Pretty maids all in a row.....

Finding joy in the simple smalls things of the day. Just harvested these from my garden. Spent some of the afternoon picking indian corn, worm hunting and with my little guy and soaking in the last rays of summer.................welcome fall. I am ready.

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My coffee lid

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First article up....... and other ramblings

My first article has been published for Blissfully Domestic! Now that everyone is probably knee deep in back to school papers, schedules, etc maybe you are thinking a little organization might help. And what better way to get organized when there is a fun and stylish DIY project involved! That's what my article is all about! Take a peek!

I happened to catch a commercial saying that Stephenie Meyer will be on Ellen on Tuesday! Definately going to catch that! I think I have a few "Twilight" fan blog readers here.......

and speaking of T.V., there's nothing like watching The Biggest Loser with a nice big bowl of ice cream and large pregnant belly. Makes a girl feel "good"..............*sigh* (rolling eyes). I have a serious case of denim envy right now. I'd LOVE to look cute in a regular sized pair of jeans with a zipper and a button! LOL!!! I guess it all comes soon enough!

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"She has a party when her roses bloom...."

(*warning - waaaay to many details included in the following post. *snicker* some of you have requested "details" - so ask and you shall receive! those that are not interested, just scroll through the lovely photos. )

I helped host and pull off a bridal shower this weekend. The bride knew about the shower - when and where to be - but the rest of the details were kept under wraps - theme, decor, food, etc. We wanted to surprise her and I think we pulled it off!

I love musicals and there is a part in The Unsinkable Molly Brown where she talks about her neighbor having a party every year when her "roses bloom." It's an elegant affair, one that is always looked forward to, etc....I wish I had a yard for garden parties but that's one of the drawbacks of new construction. You start with zero "mature" landscaping. ANYWAY, I've always wanted to throw a party where their are lights in the trees, paper lanterns - you know - something straight out of Better Homes and Garden magazine. So that was my "thinking" or desire as we began to plan this bridal shower.

The happy couple is whisking themselves off to Jamaica to get married and then honeymoon so the invites were created in light blue, tan and creme to resemble the ocean and sand and begin to set the tone for the shower.






Then....location, location, location! My mother's front yard was just about as perfect as I was going to get. LARGE trees that created a canopy in the middle, quiet street and beautiful lawn. I enlisted the help of my husband and step dad to shimmy up the trees and out the branches wrapping them with white lights - I believe we used about 12 long strands and then attaching a few white paper lanterns. The outcome was perfect - classic, pretty, not over done and show stopping! (well the many people passing by slowed down, stopped and even commented on the decor)

Of course as the sun set and the evening settled upon us the atmosphere created by the lights just got better and better!










We set up round tables with white tablecloths and white chairs and set up a table for food and gifts as well.

The centerpieces were alot of fun to do and easy! I nice pile of sand in the middle with white candles and seashells and just a bit of blue sheer ribbon to add a touch of softness and color. We set each place with a tall glass goblet, fan folded a blue napkin in the top and then placed a blue plate and silver fork.

The food table was filled with bite sized goodies because who doesn't love to sample everything??? One of the dishes I made was these delicious brownies by Miss Paula Deen. They were a hit! Except I used 3 different chocolate bars instead of the three of the same as her recipe calls for - tricky, tricky....

Without boring you with too many more details (my goodness!) we also played a really fun game - Bridal Shower Bingo. The bingo cards were created in blue and each guest was given one while the bride opened up her gifts. This game allows each guest to play at their leisure while still enjoying the party, food and conversation - love it!

The squares contained items she might get, things she might say while opening the gifts or "events" that might happen. For example - other than specifc items listed on her registry there were things like - something for the honeymoon, something sparkley, something for Him, etc. Then there were squares saying "mother of the bride blushing", (guests name) rolling her eyes, a time squares as well - 8:00pm. So if were playing the game and it passed that time you could mark off the square as well.

The gifts were all "J" themed - jewerly, japenese lotion from Bath and Body works, jelly beans, etc. and we handed out 3 for bingos and 1 for blackout.

That does it! It was so much fun! Here's me and the beautiful blushing bride that night! I'd love to host a "lawn party" every year. Now I guess I need to get my own "perfect" lawn to do it in huh? LOL!

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Multi-Display Goes Wireless

To the delight of those who relish a clean desktop, IOGEAR has introduced a wireless USB graphics adapter and Kensington unveiled a new Wireless USB docking station.

Kensington Wireless USB Docking Station
Why deal with plugging and unplugging your USB peripherals each time you want to use them? Simply connect all of your USB devices and external monitor into the Kensington Wireless USB Docking Station and gain quick access to them from your Wireless USB enabled notebook. No need to waste time getting yourself connected-print, access a hard drive and use your external monitor in seconds.

The Kensington Wireless USB Docking Station (model number 33920) is available now on the Dell website for $219.

IOGEAR GUW2015
Don’t care about your messy desk? Well the new IOGEAR adapters are also great for transmitting 720p video, presentations, spreadsheets and more across the room to standard displays, projectors and even HDTVs.

The IOGEAR GUW2015V is expected to be available in October 2008 for $229.95 (MSRP) from all major catalog and online resellers, as well as select retail outlets.

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My first ripe tomato of fall.

Hmmm.... Guess I didn't fertilize enough?

Still looks darn cute, though.

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China Blues

Oh dear, I wish I could find an identical antique drying rack like the family's one from Elmwood.

A big part of my kitchen rehab was to bring some order to my shameful collection of dishes. I have a sweet set of hand painted dishes and saucers from the 1950's that I love, but when I grow up I'm dying to start a blue and white china collection like the small one above, from the summer house. Plus blue and white patterned china is incredibly easy to find, I swear I've seen a cute piece at every dang thrift store I've ever been to.

Please don't remind me that if I would have bought the all the pieces I've seen in the past, my dream dish collection would already be complete, thank you.

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