Meet The Flintstones

Last year we did The Wizzard of Oz for Halloween. This year we are the Flintstones with a borrowed Rubble (Bam Bam).

Do I make a pretty prissy Wilma Flintstone? Check out Fred and those sexy legs. . .

Bam Bam and Pebbles are sure proud of their costumes this year! What did you dress up as for Halloween?

53 Yards of Taffeta

Current project: My Dad's master bedroom 3.5 hours away from where I live. . .

Since May I have been working on decorating my Dad's house he bought in the spring. In July I went down and did the entire upstairs. This past weekend I went and worked on his master bedroom. Th e picture above is the before picture in July. They had bought bedding they liked and now it was my turn to customize the premade bedding they had found with the fabric swatches above. . .

This is the after. . . I had taffeta drapes made, a new bed skirt to fit the bed,. . . (Why is it premade bed skirts never fit right?) I had extra throw pillows made out of the old bed skirt, tassel trim added to all the premade shams, had roman shades made, a table skirt, and table topper. . . I think that's all. . .

Also had to go out and find lamps and accessories for the room. . . .

All the drapes you see required 53 yards of taffeta, 53 yards of lining, & 53 yards of interlining! The result was luscious and rich looking though. . . .

Most accessories came from Hobby Lobby or Ross. . . gotta love those places. . . .

There is a sitting room connected to the master bedroom. The drapes on either side of it are made to function on this 17ft wall. . . . So, if they want the room closed off they can. I still have roman shades that need to be made of the sitting/exercise area. That area is just not quite complete yet.

This door leads out to the backyard where the pool is. . .There you have it this is what I was up to this weekend. I will have to post some of the other rooms I did in July. . .

Scooby Doo Party

So E.T. and Baby Girl turned "5" on the October 16th. I can't believe they are a whole hand old now :( They were born at 8:53am and 9:09am. E.T. was born first and 16 minutes later Baby Girl was born. This year they wanted a Scooby Doo party. So, come on in the front door and see what we did for our 5th birthday party.

So, when you got to the party, you were greeted by the front door with balloons mixed with our fall decor and a sign telling you to come on in and head to the backyard for the party fun.

Here is my antique buffet that displayed a cute photo of the kids, a copy of the party invitation, and two sign in sheets.

Every party we have I always have out two sign in sheets. There is one for each kid's scrapbook. I think it is fun to look back at the sign in sheets in their scrapbooks and see who came to their birthday party.

As you come through the entry and pass through the living room to go out to the party on the back porch, you can see all my balloon bouquets through the windows just inviting you to come on outside and check the party out.

Now that you are on the porch you see the snack table, cake table, and half of Ethan and Emma's head table.

Another view of the snack table, cake table, and head table.

Here is our Scooby Doo cake (yummy) I had it made at a favorite local bakery. Same place my 30th birthday cake came from this year.

Here is E.T. and Baby Girl's individual bone cakes. I like to give them little cakes of their own since they have to share a birthday. At least they don't have to share their cake.

Here is a cute little antique porcelain top table and bench that I pulled out of the garage to use for our gift table. To the right of the table are two baskets with party favors in them! Found the cutest Scooby Doo bubble bath to add to the party favor bags. I just love themed stuff!

As you step off the back porch and into the yard you see the guest tables set up with colored table cloths, mums covered with colored burlap and a balloon. I also had small little plates with graham cracker bone shaped Scooby Snacks to munch on. Off to the right of the picture we have a mystery machine Daddy helped me to make for kids to take photos behind.

Here is a closeup photo of the Mystery Machine and inside you find 4 of the gang members with a guest. My brother-in-law, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew dressed up as Scooby and part of the gang last year for Halloween, so I convinced them to pull out the costumes and be part of our entertainment. Not sure how many more years the kids will indulge me with a combined party, so every year could be our last, but no matter, it's always just as much fun for me planning it as it is for them the day of. Do you like to plan parties?

Maw Maw (1924 - 2008)

Proverbs 31:28 Her children (grandchildren too) arise and call her blessed; . . .

She always leaned to watch for us.

Anxious if we were late,

In winter by the window,

In summer by the gate;

And though we mocked her tenderly,

Who has such foolish care,

The long way home would seem more safe

Because she waited there.

Here thoughts were full of us-

She never could forget!

And so I think that where she is

She must be watching yet,

Waiting till we come home to her,

Anxious if we are late-

Watching from heaven's window,

Leaning from heaven's gate.

-Author Unknown

This is my Maw Maw and me, just a few weeks after I was born.

My Maw Maw influenced my life in so many ways. More ways than I had actually realized until she passed away this past Friday.

Here are some of the many ways she influenced who I am today. . .

If it were not for her, I would still be biting my fingernails. When I was in middle school she told me she would pay me $1 for each fingernail I grew out to be about 2 centimeters long. The bribe worked, I grew them out, got paid $10, and never bit them again.

She taught me to work when I needed money to do fun things. She had me clean her house for money, wash her car, and even pull weeds in the flower bed.

She nurtured many of my domestic skills today. . .

She taught me how to sew straight lines. I started learning by making little throw pillows and pillowcases.

She taught me how to craft things out of beads when I was a little girl. Just wait till you see the ornaments she taught me to make for my very first Christmas tree when I got married 12 years ago. I still use them to this day and will forever!

Many of the sweets I make today are her recipe. . .mini pecan pies, pound cake, and banana pudding.

She bought me my first mixer and taught me how to use it. I still use it. She even gave me her mixer that was about 50 years old when it broke and now it is in my kitchen being used as a decoration. She used to make cakes around the clock to take to people when they were sick, had a death, needed cheering up, fellowships at church, and for bake sales. . .

She taught me meal planning very early on when I got married and moved away. I used to spend many hours on the phone with her discussing different meal ideas when I was planning for guests to come over for dinner.

She kept her house very clean, neat, and decorated. She passed those skill right on to me. (I have probably taken it to a more OCD level though.)

I know how to plan baby showers, wedding showers, and parties because of her and my Aunt Pam too. Just wait till you see my post on the Scooby Doo party we are having tomorrow for E.T. and Baby Girl.

The list of ways she influenced me can go on and on so I will stop with this last thing before I bore you to death! The most important thing in my life that she influenced me in was church. If it were not for my Maw Maw taking me to church as a small girl, I might not be the person I am today. She took me as a child during a time when my parents did not go. My parents eventually ended up taking me years later and it was a different denomination than that of my Maw Maw's church, but if it was not for her that seed would have never been planted early on in my life. So for that I am thankful. I have learned most recently that it's not all about going to "church" but it is more about your personal relationship with God that is important and how you influence the lives of others for His kingdom. On Sunday, at the funeral, I saw many people that my Maw Maw influenced of the years out of her love of serving God. I hope to influence people like that in my life someday.

This is Maw Maw, E.T., and Baby Girl just a few weeks after they were born.

This is E.T. and Baby Girl taking an nap in Daddy's car before Maw Maw's funeral.

Here are the beautiful flowers and plants sent by friends and family to show their love and appreciation for Maw Maw.