Special Project.

The last time our ds and his family were over to the cottage, they brought this slightly beat up old dollhouse for me to work some magic on. It's very solid, handmade and well loved. Our little granddaughter is so excited but it's taking me a bit to get the project completed. I work on it here and there but with a rainy weekend on the horizon, I do hope to get a good chunk of it done. It was brown wood on the outside but she picked pink for the exterior color, so pink it is! I'll replace the opaque windows with some wood ones that I'll paint white. I started the roof shingles this morning and think that I'll paint those a nice brown and add in some green moss. A very special project ~ a true labor of love.

Today was hard and at the same time, lovely. A day off from work after many deaths and deadlines this past week. Other than a quick check of emails before we took kids to school, and a second check at the end of the day, I managed to keep work out of my head today. That made it a good day. When we dropped kids off, we decided to head over to Costco, no line up and we were in and out so quick. Fresh fruit, a beet salad to try at lunch, tuna, ciabatta buns, muffins, yogurt, chicken to package up for the freezer, Olive Garden salad dressing, our favorite nut mix and frozen yogurt bars while the weather is so hot. We rushed home to put everything away and wait for the delivery truck with our 2 loads of dirt. We waited and waited and finally they answered when we kept trying to call. And they showed up at 5:30. Ugh, but at least we have the dirt we need for now. More to come in time. And all day, I felt so nauseated. I think it's a combination of the heat as well as starting back on my supplements to boost my adrenals. Clearly I was low as it's really hit me hard this round. But this too shall pass and then I'll feel good again. That made it a hard day. The predicted thunderstorm showed up, and in between the sun, the rain fell, the wind blew and the sky boomed. It's quiet for now but supposed to start up again. I did weed this morning while waiting for the dirt, so the garden will look great. It's supposed to rain through the night and most of tomorrow. After my kids grief class, we may drive in to town to get more paint brushes for the dollhouse. We'll see what happens when we wake up. Our weather here is unpredictable at best. We just "go with the flow" cause we can't fight it. Hoping that there will be some sun so we can sit outside and enjoy the landscape after the rain. I love the freshness of of it all and the smell of cedar from our deck.

I'm off to finish watching "The Kaminsky

Method." Such a great series. Namaste.

~ Chy

Brekky Done.

When little granddaughter slept over

a few weeks ago, this is how she left

her brekky plate for us. Toast all done

and crusts left for us in a flower shape.

Grand Play.

When our little granddaughter, L, had a

sleepover at our house last weekend, she

was full of energy and wanted to "play"

with everyone and anyone who was home.

She especially enjoyed the little kitchen

area we set up in our art studio for visiting

grands and friends. Making dd dinner and

creating a snack for me was on the agenda.

This is a memory to be cherished from

that night. Without really knowing what

I like to eat, she chose, lemons, limes and

cupcakes for me to snack on. And guess

what my favorites are? Yes, lemons, limes

and cupcakes. I'd have to add in lobster and

risotto as well. Maybe milk chocolate to

round it out. But I was so amazed that she

looked at me and said "gramma, I think you

would like these things" and she was right!

The Market.

We have a couple of Farmer's Markets 

during the week in our small hamlet.

But sometimes we like to venture in the

big City to visit the market off Whyte Ave.

Fruit, veggies, baking, art of all kinds, and

music in the background, creating atmosphere.

I love all all the vibrant colors and the freshness.

We bought the orange cauliflower on the left.

Our last stop was visiting the artisan who felts

wool into hats, socks, art and even some toys.

She is so talented and fun to talk to. I'd love to

learn how to felt one day. Intriguing and colorful.

Do you have a Farmer's Market close by?

If you do, do you visit yours often?

Tiny Explorer.

L wanted to see our veggie patch

and we were happy to do a tour.

She was very interested in the vines

growing in the pumpkin raised box.

And had fun watering the beets.

She wants to come back to see

how big everything gets. I'm

hoping we can send her home

with a pumpkin or two in the Fall.

Wouldn't that be so sweet?

"It's Daddy!"

 

L found the little scrapbook we have

all about her daddy. She said "it looks

just like him!" He is a bit taller, sports

a thick beard and his hair is darker now.

But yes, it does still look like him and

it was fun to see her look through it.

A Princess Gift.

I love buying gifts for our grandbabies but

its harder to figure out what to get for our

little granddaughter. She is really into Super

Heroes but also loves "girly" things. And

mom and dad are very conscious of the

environment, as are we ~ raised them well!

So trying to find something that she'll love,

keep her busy, get her to use her creativity

and being mindful of the world around us,

can be challenging. I was so excited to find

this set for her! We have bought a lot of

Plan Toys for our centre because of how

they are made, the materials and play value.

Here's the set looked like before we wrapped.

I'm happy to report she was very excited to open

this gift at Christmas, carefully unwrapping each

piece (they are all wrapped in small paper bags)

and putting together her own version of the castle.

Everyone played along with her and her giggles

were quite infectious! A perfect investment.

In the Post.

 

I spotted this sweet little Halloween

card and just had to buy it for our little

granddaughter. She lives in the big city

beside us but I don't think we'll see her

before the big day, so we took a few

minutes out to send this along in the post.

Our grandson then decided to add in a

picture he drew for her. We'll likely do

a Skype session that night and I hope

this will have arrived in her mailbox.

Look who's Two!!

Our little L turned two today. 

We so love getting pictures of her every day as we

don't get to see her due to distance. But pictures &

Skype are the next best thing! L is starting to talk,

she's a bundle of energy & the sweetest baby girl.

Love you L, our tiny princess!!

My 100th Post Contest!

A week between posts.

Busy, busy time in our lives. 

So 2 posts in 1 today.

A 2 for 1 deal!

My 100th post, complete with 

my 1st contest giveaway. 

And my contribution to 

Mockingbird Hill Cottage's 

"A Favorite Thing" weekly check in. 

I started this blog on 

September 3rd, 2011. 

It's taken almost 2.5 years for me to 

reach 100 posts. The first year, I wrote 

exactly 35 posts. Ironically, in 2012, 

I wrote exactly 35 posts. To date,
for 2013, I have now written
30 posts. I think I'll beat my high 

of 35 for this year. 

My first contest, complete with a 

giveaway is small but manageable.
I hope you'll join in! 

I have selected a brand new, tiny 

but cute, picture frame. It measures 

approximately 2 inches x 3 inches, 

with the picture slot smaller. It is ceramic, 

with hand painted flowers 

and a plastic protector that covers 

the photo. Bonus feature: it has a strong
magnet on the back so you can hang it in a 

variety of places. 

To win, please tell me how long 

you have been blogging, 

why you started blogging,  

how long it took you to 

reach your 100th post and 

how you find the blogs you love to

read now. Briefly tell me why a blog 

catches your attention and what you 

like to see to keep reading. 

Leave a comment below and 

I'll randomly choose the winner 

on Sunday, March 3rd, 2013, 

the 2.5 year anniversary of this blog. 

If it's a sunny day, I may throw in an 

extra bonus item to sweeten the deal. 

Keep your fingers crossed for 

a sunny day in Canada!!

Now on to our next post within the post. 

For my contribution to "A Favorite Thing",

the most incredible charity shop purchase

we've made to date. 

Special on so many levels. 

Almost 24 years ago, our home was

gutted by fire. A fire set at midnight by 

our foster child, who had an idea in his

head that if he had come into foster care

because he had done something wrong, 

maybe he would get sent home if he did

something wrong. We were getting ready

to have our youngest son at the time

christened on the weekend, 

a small baby just 6 months old.

Foster child admired the Christening gown, 

worn by many family members and our

beloved children as we laid it out that night. 

Hours later, he woke us up to tell us that
the house was on fire. We fled, unharmed
and grateful for the warning. Many of our
precious items (photos, wedding and baby
videos, family heirlooms) were saved or
untouched. But our precious
Christening gown was gone. It was, as the
fire inspector discovered later, the
item that foster child lit to start the fire. 

We did have our son Christened, years later,

when our next youngest baby was born. But

we never found another gown, until Friday. 

Working a bit later than usual, we almost

didn't make our weekly Friday afternoon

trek to the shop. Sneaking in just a

short time before it would be closing,

we rushed thru, finding a few

lovely items and paying before

they called the closing announcement.

We bid our farewells and 

walked towards the door. 

And there it was, tucked behind the 

wall, a small piece of lace catching my 

eye. My husband was almost out the 

door and I quickly grabbed his arm, 

then grabbed the gown. Silky, creamy

and oh so soft. But as I held it tightly

in my hand, I was sure I would turn the

price tag over and reveal a high

figure. To our great surprise, the

tag read just $20. What??!!

Without question and just a 

glance to each other, we rushed up

to the counter. Everyone began to 

comment on our "find" and we

beamed! If only they knew what

this beautiful, not a mark on it

gown means to us. 

Thanking everyone, we gathered 

it in our arms and left the 

shop, our hearts beating and 

our smiles getting bigger as we

headed towards our home. 

It took more than 20 years but

we found our perfect heirloom item. 

Our kids are too old but our newest

granddaughter will be the first to 

wear this special dress. And from

there we will pass it along to the

newest family members as they

arrive, on the day their name

will be proclaimed as official. 

Every family has a story to tell.

Part of ours will be how this

Christening gown came into

 our lives. Discarded by another

family, ours saw the precious

meaning behind the lacy, 

silky creation. 

Baby Shower Gifts.

On the weekend, we

attended the baby shower

for our newest

grandbaby, due at the

end of February.

 

 

We have been "collecting"

tiny baby items for months

in anticipation of the big day.

 

 

At Christmas, we were

given the amazing news that

our new grandbaby will

be a beautiful granddaughter!

 

Our baby shopping became

intense with searching

for the perfect pink items!



 

This baby is truly a

miracle, so this frame is

just the right one to

describe this time in our

son and daughter-in-laws

lives. And ours!