from the "olden days"

Last weekend I picked up a few photographs and things that my biological father's caretaker thought I should have. It's been interesting sorting through them and seeing what he looked like when he was a little boy. I thought I would share some of them here. There were lots of photographs from when he was young and he even kept some of his cub scout cards from 1948. Coming from a scouting family I thought these were very interesting. There was even a couple of pictures of me that I had given him through the years...I thought I would share those too. Scroll over each picture for a few more tidbits.

Indeed a thankful thursday

The UPS truck pulled up in front of my house and I reassured my husband that I didn't buy anything...and then I turned the box over in my hands to see the sweet familiar name of a blogging friend. Family members gathered around because they were being nosey...and then I opened what would turn out to be a gift from the Pay-It-Forward game we played a few months back...I opened the cup first and the little note with the pretty scalloped edges made me smile...and then when I read one of my past posts carefully adhered to the wrapping paper I was touched...truly touched that a gift could be so perfectly chosen...I actually got a little tear in my eye and my family thought I was crazy I'm sure...

Kimberly, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for my sweet gifts.

The Willow Tree "Quiet Strength" plaque was in response to a post I wrote about how I liked whispering in a horse's ear...and this little wall decor captures that sentiment perfectly and the coffee cup is almost too pretty to use, but I will and it will make each morning more celebrational!

Again, thank you...

Tuesday's Treasure

My treasure today is this sweet little canine who keeps me company. Lacey greets me at the door with a happy wag of her tail and she follows me everywhere I go. This past week I was very concerned about her because her entire spirit changed. She became kind of listless and I could tell by her eyes and actions that something wasn’t right. Kristin took her to the vet (they were so gracious to see her on short notice) and we learned she had an ear infection. It made me realize how much I take her sweet nature for granted. She is such a trooper, always lovable and devoted…she brings the newspaper in for us and even has the mailman trained to give HER the mail. She runs out to the mailbox and greets him and he puts a rubber band around the mail to make it easier for her to carry in. Being an honorary Golden Retriever she always looks like she has a smile on her face, something characteristic to the breed. I say “honorary” because when she was a puppy we were told she was a purebred and indeed did pay for a purebred, but as she got older we began to have our doubts, although the vet said she still could be, but the white blaze that runs through the center of her face is a bit unusual. She loves to go backpacking, although her aging hips would probably not do so well these days, she has to always be in the room with one of us and I especially enjoy her company when I am working in the garden. She has to poke her nose into everything I’m doing…she smells the flowers and I think it is so cute…she especially loves the strawberry plants and when the little strawberries become ripe I give them to her, so often I will find her waiting patiently for me by the strawberry plants. She really is a treasure and I’ve gotten to be quite attached to her.

pockets

It's Saturday...I can't believe how fast time goes by when I don't have to go to school everyday. This spring break has been just what I needed. Erik is home safely from Mexico and I now have a mountain of laundry to do. Reminds me a little of the days when he would come home from his boyscout camping trips, everything covered in a layer of dirt, but these clothes don't have the lingering smell of campfire in them and I doubt when I check the pockets I'll find the little treasures that caught his eye while hiking....all the things that in remembering put a smile on my face and a tug on my heart...the rocks, twigs, candy, bugs, have all graduated to forgotten receipts and wrappers...my little boy has grown up.

What are some of the "treasures" you have found in the pockets of your little ones?

Tuesday's Treasure

Perhaps because yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day and I have “luck” bantering subliminally in my head, I have chosen this horseshoe as my treasure today, but I certainly don’t want to diminish its value to my heart, because it is indeed a treasure that I will keep around probably forever. It was a shoe we looked long and hard for in an empty pasture when our beloved horse died, simply because we wanted something, anything that was left by her that we could hold and remember how special she was. Her name was Shadow and we purchased her one year when our neighbor moved to Florida and couldn’t take her along. Our neighbor was very generous with the price of horse and tack and we couldn’t refuse the opportunity to bond with Shadow. My daughter Kristin had already gotten to know the horse by going out with my neighbor several times to the place she was boarded and riding her. She was an old mare when we got her, but none of us were prepared for what was in store for us in terms of affection and intelligence that was demonstrated by Shadow. We each enjoyed our time with her in our own way. For me she provided a soothing moment that was unhurried and almost tranquil. I loved to brush her and sooth the velvety black hairs around her nostrils. I would whisper in her ear and she would close her eyes in complete trust. Of course when we rode her we went through the motions of being in control, but we would later learn that this was part of her strategy and that she was always in control of us in the most gentle and deliberate of ways. She became sick, undoubtedly in part to do with her age, and we just couldn’t baby her out of it and she didn’t respond to any of the medication administered by the vet. I’ll never forget the phone call I received at work one morning from my dear friend where we had her boarded saying she had passed away. That was one of the most difficult things I ever had to tell Kristin as it really was considered to be her horse even though Shadow struck a chord in all of us. So this horseshoe is full of sweet memories that I will always treasure and something tells me it’s just good luck or good karma to still feel a connection to those things we love that are part of our past.

Tuesday's Treasure

A couple of years ago my son came home one evening with a bouquet of the most beautiful roses. He arranged them in a vase, one by one, removing all the thorns and getting them to look just right and at the time he was dating a girl that he was always doing thoughtful things for and so naturally I assumed the roses were for her. He nonchalantly told me they were for me “just because”. Of course my first response was “No, really who are they for?” and then when he reassured me they were indeed for me and then he proceeded to cook dinner for me that night, I was truly stricken speechless. He touched my heart with his thoughtfulness, my eyes filled up, as they are beginning to right now, and even though I never did get out of him what prompted him to act out such kindness, it is a moment I will always remember, one that doesn’t require an explanation.
So the roses sit, beautifully dried in my little corner of the room and I think they add just enough charm that they’ll be there a while…just because.

Just a thought...

Last night I was looking through the new Victoria magazine and there is an exquisite article titled "The Patina of Time" in which they highlight precious objects that decorate a vintage home in France. The article spans several pages and as I leafed through the many treasures on display it made me think about my own precious objects that are timeless in their own charm. I think most of us have hand-me-downs or flea market finds that we treasure for some reason or another...anyway, since I have only a few "regular visitors" to my blog (and you know who you are), I think in the spirit of getting to know each other better, it might be fun if we each chose an item to share (with the story behind it) for whatever day of the week that is convenient for you, until we are at once bored with this idea or run out of treasured objects...so what do you say? Any takers? It doesn't have to be an object that is particularly old or anything, just something that is special to you. I was thinking about having a "Tuesday's Treasure" on my own blog and I thought how fun it would be to see what others appreciate and of course the stories that are connected with them are nice ways to share memories. Let me know what you think.

Celebrate

Guess what came in today's mail? That's right...the long awaited Victoria magazine! I have been thumbing through the pages and it isn't quite feeling like the old Victoria but it is only Volume one, Number one so it has plenty of time. It does have some beautiful photography and at least two articles that hit home with me. "Grandmother's Buttons" and "Come Back to the Five & Dime". I absolutely love vintage buttons and I have no idea why. There is just something terribly sentimental and romantic about them. As for the Five and Dime article, well I remember explicitly when Woolworth's was around and in fact my very first job was with their competitor - Sprouse Reitz Co. Those were the days! So I was very happy to get the new Victoria magazine. I am excited to see what the future holds for this little gem of a magazine. I was nearly devastated when they quit publishing it before. It always had such wonderful articles on home decorating, gardening, tea parties, recipes...treasures galore! I am certain that the new magazine will have the same magical charm and I will revisit the same pages over and over again. Welcome back Victoria.