Display Chain # 10 To Share

First, I thought I would share a couple of pictures of a few Holiday things that go up every year. First is these embroidered stocking my mom made. She made them for all of us in my teen years. Since I was the first to marry and have kids, she then did them for hubby & the first grand kids. I am the only one that has one for each in our family. After Steven she couldn't find the stocking anymore, so no more were made. Mine is yellowing since it's the oldest, and well, my parents smoked too.... This is one of the ornies mom gave me 2 years ago, it was mine as a child, always hung above my door during the Holidays.....

Then there are the little elf boxes, as the boys got older I cursed these! LOL! Many years ago when I had a little co-op shop, I only needed to work one day a week. My GF Cindy would watch the boys after school, since our kids always played together... The first Christmas they saw her son's elf box asked about it when they saw him getting candy from it.... So the story goes if you are good for the day, the elves will leave you a piece of candy, each day you are good until Christmas....Of course Steven, who was probably only 5 or 6 at the time says "MS. Cindy would you please make me one?" Not being able to say NO (LOL) she made one for each of the boys that day and explained to me how they work.... As they got older and even to this day, they check for their candy! (nevermind her son does remember to look for it, just mine!) Though as they have gotten older, they might not check each day. Though the minute the tree goes up, they start looking, which causes me to curse, cause I forgot to get candy. Needless to say, I have completely forgotten to start that this year... Alex won't be home for 3 weeks... Steven hasn't said anything yet....Though....

Alex was nice and put his in the middle of the tree where I can get to it.....

Steven on the other hand is my smart ass! (SORRY) and put it up at the top of the tree. Like I am working with that! LOL, So I will add that to my list for tomorrow to get some candy & make Steven move his mailbox to a better spot, or no candy. Funny even at 20 & 22, they still want their traditions.....

I am going to share a recipe I got many years ago from someone hostessing a craft show in their home. they made these, and she even sent me the recipe after the show. I make them every year. The boys love them!

KIT KAT BARS

1 box keebler club crackers

1 cup Butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup milk ( I use skim)

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup peanut butter

Greased 12x9 pan....

In a pan melt butter, add both sugars, milk and cracker crumbs. Bring to a boil. Boil 5 minutes.

Line the bottom of the pan with about 26 KC crackers. Slowly pour 1/2 of the mixture on top of the crackers, top with another row of crackers. Pour remaining filling on these crackers and then top with a another layer of crackers.

Melt in a double boiler peanut butter & CC until sooth. Pour on the of 3rd row of crackers and chill until set. Cut into small square to serve! YUMMY!

Another big favorite here is the Rachel Ray Fudge! YUMMO!!!
So I have a funny story to go with this one.... For about the last 9 years I have hostessed ornament exchange. Lots of fun, we play a fun little game, have great food, and a new ornie for the tree.... Anyway the first year I made this, the boys and friends still in HS, would come after the party for clean up on the snacks! LOL.... So Alex's good buddy Billy, major sweet tooth, his parents call him "candy boy"... he grabs the leftover fudge, the WHOLE plate and goes to town, there is still A LOT left... he won't stop eating it... I kept saying "Billy you need to stop, this will NOT be pretty tomorrow on the tummy(if you know what I mean)". Doesn't listen eat at least a pound of fudge... Saw Billy couple days later, ask how everything "was"... OH IT WAS BAD, LOL, I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!!! Now he loves the fudge, but to this day I don't think he has eaten it again.... So the moral to the story fudge should only be eaten in small doses!

12 ounces semiwsweet chocolate chips

1 cup butterscotch chips

14 ounce sweetened condensed milk. (save can)

1 tsp pure vanilla

8 ounces walnuts

1/2 cup dried currants (this is the secret currants instead of raisins!)

a little butter to butter the pan

round 8 inch cake pan

So simple, lightly butter pan. In a pan add CC's both kinds, milk, and vanilla and melt over low heat. Wash can, wrap in foil or plastic and butter it. Put it in the middle of the cake pan..... Fudge will be shaped like a wreath. Once the chips are all melted and add walnuts & currants, pour around the can evenly. Let set up. Remove can and pop the fudge out of the pan, serve on a plate cut into small slices. You can also add dried fruit, I don't, I think the currants are enough! enjoy! OLM

Trying to find my groove.. FINALLY updated Lemon Poppy Seeds

I am so trying to get my groove back.. I know it's only been 2 weeks, but in Holiday/crafter time that is like months! LOL... I need to start crafting again. There is still just so much to do. I am trying to decorate on some level, everything is such a mess, my heart is just not in it.

When we pulled out our big ornament tub thanksgiving night, this tub wasn't opened last year with the remodel project... Right there on top was several ornies mom purchased 2 years ago for me. Knife to the heart.....

So I created these lists in my head of things that MUST get done, the thank you cards, finally done yesterday. Planning my ornament exchange that I have done with my friends for the last 9 years, yup still need to do it, invites out today FINALLY.. Update the much neglected Lemon Poppy Seeds page, CHECK... So I am getting there... Need to share the ornies I received last week from the swap I did over at Rabbit Hill Prims... I am shooting for later in the week for that & maybe a few decorating pictures, after tubs are finally put away.

So Alex is back at school, only 3 weeks and he is home for good to do his internship. Can't believe 3 1/2 years has past since he left for school. Steven needs to get fitted for his cap & grown this week for graduation in February, life goes on.....
So I thought I would share my prims I put up on Lemon Poppy Seeds 2nite... I hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday. Ours was nice and quiet, just what we needed this year! OLM great Prim Angel from a Pineberry Lane Pattern...

My own design, stitched this last winter at chemo treatments with Mom...

Santa another wonderful Pineberry Lane Pattern.....

My twist from a Prims by Kim Pattern....

Simple prim doll, a OLM original too....

What I am Thankful for....

There is may things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Here are a few things I am thankful for....

I am thankful mom did not know the end was here. She was not ready to go and knowing it was coming would of made it worse for her.
I am thankful for the year and a half I had with her, and taking her to treatments. Even when at times I was tired of the routine or how scary it can be in the chemo room seeing so many needing these treatments.
I am thankful that, I think we got closer in the last year. Over the years our relationship was strained at times. Most of all I am thankful she is not suffering!

Here is mom in July when our relatives where here from Ireland. I think this might of been the last time she was in my home. She did not get around to good. I am thankful for this goofy man I call hubby! He is wonderful to me. Lets me stay home, shakes his head at the prims I create... He accepts the prims I bring home, even when he can't believe I spent money on some of it! Best of all after almost 24 years, we still make each other laugh! He is a wonderful hubby and a even better father to our boys....

Then there are these goofs! My boys, I am thankful they are health and happy, and yes they get along well. So many siblings don't. (I should know, I don't get along in away with my sister)

I take a deep breath in realizing in the up coming year both graduate from college. I am blessed!

There is my lovable Labrador Knuckles. I am so thankful we went back to the shelter almost 3 years ago and rescued him. He is one spoiled dog! LOL

I am thankful, despite back pain, it seems I screwed up another disc in my back, I will get up and cook dinner for my family tomorrow. At some point we might even start to put up our tree. Mom would of wanted us to! Have a wonderful thanksgiving, give your mom or dad a extra hug! OLM

PS... I am blessed and thankful to find out that several of my dolls have been selected for the next issue of "PRIMS" magazine. YIKES, I still need to pinch myself on this one!

Tuesday Display chain#9--Heartfelt THANK YOU!!---some decorating tooo

First I wasn't sure if I was going to post for Misi's Tuesday display chain. Still living in this surreal world with mom gone.. At some point with the Holidays coming, I need to figure out how to enjoy them. I had been so looking forward to decorating for the Holidays. Last year I was able to do very little with the construction. Need to do all this week, Alex is only home to Sunday, so ready or not the tree goes up as it has every year, but last year, Day after Thanksgiving....
Funny or not... Hospice just called to check if there is anything they can do help, etc.... Mom timed that well! LOL... She would be yelling it's OK, get going, just do it!
l st BIG thank you to everyone for their kinds words, thoughts, and the cards I received. (Lecia and Trish) thank you sooo much! It means so much that you took the time to that.....
Now finally onto something not so depressing, I always wanted this blog to be fun & about my passion for prims!.......

OK, on to Display Chain, I really don't have many bonnets in my collection and have not collected hats. Though love hat pins! So first up is a bonnet made for me by a dear blogging friend Lecia at Farmhouse Prims. It hangs in my kitchen off my jelly cabinet. This is the only I have purchased awhile back, hangs in the front room....

Picture came out a little dark, but here are the few hat pins I have collected! They are so spendie! Tucked in there is mom's knitting needles, she took up knitting again after chemo started.....

OK, so on Sunday, I just wanted to get out of the house... Go out and bum, not think about anything and see if I could find the Holiday Spirit... So hubby took me out to Sandwich IL... A Little over a hour from us. Few cute shops and one great Antique Shop!!! We spent over a hour in there alone....Such great prims in there... Spendie again, but some great eye candy.... I have been on the hunt for a dough box...So want one, but oh the prices, YIKES!!! Well in one booth alone, there was 4!!! She is know for finding dough boxes, again NOT CHEAP!!! I think hubby was feeling bad for me for the last 2 weeks, so he brought me one... Merry Christmas! (I know, the bags are reading this, Yes I am spoiled!) So love it! I finally put it on the harvest table today and pulled out some of my snowman! So love snowman, more prim the better!

I need to put some battery operated lights in the box too, just love the shape of this one. It was between this one and one with the lid, picked this one, better for displaying....

Usually I put this tree up in the fall with orange lights. Never got to it, yup mom..... I think she just hit me up side the head! LOL.... Then I switch it over to snowman & leave it up thorough January. So hate it when all the trees come down, it's so dark, so I leave this one up a little longer...

This year I put it in the addition in the kitchen, really like it there....

here it is last night lite up.....

Thanks for baring with me... I promise no more depressing posts!!! Everyone have a wonderful Thanksgiving... OK, one last note... My doc said this to me yesterday a small effort to cheer me up about mom.... Want to know how to make God Laugh???? Tell him your plans! OLM

With a heavy heart, life goes on... The Country Sampler Shoot

First, I want to thank everyone for their kind words, thoughts and prayers for my mom. I know she is not suffering anymore and in a better place. I understood she was never going to bet this, I just thought there was going to be one more Holiday. As my brother says, we were really kicked in the balls with the brain tumor. There is no guarantees, when our time is up, it's up no questions asked.....

With that life somehow has to go on. So today was my product shoot for Country Sampler. Couldn't put that on hold. They are shooting the products for the next issue, February/March. I also know mom wouldn't of wanted me not to do it, she knew how excited I was.

So with that, there are a lot of pictures in this post! First is a few pictures of the front room after it was painted. Jeff painted for us while we were at the hospital each day. Hubby then spent one morning getting most things back in place since we opened our home for cake and coffee in mom's honor Monday night.... Well the story is after chemo she would want to stop for something sweet, mom liked her sweets! LOL So with everything pushed back it's kind hard to see the new color. It's called Fair field Taupe, really it's more of a grey color. Love it! Just has taken awhile to be able to enjoy it....

Hubby is happy with it too! he never really liked the red. Actually before it was red it was a hunter green which he loved....I painted it red one day while he was at work....Hubby usually doesn't get mad with things I do, except that, OOPS! Oh well, the red at that time really was a better fit...

Snowman by the front door, I had put that out right before mom got sick....

So here's the truck CS comes in... it has all the product that is being advertised and needs to be photographed and any props that they might need....

Boxes lined up ready to come into the house to be placed.....

MMMM...where to begin.... well, Knuckles spent more time being noisy and looking for attention...He even made it into a shot!

Curtains being hung in our bedroom...Loved everything they used in there! New Family Heirloom Weavers coverlet.. Bolster, pillows... So was hoping those would of fallen off the truck and they could of stayed on our bed....That did not happen! :(

I took a bunch of pictures of the bedding...Like I said LOVED IT!!!! Might have to ask for it for Christmas.....

OK, finally something other then the bedroom... Kitchen table, different curtains, and most of the stuff on the table, I believe... Though the bench on the table is mine....

Front entry all done up... This is were Knuckles will be, in front of the bench's!

They really spend a lot of time on the details. Of course businesses are paying good money to advertise in their magazine, so they want to get it right... It's fun as they borrowed some of my stuff from my collections to add to the shoots...

Counters in the kitchen being prepped....

still working.....

checking and double checking...knuckles, would you like your picture taken again? NOPE! LOL!

OK, now the bathroom... so many things needed to photographed in here...some I don't care for so much.....well... you decide.....

I am just not a ruffle person.....

Bathroom with a shower curtain, hubby laughed, I have never put one up, only baths in this tub!

caught Pam steaming the wrinkles out of the shower curtain.....

All in all it was fun. I was so looking forward to this when they called, after mom, not so much...But yes, it was a lot of fun. It's not a feature, but it's better then nothing at all! So there will be parts of our home mixed thorough the advertising section of the next CS issue, the Spring Issue. Have a great day! OLM

MOM

All my blogging friends thank you so much for all your kind words, thoughts and prayers.
Mom passed away peacefully this morning about 10am. She loved all her grandchildren so much and we believe she waited for Alex to come home yesterday and say goodbye. Everyone one had been able to say goodbye but him. He was up there first thing this morning with that she went to a better place. There is no more suffering. Thank you again! OLM

mom update

I will probably be away from the computer for awhile. Things aren't going as we hoped. yesterday was a difficult day. Mom was feeling well, and I had to call a ambulance to take her to the hospital. I thought she was dehydrated, which she was. Thought she would bounce right back, but did not. They did a CT of her brain and found the cancer has spread there now. She was confused most of the day, by last night once i got her up to a room, the doc came in, wasn't sure she would make it thorough the night. I felt very guilty leaving last night, I had been there 12 hours and my head felt like it was going to explode. My brother and sister were there, I had to call my son Steven from work to say good bye. I have not told Alex yet, I am waiting til today since he is away at school. They said she could bounce back, but now time is very limited. My siblings want more time, I don't want her to suffer. I saw enough yesterday, they were not there to see that. I don't want that for her. So thank you everyone for you thoughts and prayers. As of this AM, no call, my brother was going up first, I am trying to get a little laundry done, life goes on and this stuff doesn't stop coming. OLM

The Mess I did not see coming!!!

First, can't believe this my 101 post! WOW! Back when I started this, I didn't know what I would come up with to talk about. That has not been a problem.
Things have been crazy here again. Mom not doing well with the chemo pills, so once things calm down, I will do some type of giveaway. There is just much on my plate, but I work well under pressure, well I think I do! LOL
So the Product shoot for Country Sampler is in 11 days. Originally I was hoping to paint the front room before they came. My neighbor who paints for me has been super busy, so I took it off the game plan. I figured after Christmas, since right after the shoot, Christmas decorating would start......
Well.... until this AM, Jeff calls, really wants to get this done for me before the shoot. Bless his heart... Kept saying it's OK, no big deal, lets wait, he needs is rest too! I already had the blinds down and the shelf that runs along the picture window down to paint. Pictures on that later...
So there he says, lets go, clean out the room and I will be there at 4pm after work. Thankfully hubby is off on Monday's so he was here to help me move the big stuff, can't do that with my back... Though, not the best thing, then he realizes how much "stuff" I have, and I get the "look" OOPS...So everything is off the walls, just need to go get some plastic to cover the furniture in the middle of the room...

now it's just a mess for a couple of days, everything will get a good cleaning and dusting. Then I will be ready for the shoot & the Holidays! More pictures to come! OLM

I have been a BAD girl!!! LOL

TI'S the season, of open houses....last of the flea markets, so much shopping so little money!

Though has that stopped me? Not really, but it really should! How much more does a girl need? Well, I am never done, there is always something to find, need or want! LOL....

So off the the first open house of the season over Poppy Seed Primitives where I sell some of my prims and good friend Sandy owns the shop.... Now I wasn't going to buy anything last night. I was going to be a good girl, since I was there earlier in the week helping her set up the shop and I purchased the Homecoming book right away.....

I just couldn't help myself, there was this great reproduction stocking saying "good dog" knuckles needed his own stocking, right? Then there was this great re-pro tree skirt, yes I needed that for my new prim tree I got last year right after Christmas, of course on sale!

Then there was the flea market today, well there is only one more before the season is over, so of course we needed to go.... Again I wasn't going to get anything since I purchased a few goodies last night.....

Well, we know how well that must of worked....LOL... I saw this great old prim box, it was a MUST have! I have never seen one quite like this one.

Great door, then open it up, 2 great little shelves, prefect to tuck for display...

Bonus was the advertising on both sides still in great shape, I thought it was a deal at $30!

OK, so love the vintage mess net Christmas stockings. Would love to have a couple of them.. Was at one booth, they wanted $20 a stocking, INSANE! Not paying that, so off I went. I am in another out building and I just miss a girl gobbling up at least 20+ of them for I think less then $10, I am SICK! Of course I ask if she has anymore, NOPE. I turn to the girl who just purchased the whole bunch to ask if she would consider selling a few? How many would I want, I said I have 2 boys, just 2, OK, here comes the great part, she GAVE them to me! My lucky day!

Then I came across then this cute little vintage stocking, plastic the the vintage decals on them, this one I got for $6, not to bad..... though why did they put the sticker on the front of the stocking?

OK, a girl should stop now right? OOPS... so before we were off to the flea market hubby & I had a few errors to run this AM, when we got home, on the porch was a box, of course from eBay for me! Why do these boxes have to come when hubby is home? BUSTED! LOL...

So I have been looking and wanting a vintage school chalk board with the roping around it, got 2 on eBay for a good price I thought $29 for both with shipping. Saw them today for $40 a piece!

Now, next week is open house for one my favorite prim antique places.. Well, Deb, she use to have a shop, closed it many years back. It was her shop were I really started to fall in love with prim and go many of my first pieces from her. Almost every year she has a open house in her garage, collects great antique pieces all year, then for 2 days opens her doors. I have been saving for that one. I am sure to find a treasure or 2 there next week!

Like I said so many open houses, so little money! OLM