I just wanted to pop in for a quick hello before the weekend gets under way.


I can't believe June is over and July first is tomorrow...


T.O.M.O.R.R.O.W.


For as long as I can remember my sister in law and I have been talking about someday getting a booth together and that day is tomorrow!


Did I say tomorrow?  AAAAAAGGGGHHH!  Can you tell I am just a little bit excited?  I'll be sure and take pictures of our progress as we set up shop.

I hope you have something fun and inspiring planned this weekend, too.

xo, Patty

I'm joining Elaine for Sunny Simple Sundays

I woke up this morning feeling thankful for this life I've been given. 


I have had the chance to realize a few long time dreams this year...being a stay at home keeper of my home, opening my Etsy shop and now this Sunday we take over our new booth space at The Antique Mart in old town Pomona. 



There was a time not so long ago when I might have been tempted, in my limited view, to only see the troubles that necessitated this shift in my life and not the whole picture.




What a difference it makes to view the goodness inspite of the junk, instead of losing sight of the blessings through the mess and muck of life.



These cute little dresses were a custom order.  The fabric was sent to me by a grandma who requested I make them up for her sweet granddaughters. 


I figured out how to add the sewing service only to my Etsy shop if you'd like to do the same.


Okay, I have a busy day today so I better get a move on.  I still have some tagging to do and a little painting to finish up.  I will be back to show you the latest happenings soon.

xo, Patty

I didn't mean to be away yesterday but you know how life happens sometimes and before you know it the day is gone and not a blog post in sight.


I thought I'd share a little project I did last week for the garden.  I don't know if you have metal planters that you're not using because they need new liners, like I do.  Even on sale at half price, it can cost a small fortune to replace those liners every year.

 

I thought I'd play around with some brown burlap I had laying around as a possible alternative.


After a few adjustments made with the stapler...so far so good. 



It has been exposed to hose watering and hot weather and it is holding it's own. 

Pretty and practical.  Just my style.

xo, Patty

I never knew I liked the smell of fresh grated ginger.


Thanks to you I have been expanding my recipe file on the nights my husband is out of town.  Last night was Chinese.  I made teriyaki chicken, orange chicken and fried rice with a side of  broccoli. 



The dog didn't know quite what to make of the new aroma of spices and vinegars coming from the kitchen, he kept coming in and sniffing then shaking his head and heading back out.  Since I cleaned out my pantry and have been restocking with a new list of staples, I had just about everything on hand.



Since this is definitely not a cooking blog,  I didn't think to take pictures until after the mess was made so I all I have to show you is the finished dish.

D.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s.

Okay, now it's your turn...what is the latest thing you learned about yourself that you never knew before?

xo, Patty

We are off and running today.  I wish I had a nice little story to tell you about what I have planned for the week but a certain four year old has his own plans for my morning.


As I sit here typing he is already in his time out chair and it's only 7:30 am! 





It's going to be one of those days...



"Come to Me for rest and refreshment. The journey has been too much for you, and you are bone-weary. Do not be ashamed of your exhaustion. Instead, see it as an opportunity for Me to take charge of your life.
Remember I can fit everything into a pattern for good, including the things you wish were different. Start with where you are at this point in time and space, accepting that this is where I intend you to be. You will get through today one step, one moment at a time. Your main responsibility is to remain attentitive to Me, letting Me guide you through the many choices along your pathway."   Sarah Young, Jesus Calling



So for this Monday morning, I can only dream of enjoying my coffee in the sweet serenity of the daisies.

What about you?  Are you having a Monday morning of serenity or is it one of tantrums? 

xo, Patty

I spent a quiet day yesterday straightening up a bit around Lemon Lane Cottage.  Rearranging odds and ends.  Freshening up the mantel with some sunny simple flowers from the garden.



Life is full right now and I am basking in the ordinariness of it...


Not knowing what tomorrow holds but not fretting about it either...




Sometimes you just have trust in the freshness of flowers today and not worry about when their beauty will fade.  Finding comfort in the seeds of hope they leave behind to bloom again next season.

Enjoy your Sunday.

xo, Patty

I am joining my good friend Elaine for Sunny Simple Sundays.

I have been busy getting ready for the opening of our little booth in a couple of weeks, cleaning and sanding...priming and painting.  I am usually not squeamish about painting over wood as long as it doesn't have any sentimental value to me but for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to paint my two "made in Italy" farm chairs I found at Goodwill a couple of weeks ago.

Once I cleaned them up and gave them a good waxing, the old patina'd (beat up) barn red chairs somehow made their way into my dining room.  Now it appears I have stow aways that aren't going anywhere.



I am totally smitten with the way they add to the farm style look in there.  If I were looking to buy a couple of chairs (which I wasn't) I would have picked these two.  Don't you love it when that happens? 



On another note...thank you for all your sweet comments on my laundry room spruce up.  So many of shared you that your laundry rooms weren't fit for pictures.  Trust me when I say, neither was mine.  It was an embarrassing mess.  I had to jump in the shower as soon as I finished emptying it and sweeping away the dirt because I looked like Pig Pen.  I was quite literally covered in soot from my head to my toes.  I think that's why I appreciate it's order now. 

Here are the links from those brave enough to share their laundry spaces...

http://sunnysimplelife.blogspot.com/2012/06/taming-laundry-monster.html
http://home-is-where-the-heart-is.blogspot.com/2012/06/laundry-day.html
http://mysewsweetstudio.blogspot.com/2010/04/its-way-i-wanted-it-after-all.html
http://oncrookedcreekct.blogspot.com/2010/10/heart-of-home.html

Just a heads up...next time we'll be talking about household cleaning.  Riveting stuff, huh?  (smile)

Have a wonderful weekend.  It's going to be a warm one here.

xo, Patty

Thanks for joining me for another installment in our housekeeping series this time on Laundry.  It feels good to be tackling areas of my home that I have been ignoring or putting off for awhile.  These projects happen in real time so it seems like this may become a every other week series instead of weekly. 



"When I was a girl, every week my mother and I folded sheets together in a brisk dance, moving quickly and always turning the folds in the same direction. Periodically she would give the sheet a good sharp snap, which would jerk my end out of my hand if I didn't hang on tight."  Cheryl Mendelson

My mother in law was the queen of doing laundry. She was meticulous in how she sorted, spot treated, prewashed and washed her clothes. She had a laundry line in her garage that she used for most of her clothes and quite a few of my father in laws shirts. She said tumble drying clothes was hard on them plus she bought her clothes to fit and didn't want them to shrink. I remember stopping by on ironing day and witnessing the art she made of the chore. She loved her clothes.




My mom is the same way. She cared for my dad's shirts with such love. Due to his failing health towards the end, his skin was very sensitive to anything scratchy so he tended to wear the same soft worn out button down shirts again and again. Even as they became thin from washing over and over, my mom would iron straight seams in the sleeves (sometimes daily) so that they were ready for him in the morning. To this day if she wants to relieve stress or worry, she irons.


I wish I was brave (or secure) enough to show you my laundry room in the true before stage but I fear that if you saw the mountain of dust bunnies and slimy soap scum I encountered I would be run straight out of blogland.  This was definitely a bigger job than I originally imagined.


Our home was built in 1954 and I believe the original laundry was set up in the garage.  Somewhere along the way it was brought into a downstairs bedroom closet, a fact that I am very grateful for.  It is just wide enough for the washer and dryer so any storage is going to be on the two shelves above the machines.  I added a small shelf just above the dryer to place the laundry soap on for convenience.  We used to keep it in a basket on top of the dryer but it became a place for lost laundry to accumulate.  Hopefully, the open shelf will force us to find homes for everything right away.



I also added a hook for the ironing board (yes, I know I need a new ironing board cover) and nails to hang my dusters on.  I splurged and bought three matching cloth baskets to house toilet paper, dry cleaning supplies and disposable plates, cups and silverware respectively.  I already had the striped basket and placed all my market bags and canvas totes into it.  The top shelf is still empty and I will decide what to store up there as I organize other areas of my house.


This little laundry area makes me smile.  Now as I tend to my husbands clothes everything is right within my reach.  It is a pleasure instead of a chore.

It is not much by pinterest laundry room standards but it works for me.  The trick will be in keeping it this way.  I have added it to my regular rotation of quarterly cleaning so hopefully when I clear the shelves in another three months it won't be as big an undertaking to put it all back together.



It's amazing how each of these housekeeping posts is peppered with love of family.  This making a home business is all about caring for others as well as ourselves, isn't it?

Now it's your turn.  I would love to see your real life laundry rooms and hear your laundry tips.  If you have a laundry room post, either old or new, why don't you add the link to your comment?  That way we will all be inspired to keep the home fires burning together.

xo, Patty

*Warning- If the sight of little boys playing cowboy with fake orange rifles makes you squeamish you might want to skip this post...

I've been having fun playing around with PicMonkey's easy to use format for editing pictures.  Last week I used a couple of textures on my lavender pictures and over the weekend my grandson and I edited a few of his favorite photos with their overlays and borders feature..


I know you can't tell but if you look closely at the above picture, that's Chuck Connors of The Rifleman on the TV in the background.  You can just see the butt of his gun from the opening credits.




I don't know if there is a future in it...but the little guy sure has a talent for playing dead.  When he's been shot there ain't nothing distracting him.  If you lift his arm or leg it just falls back to the floor like a wet noodle.  The only thing that will get him to move is if you try and take his rifle or mess with his hat!

My husband has been tweaking the area around our pond in the backyard and as he pulls away overgrown ivy he has been discovering pots that have blended into the landscape over the last couple of years.


I keep seeing old friends turn up on the patio looking sadly neglected and in desperate need of a good trimming. 



I had completely forgotten about this little herb garden that I sat out by the pond two summers ago.  After clearing all the leaves and sticks out of the pot, I cut the plants back a good deal and slowly but surely they are all recovering nicely. 




Now I have thyme, chives, oregano, and sage close at hand to add to whatever I'm cooking.



The only herbs missing were basil (which I added to this pot) parsley, cilantro and fennel, which I planted in another empty pot from behind the potting shed.



I found a spot on the patio that gets sun earlier in the day but provides a bit of afternoon shade.   Isn't it amazing how some plants can survive with total neglect and others can be provided ideal soil and growing condition and still struggle. 


Such is the mystery of gardening...

Now I am in need of some new recipes using fresh herbs.  Any suggestions?

xo, Patty