Five Questions?

What!!? I just posted an update and here I am with another post. I just ran across this on another blog and decided I wanted to participate in Five question Friday with Mama M.

Sounds fun, right? Here we go. . .

{1} Would you ever vacation alone? Are you kidding me? I would LOVE to go somewhere alone just to relax. But how much fun can you actually have all alone? Who would I talk to? Because I am definitely too shy to talk to strangers. I don't even like to eat alone in restaurants, as a matter of fact, I DON'T!! So, I guess I am saying I would not vacation alone.

{2} Do you go the speed limit? Hardly!! Does anyone?

{3} Why did you start blogging/following blogs? Well, I actually started just a year ago. I was discussing with a friend how I wanted to start some sort of journal to keep track of our day to day family life. She suggested a blog, so we both started one and the rest is history.

{4} Where do you shop for yourself? Lately I have been finding alot of stuff at Charlotte Russe, I just ♥ that store!! I also purchase alot at Target, and I like Cato because the store is organized by color.

{5} What was the song that you danced your first dance with your spouse to at your wedding...or...what song would you like your first dance to be to? We did not have dancing at our wedding. I really wish we had though, it would have been so much fun! If we ever renew our vows, we will dance. I'm not sure what song I would pick. Maybe "At last".

Now, if you want to join in on Five Question Friday hop on over to Mama M's!!

Celebrating Day to Day

Today I am joining in the Traditions party at Emma Calls Me Mama. This is the first of several blog parties that will focus on traditions. I think this is such a fun idea, it will be interesting to see the unique day to day traditions that different families practice.

When I look back on my childhood it is the very smallest, most simple things that I remember. Like that my mom ALWAYS made a full breakfast EVERY day with her delicious homemade biscuits. She would make small "baby" biscuits for our dog, Penny. I can remember very vividly how Penny would sit in front of the stove waiting on the biscuits to get done. She knew she had her own special biscuits in there!!!

One of the simple things that has become a tradition for our family is the "grilling party". With summer coming to an end soon, this will soon fade away along with our other summer time memories. A grilling party for us consist of lighting the grill, of course, turning on the outdoor speakers really loud, and getting on the slip-n-slide. No, the hubs & I DO NOT partake in the slip-n-slide fun, but the kids ♥ it!! BabyG is the one who started this tradition, she just loves to grill and jam out to the music. So much so, that this happens every time we grill now! Isn't that funny? I'm sure she will look back on her childhood and remember those summer nights grilling out with the family, listening to the music, and playing on the slide.

I can imagine that one day, I myself will be looking back on these fond memories of the children, wishing they were young again.

These are the best days of our lives!!!

Heirloom Party

****Edit~I am entering an older post over at Emma calls me Mama, I do not have any new heirlooms to share, but feel like these goodies are worth sharing again!! Enjoy****

Happy Friday!! This week I am joining the heirloom party @ Emma calls me Mama.

I was so excited when I heard about the heirloom party because I have very recently inherited some family heirlooms from my mom. I have blogged about a couple of the new things, but I thought it would be great to combine them all here in one post for the party!!

Let's start with my new (gently used family) china. It is mostly still packed in the box, but I definitely have 8 place settings, possibly 12. I can't really remember. But I really like it and can't wait to get it all cleaned up and on display in my china cabinet!!

Here's a closeup of the detailing.

I also received this lovely silver tea set. I blogged about this stuff weeks ago, and YES, it still looks like this. I have not had a chance to sit down and shine this stuff. When I do, I'll share an after picture with you.


Last but not least, the chifferobe. I have wanted to have this in my home for as long as I can remember. This was in my mom's home when she was growing up. I remember that she would tell me the story of how she would hide in the door compartment from her older step brother & sister. I think they were pretty mean to her as a child! Bless her ♥ ! Two nights ago, my kids were playing hide & seek and Big10 opened the door up to take a look, but then decided on another spot! How about that, I guess that little door just looks inviting to children!
Originally I just kind of crammed this baby into the corner as you can see in the picture above.
Thankfully, after a little rearranging I have the chifferobe in place and I ♥ it!!
If you have linked over from Emma calls me Mama, thanks for stopping by!!
I'll be by your place soon!
If you are just one of the sweet, awesome regulars, you should go check out the others that have linked up!!
Have a great weekend!

I love faces / At the Beach ♥ ♥

Hello all! How many of you have checked out this photography blog, I ♥ faces? This is so cool. I saw this on one of my friends blogs today. Apparently they have a weekly photo contest open to anyone interested in entering a photo.

This weeks photo contest is open to Beach Photos. Well, I have ALOT of those to choose from!! Are you ready for my entry? Here it goes. . . . .

I ♥ this face. . .

♥ Our Wedding Story ♥

Today I am joining the blog party over at Kelly's. It is Show Us Your Wedding Dress Day. I have tried SO hard to get a picture scanned of my dress. My scanner is not cooperating and I don't know how to fix it!! I can describe my dress for you in one word. . . .RUFFLES. Oh my, the dress had more ruffles than the ocean has waves!!! It was the perfect dress. Very feminine and sweet, just like the bride, HA!

I thought I would share our Wedding story today as well. The hubby and I were engaged on March 12, 1995 and married on June 10, 1995. What was I thinking??!! Was 3 months really enough time to plan a wedding? Looking back, a fall wedding would have been nice. . .but it all came together well, just quickly!! (To read more about how we met, click HERE.)

He was 20, I was 19, young love at its best. We paid for alot ourselves, so we were working on a pretty tight budget. Luckily my mom has a gift for floral arranging. Can you say Pink? Pink, pink, and more pink!! Light pink, hot pink, and baby pink!!

The ceremony consisted of the traditional music, and traditional vows in my husbands church. The same church that our children were dedicated in nearly 9 years later!! It was a small gathering of close friends & family, and it was perfect!! And here I sit 14 years later, what a journey it has been!!

Thanks for letting me share my story with you. Now I am ready to get over to Kelly's and look at all the post that actually have pictures of their dresses!!! But before I go, I want you to take a look at this video that is out on youtube now. It has made national news!! What a fun wedding party!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

How We Met. . . .

Today I am joining in with Mrs. Yellow Hat and friends for the blog party "How we Met". Unfortunately I am unable to share any pictures. My digital camera doesn't date back that far, and my scanning abilities are apparently not up to par. Either way, I thought it would be fun to share the story with you all. Really the story is not all that interesting, what amazes me is how quickly our relationship progressed!! Everyone thought it was definitely doomed, but we are still hanging in there and loving every day!! (MOST days!!)

It all started back in the spring of 1994. . . .I sat down in my Sociology class next to another guy friend that I had went to high school with. I was pretty excited about sitting next to this particular guy that I had a secret crush on for several of my high school years!! Then hubby shows up and sits down right next to me and immediately starts talking non stop. He recognized me from a time that we had met at a local pool hall when I was out with a mutual friend of ours. So he had instant conversation topics. Not that he has ever needed conversation topics, he can just talk and talk for hours about nothing even if no one is listening!!

It was only a matter of days before he started asking me out. At the time, I was dating a guy that was away at basic training & I was not budging from this dude!! Hubby and I did grow a strong friendship that consisted of only class time and alot of long phone conversations. When the semester ended he pretty much gave me an ultimatum, now or never girlie! I chose NEVER.

Who knew that we would end up together!?!

The following September I ran into him at the mall while shopping with a friend. We spoke briefly and agreed that he would call me later that night. I really didn't think he would call, but he did. Of course, he didn't want to turn down a chance to talk!!! We did alot of catching up and I learned all about his current girlfriend and he found out that me and basic training guy were no longer an item. He was broken up with his girlfriend within the week and we started dating right away. And as they say, the rest was history. . . . . .

We were engaged after only 6 months of dating, on March 12, 1995 then married on June 10th, 1995.

CAN YOU BELIEVE WE MADE IT!!???!!

I would have never imagined that our marriage would survive some of the things we have been through, but I guess it was meant to be!!

I hope you enjoyed our How we met story. Now go on over to Mrs. YH's and join in yourself!

Monday with Rhoda

Is it Monday already!?! Boy, this past week was just a whirlwind. I am excited to have another "hand me down" treasure to share with everyone over at Rhoda's for Today's Thrifty Treasures. This armoire was passed down to me from my mom, like the silver tea set that I shared last week. This actually belonged to my grandmother. I have always admired this little piece of furniture, and feel blessed to have received it.

I still have to find a permanent home for it. Right now it is just stuck in the corner of the living room. It will more than likely end up in my master bedroom. I also need to get new drawer pulls for the drawers, some of the original ones are missing.

What do you think about my bookends on the top here? These are the book ends that Kennesha sent me. Aren't they lovely? Also, to the right of the books is my first floral arrangement. I know, I know, it is not so great. But, I don't just hate it either. I LOVE the container, and I LOVE the flowers, I just DON"T LOVE the actual arrangement of the flowers. I will work on it later!! HA! I will possibly work on it later, but more than likely, I will just leave it as is.
Well, thanks for stopping by to view my Thrifty Treasures. Check out the others listed this week over at Rhoda's.

Today's Thrifty TREASURES

It's Monday, and I am participating in Today's Thrifty Treasures over at Southern Hospitality with the lovely Rhoda and all the other thrifty blog gals out there. This weekend was a GREAT weekend of free treasures for me. My mom was cleaning and getting rid of alot of stuff that she no longer wanted. Mostly, she doesn't have the space for all her stuff anymore. I acquired some things that I have wanted since I was a little girl. I remember looking in the china cabinet and adoring all of her "fancy" stuff. And now, she has passed some of it along to me. These things truly are Treasures!! Full of memories that all the money in the world could never buy!! First, the silver tea set. It is in desperate need of some polish. I found this in the bottom of her china cabinet where it has been for atleast 20 years!! My mil is worried that this will never shine again, but I am going to do my best!!

I also got another silver platter and silver bowl. I think this would be a nice chip/dip server. But I am pretty sure these will be for display only in my home.

Above is another serving tray that stands on these little legs!! How cute is that??!!
And one of my faves, a less expensive silver platter that I can use to make a larger chalkboard platter!!!

Last, but not least. She gave me these two little ladies. These ladies are in my memory as far back as memories go for me!! I have always LOVED them and thought they were so pretty in the china cabinet with the other "fancy" stuff. Now they are in my china cabinet for my daughter to adore!! And she LOVES them of course!!!

Thanks for checking out my Thrifty (freebie, hand me down) Treasures!! Now, head back over to Rhoda's to get a link to all the other treasures out there!!

Party at Kennesha's. . . .a junk party that is. . . .

Today is the "Junk Party" over at Me & My House with my buddy Kennesha. (She's a BAMA girl ya know?!?) I am a little late joining the party. I have been a little preoccupied with my reading. I finished the first book in the Twilight series tonight. Can you believe I actually read a book in 4 days!! And I don't even like to read!! (It's a good book! :)

Anyway, about my "junk". I am still somewhat undecided about what I am doing with this. I have this frame that I picked up for .59 cents at the thrift store. I like it just the way it is. I decided I might use the scrapbook paper and a painted initial and make a wall hanging for a spot in my hallway. This is what it looks like.....

What do you think? I haven't put this together permanently, because I am still unsure of what I think. I like the idea of this, but I'm just not sure this is how I want it displayed. Any ideas?

I also like the look of my initial just standing around on the shelf, or anywhere for that matter. I may have to make another trip to HL for more of these initials. I never grow tired of this look!!

I hope everyone is having a GREAT week! Get over to Me & My House now to check out everyone else's "junk".

Thrifty Treasures

It looks like Rhoda is getting an early start today for her Thrifty Treasures Party!!

This week I am very proud of my thrifty finds. I was casually chatting via email with my sil and I mentioned that I am collecting white platters/dishes these days. She then told me that her mom has TONS!! She tried to give them all to my sil, but she would not take them due to lack of storage space (and lack of interest!!). I was so excited!! It ended up that she had a whole box of white ironstone platters that I just loved. We think some of these date back as far as the 1800's.

Does this sound like a Thrifty Jack Pot or what!!??!

Here are the platters that I chose. I got these for $1.00 each. I have not finished cleaning them all up yet, but when I am done I am going to display them above my kitchen cabinets.

I have added a couple of the smaller white ones to my china cabinet display.

This pretty white one is my favorite. I LOVE the shape of it!!

This cute black tray was just an added bonus. My brother and sister and law were cleaning out a room and she gave this tray to me! The best treasures are FREE, right? I am not really loving the flowers, any ideas on what I should do with this? Maybe spray paint?? In person it has a really glossy finish. It actually looks better in this photo!!

Well, thanks for coming over to view my thrifty finds!!! Now head on back over to Rhoda's and check everyone else out!

Y'all have a great week!

Attention Blog Party Lovers!!!

You may notice that I have added a new button on my side bar that says "JUNK PARTY". The one and only Crafty, Sassy, Funky Kennesha over at Me & My House is hosting a Junk Party and giveaway on her blog next week. Go on over and check it out, just click on the button for more details. It looks like it is going to be great for all you thrifty gals!! You will not want to miss this one!!

Enjoy your Saturday!!

Today's Thrifty Treasures

It's Monday again. Today's Thrifty Treasures party over at Rhoda's is about the only thing I look forward to about Monday!

This past week I only picked up a few items, but I feel like I got some good ones. The first thing I chose was this cute sports lamp for my sons room. All I need is a cute shade and it will look great. And he LOVES it!!

I also grabbed this little pineapple spoon rest. I paid all of .12 cents for it!!

And this frame was about ..59 cents I think. I like it just the way it is. It is kind of a distressed white with gold trim.
I am thinking next week I will have a jack pot of thrifty treasures to share. I am meeting with someone tomorrow to look at some white pieces and antique platters. Can't wait!
Now you need to head on over to Rhoda's. She really found some great stuff this week at an estate sale near her home. My favorite find of hers is the bunny salad tongs! Too cute!!
Have a great week!!

The Garden Section. . . .

These are not really yardsale goodies, but I definitely picked up some thrifty priced items at the Old Time Pottery over the weekend, so I am going to link up over at Rhoda's for the Thrifty Treasures Party. Go there now, if you would like to see some other awesome finds. I saw some GREAT stuff over there today!!

I have learned this year that I LOVE shopping for things in the garden/patio section to use for INDOOR decorating. I have really found alot of cute stuff in the garden section of Hobby Lobby that I would use inside. I am anxiously awaiting the end of summer clearance sales so that I can rack up on some rooster stuff I have fell in love with at the HL.

This cute little birdie is one of the items I picked up at the Old Time Pottery in Gulf Shores, AL.

I LOVED him and I LOVE that he was only $1.99!! I have placed him on the new kitchen shelf that is basically still empty.

What do you think? Is this C~U~T~E or what??

I also purchased several more white pieces for my collection on display in the china cabinet. I am planning to do a wall display with some of the plates that I purchased, and a platter that I already have. This is my favorite piece from the weekend. What a sweet little turkey dish!!

Thanksgiving is most definitely my favorite holiday. I love the food, the decor, and all that goes with it. So I absolutely could not resist this little turkey dish!! They had some really pretty turkey plates that would look great with all my white dishes, but I was trying to stay on budget and passed them by. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the Pelham location will have those plates as well. I will not pass them up again!!



Thanks for checking out some of my vacation lovelies!! And remember, always check the garden section for some cute decor!!

Today's Thrifty Treasures

Looks like I am joining in again on the blog party with Rhoda over at Southern Hospitality. It is Monday, and you know that means "Today's Thrifty Treasures".

I found this cute little white Fire-King bowl. I've seen alot of Fire-King ovenware in the antique shops, so I thought this was a steal for .59 cents at the thrift store. They also had a very large milk glass dish in the showcase that was priced at $24. I am thinking that they sometimes run a 50% off sale on the entire showcase. They normally have things like silver platters, tea sets, milk glass, and other collectible items in the showcase. It is funny how much you can learn about your local thrift store in just a few visits!! I had no idea they ran sales in there, they are basically giving stuff away half the time!!
Also this weekend I was able to find another white platter. It is not in excellent condition like my first platter, but I like the detailing around the edge of this one. And it also looks pretty cute in the china cabinet.

This was also picked up at the thrift store.

I hope you enjoyed my thrifty treasures. It was fun having something to share again! If you would like to see more, head on over to Southern Hospitality. Have a great week!

Show Us Where You Live Friday ~ Living Room Tours

Hi! It is that time again over at Kelly's Korner. It is Show Us Where You Live Friday, Living Room edition. So let's get started. . . .

Welcome to my living room!!

This is the view from my kitchen. We have just repainted this room, so I am still in the process of redecorating the space. Next issue to tackle. . . window treatments!!

Here is a closer view of the new corner shelf I just got last week. I don't have alot of space to put pictures and decor in this room. This is just what I needed.

This hilarious book can be found on our end table. My mother-in-law got this for my husband for Christmas. I don't know if you have ever listened to Rick & Bubba, but they are just so funny! They also do a great job telling people about our Jesus!!

This is the view from the hallway to the front door. Yes, it is bare at the moment. I haven't decided what I want to do here. I think the wall to the right of the door will soon be home to an antique chiferobe that belonged to my grandmother. I hope anyway, keep your fingers crossed!

This is the view from the hall way. Here you see the door out to the back patio.

I LOVE this picture above the couch & our family portrait from last fall's beach trip.

We are currently shopping for a replacement coffee table. We both agree that we would like one of those large leather ottoman's in place of this small table. All I know is that we better get some TV trays to eat on!!

This is a view of the TV space from the kitchen. Are you wondering what that is on top of the entertainment center? Not exactly my first choice of decor. . . .

Yes, it is a stuffed Bobcat and a scull mount of a deer head. How beautiful. I was lucky enough to lose the two deer that adorned my wall when we repainted recently, but I still have these lovelies to keep me company in the night.

While I was taking pictures for this post my little night owl GEB was watching
Narnia, the best movie ever made.

That's it! Thanks for coming over for a sneek peak into my living room. Now get back over to Kelly's Korner if you want to see more! See you next week!