Hot Tea Days :-)

 Hot tea and a good book always seem to go together. This week they've 

been at my side often. I woke up Monday morning with a sore throat and

cold that has kept me inside and bundled up most of the week.

 I tried not to, but unfortunately, I shared it with members of my family.

So it's hot tea and bed rest for them too :-)

 Thank you so much to Molly at the beautiful blog Birdie Blue, for noticing my absence. 

Your sweet comment meant so much to me. 

 I'm sorry I didn't get around to answering any comments this week, but 

thank you to everyone for your sweet words of encouragement.

I'll be around to visit again soon :-)

 The teacup is a favorite of mine from my little collection. 

Don't you just love those turquoise polka dots?

 Valentine's Day is coming up, and this little "Courtship of Miles Standish" book 

seems like a perfect read for that...

 a famous old poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 

 I love the *pretty lady* images on these beautiful old books. 

Too see more Friday Pretties visit Joyce at I Love Pretty Little Things.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings,

Marcia

Friday Pretties...*and a giveaway winner*

It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all. 

Laura Ingalls Wilder

  There isn't a sewing room in my house, just a little space in our "catch-all" room, 

right next to the computer and piano. This little nook looks outside 

to our front yard, where I can watch my kids playing there while I sew.  

I had a little help with the photos though...

Milo always wants to be in the middle of the action :-)

I'm looking forward to doing a little sewing this weekend...I hope you find time

to do something you love too.

The winner of the CSN giveaway is.....

Becky at Sweet Cottage Dreams! 

Congratulations Becky, I'll be emailing you.

Visit Joyce for more Friday Pretties here :-)

 Blessings,

Marcia 

Simple Little Pearls--Overheard at My House :-)

 A little "Overheard at My House" dialogue...

just to let you know...we are a very real family :-)

Said by one of my twins: "Mom, I want to go to Miagna Falls."

Me: (laughing a bit) "Oh really, Miagna Falls?"

Twin: "Why are you smiling?"

Me: "Well, you're not saying it quite right."

Twin: "Miagana? Miagna? Miagra?, What is it?"

Me: "Oh honey, you're close enough...I like the way you say it; it sounds cute."

(Never say cute to a 10yo boy!)

He takes off, but is back in a minute.

Twin: "I asked "unnamed older brother" (although I'm not sure why I'm protecting his identity) and he told me how to say it right."

Me: "Oh really?" 

Twin: "He said it started with a V!"

I had a moment of realization before he blurted out...

 "It's Viagra Falls!"

Oh no...that will teach me to try and keep them little and cute :-)

(Not when there are older siblings around!) 

Sometimes it's the "simple little pearls" that bring us the greatest joy,
especially when they're said by our children :-)

My Giveaway ends tomorrow at midnight...there's still time to enter my friends. 

I'll be back in a few days to announce the winner.

I'm linking to Sarah's new Beach Cottage Good Life Wednesdays,
because this little story is part of my "good life".
Thanks so much Sarah for starting this blog hop...I hope everyone can take a peek!

Have a wonderful week!

Blessings,

Marcia

Lovely Linens

Many of the vintage linens you've seen on my blog have come from a company 

called Euro-Linens.

Although I've never been able to visit their shop, Patine, I've had the pleasure of meeting 

Eric and Daniela (Dani) several times. 

 This past weekend I visited The Rose Bowl Flea Market with my friend Jill, 

and I wanted to be sure and stop by their booth. I asked them if I could take some 

photos to share with you, and they graciously agreed. Thank you both so much!!!

As always, I was thrilled with the lovely selection of linens they had available.

Many of their items are monogrammed. They also sell fabric such as

vintage French Ticking.

Aren't they all so beautiful!!!

I picked up a few Euro Shams that I'll show you soon. These are a few of the linens I've

purchased from them in the past, that have appeared in previous posts.

Their booth is always busy with lots of shoppers, and Eric and Dani are very kind and helpful. 

It was a cold day in Pasadena, but we had a great time.

If you ever get a chance to visit Euro-Linen's store or booth,

you're in for a wonderful treat! I'm looking forward to my next visit :-)

Enjoy your weekend my friends. Don't forget to stop by and 

enter my CSN giveaway!

 Blessings,

Marcia 

{Linking with Joyce for Friday Pretties,
Jami for Air Your Laundry Friday
and Debra for Vintage Inspiration Friday}

*Winter CSN Giveaway*

giveaway ended January 19, 2011
thank you to everyone who entered :-)
  CSN Stores has graciously offered to give one of my sweet friends

a $65.00 gift certificate!

CSN has over 200 on-line stores that offer everything from stylish home bar furniture,

and great cookware, to beautiful electric stoves.

I found these for my friends who love the color red :-)

 

Or maybe a beautiful pillow and cozy throw for cold winter days and nights...

along with a pair of warm boots.

 I even found a wonderful electric towel warmer.

They have decorative candlesticks, dishes and furniture...

sweet toys for children...

and for all of you crafters, they even have burlap!

This is just a small sampling of what CSN Stores has to offer.

I'd love to hear about what you'd get if you're the lucky winner :-)

  The rules are simple:

             1. To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment.

             2. For a second entry, leave another comment to let me know that you're a follower.

             3. For a third entry, blog about the giveaway and leave another comment to let me know :-)

                      Feel free to copy my giveaway photo at the top of this post.

             4. According to CSN rules, the contest is only open to the US and Canada.

Good luck everyone! The giveaway ends next Wednesday, January 19th. :-)

Thank you so much, CSN Stores!

Blessings,

Marcia

Simple Homemade Gifts

 I love homemade gifts and I also love *Simple*...

 so when I discovered these sweet gift ideas, I wanted to try them.

 I'm not one to take on anything too complicated at this point in my life;
the busyness of a large family means I might not complete it,
but these were very quick and easy.

  You've probably seen different versions of this diaper burp cloth in blog land,
but there is a wonderful tutorial over at Chickpea Sewing Studio, (thanks so much!).
 You can visit the link and get the complete tutorial there.

The stitching is just a simple zig-zag.

She also has a free download for a cute little reversible bib pattern
that takes just minutes to sew up.

I've made several sets of these over the last few months...
it seems a few of my friends are becoming grandmothers :-)

 I like to use flannel, but you could use a pretty cotton fabric too.
If you know of anyone having a new baby, these make great little gifts.
I'm joining Jami for Air Your Laundry Friday,
Joyce for Friday Pretties,
and Donna for Saturday Nite Special. 

I also finally figured out how to create one of those little blog buttons...

 you can see the link on my sidebar :-)

*Have a wonderful weekend my friends*

I'll be back with a giveaway early next week :-)
Blessings,
Marcia

Seems It Never Rains....

 in southern California

 Seems I've often heard that kind of talk before

It never rains in California, but girl, don't they warn ya?

 It SNOWS, man, it SNOWS :-)

Okay, that's not quite the way the lyrics go...

 but we're sure enjoying the fluffy white stuff around here.
I thought I'd share a little with you :-)

This is my garden, and I pulled these from it today...

they'd been forgotten until I saw them peeking up in the snow.

The flowers from last week's post, 

twins catching snowflakes....

 desert views...

and snow covered palm trees!

 I have another CSN giveaway coming for you soon :-)

In the meantime, we have a little more playing to do!
Visit Faded Charm for more White Wednesday posts.

Blessings,

Marcia

Snow Arrives in Southern California :-)

  Yes, the little flowers I showed you just a few days ago 

are now covered in a blanket of the white stuff.

 We're so thrilled! We don't get lots of snow around here 

so we're pretty excited whenever it arrives.

 It's snowing still :-)

We haven't even taken down our outdoor decorations. 

Tomorrow will definitely be a snow day around here. It arrived in early evening, 

so the kids didn't get to do much playing in it. 

My daughter got creative though :-)

Now I'm off to bed....because my twins will be up bright and early!

Blessings,

Marcia