Land of the Free!

Happy 4th of July!

Another busy weekend for our family.... Yesterday Ed and I made a day trip to the Jersey Shore and today began with the 4th of July parade in Leesburg. Jack enjoyed all the festivities! Crewe slept through it all!

Thankful for our great country....God Bless America!!

"Hey Pop, How do you like my Brother?"

Crewe Robertson Myers
arrived June 22, 2011at 8:32 p.m..!!

He is P R E C I O U S!!

This picture was taken within an hour of his arrival! Holly did so well....when it comes to having babies....she is not her mother's child!
Jack was very attentive and intrigued. First, he said, that he needs to teach him how to walk!



Big Brother.....


Proud Pop....Oh so happy Mimi...


Amazed Uncle Ben....

Thrilled Aunt Betsy...


We were there for his first bath...and Jack helped wash Crewe's hair in the sink!





Thanks to Ben's persistence, we were able to SKYPE with Aunt Katie! ( We missed you being there with us!!!)


So you can see I've been a bit busy.....I'll try to be a better blogger as we head into the back stretch of Betsy's wedding plans!

Painting, Baking and Stiching!

This past week was our spring break and I had a great time catching up on a long list of projects. I spent three of the days in Richmond with Ann and her family. It was garden week in Richmond and just so beautiful. When I was growing up there I didn't even appreciate it. Today, I soak in it and take those amazing visuals home with me.

So... here's a little peek in some of my projects.. some finished and some still in progress. I made these cookies for the kids.

Painted chairs (and a kitchen table) for Holly... still working on these- found them at the thrift store as they were being unloaded from the truck and paid $30 for 6 chairs!! I bought a great fabric for the seats at U FAB in Richmond!

And made several dozen ribbon flowers for the Cottage.

So thankful for this time to catch up and recharge. So thankful for the beauty that surrounds me. But the Big Picture is this:

So thankful for the PROMISE of ETERNAL LIFE because of God's gift and the resurrection of the LORD!
Happy Easter!

Celebration for Baby Crewe

Last Saturday, Holly's friend, Megen, gave a baby shower for Holly and her upcoming arrival, baby Crewe! Since it was Holly and Nathan's second boy, Holly insisted that it be a small gathering of her Bible Study girls and a few close friends. Megen doesn't do anything in a small way! The shower was absolutely beautiful.. the details AMAZING! The food was presented beautifully and was simply delicious....I was definitely off my little diet!

Megen is an interior designer, can you tell?? I wanted to go home, de-clutter my home and paint new colors on my walls. She graciously allowed me to take and share some pictures of her talent.

Her ironstone collection made me swoon!

And her English Emma Bridgewater pottery was equally impressive.

This picture does not do her kitchen wall justice. The pop of color was so fun! I think Megen told me she bought the frames at IKEA.

Functional and CUTEness!

Megen actually stenciled this wall! What a vision she had for her dining room. To learn more about the transformation click here.

This is Megen, her son, Will and my dear friend Kay, Will's grammy. Thank you Megen for such a wonderful celebration for baby Crewe!

Holly's sweet friends and sisters!

Love, love, love these girls!
I AM BLESSED!

Spring Fever and Exercising

Finally, it's looking like spring in Northern VA! Everything is blooming and green. Today was unseasonably warm and reached 82 degrees. After school, Betsy and I walked about 2 miles down to the river and I felt like I was going to die...it has been too long since I pushed myself and I am out of excuses. Betsy volunteered to walk with me every afternoon! I wished I loved to exercise as much as I love sewing. Is it an acquired love?

But it was great just walking and talking with Betsy and feeling the warmth of the spring day. When we got back to the house, we noticed Beast was stretched out on the deck, experiencing a little of spring fever himself!

We inherited Beast from Holly and Nathan. I guess that makes him a grand-cat! If you're looking for his tail.....he doesn't have one!

What a FUN weekend I had! On Friday I dropped off some pillows at the Cottage and was immediately overtaken by spring fever! The store was layered with fresh colors and looked amazing....loved the paper pinwheels Linda made. Her eye for style continues to impress me :)

Linda had asked that I make some pillows using vintage lace. I picked up a lots and lots at the last Big Flea! I had done this before, and I really didn't take time to "design" and combine pieces that I had intended to, but I was still pleased with the outcome. The fabric is not actually a burlap-it's softer, more like a burlap fabric. I bought it last summer in South Carolina. Anyway, I intend to be a bit more creative with the next lace batch.

This was the bottom of a petticoat that I cut up.

My friends, Ann and Sue arrived from Richmond on Friday night. On Saturday, we spent the day antiquing and heading west...final destination...Frederick Maryland! We did more looking than buying, but had so much fun just hanging out and enjoying being together. I did buy these 3 silver trays, all from the same dealer. The most I paid for one was only $20....I thought they were a great prices! The plan is to use them at the Betsy's wedding reception. I've pictured little pink bite size cupcakes on them.


Here we are.. just before they headed home. Notice Ann's "cigarette"... we've been eating these candy cigarettes together forever! It doesn't take much to entertain us!

I ended the afternoon on Sunday going to Marshall's with Betsy where she got this cute gray chair for her and Stephen's new home. It will live in our living room until closer to the wedding. Jack Cat decided to try it out for a late afternoon nap.

It's Tuesday night and I wish I was looking forward to all the fun again!!

Bling- Bling!!

My latest obsession is vintage earrings. I am always keeping my eyes open at thrift stores and the flea market for little pieces of bling at reasonable prices....it seems as though it's not only my obsession! Finding them at a good price has become a challenge within the last year.
I put together these bracelets for the Chicks Pics boutique. I'm honestly not sure they are very practical, but the little bits of bling together just make me smile!