OUR WORLD TUESDAY {4.12.16}

pics taken 4.12.16 - JPE's Garden

in OUR WORLD TUESDAY...

I would have to say... it's all about...

BLOOMING. COLOR. FLOWERS. WEATHER.

we have loads of flowers, in a variety of colors.

the weather? different story!

scattered showers scheduled for today?

oh, that's NOT part of our day on this TUESDAY!!

Isn't this just the P.E.R.F.E.C.T. rose?

the smell is so fragrant!

took this pictures in the direct SUN! 

not the best conditions...

so, blame that on the WEATHER!

posting with OUR WORLD on TUESDAY!

gotta get back to my sewing!

PRINTEMPS... SPRING... PRIMAVERA...

all pictures taken 3.20.16

HAPPY SPRING!!!

Do you think my neighbor will miss this??

ummm... love putting this bunny out!

has SPRING SPRUNG in your yard?

BUTTON, BUTTON... WHO'S GOT THE BUTTON?

TOMORROW is National Button Day!

I love the sound of running your hands through a bucket or dish of loose buttons!! if you don't know what I mean, find a fabric or hobby store that sells loose buttons by the scoop. Weave your hands through the bucket of buttons & you'll probably notice it sounds a bit like ocean waves moving shells along the sand.  I saw these buttons in a yarn shop in Cambria... they were organized in containers... and sold individually.

Have you ever washed (or hand-washed) a sweater, only to have it shrink to Barbie size proportions? Of course you have! Have to admit, I have too... but before I recycle the sweater, I cut off the buttons. The round-wheel looking buttons were removed from a green sweater that was much too itchy! (so I don't miss wearing it). And swirly buttons (there are four of them) were cut off a off-white fisherman knit sweater that belonged to my mother-in-law, Lana. I don't know how I ended up with the flat silver buttons, but I love the design on the face of them.

A flood of memories come to mind when I see these buttons. I sewed most of my daughter's clothes during their early years (6 mos-9 years). Allison loved purple! Stephanie liked unusual shapes --- so I sewed the telephones on the pockets of a corduroy jacket. Remember Hello Kitty? both girls had the pink kitty buttons on their blouses. 

Christmas is my favorite holiday! Even though I don't have plans to use these buttons, I bear to get rid of them. One year I sewed an army of gingerbread cookies on the girls bathrobes... Notice the bells! the two red metal ones actually make a noise. Oh... and the little reindeer. They're sweet, but I don't remember why I bought them?? Do you have to have a reason to buy cute-ness?

Of course I could go on & on about the VALUE of a button jar, but I'll leave you with this link to my Instagram post about National Button Day. 

If you have any buttons that you're ready to get rid of ~ I'm here! ready to take them off your hands.

Don't forget to post your button pictures tomorrow on your blog.

HAPPY HEART'S DAY...

Enjoying a l-o-n-g weekend of quiet!

JPE is in OHIO visiting this dad & trudging around in the snow!

Playing with my camera!

Rearranging!

Watching some HGTV!

Reading some blogs!

Eating some juicy, sweet "cuties"

(tangerines)

another three days off!

 

6 EGGS, 2 STICKS BUTTER, CUP of SOUR CREAM

Last night our kitchen smelled amazing!

TANGY LEMON juice scented the air,

as we finished bowls of lentil soup!

JPE had a "BAKING BUG"

at the end of our HOLIDAY visit, THE SKIDS

{the "best-est" of friends from Lakewood}

had given us a bag of LEMONS

{picked from from their tree}

 JPE used them to make
LEMON SOUR-CREAM POUND CAKE

{we shared a sliver for breakfast this morning}

dense. flavorful. enjoyed small bites.

this recipe is a K.E.E.P.E.R.

RECIPE FOUND HERE
 

BLISS...

quote by Nathaniel Hawthorne...

AHHHH!

It's FALL-ISH...

~ crisp, chilly mornings ~

scarves

long sleeves

sweaters & lightweight coats

52 shades of red, orange & yellow

{an exaggeration}

~ fluttering, rustling leaves ~

the smell of burning candles

& the sweetness of pumpkin bread

the heater comes on ~

it's time for flannel sheets!

What do you LOVE about this time of the year?

MAN-IN-THE-KITCHEN!

Y-E-S-T-E-R-D-A-Y

a lady at Avila Valley Barn asked JPE,

"AH, WHERE DO YOU LIVE?"

{JPE was holding two flats of raspberries!}

T-O-D-A-Y

 our kitchen smells like 

sweet, yummy, juicy, red raspberry jam!

I'll bet a 1000 bucks that lady would LOVE to be standing
in our kitchen right now!

MONDAY ERRANDS...

N.O.T.H.I.N.G.

"clears the mind"

{& details of work}

like an

AUTUMN

visit to the barn... 

LET HER ROLL!

Tues 5.14.13

I'm a bit over-organized when it comes to painting! I place all the supplies in the middle of the floor, then move the drop-cloth as I progress around the room.

Mix a couple drops of vanilla to mask the paint smell! You DO know that trick, don't you?

Isn't this color PRETTY? Creole Cottage by Sherwin Williams... Oh, my favorite paint brush is a PURDY! (and NO, I didn't receive any free samples or payment for these comments).

Taping & cutting in - it's more difficult with crown molding. Urrghhh!

By dinner, the job was almost complete. Only the alcove needed to be painted! Just a note - that piece of furniture can only be moved forwards & backwards (it requires several strong men to tip it up and move it back into that space). Unfortunately, I painted the alcove at the end of the day... which required me to s.q.u.e.e.z.e behind the chest... a confession - I got a bit sloppy with the paint brush. 

BUT, guest room painting is now completed!

Planning to paint the master bedroom on Friday.

Not the "best" pictures... but was focused on documenting the day & getting the painting done!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 2.24.13

Lola's "DREAMY" eyes

This week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY words appeared to be meant for bloggers with children, but the more I thought about it, the more I was able to put "my 60+ year perspective" on these phrases...

 

TIME TO EAT, GETTING READY, PLAYTIME,

SWEET DREAMS, SCRUB-A-DUB

I'll be spending some time checking in with the participants found at ASHLEY'S before the Academy Awards starts...

what a relaxing way to spend a Sunday!

Our "bluebird" is back!

He {I'm sure it's a HE} was pecking at the edge of the fence, sharpening his beak & then flying near the sliding glass window to get our attention. Of course, my nature "guy" had to connect with our "visitor from nature" & offer him a snack. Then, off he {the bluebird, not JPE} flew --- taking his walnut with him. Definitely TIME TO EAT for him.

My patience paid off --- after GETTING READY to capture a water drop, I was lucky enough to catch the action.

One of my favorite statues at the Huntington Library in Pasadena {had to pull this picture from my photo archive}. I think it represents PLAYTIME .

Another archived photo {sorry about that}... We babysat Lola this past summer... took her to the cabin... all that fresh mountain air! She certainly looks ready for some SWEET DREAMS.

There's something "very meditative" about washing dishes by hand... think it's the bubbles? warm water? the light reflecting off bubbles? rubbing the sponge over the dishes? ah! for me, it's about the water dancing over my fingertips. SCRUB-A-DUB!

Off to watch the Academy Awards... My vote for BEST PICTURE? BEST ACTRESS? oh, you'll have to wait until tomorrow... to see my prediction.

COME INTO THE GARDEN

taken at dusk ~ 10.5.12

"WON'T YOU COME INTO THE GARDEN?

I WOULD LIKE MY ROSES

TO SEE YOU."

:: Richard Brinsley Sheridan ::

Irish-born playwright, poet & long-term owner of the London Theater Royal

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 9.2.12

 SHS - all pics taken 9.2.12

Checking in with my choices for SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY.

The words are:  

CANDID, TOYS, ANY OF THE SENSES, BATTERIES & HALF.

I limited myself to 30 minutes for this week's hunt.... it's overcast (foggy) this morning, so I had crummy light.... the pictures have been staged!! (I'll bet I'm NOT the only SHS participant who "stages" their findings?)

CANDID

JPE's Buddha was not cooperating this morning. I couldn't get her attention, so I snapped this CANDID shot of her. 

TOYS

When I came downstairs this morning, there was a strong fragrance... a fruity smell?? The nectarines were ripe... AND the "bouncy-ball" (as Lydia calls this TOY) was in the fruit dish. The gal that cleans our house must have put it there!!! (yes, I'm one of those lucky working women that has some help...  since JPE is working 3/4 time, we've cut our cleaning to every other week). BTW - This is the only picture that wasn't staged.

ANY OF THE SENSES

Breakfast this morning! UMMMM.... See Canyon Apples... with a smear of peanut butter... a Laughing Cow cheese... and some grapes. Eating uses all the SENSES! vision, hearing, smell, taste & touch. Think about it... am I correct?

BATTERIES

I needed a strong cup of coffee to get my BATTERIES going this morning. JPE's off backpacking in the back-country with some former students... I had to make my own pot of coffee!

HALF

This gourd has two different designs... HALF has stars & the other HALF has snowflakes. I purchased this Christmas ornament at the National Museum of the American Indian Museum in Washington DC. If you get a chance to visit the Smithsonian Museums, don't miss it! It's often overlooked due to the popularity of the other museums - most people spend their time at the American History Museum and the Air & Space Museum...

BTW - even if you don't spend time at the NMAI, make sure you eat in the Mitsitam Cafe!!! Mom & I spent several days exploring the museums & we planned our day to include meals there... just so we could sample more Native American foods.

Hope you enjoyed the pics from my 30 minute hunt!

Next week's words are: MONOCHROMATIC, STARTS WITH THE LETTER..., UPSIDE DOWN, HAIR & SOFT.

Don't forget - anyone can participate in SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY. Look for pictures of the five words for next week, then visit Ashley's blog to post them. You should check out the picture Ashley posted for CANDID - it's a crack-up!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 7.1.12

I'M BACK... HAVEN'T PICKED UP MY CAMERA MUCH...

I'VE MISSED PARTICIPATING IN SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY
{gone the past two weeks!}

MY INTERPRETATIONS FOR THIS WEEK'S SHS WORDS...

SUNSET, SWEET, HANGING AROUND, FUNNY FACE, & SPACE


... are posted at SARAH'S BLOG!!! 
because ASHLEY (host of SHS) had her baby!
She has an adorable girl - check out this picture!!!

SHELL BEACH SUNSET

LUCKY US!!! 
WE SEE A SIMILAR SUNSET MOST EVERY DAY!

TASTING THE SWEET-NESS

LYDIA TURNS NINE YEARS OLD, TOMORROW!
JPE & I took her tent camping (1st time) the summer she turned SIX...
SHE LOVED THE SWEET-NESS OF SO'MORES!

CAL-POLY, SLO

A LONE BIKE - HANGING AROUND
AT CAL-POLY!
STUDENTS HAVE GONE HOME FOR THE SUMMER...
EXCEPT FOR THOSE LUCKY ENOUGH TO "SCORE"
PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT & A PLACE TO LIVE!!
{with our ideal weather, why would you want to go home?}

GOT SOME CHANGE?

SO, CAN YOU GUESS WHERE THIS PIC WAS TAKEN?
YOUR CLUE IS THE WORD "OYSTER"
{OYSTER is the name of the transport card Londoners
use to travel throughout this region of England}
FUNNY FACE VENDING MACHINE-PORTOBELLO MARKET PLACE.

BIG SUR BUDDHA

MY FAVORITE SPACE...
ANYTHING PEACEFUL, WITH MINIMAL CROWDS,
PLEASANT SMELLS, THE SOUNDS OF BIRDS
& TEMPERATURES IN THE 60-70'S.

I'LL BE BLOGGING THIS WEEK...
SO, PLEASE STOP BY AGAIN!!!

DE-LICIOUS DAY...

"testing for done-ness" ~ 10.15.11

CINNAMON SURPRISE COFFEE CAKE

3 c flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c butter (room temperature)

1 1/2 c sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

16 oz sour cream

:: Grease 12" BUNDT pan; set oven temperature at 350 degrees.

:: Combine first four ingredients in large bowl; set aside.

:: Mix together butter + sugar; then beat in one egg at a time.  

:: Stir in vanilla extract + sour cream.

:: Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. 

:: Place the following ingredients in small bowl; mix with fingers.  

1 TBSP cinnamon

4 TBSP butter (room temperature)

1/3 c brown sugar

2 TBSP flour

:: Spoon half batter into BUNDT pan.

:: Crumble cinnamon filling over batter & swirl knife thru layer.

:: Add rest of batter to pan.

:: Bake at 350 degrees (F) for 50-60 minutes.

"cooling"

:: Cool on wire rack. Invert onto plate after 30 minutes.

Afternoon treat w/a cuppa of tea!

JPE ~ you are the "BEST"

(baker, gardener, friend, husband, travel-partner...)

BTW ~ do you use an uncooked piece of pasta

to check your baked goods for done-ness?