WOW! What a weekend!

My daughter and her family came to visit us from Tucson this Friday which turned out to be the beginning of a wonderful weekend. After all the hugs and kisses, we all settled in to watch my grandson play with his trains (I keep two sets at my house) and watch my granddaughter walk around nonstop going from one interesting item (toilet paper) to another (pots, pans, spatulas). The family was here to have their Christmas picture taken at a studio in Chandler, and to play a game of indoor simulated golf (that was for my daughter and son-in-law).

My husband and I accompanied everyone to the photo studio and we had a ball laughing and trying to pose the two kids for a decent picture. My grandson (almost 4) and my granddaughter (13 months) were troopers except that Lily was too curious about everything to sit still longer than a nano-second!

~~~This is just one photo of the two of them together~~~

I like the way Brandt is watching over his sister

Lily, of course, had to be entertained by all sorts of craziness going on off camera. This is just one of many pretty photos of baby Lily as she laughs at all of us.

Brandt is growing up so fast! He is such a delight who never misses a beat in communicating with adults. His humor and understanding of his environment are astounding for someone who isn't quite 4 years old yet.
After the photo shoot, we all went to dinner at Rigatony's in Tempe. The salad and warm seasoned bread are to die for. Of course the main entrees are delicious, too. The two kids were really tired by this time, but they still managed to hold it together for the most part.



The next morning my grandson was up at 5 AM and came into our bedroom saying, "It's so dark in here!" I mentioned something about turning the light on which was a mistake because he woke up the two dogs and my husband and that pretty much started our day. I got up and started getting ready to go to my garage sales (my Saturday morning ritual) while my son-in-law and husband drank coffee and decided on a breakfast menu. When I returned from my excursions, (another train in tow!) my kitchen was clean (compliments of my son-in-law) and the rest my house was in disarray (compliments of my grandchildren). My grandson was so thrilled to see the train that all he could say over and over again was ...."this is so cool!" After my daughter and son-in-law left for the golf game, we watched the kids. Brandt played with his train for hours and we hardly knew he was here, while Lily took every ounce of energy we had because she was here, there and everywhere. My house is not baby-proof so we feel like we have to be extra diligent in watching the kids. When we babysit at my daughter's house, we feel more at ease because they don't have a pool and their house has toddler precautions everywhere. I admire my daughter and son-in-law for keeping up with the children and I also realize the purpose of menopause....it's God's way of keeping women from having children that could easily make each day feel like a marathon run!
All in all, we had a wonderful time and we look forward to our visit in Tucson for Thanksgiving.

After-Halloween Treasures

I can't believe my good fortune in finding this framed Halloween treasure at Home Goods!!!!!!!!! Two days before Halloween I was shopping at Home Goods with my daughter and we saw 4 of these cute framed art Halloween goodies. The price for each was $19.99 which I thought was too high. I was sure that the price would be at least 50% off after Halloween so I waited to buy one then. I woke up early on Nov. 1, so I could be at Home Goods when the doors opened. I was the first person in line and I peered through the window to see that all the Halloween inventory was marked down 50% as I previously thought. When I walked over to the display of Halloween treasures, I found that each framed art piece was marked down to $5.00 each!!!!! I was shocked so I picked up the last 4 to save for next year. I gave one to my daughter and I'll display the others in various nooks and crannies for next year's Halloween festivities. I can't believe that I bought 4 of these for the price of one!!!! Each one measures 12 x 17 so I'm pleased with the size as well.This treasure was originally $7.99 but I paid $2.00...again another post Halloween find at Home Goods.
Stuff like this never happens to me so I feel fortunate that my diligence paid off.

BUSTED!!!!!

My granddaughter gets into everything as evidenced by this photo!!!!!

Bitchy Witchy

It all started with an invitation for the "Ghouls" to attend a "Bitchy Witchy" party on Friday, October 15, at Robin's house. Just beyond this red door, the ghouls gathered to eat, drink, laugh, and chat about anything and everything. Let's take a look at some exterior decorations.........Plants, pumpkins, spiders, ghosts, and a witch greeted us in a friendly way

I can't believe that I didn't rotate this photo!!!!!! You still get the general idea...

A happy witch and her black cat wait for the party to begin....

I think that Robin made this wreath but I'm not 100% sure....

My witch's hat waits to adorn my head!!!!!

My blingy gloves await with my special jewelry....

My sparkly shawl and pretty purple glasses can't wait to be worn....

Some delicious witchy desserts and snacks....

Robin always has just the right decor for every occasion...

Our hostess, Robin F, with Toni showing off their witchy stockings.....

Toni and Sarah sample some food and drink in the kitchen....

There were plenty of libations to put us ghouls in just the right bitchy mood....

From left to right: Robin W., Toni, Suzanne, me, Tracy, along with Sarah and Robin sitting in front. Joanne, Marti, and Jennifer hadn't arrived yet!

Robin's gorgeous, 21 year-old daughter, Tiffany graced us with her presence. How she put up with us "older" ghouls is beyond me!!!!!

Our hostess in her witchy finery!

Here I am decked out in all my bling!!!!!

Here I am with Robin showing off my warts and all!!!!!!

We had so much fun. We ate and drank outside with candles, pumpkins, and candy on the tables. One conversation centered on Jennifer's ex-husband, "Lucifer" and his new wife, "Lucifina"!!!! Needless to say, that was interesting! Thanks again, Robin, for a wonderful "ghouls" night out.

Plum SPOOKY!

Our final color for summer school is violet which brings to my mind a broad spectrum of the color purple. My post has a variety of purpleness...violet, plum and whatever. I'm definitely taking this color in various directions!

My first photo is of spooky purple bats for the upcoming Halloween celebration. They are magnetic and stick easily to my refrigerator door.My mother in all of her plum finery. She recently passed away only 20 days short of her 96th birthday and I enjoy looking at all the vintage photos that I have of her. She was a sharp dresser and she always put together just the right accessories to top off her outfits. I've always loved this special photo of her.

A pretty hankie with the color violet mixed in somewhere.

Finally a good example of the color violet with some violets on a hankie!
My mother saved her hankie collection so I have quite an assortment of colors and designs to choose from.

Please visit Mrs. Matlock and all the other summer school participants. This is linked back to Alphabe-Thursday for the color violet.

A dollhouse~~~~Past and Present

For some time now, I've had an overwhelming desire to grab onto a small piece of my childhood and try to relive the happy memories associated with it. I came across an old photo of me standing by my beloved dollhouse and I thought ..."boy, I wish I still had that dollhouse"!!!! Of course I don't remember who my mother gave my original dollhouse to, so I kept looking on ebay to try to find one just like mine. I had to be careful because my original house had a garage and so many on ebay don't have the garage. Many from the early 1950's have a garage but with a Disney character nursery which my original house didn't have. I researched the history of the Marx dollhouse and I learned that my model was made from 1949-1951 with a garage and no Disney characters although the same house was available with a garage that included the Disney nursery. The following is an excerpt from the Marx dollhouse history.

A PLACE TO PARK THE CAR....
This house was first produced in 1949 along with the Disney house. It had a cute little animial motif in the nursery instead of the Disney motif. The other rooms were the same: living/dining room, kitchen, garage on the main; nursery, bathroom, master bedroom and patio on the second floor. The exterior of these earliest houses seemed to be the standard white clapboard with coloured brick style. Inside this house was pretty much identical to the Disney house, except of course for the aforementioned nursery. After 1951 however, the houses were produced with a utility or laundry room rather than a garage. Please go here for a superior reference to the Marx dollhouses.

Sooooo I kept finding houses with the utility or laundry room instead of the garage!!!!!
I finally found a dollhouse exactly like my original and it arrived today!!! Yipee! I had to put it together which was quite a chore with all those metal tabs, but I finally managed and you can see the finished product above.
Here is the nursery with the animal motif instead of the Disney characters.

Here is garage instead of the utility/laundy room.

Here is the kitchen which is identical to my original house complete with the clock, curtains, and other things on the walls.

The living room/dining room exactly like my original house.

The identical bathroom

The master bedroom

Now all I have to do is furnish the thing! I'm going to try to furnish this house like my original even though it's kind of difficult to see each piece of furniture in my original black and white photo.
The colors and the lithographs are so clear in this dollhouse and there isn't any rust which is a problem with so many houses on ebay. Overall, I'm very excited with my recent purchase and the memories that come with it.

Chunker Baby

My granddaughter, Lillian

This baby girl has so much beauty and personality that I'm in awe whenever I see her. She is just about ready to walk and then my daughter will really have her hands full. Lillian seems to be quite independent and very curious as she is constantly exploring her environment. She likes to flip the pages in her books and she likes her brother's trains...much to his disdain! She likes to observe and analyze new faces, and she has a ready smile with a crinkly nose that makes us chuckle!LOVE YOU, BABY GIRL