Welcome Is Such a Beautiful Word....

My Niece gave me a sweet front door hanging for Valentines day and her little girl, JoJo helped me hang it.  The Welcome hanging has been there for weeks now and I did not want to put it away for next year because it has such special memories for me.

 So rather than take it down I decided to paint it in colors of the country... browns, greens and creams.

My basket of craft paint has just about every color and I mixed a few to give them each a country hue.

There, first coat is on and now to hang it on the blank wall, that I keep a nail in for just such things, to dry for the night.

Then it's time to give it a bit of pizzaz.... Which is nothing more than a few dots of cream craft paint and a bit of contrasting smudges.

Now with it's new paint, my door hanging can stand the test of time and all seasons.

Thank you, Mona and JoJo.

I just love it because it reminds me of our special time together.

I did leave the cupcake, to remind me of the day JoJo and I made those special little treats.

I've always found it so hard to put away such gifts.  Redoing it in another fashion is ok when the main part of the gift is held intact. 

 Welcome is just a wonderful word to have on your front door.

It tells all your family and friends to come on in.

"Have a great weekend everyone"

I'm linking up to

Potpourri Friday 

 Thrifty Things Friday

Tickled Pink 

Saturday Night Special 

Metamorphosis Monday 

Power of Paint 

xoxox

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I'm Quite Happy To See Spring Blooming All Around Me....

 It was quite a nice day to take a stroll around my yard and I found so many flowers blooming... We have been very dry so the sprinkler has been on every day this week.  Could be why all the flowers are coming up faster than normal. 
 I'm happy to say all the new grass seeds I put in last month are now a beautiful green carpet, about 6" tall.  You would all laugh to see me out there with my scissors cutting the new grass.. I will not let the garden guy cut it with his horrible lawn mower... not until it's established anyway....

African Iris

Of all the perennials in my yard, the Black Eyed Susan is the one that comes back from seeds.  I'm finding it in so many different spots.  Usually I dig up the little seedlings and transplant to another location.  Some are growing in the grass right now and I hope to get to them soon.  This might be my favorite flower because their no work at all.

This Purple Shamrock, was given to me by a dear friend who died from a horrible cancer  a few years ago.   I'm quite happy to say it is still thriving.   The little tubers lay dormant under the soil all winter. It's little pink flowers came out just the other day.

The potted plant below, I have no idea the name, but many of you Northern gardeners have it as a house plant.  It's been in my front yard for years and I've made cuttings for so many friends.  It's hard to kill this plant.

( Kalanchoe, thanks to several of my bloggie friends who gave me the name of this plant. Your all the best)

I have a Bleeding Heart from last season  that trailed down from a hanging basket. I was quite surprised to see it survived and is coming back to life. 

Although it's not officially Spring. You would never know it here.  In fact, I'd say it's Summer where I live because it's been in the 80's all week.  Lovely weather we are having and I have gotten a lot done in my yard. 

I do hope you all can get some gardening done soon.

I'm linking up to

Tuesdays Garden Party 
Out Door Wednesday 
Oh How My Garden Grows 
Show Off Your Stuff 
Alphabet Thursday 
Fertilizer Friday 
Blooming Friday 

The Apron and It's Many Uses.....

 I did a post last year on Aprons and wanted to share a bit more because I love the idea of the apron.  

Today our aprons are made of such pretty and not so durable fabric,  and  we women today, tend to use our apron as a fashion statement.

 I still don't think our kids know what an apron is. 

The Apron is something all women can relate to weather we use one or just have one hanging on a hook in our kitchen.  

(Mine is on a hook and never used)

The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few. It was also because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons used less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven. 

It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.. 
 The pockets of Grandma's apron were a treasure trove. There at hand was almost everything she could possibly need at a moment's notice: handkerchief, scissors, pencil, measuring spoon, safety pin ... you name it.
And when the weather was cold Grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow when bent over the hot wood stove. Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool. Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folk knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes. 

Today most people would go crazy  trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron.

I don't think I ever caught anything from an Apron - but love...

Do you have an apron or two and if you do, what do you use them for?

((huggss))

Pink Slime (Sludge) and Your Childrens Health.....

I know your wondering "What is that"??

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of wondering what to eat and what is safe to eat! ?

This wonderful looking stuff is ground meat!  Really!

It has been fed to our kids over the years. Yes, if you bought Chicken Nuggets, this is what it starts out as! I'm sure you have noticed the new advertising from McDonalds stating their Chicken Nuggets are now made with only the best white meat... they stopped using this Pink sludge a few years ago. (thank you).

The USDA says the “Lean Finely Textured Beef or Chicken” is treated with ammonium hydroxide to kill bacteria. It claims the meat is safe, and has been on the menu in school cafeterias since the 1990’s. Knowing this makes me what to "GAG"!  

The new word is, the government just bought another  $7 million dollars of the stuff for our schools..

 Please, feed it to Congress for "Their" lunch!!

Click here and sign the Petition, Tell Congress to stop using Pink Slime in our schools

But what about the rest of the "Food Chain"?

Food manufacturers think you're stupid. In fact, they’re banking on it. Why else would Hershey’s put a ribbon on the Good & Plenty box that says “A fat-free candy.” Sure, it's true—no fat in the box—but it's also very misleading. The candy is essentially 100 percent sugar and processed carbs. And Hershey knows the average American equates fat-free with being good for you.

Your food can legally contain maggots and rat poop. Sure, the FDA limits the amount of such appetite killers in your food, but that limit isn't zero. Trace amounts won’t make you sick, but the thought of them will.

The leanest cuts of meat may have the highest sodium levels. Leaner cuts by definition are less juicy. To counteract this, some manufacturers "enhance" turkey, chicken, and beef products by pumping them full of a liquid solution that contains water and salt.

Junk food is like a drug. A study in the journal of Nature Neuroscience found that eating junk food doesn’t just satisfy cravings—it creates them. That’s right; junk food is addictive. That's why manufacturers load their foods with sugar, salt, and artificial flavorings, and why you should never forget the golden rule: If your food can go bad, it's good for you. If it can't go bad, it's bad for you.

Calorie counts may be wrong. To ensure you're getting at least as much as you pay for, the FDA is more likely to penalize a food manufacturer for overstating the net weight of a product than understating it. As a result, manufacturers often package more food than the stated net weight or make servings heavier than the stated serving size weight. 

There are more than 3,000 items on the FDA’s list of approved food additives—everything from acesulfame potassium (an artificial sweetner that animal studies have linked to breast cancer) to Yellow #5 (a food coloring linked to learning and concentration disorders in children).

I know the majority of people eat what makes them happy and I'm not preaching here but I went healthy after my heart decided to not work right.  That scared me into eating only healthy foods.  I also can say I never had junk food in my home when the kids were growing up.. no, not even soda.  Today they all eat healthy and feed their kids the same.  So it does work if you don't bring the bad foods home. Your kids will eat what you feed them. My 27yr old daughter has a totally Vegan home and her boys don't even ask for junk at all.

Please take a moment to sign the petition above.  

Although I don't have children in school anymore,  I don't want your kids to eat this sludge either.. it's in your schools,  fast food restaurants and in frozen foods.. think about that!

Now that I made you all go "Ewwww"

Have a great week.

I'm linking up to

 Cheri's Party Time

 

Day Lilly's and Nome, Alaska.....

I had some bulbs stored in a basket for the winter, with the hopes of planting them this spring.  

Look what I found.  One of the Day Lilly's bloomed in that basket without producing leaves. 

As most of us in the South are experiencing beautiful weather I wanted to share a photo of my Son. His local news  took the shot while he was walking near his home,  along a down town Juneau, street.

 Think it might be cold there?

Below is the view from his living room window today, in Juneau.. yes, really!

 

We here in Clearwater were in the perfect 80's today and I spent another day in the garden.  I managed to clean up one of the flower beds by moving some bricks and adding new soil, then planted the stored bulbs.

 I felt sorry for this poor Day Lilly and put it in a coffee cup, then on my kitchen window sill.

After having such a beautiful week here in Clearwater I keep going back to look at my Son walking in all that cold and Ice.   I get cold just looking at the photo.

The photo below is of a town he will be going to this week. It is all of 1.5 miles away from Russia.   Little Diomede, the Western most US village sitting on the International Dateline. Only 147 people call this awesome place (Toms words) home.   I hear from an elder in Wales, AK that we shall see Polar Bears!!  OH.... and since there is no airport, we'll be landing on the Bering Sea, an ice runway that hopefully has not blown away from the northerly winds.

 

Tom is an officer and an adventurer, with the Coast Guard and will be teaching the Native Americans that live there, safety and boating,  he is so excited to be going.  

My boy, my grown up boy, is holding the sweat shirt that he will be wearing during this operation. I can still see the 16 year old with his new shirt.

We may be losing an hour of sleep due to daylight savings tonight but Coast Guard men & women remain 

Semper Paratus, Always Ready.

I wanted to send out some good vibes for Tom to have a fun, safe trip.

"Fair Winds and Following Seas"

* * * *

And sending out a big

"HAPPY SPRING"

 to everyone.

I'll be linking up to

Sunday Showcase 

It's Party Time 

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday 

WoW us Wednesday 

x0x0x0x

Spring, The Best Time Of Year.....

If I could bottle the weather here today and screw the top on tight,  I would open it in August,  when the heat sores in the high 90's. 

We had the most beautiful, perfect 75' day here,  today.  

I used this day to pull all the weeds that have collected over the winter.  I even put on my tattered  jeans and my garden boots,  then took out the weed wacker and cleaned up  down by the creek.  This was not an easy job. I had to cut several Banana trees that had to endure the cold weather.  Branches and limbs from the tall Hickory Trees,  were scattered from the high winds we've  had and all of the garden waste went into the pile for the lawn guy, who will cart it away tomorrow.

After the ground was turned and the weeds were gone I got myself cleaned up and headed to my local garden shop.  

Geraniums and Soprano's for the front yard flower bed. This spot shows from the street and each year I do my best to make it beautiful and proud.

I may have started something this morning. One of my neighbors came out with his rake and garden tools and said,  "I was making him feel guilty" and he got started on his yard.

Although I love to craft, do needle work and putter around my house, I think the most pleasing activity for me is working in my garden.  This past winter I've been busy inside with family and projects, I'm so happy to be able to venture outside with my garden tools.

I do hope everyone gets as much pleasure in the garden as I.

 * * * *

A Prayer in Spring 

OH, give us pleasure in the flowers today;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.

 For this is love and nothing else is love,
To which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends he will,
But which it only needs that we fulfill.

Robert Frost

((huggss))

10 Things You Can Clean In the Dishwasher....

"Spring is on the way and time to clean a few things around the house"

 I just love helpful hints and I ran across this article the other day.  It's been something I've been doing for years.  For those of you who may worry about the dishwasher being unsanitary after using it for other items, keep in mind the dish washing detergent has bleach in it,  so be careful with colorfast items and don't put anything silver in there, it will turn black.  I totally ruined a set of silverware.

 Sure, your dishwasher makes quick work of dirty plates and cups. But lots of other stuff will get squeaky-clean in there, too. "Dishwashers are real time-savers for cleaning many household and personal items."

I have been putting so many items in my dishwasher for years.  In fact,  I have put my kids sneakers in there on occasion.

1. Glass Globes from Light Fixtures
It's amazing how much brighter a room will look after this cleaning task is checked off your to-do list. "Run these through on the top shelf and make sure there's space between them because the glass is more fragile than what's used for drinking glasses.   Use the delicate, china or crystal cycle if available, and skip the heated dry option. And to be safe, avoid washing antique or hand-painted globes or those with gold-leaf trim in the dishwasher.

2. Shower Heads and Faucet Handles
If your shower head is spraying sporadically from clogged holes or your faucet handles aren't as shiny as they used to be, place these on the top rack and run the pots and pans cycle. It's fine to run cookware through at the same time, so you're not wasting a wash for these few items.

3. Plastic Hair Brushes, Combs, Clips and Barrettes
These personal care items get coated with hair products, but clean up well in the dishwasher, says Trotter. Remove all strands of hair, then corral everything in a mesh lingerie bag or dishwasher basket on the top rack. Run a normal cycle. One note:  Don't try this trick with wood-handled or natural bristle brushes because the water and heat can damage them.

4. Baseball Hats and Visors
"The dishwasher is a fantastic way to make sure hats keep their shapes."  Put hats on the top rack, head opening down, on a separate wash cycle from dishes because you can't use dishwasher detergent (many contain bleaching agents). Instead, fill the detergent cup with borax, found in the supermarket laundry aisle. Run a regular cycle without the heated dry option, then place hat over a glass or jar to dry. Reshape brim while damp.

5. Plastic Toys
Small plastic items such as baby toys, teethers and action figures can get funky pretty fast. Toss them in a mesh bag or dishwasher basket and place on the top rack. "Wash these on a normal cycle along with your other dishes"

6. Pet Bowls and Toys
It's generally fine to load these with other dishes. "Wash them regularly to prevent the growth of bacteria that can make both you and your pet sick."  "But it's prudent to run a separate load or use the sanitize cycle if you have a baby or a familymember with a suppressed immune system." Most dishwasher-safe toys are labeled accordingly on the package or manufacturer's website. However, if you're not sure whether the material will hold up in the dishwasher, just to be safe, you can also soak toys in 1 part bleach to 10 parts water, and rinse well. Rope toys and rawhide chews can't be cleaned; toss when icky.

7. Kitchen Dish Sponges and Brushes
Load these up at the same time you do the regular dishes. The top rack is usually the best place so you can stand them up or wedge between other items. Run through on a normal cycle.

8. Kitchen Appliance Parts
Once a week, load all of these into the dishwasher to make the whole kitchen seem shinier: chrome drip pans, enamel-coated gas grates and burner caps, fridge water dispenser grate, sink plugs, microwave tray and range hood grease filters. Use the normal washing cycle.  I even put my refrigerator racks in the dishwasher.

9. Butter Dishes, Sugar Bowls, Spoon Rests, and Salt and Pepper Shakers
"We handle all of these things every day, so they collect lots of grease and grime, which you may not even notice," says Trotter. Periodically empty sugar, spice and condiments and wash these containers along with your regular loads. Once they are completely dry, you can refill them with the contents you set aside before washing.

10. Personal Care Items
Toothbrushes, toothbrush holders, goopy soap dishes, nail brushes, plastic makeup brushes and bathtub drain plugs all benefit from an occasional run through the dishwasher. Place on the top rack with smaller items tucked in a dishwasher basket, and wash on a normal cycle with your other dishes.  Lets not forget the rubber bath tub mat. It comes out beautifully.

 Ok, no more excuses to not wash all those items around your house.  
Put them in the dishwasher.

I'm linking this great info 

Saturday Night Special 

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