow we go to my Mom and Dads for Thanksgiving. My brother and his wife and daughters. My SIL's parents come too. She is an only child so her Mom and Dad share all holidays with us. Its nice. They will all come over here for Christmas Dinner. Well I have been sick for a couple days, head cold, Yuck! I go for awhile and then I'm zapped. I hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving with their families this weekend. Yes, I too will be out shopping the day after, trying to get those great holiday bargains!

Christmas Decorating

Ok, I've officially started decorating for Christmas! The weather was chilly, I put in a Harry Connick Jr. Christmas CD and I got busy. Just hauling it from upstairs wore me out! I'd take up a load of fall and bring down a tub of Christmas. I buy so many things the day after Christmas then I wrap it up and the next yr. its all new stuff. Last yr. we went to a cute store not far from here the day after Christmas and i spent a couple hundred $ on half price stuff. So this yr. I'm real happy with everything. Last yr. remember I was on the homes tour and I had bought extra stuff then. My daughter says it looks like the craft store in our living rm. Its almost 9:00 pm and the daughter just got off the computer, and my feet hurt so I decided to post a minute and show you the madness. I was at a flea market the other day looking at Yes, more enamelware, I just can't seem to pass that up, I'm not kidding I have way to much of it. But I thought of taking the quilt off the ladder in my dining rm. and hang some enamelware! I might add more later, but i do like the looks of it. My fireplace picture turned out blurry? Ill take another one in the daylight, but I saw on someones blog where they placed picture frames on the fireplace. I found this huge on at a tag sale and haven't found a place for it. I need something in the middle, I had a rusty star up there but needed it in the dining rm. Ill find something. This yr. I'm not using my big tree, instead I'm using two pencil trees. I will decorate them as one. The close up is of the garland I made out of coffee stained muslin rusty pinned together at the ends. Not my idea, a friend Nancy B. thought of it first. Got that put on and tomorrow I can finish the trees. Even Scooter is tired of watching my go around the living rm. ZZZZZZZZZ! Chat with you later, thanks for checking in with me, Happy Holidays!

Favorite Junk Pieces

Hi Girls, Beth over at Olde Tyme Marketplace(Im so sorry I dont know how to add your site so that someone can just click on it from here) can anyone help? had a post to share your favorite junk piece. I said I would share a pic of mine. This is an old post office box from a small town near me. My husband bought it for $5.00 one tag sale. We had been looking for something big to hang behind the sofa, I had imagined a large advertising sign. He came home with this an it was perfect, heavy to hang but perfect. I love to use the mail slots to decorate with. Its a great conversation piece and a great eye catcher. I just love it. Gotta go to work chat at you gals later!

Fall Decorating

Hi girls, just a few photos of some of my fall decorating outside. It still can get pretty warm through the day here in Kansas. Our evenings are cool. My ferns are loving it as well as the mums. There are a slug of tag sales in the paper for Sat. morning. Even a small town north of here is having city wide. The hubby and I plan to be there. Our annual Neewollah is about two weeks away. The flags are up on the street and the ticket sales to the events have started. Ill post some later. Have a great weekend. My daughter is needing the computer for a school project.

Laundry room pics.

Hi bloggers, I was visiting with Annasam, from Its Harvest Time. She had pie pan tins on a wall and I mentioned my collection of enamelware in my laundry rm. I hope I haven't posted these pics twice. The first one showes my whisk broom valance. I can't take credit for the idea. I found this one in the Junkmarket book, love those books!! A few of the brooms are old and a few are new that I grunged up to look old. Its hard to find old whisk broom, most people just throw them away. Who would think someone like me would want to collect a whisk broom. I had been looking for some all over. New or old, they are even hard to find new. Most little brooms are made of plastic nowadays. I did however find these at an old Alco store, which its hard to find them even in our area! Anyway, I was mentioning once in front of my dad I had been looking at tag sales and in stores for one more whisk broom for my valance collection and he said" Oh, I think I have one of those out in my car under the seat. OMG!! Are you kidding me? And yes, he did! It just finished off my valance perfectly. I love it in my laundry rm too! I have a built in ironing board and over that is a collection of old enamelware washtubs. I have plenty, but it is so hard for me to pass them up. I buy them everytime! i just keep adding them to the wall. I have several washboards and even a couple old sleeve ironing boards on the wall, to the left of the cabniets. My wallpaper looks like old paint chipped wainscoating. I love it. Love the large washtub hanging on the lower part of the wall under the chairail border. Better go for now, its late. Ill try to post more on Sat. its suppose to rain all day. A great day to craft!!