Good Morning To You.

I'm not, as a rule, superstitious.

I don't, on a regular basis, buy in to the whole "karma" thing.

However.

What does it mean for the rest of your day...

when you lift your head from the pillow ready to greet the morning...

and the cat proceeds to barf on your bed.

I'm worried. Very worried.

Frightened, in fact.

Maybe I should just go back to bed

and pull the covers over my head.

Eeeewww.

Maybe not.

Oh well.

Onward and upchuck, oops, I mean upward.

Onward and upward.

Apron Strings and All Those Things

So, today, my little girl goes off to work. Okay, so maybe "little" isn't quite accurate.

She's 18. But still.

In my head I know she's all ready to try her wings.

My heart just didn't get the memo.

I'm proud of her. I'm excited for her.

And, yup, I'm a mess.

There. I said it. Happy now?

Some folks may think that apron strings are for cutting.

What kind of propaganda is this? Who wears an apron with no strings?

Aprons are there for a reason.

The kitchen kind are there to protect you and your clothing.

The mom kind (made of 100% unconditional love) are there to protect you and your heart.

And that, in my opinion, is a good thing.

Mom's Apron Strings:

Practical, durable, always in style, and good to have around when things get messy.

And speaking of aprons! Run, don't walk, over to Not Quite June Cleaver for a fabulous Apron Giveaway! Click HERE to get all of the details!!

See you over there!!!

(I'll be the one with the spandex apron strings and the red, puffy eyes.)

Little Girls in Ruffles

While looking for ways to avoid cleaning my kitchen I happened across these beauties in my garden. Following the sage advice of Mac Davis I decided to stop and smell the peonies. I snipped those ruffled blooms, placed them in a vase, sat down in my red rocker and enjoyed the view.

And enjoy it I did.

Until I got a lousy case of the "hey, that icky, sticky kitchen ain't gonna clean itself" kind of guilt.

Sigh.

Mac must have eaten from paper plates.

Feelin' Crafty

Well, right now all of my creative juices are being poured into my daughter's high school graduation, but I did manage to pull together a little something a few months ago.

I had purchased a red tin star at the infamous Christmas Tree Shop last year to hang on my porch. It looked kinda cute. So I thought.

However, around Christmas time I saw that a blogger buddy had covered her tin star with family photos. It was more than adorable, my friends.

It became painfully obvious that my poor, pathetic red tin star was in desperate need of a makeover. So, out came the scrapbook paper, scissors, and the best crafty thing ever put in a bottle...Mod Podge! I love that stuff so much I could just marry it.

A little nip here. A little tuck there.

And viola!

Is this not just cuter than cute?

While we're being all artsy craftsy here, look at what my mom made for me!!

Isn't it pretty? I just love all the happy colors, don't you?

Just what I needed on a cloudy day. Well, that and a lovely cup of tea...and a new decorating magazine...and a cozy quilt...and...

I guess I'm sorta high maintenance.

Made Ya Look!

C'mon. I know it's true. You happen to see a new post title underneath my blog name and you had to look twice, didn't you? You may have even let out a little gasp. I know.

We have been busy little beavers lately. So much going on!

Maddie turned 9!

Earlier in the month we celebrated my Maddie's ninth birthday. She had a Fishing Party with her cousins. My hubby took everyone fishing in the morning and then back to our house for games, crafts, lunch and most importantly...cake. Mackenzie, my worthy assistant, willingly took over every so often so that I could stand back and cry, oops, I mean enjoy the fun.

My friend is having a baby!

This has been crazy fun amid the chaos. Is there anything better than buying baby stuff? All that cuteness? All that softness? Let's not even get started on the Children's Book addiction that rears it's ugly head at every turn. Is it even possible to sit in a comfy rocking chair with your sweet baby (who has just been bathed, smells like heaven, and is wearing the cutest, softest pair of Winnie the Pooh footy jammies you've ever seen) and not want to seal that precious moment with a story? Not the cradle-crashing, wolf-boiling, children-eating, ogre-lurking, kind of story, mind you. What was up with those Grimm Brothers anyway? Sheesh.

My Mackenzie turned 18 last month.

Eighteen. How in the world?...when did that?... who said she? That's about as coherent as I get. I'm still processing.

My friend had a baby shower!

My friend's daughters and daughter-in-law hosted a lovely baby shower for her this past weekend. I was so sure that my trusty partner in crime, Mrs. M and I would be a united front against the dreaded Shower Games, however, Leslie's artillery (guilt) proved to be too much. We fell like a house of cards. Sad, really.

My pal received so many adorable gifts. All of which passed the cuteness/softness test with flying colors. My mommy hormones were dancing an irish jig when I got to hold my friend's precious granddaughter, Alyvia. Such a little cuddlebug. Of course, my estrogen fest came to a grinding halt when I was suddenly reminded that Alyvia's mommy was once a wide-eyed student in my Kindergarten class! Ouch. That stings.

My Mackenzie is graduating from high school next month. Yea. That's about all we're going to say about this right now. I'm already weepy.

What's been going on in your neck of the woods?

It's Little THings THursday!

I'm guessing that five weeks of no posting has left me with few bloggie buddies with the possible exception of my daughter.  And she's hanging on by a thread.

But, on we go.

I've been trying to find the good in every situation lately.  You know, the ol' "When life gives you lemons" kind of thing.   In my quest to sweeten up all things lemony, I've found that there is a great deal of joy to be found in the little things of life.  

Hence, the title.

I know what you're thinking.  "This is going to be totally cheesy."  

Perhaps.  

However,  given the well known fact that everything is better with cheese, with the possible exception of Gorgonzola, let's make the best of it, shall we?  Are you excited?  Can you feel the mozzarella electricity in the air?  (I'm not sure that's a good thing)

Here it comes.  (cue drumroll)  

Yup, I'm gonna list my little THings. 

 On THursday. 

I know!  The party never ends over here.

1.  Puppies.

     As much trouble as these two furry friends are I don't know what life around here would be like without them.  Sure, they bark at the mailman, tear up paper, chew on Polly Pocket clothes, and drool on your shoe while waiting for that one piece of popcorn to fall but I don't see anyone else's tail a-wagging when I return from taking out the trash.  Can't think of anyone else willing to lick the tears from my face without so much as an "ewww".  Let's face it, any pal of mine who waits with great anticipation outside the bathroom door for you (and they don't even have to go!) deserves first place on the list.

2.  Candles.

     How lighting a jar of wax can totally change your mood is beyond me but it is what it is, folks.  If I'm using my tart warmer it usually means I need the extra motivation.  Using a large jar candle usually means that the busy day is done and it's time to take it down a notch.  Tapers on the table let us know that it's okay to celebrate even if it's "just us" for dinner.  Let's give a well-earned shout out to the store that keeps me well-stocked with candle therapy...Yankee Candle! (insert wild applause, here)

3.  Magazines.

     A hot cup of tea, a big ol' arm chair, and shiny new magazine.  Putting the magazine on your lap.  The cottage living room on the cover that just begs you to rub your hand across it in anticipation of what's to come on page 27.  C'mon.  There are very few quiet time rituals that compare to this.  Unless, of course, you choose to add the beautiful glow of candles!  Oh, and maybe a furry buddy at your feet.  

4.  Crocuses.

      How amazing are these little beauties?  The first sighting of these colorful blooms set against the dreary ground and the dirty snow just takes my breath away!  Spring's a-comin'!  Isn't cool how God chose one of the smallest, most unassuming flowers to usher in a new season?  So cool. 

5.  Nests.

     I love everything a nest represents.  The resourcefulness of a mommy bird to make a home out of string, hair, cloth, and twigs. 

With. Her. Beak!!  

I don't care how talented we think we are, my crafty friends.  Should HGTV host a Nest Building Throwdown, Momma Bird is going home with that crazy, huge cardboard check.

In.  Her.  Beak!!!

The warmth that nest provides to both mom and her babies.  How those baby birds wait safely while mom and dad fly off to get Take-Out.  The bittersweet feeling as those sweet little birds leave the security of that nest to find their own way in this world.  I've always been drawn to homes with stories.  Nests are like that, don't you think?

So, there you have it.  My little list of little THings.  On THursday.  

In keeping with our theme, I just made a fresh pitcher of lemonade.  I'd love to hear about a little THing that has caught your attention today. 

 Come on over!! 

(bringing a ginormous plate of lemon squares is optional but always encouraged.) 

        

Sweet Tweets

Somehow just seeing a bird in my backyard makes Spring seem that much closer.  

My grandparents were real bird aficionados.   

My grandfather would look out the kitchen window and say something like "Well, there's the Teal-tipped Watchamacallit.  Looks like we're in for a storm tomorrow."  

My grandmother knew every bird by their song.  She could name that bird in 2 tweets.  The Cardinal was one of her favorites.  There wasn't a snowfall that went by without her commenting on how beautiful that red was against the stark white snow.

They knew what kind of seed would attract which kind of bird.  Which species were ground feeders and which preferred the height of the feeder.

When I was growing up, however, all this birdie trivia seemed so pointless.  How does anyone accumulate this much bird knowledge and more importantly why would anyone want to?  

I chalked it up to being just one more thing you had to do to be in the grandparent club.  

Grandmothers wore house dresses, drank tea, carried pretty hankies, made cookies, had their hair "set" at the hairdressers, willingly cut the crusts off of your sandwich, and knew way too much about birds.

Grandfathers "puttered" in the garden after work, had a favorite chair, wore Dickies work pants even on the weekends, drank tea, said "yes" after Nana had already said "no", watched Wild Kingdom, and knew way too much about birds.

I imagine this is the same mindset my daughter's have when they see me suddenly run to the window. "Did you hear that?  It's my Cardinal pal.  I wonder if he brought his wife.  They're always together you know.  I hope that feeder is full.  Although they'll take it from the ground, too.  Aren't they beautiful?  There's nothing like a Cardinal against the snow."

And I'm not even a grandparent.