A New Mini Overstuffed Chair

I have been super busy for the last few days.  I have been helping my Mom 

redecorate her bedroom.  New bedding, lamps and accessories to add to the

French Country pieces I gave her for Christmas.  There is still quite a bit more

to do and we are waiting for things to arrive.  However, in the meantime I

have been shopping for some things for my dollhouse.  I received some money

for Christmas designated for the dollhouse and I am taking my time putting

the pieces together.  Of course it will help enormously to construct the dollhouse.

So far I have these two mini chairs.  The Bar Harbor rocker I bought a while

back and this new upholstered chair.  I am planning on a pink and green

scheme for the house.  I want a farmhouse shabby look for it.  I have to limit

myself to the time I spend online looking at minis because I would never sleep 

if I didn't.  

It is amazing how many adorable minis there are.  I have a budget so I have to

shop wisely.  Too bad there are no consignment shops for minis.  There must be

some dollhouse owners who want to redecorate and sell there stuff at a discount.

Hey wait ~ maybe I should start one :-)  

Show and Tell Friday

Pink Saturday

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Dear Diary

Remember when you were a young girl and you used to keep a diary?

It was a place where your innermost secrets were stored.   I remember

keeping one for a few years.  Although I no longer have those early ones

I recall that the pages were filled with where I went and who I saw and

of course my latest crush.  Back then it was so much about the "boy 

du jour".  

But as I got older I no longer took the time to record my every move.

I kept the boys in my life around a bit longer and eventually decided on 

the one who would be around permanently.  Then the diary creeped back

into my life.  I received this one for Christmas I believe.  The opportunity

for entries was limited, but that was fine with me because the book was 

filled with lovely images created by Mary Emmerling.

I took the time to make brief entries each day.  There was not much soul 

searching done.  It was more of a listing of daily events.  I went to lunch

with ... or we attended a party at this house ... or I saw this movie.

Quite dull now that I read back through those entries.  Yet I learned so

much about the young woman I used to be.  She was growing and

exploring despite the self absorbed entries there were glimpses of a

woman who was developing new interests and taking the world head on.

Relatives still gave me desk calendars in the years to come, but I was

too busy to write in them.  Obviously someone had discovered I 

thought Mary Engelbreit's work was charming and I received a few

these diaries.  There were some half hearted attempts to jot down some

notes, but nothing else.  It is a shame because it would be fun to go down

memory lane.

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Of course we don't call them diaries anymore.  We are far more

sophisticated than that.  They are now called journals.  So much is

devoted to the craft of journaling.  There are magazines, and beautiful

leather bound journals.  We are told that journaling will lower stress 

levels.  Kids in grades schools must make journal entries.  I think these

are all fine and I am impressed at the creativity expressed in these

journal entries.

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You can really create whatever you like within your journal.  You can

free your inner artist while pouring out your soul.  It's your choice.

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But for me, I believe I have evolved beyond the "selfie" stage of diary

keeping.  Now I love to read journals about the daily life of others.  I become

absorbed in the commonness of chores and the rhythm of life that includes

gardening, cooking caring for children and pets.  

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These have inspired me to go out a purchase a spiral notebook, or perhaps

even better, a spiral art book with blank pages to record the little and 

wondrous things and events that occur each day.  The ones we don't 

always take the time to notice.  Or to perhaps record all of the newness

that I am experiencing here in Texas.  The sayings, the customs the

personality of this new home.

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Sarah Turnbull did it so very well in her travel memoir.

If you have not read this yet, please do.  It is delightful!

That's it for my ramblings today.  Maybe I should start keeping

a journal about Bentley's days.  He is so fascinating!

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Come Hang Out in My Studio

Hi everyone!  Hope you are all having a good Monday so far.  I feel like

spending a bit of the day in my studio and thought I would invite you to

 join me and just hang out.  I spend a lot of time in this room.  It is the one

place in the house that is all mine.  On a sunny morning the room is filled

with sunshine and the mix of all the cottage pastel colors always makes

me feel happy.  It's like a colorful cottage garden with little flowers peeking

through everywhere.  

There are some very important elements in this room.  Here is my Mac

where I write all of my blog posts.  You will usually find a pot of hot tea

on my desk.  And music!  I must have music playing.  Today it is

the sound track from the movie Miss Potter.  This soundtrack is just

magical to me and inspires creativity.

This is my old sewing machine.  It's not an antique beauty like a 

Singer Featherweight which I hope I will one day own.  No, it's a 

dependable workhorse that my parents bought me years ago.  It has

a history and that makes it special to me.  I remember sewing a slipcover

for a sofa on this machine.  I invited a girlfriend over and we spent the 

entire day making a pattern and stitching a slipcover for an old sofa I

bought for $50.00.  The slipcover was off white and we also stitched 

up some blue pillows from Laura Ashley fabric.  We did this while 

watching hours and hours of I Love Lucy on VHS.  We had so much

fun that day and it is a treasured memory. 

The following weekend Cathy came over again and we painted the wall

behind that sofa a blue that I had mixed to match the blue in the pillows.

We stenciled the other walls in a blue and green vine.  We thought it was

devine!  One of the last times I was in Houston we drove by that old

apartment complex and discovered it has quite recently been torn down.

Made me feel sad.  So many happy memories were created there.

Oh well ~ progress.

I love little notebooks.  I keep a stash of them.  Never know when I might

find something on the internet, or passage from a book or whatever that I 

want to save and refer to later.  Those green and white ones are favorites of

mine.  They are the sweetest notebooks made in France.  The French often

have the most charming ideas.  I also keep a copy of "Writing Down the 

Bones" by Natalie Goldberg, a pocket size Universal French Dictionary and

a tiny little Curious George bookmark in this basket filled with notebooks.

Oh and this.  I covered one of those mini composition books that you find

everywhere.  This little book keeps track of all the books I have read.  It

helps me because I can't remember them all and it's always so helpful to 

share titles of favorite books and authors with friends.  I think I may have

shown this to you before, but that's okay.  Still a favorite tweak of mine.

Santa put these in my stocking this past Christmas.  I always need little memo

pads and those composition notebooks and my favorite pencil ~

Dixon Ticonderoga!  Love them and it's the best pencil for crossword

puzzles.

I really want to paint the walls of my studio.  At present they are a pinky beige

that is not making me too happy.  I keep changing my mind about the new color.

I will probably end up with an off white.  There is already so much color in 

the room that it would no doubt be the best choice, but then I think a faint 

ticking might be nice.  I contemplate painting the four poster too.  Maybe

a soft sage green?  David thinks I should keep it stained, but you know us

girls we often have different ideas.  What are your thoughts?

Oh and this chair too.  It's another vintage stained piece.  I love the lines

and Bentley just loves the chair.  He is often here, but not right now.  No 

instead he is hanging out with his grandma at the moment.  So thanks for

keeping me company and hanging out with me for a bit in my studio.

Wishing you all a happy Monday!

Tweak It Tuesday

Come on Bentley let's make some lunch for your grandma.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Is This the Face of a Killer???

Look at this face ~ the epitome of sweetness ...

Right???

Don't for one minute be fooled by this look of innocence and goodwill.  

If Bentley happens to want to go outside at 5 am and runs into a possum 

in his yard, this mild mannered darling turns into one ferocious hunter!

This is what happened this morning.  Bentley spotted the possum and

the chase began.  Across the yard.  Through all of the 4 foot and 5 foot 

high tropicals they ran.  Bentley's daddy tried to intervene, but 

Bentley was having none of it.  Finally David was able to distract 

Bentley for long enough that the possum was able to make a run for

one of the big old oak trees.  David grabbed Bentley and brought him

inside but not before Toby the Jack Russell Terrier who lives next

door was let outside to see what all the ruckus was about.

Bentley the hunter has been lounging about today.

But I know he is waiting for darkness to fall over our yard

in hopes that he will have yet another chance to chase 

the possum.  I think tonight I will put him on a leash.

It's too exhausting chasing after those two!

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley the Hunter

Landscaping Around the Potting Shed

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David and I are going to go out into the yard to measure and to see if 

the potting shed I want will be the best footprint for the spot where

I intend to set it.  I am pretty sure it will be fine, so I am now looking

at some ideas for landscaping around the outside of the shed.

Much of my yard is shady, so I will have to be careful about the

plants I choose.  It would be nice if I could have some sunflowers

like this ~ maybe?

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Hydrangea Heaven is what I call this.  Isn't that a Japanese maple too?
Oh and a couple of sweet topiaries flanking the entrance to the front porch.
Looks like some pretty day lilies too.

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Oh how I love a cottage garden.  Can't you imagine Gladys Taber or
Beatrix Potter gardening just around the corner?  I sure can.

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Look how nestled into the landscape this shed is.  I must say that there
are times when I really appreciate when the colors of a cottage don't
compete with nature, but blend in instead.  Everything is naturally
charming.  An organic look.

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Succulents growing on the roof.  I wonder how long they would last with
the possum who seems to like to visit our yard every evening?  I must
learn more about our nightly visitor.  Bentley just wants him to stay
away!  Therefore I better not give our possum a name :-)

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Stepping stones, pots of flowers and sweet weeping trees.  I could go on and on.
I hope I am not boring you.  Obviously I have the tiny cottage virus and I have
no intention of shaking it!


Seasonal Sundays


Come on Bentley ~ let's go pace out the footprint and then head to
the garden center.

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley