I Think My House May Be Haunted

Do you believe in ghosts?  I think we may have one.  One evening my Mom

and David and I were sitting around talking and David mentioned that he 

has heard some noises around the house that he can't explain.  Mom said that

she has heard some too and I said that I have not only heard them, but I

have sensed a presence of someone in the room when my rational mind

knows that I am alone.  

Ever since we moved into this house I have known that there has been 

a deep love for this home.  Not just from us, but from the former inhabitants.

It's just unmistakable.  I can sense it in every room and in some rooms more

than others.  Take the formal living room for example.  Every time I have

moved a piece of furniture in this room I have the feeling that someone

is standing right next to me and either nodding with approval or 

disapproval.  While rationally I know that this is my home now, I often

feel like I am making a decision for two.  

That's my portrait hanging over the sofa.  This entity has been okay with it

hanging here.  At least I sensed that he is accepting it's presence.  I can say

that this entity is (or shall I say was) a male.  He's a kind entity who I believe

just likes to hang around the house.  It's a though he loved it so much that

he wants to make sure that everything is being looked after.  

I think he must be fine with my Daddy's ashes in the Chinese ginger jar in 

the secretary desk.  I am sensing that our ghost loved to travel around the

world too.  

He seems to like this bowl that Daddy brought back from one of his trips to

the far east.  

Now I hope that y'all don't think I have lost my mind.  I don't think I have.  

I seem to be handling responsibility and have not lost touch with 

reality.  It just may be a new kind of reality for me.  I almost feel as though

we have gained a new member of the family.  And ... I sure hope that he

likes what I intend to do with the dining room.  After all, he will no doubt

be joining us there for our first Thanksgiving dinner in the house.

So this is a first for me.  While I have collaborated with other designers in

the past ~ they have always been alive.  This may be a tiny bit more of a

challenge.  I hope he likes wallpaper, or perhaps a mural, because I am

thinking about adding some to the dining room above the chair rail.

Perhaps I'll make a pot of tea and fill him in on the details ;-)

Seasonal Sundays

I think this ghost must be a dog lover because I don't think that

Bentley has ever been happier!

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

A Rainy Day in My Studio

I have been working little by little when I can on my studio.  I want to show

you a little project I just completed in here.  It's quite dark outside so the quality

is not the greatest, but it's the best that it can be during this current downpour.  

The inside of this cabinet is filled with lots of old text books and stuff that's 

just not all that appealing to see, so I covered the opening with a piece of

fabric that has been a favorite of mine for years.  

I bought this poster of 15th Annual Galveston, Texas Historic Homes

Tour years ago when I lived in Houston.  David and I used to throw our

beach cruiser bicycles in the back of his truck and drive down to 

Galveston on the weekends.  We would ride our bikes up and down

the seawall and then head over to the historic district for lunch.  I

have always been in love with that area and this poster has been the

perfect reminder of those happy days.  When we married and his job took

us first to Virginia, I never thought we would live in Texas again, but

never say never because here we are.  Of course now I have fallen in

love with Rockport, Texas.  It's a great little town farther down the 

coast and closer to Victoria than Galveston is now.  Still, I love this

poster of these charming Victorians and Colonials.

So much has happened so quickly during the past six months.  Our one 

remaining investment property is currently under contract.  It's the second

offer on the property in the last few months.  We turned down the first one

even though it matched our asking price because the new potential owner

did not want to honor the lease we have with our tenant.  We have a great

tenant who we like.  He is a student studying to be a physician's assistant. 

So even though it would have been a clean and easy financial deal, our 

hearts said no so we turned down the offer.  This current offer will allow our 

tenant to remain in the house and even though we will be making less of a

profit, a clear conscience is worth it to us.  Todd needs to focus on his

studies, not look for a new place to live.  He also has two dogs we love,

Katrina and Olivia.  Katrina is a very sweet chocolate lab and Olivia

is a miniature Pinscher who is about 12 years old now.  So Todd, 

Katrina and Olivia will keep their two year lease and when Todd

graduates he will be able to buy his own place.  

I have been thinking about making some changes to this blog.  I think

it needs a facelift and I would like to get some professional help with this.

I also want to change the direction just a bit.  What I have discovered is

that I really love just chatting with you, so you can expect more of a 

journal type of format.  I will still share some of my decorating projects,

recipes and crafts and such, but I want it to be much more personal.

So I hope that you will enjoy the new chattier me and that we will get

to know each other better.

Home and Garden Thursday

Open House Thursday

Vintage Thingie Thursday

Home Sweet Home

Show and Tell Friday

Be Inspired
Simple and Sweet Fridays
Shabbilicious Fridays
Furniture Feature Friday
Anything Blue Friday

Pink Saturday

Bentley has been cooped up in the house all afternoon.

I think the rain is finally letting up so he can go outside.

He really doesn't like to get wet.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley

Here's Some Inspiration for You

I have not been doing yoga since I moved to Texas.  There are two

reasons for this ~ one too busy unpacking and two could not find

the cord or the remote to connect my blu~ray.  Well last night I 

managed to get the blu~ray connected.  Still can't find my remote,

but I was able to get through one power yoga program.  I cannot

begin to tell you how suddenly everything shifted (in a good way)

and lymph and blood was flowing and tension just washed away.

Heaven!

If you think you can't do yoga or exercise or meet your health

goals, watch the video above for some real inspiration.

Tao Porchon-Lynch is now in her 90's.  She still teaches

yoga and loves to dance.  What a happy soul she is.  Full

of enthusiasm and such a twinkle in her eye too!  It's hard to

feel negative when you listen to her.

Now I also like Pilates and find it works wonders for
my strength and focus.  Here is a woman who agrees with
me.  Listen to the wisdom of Ruth Cohen.

What I love about these wise women is that they have fully
embraced life.  They never say never and consider each day
a blessing to be lived fully.  I hope that I inspired you a bit
today to live life fully, get up and get moving and follow
your heart.  And I must add ~ dance a bit too because
it will make you happy!

Now go tweak yourself and find more inspiration

Tweak It Tuesday
Inspire Me
What's It Wednesday
Tips, Tutorials and Tidbits
Rock N Share


Okay Bentley ~ are you ready for some more
downward dog?

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

There's The Rub!

David drove to San Antonio and bought a smoker.  

Well my husband is a native Texan and the purchase of a

new smoker can only mean one thing ~

brisket.

He needed a dry rub, so that job went to me.  Let's see garlic powder, paprika, brown
sugar, cumin, chili powder, Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper ...
measure and mix.

Off to the freezer to get a brisket.  Well, I actually pulled one out yesterday.

See all the meat?  Our good friends bought a steer at auction being shown

by their nephew.  This purchase will help pay for their nephew's college

tuition next year so it was a win win for everyone.  And we are very 

lucky to be the recipients of a deep freezer full of beef straight from the

butcher.  When David came home with all this meat I felt like Lucy

and the home freezer.

My job is done.  Beef is thawed and rubbed down really well.

Now it's all up to one man and his smoker.
Of course I get to prepare the sides and do all of the clean-up
afterwards, but David will get all the glory :-)


Seasonal Sundays

Normally Bentley loves being out in his yard, but he
doesn't like the smoke, so he's staying inside and taking a nap.


Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

A Little of This and a Whole Lot of That

It is hard to believe that it is November 1st already!   It's been three

months since we arrived at our new home in Texas.  The dust is

settling and we are starting to enjoy ourselves.  Oh yes, there are still

boxes to unpack, but things are falling into place and we are feeling

more and more at home as each day passes.

A couple of weeks ago we went to a block party and met so many of our

new neighbors.  They were so warm and welcoming and were so kind

to make us feel a part of the community.  Last night we had quite a few

kids stop by our house with their parents and we shared our candy with

them.  There were some who were unable to attend the block party

and they introduced themselves last night and welcomed us.  I must

say that the folks we have met in Victoria, Texas are some of the 

nicest ones I have met anywhere.  We are just so happy to be here!

My Mom is getting used to living with us.  I won't say that it has been 

easy because it has been a bit of an adjustment for us all, but it is

working out well now.  It is a relief for me to have Mom here instead

of worrying about her living alone.  She and Bentley have a

really strong bond which is wonderful for both of them.  It's 

really cute to see them together.

No I have not painted the paneling and don't intend to now.  We have 

grown to love the cozy and warm feel of the family room.  I have a few

more tweaks in store for this room  which I will share with you later.

Seventeen feet of windows line this family room and look out to the patio,

covered porch and the backyard.  It's wonderful to feel the closeness of this

big yard from inside the house.

The azaleas get more and more blossoms each day and we are delighted

by this surprise they are sharing with us.

Now that the weather has cooled off a bit, Mom has been spending as

much time as she can working out in the yard.  She mentioned to me

the other morning that the yard work is helping her to feel stronger.  

Back in Idaho, it is starting to get cold now and she would have

been stuck inside the house, so this is a welcome change for her.

We ordered a vintage sofa and two Chippendale arm chairs from an

antique dealer in North Carolina for the living room.  They are due to

arrive this coming Thursday and we are excited about it.  The antique

secretary desk arrived from a dealer in Georgia a couple of weeks

ago.  I will share pics with you when these pieces are in place.  I

must say that it has been a really good experience dealing with

these antique dealers and the shippers. 

We are planning some paint color changes.  Mom does not like the

mustard walls in the dining room so we will be changing them.

I love the yellow walls in the living room though and they are starting

to grow on her now too.

I love the new kitchen island that we found here locally.  It is so much like

the one that Pottery Barn sells, but soooo much cheaper.  I have really

been putting it to good use and have been cooking up a storm!

There are still a number of changes that will be made in the kitchen.  The stainless

steel sink under this window will be removed and my white farmhouse sink

will take it's place.  I was in Houston last Wednesday and found a wonderful

wrought iron fabricator who will be creating a pot rack for above my stove.

Can't wait to get the Viking back in place.  The current cooktop is okay but

not anywhere as efficient as my Viking.

Viking sent me a beautiful cookbook for sharing my blog post

on Viking Life.  Thank you Viking for this new book and I 

can hardly wait to try out the recipes inside.

Everything looks a bit different in our new house.  I get a bit homesick

for the old cottage, but I imagine that will diminish over time although

I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the little cottage in Idaho.

My neighbor Amy (mother to Thelma the chicken) is so happy to 

have her dad moving into our old place.  Her sweet note to us about her

happiness made any sadness I felt just melt away.

Well that's it for now.  David is going to smoke his first brisket on the new

smoker he picked up last week in San Antonio.  I will share you some pics

of that adventure this weekend.  Bless his heart, he has wanted this type

of smoker for the last twenty four years.  Now that he is back in his

home state of Texas his dream is fulfilled.  

Pink Saturday

Bentley is a happy camper too.  He has his grandma to 

spoil him, lizards to hunt and a little Jack Russell Terrier

named Toby who lives next door.  Yee Haw ~

Bentley is lovin' Texas too.

Big Texas Hugs,

Susan and Bentley