Glory days.....

No Spring nor Summer Beauty hath such grace
As I have seen in one Autumnal face.
~John Donne

~Happy Monday sweet friends!!~

Ham & Cheese Croissant Bake

Here's a yummy little dish to warm you right up! It is from my most recent Southern Living (I adore that magazine)!

This is such a great recipe because you make it ahead AND you can have it for breakfast or dinner!!

Get everything ready....croissants, ham, cheese, eggs, half-and-half, dry mustard (ok, so I didn't actually have this), honey, salt, pepper, nutmeg.

First, cut the croissants and place them in the bottom of a greased deep-dish pie plate (10 inch).
I got this little pumpkin one at Kohl's! Top with the chopped ham and grated Swiss cheese.

Next, whisk the eggs, half-and-half, dry mustard, honey, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a large bowl.

Pour the egg mixture in to the pie plate. Make sure it covers all of the croissants.

Cover tightly and chill for 8 to 24 hours.

~The next morning you'll be loving yourself for putting this together!!~Bake this at 325 degrees, covered, for 35 minutes. After that, uncover and bake an additional 25-30 minutes. Let it stand 10 minutes before serving!!

With some fresh fruit and hash browns, this can't be beat ANY time of the day. Hope you enjoy!

Hope everyone has a wonderful, wonderful weekend!!

Ham-and-Cheese Croissant Casserole

3 (5-inch) large croissants
1 (8 oz.) package chopped cooked ham
1 (5 oz.) package shredded Swiss cheese
6 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half
1 Tbsp. dry mustard
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg (optional)

A history lesson, don't worry, it's the fun kind!

My grandmother was known for several things. She was generous, forthright, and well....hmmm, she was quite bossy. That seems a little harsher than I intended....let's say she was an excellent manager :)

She would very willingly, tell anyone anywhere exactly what they were doing right, and, of course, what they weren't.

She grew up in a very wealthy family. Her father and grandfather started several textile mills in Georgia. This was the home she grew up in.


My grandfather always cooked for her because when she was growing up they had a cook in their home. In all her years she never learned how to cook....I guess she never needed to. I never saw her clean or do laundry either....it's funny what you remember.

She and my grandfather were married over 50 years.

50 years!

At times, you were sure they were going to kill each other if they had to live in the same house for one more moment. But I guess after 50 years you're allowed to get on each others nerves every now and then.

We never doubted they loved each other.

I saw my grandparents all the time. They lived in our family's 120 year old farm house right across the street from me. They were always there.

My great-grandfather (grandfather's father) was a gentleman farmer. My grandfather was a dairy farmer for many years.

These are the registry certificates for the cows that he had. My mother still remembers them from their names. I have these framed in my kitchen....I love the feel and the quiet whisper of family they bring.

My grandfather was a navigator on bombers in World War II. His plane was shot down over Germany.

He was a prisoner of war for 18 months. The war ended.......that's how he got to come home.
He said they woke up one morning and there weren't anymore guards...they had all left.

He is on the bottom row, second from the right.

I have things from him and my grandmother all over my home.

This photograph sits at my desk.

That's him again with two of my aunts. I have been told that this picture if from a photo shoot that Southern Living did of the farm house back in the 60's.

All the things you see in that picture, the coffee pot, the cake stand, the silver floral ring, even the Audubon plates in the background are all still around and in use. Each one of the 7 granddaughters now has one of the plates. You can find them on ebay from time to time....(there's one here).

There were always fried pancakes on mornings we would spend the night...and hot chocolate with lots of whipped cream. He was a great cook, he made everything taste so yummy...you know, lots of butter, salt, cream.....

Not sure if you can see this but it's a recipe of my grandfathers that my grandmother wrote out. It's Griffin's Date Nut Cake. I framed it and put it in my kitchen. She had beautiful penmanship...and it has his name on it...I love that.
They passed away less than a year apart.

They have left me with a deep and unique family heritage that I treasure, traditions that will continue, and a sense of self that is unbending.

Roots and wings...

The winner is......

Kim, from Daisy Cottage!!!!

Thanks for the comments :o)

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, and Kim will you please email me your mailing address?

Wishing you happiness this weekend!

.....I'll tell you all about this photo next week!

From drab to fab!!

I wanted to share my cute, little chair with everyone today....

I am so very excited about her :o)



My super talented friend, Elizabeth, seamstress-extraordinaire, made these slipcovers.
Didn't she do a wonderful job!?!

The chair was a hideous teal green before, and the ottoman was an old and faded plaid.

The striped material is actually bed sheets from the Simply Shabby Chic line at Target. The floral was from a discount fabric shop. They both can be thrown into that washing machine for a quick clean up.


Here is a close up of the skirt she added at the bottom....it just looks cozy doesn't it?!

I would love to have them professionally reupholstered, however it's not in the budget or particularly practical at the moment.

This is my favorite spot in the whole house right now. When you walk in my front door, THIS is the happy chair the greets you!! I love to sit and read a book here after the little ones have gone to bed.

It is a very blustery day here in Georgia, but I hope you are warm and cozy!
Have a wonderful, wonderful week!!

2 for 1

I found this great rug while shopping at Walmart. I am using it in my bathroom. It is the perfect rug because it has the no-skid back, plus it is machine washable.....a must if you have little ones that tend to spill all kinds of crazy things!!

So, do you want to know the very best part about this rug (other than the super affordable price of $18)???? It came with a full year subscription to Better Homes and Gardens!!!!

That's one of my favorite magazines!

The rug had a little card on it that you added your info to, detached and sent on it's way.

Here is the link on the Walmart site...however, it may only be the in-store ones that come with the subscription...sorry, not sure about that!
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10880881

Hope you enjoy your weekend!! Please see the below post to find out about a giveaway!!!

I love a giveaway!!!

Here it is!! Fun, fun, fun :o)

....my camera is giving me a tad bit of trouble, but I wanted to go ahead and tell you about the giveaway even though I don't have an actual picture to show you.

It's "Seasons for Sharing" from Gooseberry Patch!!!

I saw this book and loved all the darling ideas in it. There are little inspirations for every season of the year.

It's a fun book for recipes, craft, and gift ideas. They even give you templates to use!!

~The Malt Chocolate Waffle Mix recipe and the fun section for Every Day Celebrations are my very favorite. It almost made me want to keep this, but I know you'll love it.~

Sooo, if you'd like a chance to win this little cutie just leave me a comment below. If you get a chance to mention this giveaway in your blog, let me know, and I'll double your name!

I'll pick a winner next Thursday night, Oct. 29 (because for some reason I just love Thursdays!).

Have a wonderful week!!

P.S. The spacing on this post is a little odd...can't quite seem to make it right...I'll have to work on that!

Hip, hip, hooray for a new layout!!

So...what do you think?? I love the little cottage because it actually looks like our house. Hope you are having a wonderful week! I'm going to be posting a giveaway this weekend. Hope you can stop back by!!!!!

The good ole days!

I wanted to share an ebay store with you that inspires me with every item.

It's called Red House Vintage

http://myworld.ebay.com/redhousevintage/

Here are some of my favorite items of the moment...




I mean really, do I even have to explain why I LOVE these??

I like to imagine what may day would be like in a life where I needed to wear these :o) It's that bit of glamor and refinement that I am drawn to. The last one just looks like a summer day doesn't it?

Honestly, I am quite tempted to buy the black dress and then find somewhere great to go so I can wear it...it's even my size....

I love little finds like this, don't you? If you have a site that just makes your day I'd love to check it out!!

bathroom reveal...sort of...

Ok...I promised you pictures..and pictures you shall have.
The funny thing is, as I was taking the pictures I started seeing all the things that I forgot weren't completely done...has that ever happened to you???? I was so frustrated! I'm going to show you anyway and I'll narrate how things are suppose to be and we can pretend that they're done, right?!
Here she is!
It's kinda hard to photograph..#1 b/c I'm not very good and #2 b/c it's a very narrow space...I couldn't get back far enough!


I thought the curtains did a good job of hiding the ugly bath...I really love how it feels in there now. It added a lot of elegance that the space definitely didn't have before!


I used this old champagne cooler as a towel holder...just love that shape! The hand towels are actually old cloth napkins with our monogram on them.

Those plates are going above the photo asap!
This is an up-close shot of the chandie. I love, love, love it....it came from Home Depot :)


This is the old cabinet. Painted it, put new knobs on it, and used and old curtain I had to hide the spot where the doors use to be.
These are glass shelves that are behind the door as you walk in. You can't see them until you close the door...any suggestions for decorating them? I like the way they look, but it could be a little "better"...
I found these numbers at a local hardware store and painted them black. I put different numbers on both doors in the room. I have the old-fashioned mail slots to put on the door as well...just haven't quite gotten to it.


....so what do you think?? You can see in the last picture that I still haven't done the trim (above the switches). That will be done next, and then there are a couple of little things to hang and touches that need to be made right. Hope you like it...I think it's at least better than what I had! I wanted to put more pictures but I exceeded my amount for this post...maybe some more tomorrow!

The painting above the toilet came from this site...it's one of my favorites. Thanks for looking and I hope you like what you see!!!!

Come by and visit for a while....I've missed you!

Hope you're ready to read because I have missed blogging and this may get a little long!!! :o)
..It'll be like those conversations you have when you don't even take a breath the first 5 minutes!! Deep breath, ready...set...gooo

So much has been going on! We have been redoing, and repainting, and just fluffing things up around here...for some of the things it was about time!
To start we have a small hall bathroom that was in DIRE..I mean D-I-R-E need of some TLC. It looked like it was from the Golden Girls circa 1984...NOT pretty (and I loved that show btw!). We did some really cute things to it that I want you to see....

I'll post the "before" shots today...and the "after" shots tomorrow. That's not some marketing trick to keep you coming back, it's just because it's dirty in there right now and I need to clean it up before I show it to yall!! :o)
There was a set of shutter-like doors that covered this big, gaping hole, however, in my excitement to redo the room I forgot to take a picture before I actually got started...ooops! They didn't shut all the way and I was constantly catching things on the corners...frustrating!

Another lovely (ha ha) shot of the tub! What do you think of the beautiful, permanent, markings on the shower?? I couldn't afford to replace the tub/shower piece so I had to get creative!

...and, for your viewing pleasure, another shot of a big hole in the wall...that's where the mirror goes...again with the jumping-into-the-project-before-taking-a-picture....I think that's becoming my M.O.

Seeing these has just made me realize how far this little room has come...can't wait to see what you think!
...and please, feel free to leave comments about the sad nature of this little room...you're preaching to the converted!

I have so much more to talk to y'all about...a couple of great new recipes, "farm" updates, great new sites, I could go on and on....and I will, tomorrow and the next day!!! HOORAY for a computer that works and hands that type and sweet, sweet friends who stop by to read! Hope you're having a great night and come back tomorrow to see the pics!!!

Up and running!!

Wow!! Apparently my computer didn't just get a virus but the computer version of the swine flu!! I had NO idea that I'd be out of the loop that long....so sorry!! I've really missed blogging and have so many fun things to write about!

I will have a longer post tonight and get ready for another giveaway!!

Just had to come back and say hi....I've missed my new blogging buddies!!!!

P.S. HAPPY FALL! YAY :o)

A virus

...and not the stomach kind...nope, the computer kind!

I hate those! I'm trying to get it fixed quickly, but until I can my posting will not be too in depth!

I have a bathroom redo that I'll be blogging about as soon as everything is up and running!

I think you're really going to like it :o)

Have a happy weekend!

What a D-E-A-L!!!

If you LOVE Southern Living magazine then you might want to check out the link below...

http://www.amazon.com/Southern-Living-1-year/dp/B001ZZI5RY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=magazines&qid=1251478240&sr=8-1


...Can you believe that!!! It's a one year subscription for $5...total :o) WOW!! These $5 deals that Amazon does don't last forever so I wanted to let y'all know right away!!!

Hope you have a great weekend!

A Morning Glory crown and a morning crowned in glory!

What.A.Night...sigh, and not in a restful/relaxing kind of way. Nope, more like an oh-my-goodness-I-may-lose-my-mind kinda way.

My husband was away and I had both the little ones by myself...no big deal right? Well, foolishly that's what I thought too. Then one woke up...wide awake 2 a.m Then the other woke up...yep, you guessed it, wide awake 2:30 a.m.

I thought there was a good chance I was going to shrivel up in a big pile of tired on the floor, but amazingly that didn't happen. Eventually everyone went back to sleep...even me.

You can imagine the next morning. The first thing I saw when I opened my weary eyes was my invitation to a pity party...you better believe I R.S.V.P'd to that.

So I grumbled around the house for the next hour....honestly I was being a total grump.

My little ones were being as sweet as pie and so I decided we should all go outside. The conversation went a little something like this:
"Hey lets go outside." ('cause what else are we going to do?)
"Let's put your shorts on." ('cause it's 218 degrees outside, with 1000% humidity and the mosquitos are going to pick flesh from bone.)
"Come on sweetie, let's go." ('cause I'm already tired of standing up.)

......shameful, I know.

And then we went outside.

AND IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. No, not just pretty, not just nice....but absolutely beautiful!!

The sun was shining, a cool breeze was blowing, and the sky was a perfect shade of soft blue. Within 5 minutes everything was right with the world...amazing isn't it?

My tiredness never stood a chance.
That's what this place seems to do to me...set all things right :o)

My older little girl wanted me to make her a crown out of morning glories. So there we sat, out in the field, weaving a crown of morning glories on the most glorious of all mornings.

Sometimes life will surprise you.

Postcards from Paris

I received a wonderful treat in the mail today. My oldest friend in the world is in Paris for a month ( I know...tell me about it!). I'm sure they've been strolling the lovely Parisian streets, sipping chocolat chaud, and enjoying the culture...at least that's what I'd be doing!! Instead of just one little, lonely postcard waiting in my box there were TWO. How lovely is that?? J'adore mes amies!!

Get ready, cause here I come!

I know that I'm quite a novice at this whole blogging experience. I have to say though, I think I'm in love! I like the quiet time that I find to write, I like the ideas that have started flowing, and I like getting to meet wonderful, sweet people that might normally not cross my winding path. Since I want to stick around and blog for a while I started really thinking about what I wanted my blog to be about. Crafts? Nah, not really that crafty (although I love looking at other friends amazing creations!). My house? No. Don't get me wrong, I adore my home, but I don't know that I'd have that much to write about with it. It's awfully small so I'd probably be done blogging in about a month :o) So what to write about, WHAT to write about...

Well that was all I needed to get my creative juices flowing. I actually started giving myself time to (get this) think! Yep, just think, ponder, wonder, and dream. No laundry, no chores, no to-do lists allowed....just think. During this glorious free time a lot of questions came to mind. What do I like? What inspires me? What do I feel passionate about? What do I want to pass along to my girls? I mean I've thought about those things before but now, having a place to put it all down, made it a little more real, a little more right now.

So here's the idea...of course, you know I'm gonna ask for your feedback on this :)

My husband and I bought our home for several reasons. First, it is right in the middle of the small town we live in. We truly can walk everywhere. Second, it has almost a full acre of land. There a big open field in the back with lots of sunshine! Third, there is a charming one bedroom cottage on the land that I just loved the idea of. And finally, it just fit. It fit in every way...right price, right number of bedrooms, right feel, everything.
We want to have the best of both worlds....great restaurants down the street, great garden in the back yard, collecting ideas from the new art exhibit, collecting fresh eggs from the chickens. Uh oh, wait...the restaurants are there, and the art gallery is there, not so much the garden or the chickens.
I don't know much about gardening. I don't know much about a little farm life, but I do know that I have brains in my head and feet in my shoes (thanks Dr. Seuss). I can walk down to the library and search the internet like a champ! I can try to flesh out this idea of creating a world that's little healthier for my girls and a little better for the environment. You can peek in and cheer as I find what works, and laugh along with me as I (inevitably) fall on my face. Maybe I'll get started and love the process, or maybe I'll realize that the grocery store is my best friend. But maybe, just maybe you'd like to follow this girls journey to living a little greener, eating a little better, and finding the joy in the simple things.

Little Cottage Home..Little Farm Life: a place where downtown meets down on the farm.

TA DA!!!
...ok, honestly, without worrying about my tears on the keyboard (ha ha), what do you think?

If you haven't hit the delete button yet maybe you could pass this site along? I'd be much obliged for lots of feedback...thanks a bunch!!

The thrill of Goodwill!

I have a confession......I used to be a mall-aholic. Shocking I know :o) I loved going to the mall to "window shop". I would somehow always end up with a little something to take home. I am now proud to say that I've been off the wagon (or is it on? I never can remember) for 3 months. Yep, I haven't been to the mall the ENTIRE summer! I was able to stop cold turkey because I found something even better.....GOODWILL!!

I know some of yall are way ahead of me with this one, but it's a new find for moi! I can't believe the things I can get for such crazy low prices. Why didn't someone tell me about this before?!?! So since I have discovered this I have gone Goodwill crazy! I wanted to show you some of the amazing purchases I have gotten. Let me know what great things you've found there too! Also, is anyone else as beyond excited about this as I am??? I don't think my family get's it...but that's ok!


See those plates and bowls? (Not the green ones, but all the others). That was an entire set for $20! It incuded 6 dinner plates, 8 cups and saucers, cereal bowls, salad plates, serving bowls, sugar and creamer.....43 pieces in all! I looked it up online and it's a pattern that they use to sell at Sears...cute, huh?

See my cute litte cow painting...well, it has a small tear in the corner and it was $6.

This little cookie jar was $5...I love the cherries.
And this vintage painting was $4.99!!
Sorry about the quality of the photos...I'm going to work on taking better pictures I promise! Ok, so let me hear all about your deals! I'm already excited!!

And the winner is.....

......Amy R.!!!

I put all your names in my little jar and gave it a couple of really good shakes!!! Thanks for all the comments that were left...they are very appreciated :o) I had so much fun doing this giveaway and I will be doing another one very soon. Hope everyone has a good day!

P.S. Amy will you please email me your mailing address so I can send the goodies your way? Thanks!

A weekend mountain wedding...

Aren't those apples beautiful? ...too bad they have the flavor of cardboard! I was hoping to use these to make my apple butter this week, but I just didn't have the heart to do all the work with such tasteless apples!! We are all heading the the mountains this weekend for a wedding, and (fingers crossed) I'll find some really good tasting ones up there!

Thanks for the comments so far...they are so encouraging! Don't forget to check back Monday morning to see who won the giveaway....yah! Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Girls night out!

I've got my favorite necklace, earrings, and cute little purse all ready to go! I'm going out with a couple of friends and I can't wait! We're quite a mild bunch...coffee, shopping, and then home by 11! I can promise there will be lots of silly things that we laugh about, and I'll come home replenished. What do you like to do when you get together with girlfriends? I'm a very curious person, so I'd love to hear :o)

"What is a friend? I will tell you...it is someone with whom you dare to be yourself."
~ Frank Crane

Goodnight, goodnight...

"The world is full of a number of things, I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings."
~Robert Louis Stevenson

Hope everyone has a happy night and productive day tomorrow!!

A summer of firsts...including my first GIVEAWAY!!

You can tell it's August in Georgia...my plants just aren't lookin' very perky anymore!

Oh where has the summer gone?? It always seems to fly by. I am fortunate enough to have had my sweet husband home all summer since he is a teacher...yah!! We did so many wonderful family things. I don't know if anyone loves summertime more than my mother though. I have great childhood memories of fun summer activities that she use to do with me and my sisters. She was always working in her garden, making jams, or canning something really yummy for us to enjoy during the winter. I decided I wanted to try and pass down some of those wonderful traditions to my girls. Since my children are so young a garden didn't seem practical this year. However, I do have access to a fantastic local farmers market and decided to buy some fresh berries and give jam making a try! I was so nervous about trying it...but it couldn't have been easier (thank you Sure Jell)! I made blueberry jam first. Since it turned out so deliciously I gave it a try with peach, fig, and a blackberry/peach mix...yum, yum!! Needless to say, I have been making more bisquits than usual this summer.

Don't they look so pretty in my new hutch?! The store bought jam is about to have to find a new home because this week I'm giving apple butter a try! If you have any tips to share I would be very grateful!!
Since no one became sick from the jam I decided to test the waters with pie making. It's crazy I know, but everytime I would think about making a pie it seemed on par with mastering French cooking....I know, I know calm down already it's just a pie. But truthfully it seemed just out of my cooking safety zone :o) Well, I guess with old age comes a little bit of bravery (I knew turing 30 would be a good thing!). So, one afternoon I put on my apron, gathered up my ingredients, said a little prayer, and lo and behold....I MADE A PIE! Yep, all by myself, well me and Pilsbury...because (let's not go crazy) I didn't make the crust.
There it is....in all it's peachy glory! Maybe next time I'll attempt the crust ;o)

I mentioned the new hutch in our kitchen. Here is a photo. I was in my favorite vintage store, Feathers and Twigs, and I fell in love with this!! My kitchen, like my entire house, is cozy and petite, so not just any piece will do...it has to be just the right fit, you know what I mean, right? Well, I saw it and knew it would be perfect...the only problem was that(as reasonably priced as it was) it wasn't in our budget for the month. What to do, what to DO? I had them put it on hold for me so I could have time to think about what to do. As I was giving my "hold" information to one of the sweet ladies that work there, I happened to mention that I had some items they might be interested in. She told me to bring by what I had the next day and we'd see about taking some money off the price of the hutch! Perfect! I was already on my way to owning this pretty, little piece. Bright and early the next day I pulled up in the parking lot and pulled out my wares..and do you know what?? She liked what I had so much that she GAVE me the hutch....that's right, for free!! I was one happy camper :o) Now my little breakfast room is almost complete (and more important, I'm not poor...woohoo!).

Finally, since it's been a summer of firsts...I'm doing a giveaway, and yep, it's my first one ever!! Here's a picture of the items that could be yours!


There's a cute little teacup, a couple of dish towels, a box of (my favorite) cupcake mix, a "bless our home" sign, and, you guessed it, a fresh jar of my jam!! Hope you'll take a moment to leave a comment and, if you don't mind, maybe send a friend my way? I'll announce the winner next Sunday night, and until then...hope you have a wonderful day!