To Catch A Thief

This past week has been spent trying to catch the thief from Monroeville Alabama that made the poor choice to try to purchase a Handheld phone from HP for $538.98 using my money. When I got an e-mail from HP Home & Home Office Store telling me that my order had been shipped to :

****** *. *******

*** Golf Drive

Monroeville, AL 36460

I set about tracking down the problem because I had not ordered a Handheld phone from HP. Thank goodness they sent me that e-mail to confirm the purchase because I was able to stop payment on the order and they showed the person that it was being shipped to in the letter . On further investigation it appears that since April 24, to the best of my knowledge, they have been on quite the shopping spree trying to use my money. At this point holds have been put on my account so no further funds can be withdrawn.

One large purchase made on May 19, that they apparently attempted to return and get the cash for, caused the hold to be put on my account. The banking systems did do a good job of protecting any further drain on funds.

The only reason that their was that much money to be robbed from me is because I had bought really nice Mother's day gifts, that I had saved up for, and the money was in my account because I bought the gifts on line and had to put them on a credit card to get the transaction to go through. The money was in my account waiting for the CC bill to come so I could pay for them.

Be careful our there ladies!

Welcome To Our Garden

We finally got the garden ready for the season so I thought I would share it with you. The iris is bigger than ever this year so hopefully we will have plenty of stems for cut flowers in the kitchen. The dog wood tree hasn't bloomed yet but when it does it will have pretty little white flowers on it. Under the dog wood tree are hostas that yield long stem purple flowers that only last a short time but the foliage makes a good show in this shady area the rest of the season. In a bit the lilies that are in front of the boxwood will display their peachy raspberry flowers that seem to work all over the house when they are cut and brought into the house.
This year we added cushions to the benches and blue and white throw pillows that match them on the chaise lounges. The arborvitae hedge that was just tiny when we planted it has gotten to 10' tall in some places and provides nice privacy for the garden.
Here is a close up of the cushion and a picture of the blue and white garden seat that we got from Pier l on Tickled Pink and Greens recommendation. She did a post on them a couple weeks ago so we finally got around to checking them out on Friday and really liked them. While there we also picked up the cushions, throw pillows and the pieces below.
This elephant with the fake plant on top is really heavy so we are hoping it does not get blown over by the wind like the pieces we had out here last year. The piece on the bottom shelf will have to get carried in to the house if the weather gets bad but for now it balances out the setting.
This row of lilac trees is just about to bloom fully but even now the smell fills this whole corner of the garden.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed this little tour of our garden.

"Blue Onion" Old Canister Set

A couple weeks ago I brought up this old canister set from the basement because I wanted a place to put my tea bags since making Sweet Tea has become an almost daily project. The canister on the right, that you can't see the name of, is for tea. I'm posting this because of my dilemma. The dilemma is that I won Rhoda's give-away that she was having and one of the prizes was a "blue onion" plate. She was very generous with her give-away and had so many things to choose from but I picked two other things instead. Now I'm having second thoughts. That "blue onion" plate would look pretty cute behind these canisters don't you think?

Any way, what will be will be ~ Thank you again Rhoda for your generous give-away, I'm so excited to be one of the winners. This is the first time that I have won and now that I know how it works I think it is about time to have one here at Life At Home so stay tuned........

Memorial Day ~Blue Dining Room~

Good Morning every one. Hope you have all had a good week. It has still been chilly around here so instead of working out in the garden I added a little garden back into the dining room with some of my fake flowers that I had hidden away in the basement for the winter in an attempt at decluttering. Well, that didn't last long, so this is my nod to Memorial Day with a little red, white and blue on the buffet.
Hope you enjoy this Memorial Day weekend as we remember all of those who have sacrificed so much to protect our freedom. We are so grateful for all they have done. To those of you in the rest of the world that visit here I thank you for stopping by and hope you have a good weekend too.

God bless America and the whole world!

Flying In The Master Bedroom

This week on FlyLady's website we are Flying in the Master Bedroom which means that each day this week you get an e-mail that gives you suggestions for things you can do for 15 minutes that will keep your MB clean. After Flying for so many years I sort of instinctively begin to focus on the room that is coming up next. Yesterday I totally pulled apart our old four poster bed and gave the linens, from pillows to dust ruffle, a good cleaning.
The rest of the week I'll work on detail cleaning all the rest of the junk, I mean accessories, that are in here.

I hope every one had a good weekend. It was pretty cold around here but the rain held off for the most part. John played in a golf outing yesterday which gave me a good opportunity to get all the bedding washed. He gets a little nervous when he sees semi damp things strung all over the stair way railing as they finish drying ~ Best to do it when he is otherwise occupied ~

Have a good Monday and stop by for a chat if you get a minute. I'll try and get around to visit every one this week.

Hugs,
Sue

The Queen of Accessories

Photo: House Beautiful

Mrs. Jules just sent me an e-mail about an interview in House Beautiful about Charlotte Moss that I thought you might enjoy reading.

White Bathrooms

From: Southern Accents; Designer: Cathy Kincaid;

Photographer: Antoine Bootz & Jeff McNamara

Thank you for the suggestions for the bathroom. While looking around the net this morning for white painted cabinet inspiration I came across this picture of a bathroom by Cathy Kincaid. The architecture is beautiful. The little lamps on the mirror really add dimension to the mirrors over the vanities and I like how she uses a Venetian mirror propped up above the make up area in the back. The blue and white accent pieces are a nice pop of color in this texturally rich white bathroom.

Photos: http://www.interior-design-tutor.net/

These next two pictures also show white cabinets with paneling and a lot of detail. They have the little lamps mounted on the mirrors too. I really like that look

Both of these bathrooms are pretty grand but have some ideas I would not mind using in our bathroom if I ever get around to it.

xoxo

Pink Towel Rack

The towels are in the laundry and the rugs have been washed and are back on the floor after hiding under the bed for several months. This bathroom and I have a love/not-so-much love relationship going on and have since we moved in here four years ago. The love is for the huge amount of space it has and the tub that the Grand's think is our winter swimming pool. The, not-so-much love comes from the existing tile and the orange cabinets that occupy the whole wall across from the tub.

There is so much wasted space.....I mean room ~ in here that when arranging the living room furniture from the old house in this houses tiny living room, my little pink ribbon love seat ended up in here. It has really ended up working out well for the Mom's to sit on while the Grand's are swimming, but why oh why would they have not made the living room bigger and the bathroom smaller?

Any way, if any one has any ideas about how to decorate a bathroom with orange cabinets and beige and orange tiles to look like a little cottage retreat I would love to hear them.

Back to Flying in the main bathroom...............

Fly Lady Focus ~ Main Bath Bathroom & Home Office

Fly Lady sends out little e-mails to let you know what room they are focusing on each week and this week her Fly Babies are focusing on the main bath room and the home office. When I finally get going around here I'll start my rounds in those rooms.

~Baptism~

Photo from e bible teacher

Today we head up north for Nolan's Baptism tomorrow. We are praising God that his Daddy is also being Baptized along with him. All glory and honor are yours dear heavenly Father!

~Books~

Here are a few of my newest books. I was a bit disappointed with the new Charles Faudree book. He has been one of my favorites for years, but for some reason this book was less than the last couple of his books, for me at least. Blog beauty may have something to do with my lack of appreciation.

Hunt Country Style is good and will probably go to Sarah for her birthday. Don't you just love giving books for presents? You get to read them then share 'em ;) Sarah's house is gorgeous and decorated very beautifully using the Hunt theme. Hopefully, one of these days she will let me photograph it and let me post it on here for all of you.

These are two of the three GRITS (Girl's Raised In The South) books that I have been reading. Even though I live in the Mid-West I get a kick out of GRITS humor, hospitality, manners, and big hair and these cute little books do not disappoint. I think I left the third one at the guest house a couple weeks ago.

I hope every one is having a good week and enjoying spring where ever you are~

~Moving On~

Well, the guest house is finished and it is time to move on to the next project but before that I though I would post these pictures from Dana's blog to contrast the before and after. You did a great job sweetie! ~Plus the kitchen island~
This is the guest house close to the beginning.

Women's City Club House Walk & Lion's Club Chicken Bar-B-Q

We are still in Denver and having a wonderful time with Bernie & Cathy and the grandchildren. I wanted to stop in and give encouragement to my friend Cindy who has so graciously offered to open her lovely home to the Women's City Club for their annual house walk. Dave and her have lovingly restored their home over the last year and have been working very hard to get it ready for the house walk. Take a breath guys, and thank you for your always generous hospitality.
Mom & Dad's house will be open as the Hospitality House where they will be serving refreshments to the house walkers. They are always generous when asked to help out by sharing their home with the community.

The guest house is pretty well finished now so I think they will be able to share that too. Dana has posted updated pictures of it on her blog if you want to take a look at it.

Like I said we are having a good time here helping Bernie and Cathy put some finishing touches on their new home here in Aurora, Colorado which is at the foot hills of the Rockie's, due east of Denver. Yesterday John helped build the sandbox and I weeded the huge center island that is in the middle of the circle driveway that had not been tended to in years. Though hard work, very fun discovering the numerous perennials and herbs that had flourished there years ago.

Today was an early morning of trying to get my hands in shape for church. A good soaking and a fresh coat of polish seem to be doing the trick. Time to go finish pressing the First Communion clothes and get ready for the service.

Hope every one in MP and every where enjoy this beautiful day that the Lord has made. I will miss the house walk and the chicken bar-b-q but will look forward to details of the day.

Much love and God bless,
Sue

Off To Denver

Today we are heading off to Denver for the twins First Communion on Sunday. This is the best picture we could get of our nine grandchildren a couple of weeks ago when we were all together for a picnic at the lake. A good time was had by all but I still haven't figured out how you get nine kids to sit still for a picture.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Hugs,
Sue

Aidan's Birthday Party

Last Sunday we celebrated Aidan's 4th birthday at Aaron and Angie's. Angie always puts on such a beautiful buffet. These little stuffed burgers that Aaron grilled up for us were a big hit.
Aidan is a ball of energy and it is almost impossible to get a picture of this little guy who is always in motion.
This celebration was more than sweet because of everything that has happened this year. I praise God for bring Aaron back to us. He is doing so well. His eyes miraculously seem to be healing themselves. We had planned on going to a sight clinic in Boston but have decided to hold off because his eyes are improving so much on their own. Aaron is getting stronger all the time. He is back to working full time, driving and most of all enjoying life with his family. His golf game still needs a bit of work ;)