One Grandpa said to another Grandpa, "Have I  shown you pictures of my Grandkids?" and the other Grandpa replied, "No, and I thank you".

Warning...this is a transferware free post.  This post contains family content and photos.



~A special thanks to those who make me Mom, aka Mother of Many~ 


Dear God,

How could it be
that you would choose to choose me
to bring forth through your plans so utterly divine
these children you give
while saving the mother to be
now leaving her mark to pass on through all time?

©2001 Nancy Roberts

Dearest Mom, (aka Momma Jolene, Momma Jo...her name is Marilyn though)


Unto others, you offer such beauty,
So rare it is supremely divine
Both physical and inward being
Such treasures we seldom find.

Through spirit you have spoken
To me...which is also part of mine
And passed along these words I use
But until now, could never find.

And it is that I, through what I write
Pay tribute to my Mother and my mentor
For inbreeding in me- a want to…

Two days left until my $50 Giveaway ends...enter HERE



My hometown of Muskogee hosts what is considered one of America's finest spring events, the Azalea Festival.  This month long festival draws visitors from around the world to Honor Heights Park, which is nestled into hills overlooking the city.  The park boasts over 40 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens abounding in azaleas, dogwoods and redbud trees (Oklahoma's state tree).   The park hosts a staggering 625 varieties of azaleas in over 30,000 plants!  Truly, it is a sight to see.
And speaking of azaleas, here is a picture of my pink azalea bushes... ...can you say, "Houston, we have a problem"
Only one little bud opened up and lived all by itself for days, until finally....other blooms emerged...
and a trio of garden friends from Decorator's Friend
....aSquirrel
a sweet Bunny.....

and the cutest Chipmunk........

Isn't this little trio so cute?  I found these at Decorator's Friend, one of my favorite onli…

Enter my $50 GIFT CERTIFICATE Giveaway from French Country 1908 Teacup Designs HERE My  kids frequently ask these deeply profound and thought provoking questions like,  "What's for dinner"? and  "Are we having dessert tonight"?  and sometimes I give them an answer in kind, "an experiment"  I say.  



This recipe is a result of one of those evenings when my kids asked about dessert and my daughter, Ashton,  told me she wanted to make a cake for a friends birthday.  She wanted to surprise her and bring it to school the next day.  I had in mind a lemon cake with cream cheese frosting.  Unfortunately, as we began gathering ingredients we realized we did not have all of them needed for a made from scratch cake and no powdered sugar which I'd need to make a homemade frosting.  
I usually keep boxed cake mixes on hand so we decided it was experiment time.  We decided to make two small cakes, one for the fam to sample first,  and one for Ashton to take to schoo…

Don't forget to enter my $50 GIVEAWAY

Although Clarice Cliff, aka Sunshine Girl, is most commonly known for her 'Bizarre' wares of the 1930's, which were direct contrasts to traditional styles of the times, she did lend her name to some beautiful transferware patterns.   Charlotte is one of those patterns she is less known for, but  remains a highly collectible one produced under Royal Staffordshire ceramics.  The Charlotte pattern depicts a Victorian basket filled with an abundance of fresh flowers.  I set my table for two with Charlotte, in lavender. Lavender, the color, has been a long time favorite of genteel ladies symbolizing femininity, grace and elegance.







You know I just have to begin with some layering...so I started off with a lavender pin striped sheet by Ralph Lauren in the Brittany pattern that I overlay-ed with a sheer window panel with a purple satiny scroll.  (I used these same panels here in my Master Bath redo to frame my mirror and provide a little priv…