A Little Christmas Laughter

Christmas is such an emotional time.  It can be overwhelming!  You know what I mean.

Well, the Sunday before Christmas, Denver Downs Farm sponsors a two lap Christmas parade.  People who want to be in the parade line up at the railroad tracks at the crossroads at Denver, SC, at 2 pm and the parade starts at 3 pm.  It is all just plain silly and so much fun!  Come along and share a little Christmas laughter.

"There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious

 as laughter and good humor."

                                                                                                     - Charles Dickens

"We're all here for a spell; get all the good laughs you can."

                                                                                                                      - Will Rogers

"Always laugh when you can, it is cheap medicine."

                                                                                             - George Gordon Byron

"If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane."

                                                                                                      - Robert Frost                                      

" A day without laughter is a day wasted."

                                                                                            - Charlie Chaplin

"Laughter is the closest distance between two people."

                                                                                                       - Victor Borge

  "With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come."

                                                                                            - William Shakespeare

 "You might as well laugh at yourself, everyone else is."

                                                                                                - B.J. Neblett

"Find 100 reasons to laugh.  You are bound to feel better, you will cope with problems more effectively and people will enjoy being around you.  Besides unhappiness, what do you have to lose?"

                                       - Steve Goodier

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells."

                                                                                                    - Dr. Seuss

"A child's giggle is worth one hundred pounds of gold."  

                                                                                                       - Amy Leigh Mercree   

   "Laugh and make the best of every situation. 

 Understand that life is not perfect."

                                                                                             - Anonymous

Goodness, Christmas lasts a long time.  My son is driving in today (Dec 27) and we start Christmas all over again!  There will be much laughter!

I hope you have a great year ahead in 2015.  Let me share one more thought with you, my dear bloggy friends!

"The more you expect from life, the more your expectations will be fulfilled.  By laughing, you do not use up your laughter, but increase your store of it.  The more you love, the more you will be loved.  The more you give, the more you will receive.  Life proves that truth every hour, every day.  And life continues to surprise."
                                                                                                           - Dean Koontz

Happy New Year!

Love,
Lottie

Merry Christmas to You!

Blessings for the New Year!  Here are a few pictures around our blue cottage.  Come along for the tour:-)

Even Sardis is waiting for Santa tonight! 

 Merry Christmas!

Love,
Lottie and DH

Rest This Afternoon

I haven't seen much of DH lately!  He has been busy taking care of all the leaves!  I bring him out a glass of tea or water and we rest together on the swing. Often we don't even talk.  It just feels good to stop and rest together after hard work. Time to go at it again! Much to do before the cold rain starts.

“Learn from yesterday, live for today, look to tomorrow,

 rest this afternoon.”

                                                                       Charlie Brown's Little Book of Wisdom

Moving Around the Yard Slowly

I've been preoccupied with yard cleanup after DH moved two buildings to the back yard.  He is organizing everything in his buildings and garage.  I'm proud of all he is doing but it is "Man's World," and I'm finished with it! LOL!

 I hurt my foot so I moved around the yard slowly yesterday. Sardis watched me and wanted to come outside so bad.  I couldn't hold the camera and him and hobble along all at the same time.

The camellias in the front yard are just beautiful in the fall. 

No freeze yet!

The back yard is decked out still for summer, but it is too cool now.

Quietly and slowly the weather changes.

My flower bed will go to sleep soon.

And all the time sweet Sardis is waiting at the door to walk with me.  I have to rest a while and get off my foot.  I'm afraid winter will get here before I am well enough to take long walks again.  Wait on me, dear November.

Goof!  (The photographer can be seen in the reflection in the glass.)

Love,

Lottie

Update

Ok, so I obviously have problems where computers are involved :-)

My computer is down so I'm using my husband's computer which is "different" than mine.  So I'm slowing down on posting until I get his figured out!  Here are the news!

BIG PROJECT!  For the last few weeks we have been tearing down a shed and adding two utility buildings. It has been a total reorganization out in the back yard.  I have loads of pictures, not pretty, but much about the transformation.  I'll post about the big project after my computer is fixed.

FOUND A GREAT BLOG about home restoration called Manhattan Nest.  I enjoyed the writing and projects so much that I spent "hours" reading about projects!

LIFE'S LESSON - I have a wonderful neighbor who is 94 years old and one of the most positive people I know!  She is going in the hospital on Tuesday for a serious operation.  So what does she do before she goes in the hospital?  Why, go to the mountains to see waterfalls! 

Reminded me of the saying, "When times get tough, the tough go on vacation!"

UPDATE:  My neighbor is recovering at home and doing great!  Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers.

Have a great week ahead!

Lottie

Adding a Little Red

I'm always inspired when I read your blogs!  I was reading Brenda's blog, Cozy Little House, and I am always inspired by her use of the color red and her decorating skill in general.  Her home looks happy! 

 Before

 This is the plant on my kitchen counter in its beige plastic pot.  I set it there for the light and to hide all the cables and wires to our little TV and microwave.  Well, I just couldn't get the color in the rooms out of my mind all day long, so I went shopping for something red for my kitchen.
 

 After

And there it is!  Just a little red made all the difference!  Now what else can I change out?

DH's birthday is Monday!  I'm looking forward to a slice of his favorite carrot cake.

Best wishes,
Lottie


Joining the Tweak It Tuesday link party.

Anniversary Blueberries

8/4/14

Yes, August 4, 2014 is a special day!  DH and I are celebrating our 41st wedding anniversary today!  We are celebrating with 6 gallons of blueberries that DH picked, washed, and put up in freezer bags.

So all through the winter when we take out a freezer bag of blueberries marked 8/4/14, they will be our anniversary blueberries!

Last year was the big anniversary with the second honeymoon and the wonderful dinners and flowers.  This year was the treasured day running errands, quiet KFC dinner in the kitchen together, and the washing and packing of blueberries.  I wish when we were young we had some idea life would be so good! 

Note: Do not watch the movie Philomena unless you are prepared to cry for hours! Otherwise, it is a wonderful story! 

Back to the blueberries!

Love,

Lottie

Insurance for Happiness

I have insurance for happiness.  I have a library of good books to read and a DVR full of old movies to watch.  I have two cats to pet and feed and lots of family to talk  to on the telephone.  I have a slew of  women friends to exercise with and a yard full of flowers and plants to water.  I have a wonderful husband who can cook and washed the blinds in the den without me asking him.  Even so, I have to be honest, my best insurance for happiness is my dog, Sardis!

 "Come on mama, let's go for a walk!"

Sardis with my sock!

Thorns may hurt you,
men desert you, 
sunlight turn to fog;
but you're never friendless ever, 
if you have a dog.

Douglas Mallock

What do you have as insurance for happiness?

Love,
Lottie

Treasure Today

That's what I used to say all the time when my sons were 10 and 12 years old.  It seemed they were interested in everything!  And of course I saved what ever they put together or created or found.  I put it all in a display case as if our home was a museum! That was 20 years ago!

I was taking each creation out today and dusting when I stopped a minute. 

 

I took a minute to remember watching them spend hours bent over a table gluing or holding their little hands together making a little pot on their dad's lap at his potter's wheel.

Both sons have moved across country and I have been adjusting to their absence each day.  What has helped most has been your wonderful comments! Thank you for sharing with me!

Oh my goodness!  I can't even dust without getting emotional! I usually love dusting, but today I'm having a hard time.  Does that ever happen to you?

Have a great week!

Love,

Lottie

Beauty of July and Red Bistro Set

Hello bloggy friends!  I think July is just beautiful!

Bright orange Tiger Lilies bloomed 4th of July!

Watermelon Crepe Myrtle's are like fireworks bursting in the sunshine!

Our small butterfly bush looks pretty through the window..

Sparking raindrops on a geranium in the yard.

I wanted to share a picture of a red bistro set we bought for the side porch. I love the red!  And it is so July!  DH and I take our breakfast out in the morning to start our day together.  And on the few days that it rains, I love to sit out and watch the rain!

Every time I walk up the porch, it makes me smile. My neighbor, who is 94, told me that if you buy something that makes you happy, then you spent your money well! With all due respect to my hardworking, creative bloggy friends, this bistro set is not vintage. I didn't buy it at a yard sale, nor did I paint it myself.  In fact, I bought it brand new at Wal-mart at regular price!  And I love it! But I was a little apprehensive about sharing it on the blog because it wasn't vintage.  DH had to put it all together so maybe that counts as DIY!

I have to get over this guilty feeling from buying something new!  Maybe I need to go shopping and try to cure myself! LOL!

Have a great week!
Love,
Lottie

                                                  Linked with  http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

Moss Rose, Portulaca, for a broken heart

I can't believe it has been two months since I've written to my bloggy friends!  I've been struggling with carpel tunnel syndrome for awhile now and trying to mend a broken heart at the same time.

You see, both my grown sons, 30 and 32, have moved across country from me and their dad.  One was offered an incredible new job and the other was offered a promotion.  I didn't expect both to move away within the same month of June.  But it is all good and an indication that the economy is doing better.  My heart is still breaking.  Dan, my oldest, hugged me before he walked out the door and said, "Mom, a man has to follow opportunity!"  He is right.

 

I was in a state of shock for awhile and my sister-in-law told me to "snap out of it!"  So I went to Lowe's and bought a Moss Rose, or Portulaca Rose as we used to call them. It brings joy to my heart. When I was a child in hot, hot Texas, my mom had strawberry pots filled with Portulaca Rose and that was about all!  The flowers were so beautiful! Thinking of them brings back happy memories of sitting in the sunshine as a child.   

Prescription for a broken heart = remember something that made you happy and try to find it again!

Miss Natalie couldn't understand why I was taking pictures on the deck and not taking pictures of her!  Here she  is!


Have a wonderful day!  I've missed you!  Feels so good to be writing to you again!


Love,
Lottie

To see other beautiful Portulaca Rose. visit Poppy at Poppy View.