Happy Anniversary!

This month, my sweet husband and I celebrated our anniversary. Our wedding was in 1986 and if I hadn't worn a hat you definitely would have noticed some big '80's hair! It was a small wedding in my church which was only a block away from home. Here we are in our "ivory" and the bridesmaids wore peach. It was just a peaches and cream wedding!

The whole wedding was a family affair, except for the flowers of course. They were fresh flowers all done up by Estelle's Flower Shop. My mother made the gorgeous cake, we filled the rice bundles ourselves (now it has to be birdseed!) A sweet old lady in town made the bridesmaids dresses out of what I thought then was the most beautiful fabric I'd ever seen! My dress, however was purchased, along with my hat. I still have the receipt! $175.00 for the whole thing! These days girls are spending thousands on their dresses! I think my cream colored Gloria Vanderbilt pumps cost half as much as the dress and hat! It didn't matter to me. I just wanted to marry my sweetheart! A big, expensive wedding was never our taste anyway.

Our only regret is that the photographer took soooooo long after the wedding that we didn't really get time to "visit" with anyone! Our sweet grandparents had traveled some distance to be there! If we had it all to do over again, the photography is the one thing we would change, but back then I was a stickler for tradition and wasn't about to let my groom see me before the wedding! He was almost late that day, but nobody let me in on it! No matter. He made it and we are still just as in love as we were on that day. Probably more so!

Thankful for the Rain!

What a treat to have it rain every day while you are away! We went on vacation and our plants did not suffer! (They wouldn't have anyway, our sweet neighbors were checking them everyday for us.) But thank God for the rain! Everything looks so lush. And we live in the desert!
As for gardening, I consider myself an amateur, but it's in my blood! I remember my great-grandmother's front porch, flower bed and vegetable garden, and HER out in a long-brimmed bonnet working everyday! I remember the giant kalanchoes my grandparents always grew in their "den-den." And I'll NEVER forget my grandmother's itchy fig tree! I had to get up early every morning in the summer and take my red, Gandy's plastic ice cream bucket out and pick figs. As a teenager, I really resented that fig tree, but now....I'm trying to figure out where I can squeeze one in on our property!
The patio is nice this time of year! It is a place to have quiet time in the early morning, listening to the sounds of the fountain and the birds. It is a place to relax and watch the kids play. It is a place to visit with family and friends on into the evening, provided the mosquitos don't start chomping on us!

This is one of my favorite spots at home. The patio! The fence is covered in trumpet vine this time of year. It's really a treat for me to watch the hummingbirds and butterflies flock to these gorgeous flowers!
This one is a little blurry. The breeze couldn't stop for just a second! But you can still appreciate the orange and coral-pink color of these hardy flowers.

I get to walk by that wall of flowers on my way to the Potting Shed.

Here is a shot of one of our Lily of the Nile blossoms just beginning to open. It found a home around our fountain. The sound of the water is so nice any time of day!

Now this is just too darned cute, but I can't remember the actual name of it! I bought them at Walmart and I think they were called Summer Snapdragons, but I can't be sure and that's not like me because I can always remember flower names (unlike medicine names!)

Portulaca, or Moss Rose as I've heard it called. This is in a basket on the back porch.

Isn't the Bacopa cute right now? I came home from vacation and found it full of blossoms, thanks to that nearly 5 inches of rain that fell while we were gone!

And this is my new favorite! A variegated verbena. It reminds me of candy canes in the summertime.......or those cute little "pink ladies" at the hospital! I just love it! I want it every year!
I have it potted with spider plant and another pink petunia-like flower that I can't remember the name of. Shame on me!

I am linking up with Tootsie @ Tootsie Time http://www.tootsietime.com/ for "Flaunt your Flowers, Fertilizer Friday."

Table Top Tuesday

Today is Table Top Tuesday, a party hosted by Marty @ A Stroll Thru Life. I have been following this party for only a short time, but I decided to go ahead and join in. My entry today is not a "before and after" tablescape or vignette. Instead I decided to show you various "tops" from around my home. After all, I AM trying to catch up with all of the other wonderful bloggers who like to decorate as much as I do! And, since table tops and vignettes are two of my most favorite creative outlets, this is definitely the party for me!



Here is the vignette on "top" of our dining table.

Here is the "top" of my mantle.

..a few vintage linens and a flea market picnic basket on "top" of an old chair in my kitchen.

The "top" of the my laundry room cabinet.

And finally, the "top" of an old chest in my entry.

Be sure to go over to A Stroll Thru Life and enjoy all the other entries for Table Top Tuesday!
http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/

Office Redo

I LOVE decorating! It is my passion. When I do this type of work it feels like play, even though it is physically exhausting sometimes! Here are some "before" and "after" pictures:



South wall, before. I had to work around the cherry hutch as it needed to stay put. So, there was a balance challenge!

South wall, after. The dark color and heavy shelves help to balance out the hutch pretty nicely. It is a custom mixed color. On the Kelly Moore charts it is called "Old Brick" but I had it mixed in a Martha Stewart base. This color really brought the two different woods together.

West wall, before.

West wall, after. I did a ragging/aging technique using Martha Stewart's "Pear Cider"....great color!


Northwest corner, before.

Northwest corner, after. (The boxes on the floor are gone now!)


East wall, after.

My client was really pleased! Everyone in the building seemed to enjoy the transformation as well. I know I did! I think I could work in this space. I like the warm glow the colors created.

Sometimes I wonder...is decorating really all that necessary? It seems kind of frivolous to some. I mean, couldn't we get our work done and live just as well in plain, functional, unadorned rooms? I'm sure we could, but then I think about God's sunrises and sunsets. If He chooses to begin and end a day with glorious, sometimes dramatic colors, then why shouldn't we surround ourselves with them during our work, play, and everyday life. I also think about His perfect order. How every living thing has a place and a purpose. He chose to create our planet with perfect order and beauty. That must then be a model for our homes, offices, churches, schools and public places. Everyone feels better when surrounded by beauty. We all function better when there is "a place for every thing and every thing in its place." So there's my answer. YES! Decorating IS necessary!