A little bit of comforting....

I had to go to the dentist yesterday. I was in the dental chair for a little over two hours! Just for a temporary crown to be put on. I think he was having problems getting my old crown off, so that took the longest. Sigh.... After I was done being tortured, I decided I needed some retail therapy! So I drove to the little town of Occoquan (one of my favorite places to go for a little getaway) and did a small amount of shopping. First, I got my Mom a bracelet for Mother's Day. Altho if I find something else for her, this bracelet might just stay with me - LOL! I also found this cute little duck holding some flowers. She reminded me of spring and I could not resist her sweetness. I went across the street to a cute bookstore called Salt & Pepper. She carries cookbooks and some little gift items. She also carries some food themed fiction and mysteries. I got an adorable tea ball with a little teacup on the end of it - you leave it hanging out while the tea is brewing. Then onto the quilt shop - which I found out is going out of business. What a bummer that was! For me, of course, but moreso for the owner. I felt so badly for her. I bought some more fat quarters. Then onto another shop which is one of my favorites. I got a couple gifties and then was on my way. After finishing up there, I drove over to the cross-stitch shop and did some damage on my wallet! I got several charts and a couple of pieces of linen. Then some french fries and a coke to snack on while driving home! All in all, a nice day - after I got that dental thingy out of the way! Oh, the baby in the frame (in the first picture) holding the dolly... that is me when I was little....

A Tale of Two Bears....

Many years ago, I went into Hallmark and bought a bear. I don't know if it is the one on the left or the one on the right. I collected bears at that time. I still have big collection of them, but stopped adding to it at some point in time. Anyway, not long after I bought the bear, my husband went into the same shop and bought me a bear for Valentine's Day. I don't know if it is the one on the right or the one on the left. There were many bears in the shop at that time. How he picked out the same exact bear remains a mystery. I actually didn't tell him for years about the "tale of two bears". When I did, he just shook his head and laughed. I think he was pretty amazed too!

Helping out the economy....

The one skein of yarn is Noro Silk Garden Lite, and is in beautiful shades of pink, aqua, lavender. It will be made into a soft scarf to wrap around my neck. The other two skeins will be used for scarves for my sister - christmas gifties. She doesn't read my blog (she doesn't own a computer), so no worries about spoiling the surprise! The cross-stitch chart designs are already being stitched onto the lovely linen I bought for them. Well, there are a few stitches done for each one - but that counts - right!

And the Winner of the Valentine Chart Is....

drumroll..... ta ta da - Suzann!! Congrats! Email me with your address!

Linda in VA

Happy Valentine's Day... Have a Sweet One!

Sweet Valentine Giveaway....

In honor of Valentine's Day, I'm doing a giveaway of Valentine Row by Bent Creek. You can see a link below this message.... You have until early evening on the 14th to leave a comment. I will draw the winner later Saturday night!

http://www.123stitch.com/cgi-perl/itemdetail.pl?item=04-3340

A Rose by Any Other Name....

I adore reading about old roses. One of my favorite fiction books that revolves around this subject is "Vanish With the Rose" by Barbara Michaels. It also involves a mystery, and some ghosts.... I've probably read this book at least four or five times! It led me to reading the non-fiction book on the right called "In Search of Lost Roses". It involves a bit of mystery also.... about old roses from hundreds of years ago being found - about rose hustlers, and old cemeteries.... I've probably read it at least two or three times! Do yourself a favor - read both of these books - at least once! I'm also drawn to fabrics that have old fashioned looking roses on them. I decided to showcase these two books surrounded by a few pieces that I've found lately!

Go Away - I'm Trying to Take a Cat Nap!

After a long morning of sleeping downstairs on my "Daddy's" legs, I've come upstairs to nap. Why doesn't this camera weilding woman understand I need my beauty sleep - hours and hours of it!!

On my walk today, I played I Spy - I spy....

trees!

Little Pitchers Have Little Handles....

I'm not sure how or when I got started on collecting these little pitchers and pitcher and bowl sets, tiny mugs, etc. I found them in quaint antique shops around my area over the years. They became harder and harder to find, so whenever I saw some, I grabbed them! On the bottom shelf in the first picture, the items are from a tea set for a doll. All of the pieces were no longer there, but I still loved what was left of the set. Also, surrounding the first picture, are some "alphabet" plates I was starting to collect. The ones I later found were out of my price range, so alas, I only have three in my collection....