Updates on the New Room

Additions to the new room are coming slowly. It is spring and my attention is now divided into even more areas :). Now there is not only: cooking; cleaning; baking in my Test Kitchen (I always have some lain brained concoction that I want to try); exercise; learning new music; keeping up with my magazine subscriptions and other reading material; but there is preparation for the veggie garden. Which means seed starting for peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, etc. There is also the garden to tend to. Got to get all those gardens cleaned out so the spring bulbs can shine in all God's splended glory. Oh yeah and then there's work. You know, the place that provides everyones bacon? On top of it all we have Easter fast approaching. Holy Week coming up which means busy at church.

At any rate, I have finally, finally decided on my bedding and it feels so good. They say "not to decide is to decide." Well, since I took my sweet time in this decision I didn't feel right trying to return any bedding (even though it remained in the original package) after purchasing it more than 3 months ago so I am keeping the two original purchases. I just packed away the satin set (fall/winter) an put out the spring/summer set. The table is finished and I am very, very, pleased with the finish and the finished product.

I worked on this lamp I found in the basement. It was my daughters. She happened to leave it behind, when she moved to Ohio, most likely due to the fact that it needed a welding repair to keep the shade on. Dads are wonderful aren't they? Mine came to my rescue and fixed it, adding a few extras that I wouldn't have asked for since I didn't want to take up any more of his time than I really needed. But he was wonderful anyway and very happy to help me out. I touched up the gold around the areas at the base of the lamp around all the swirls my daughter painted on and then sprayed the whole thing with a clear finish. This is her touch to my room. I am work on an oak chair for the desk. The wood was painted so I am stripping it. It also needs a new cushion on the seat so once the wood is finished, I'll be shopping for a piece of upholstery that works with my room. It may be fall before I get to that since gardening will now be my obsession. I didn't get much of my plant in the picture, there on the left, but it is the Hibiscus that I mentioned a while back saying I thought it might be dead. It is filling out very nicely. I'll post a picture when if has a few blooms.

I am still working on picture hanging. After all my hard work with repairing walls, I am hesitant to put any holes in them. Since I am not sure about where all the furniture will go I am kind of dragging my feet on hanging pictures. I still need a TV stand, a headboard, and a comfy chair for TV viewing or reading. Well, that is it so far. Stay tuned for more updates on the New Room (It will be the Old Room by the time I actually get it all done :-)) , Pina Colada Scones, garden pictures and more.

Thought for the Day

"Your every act should be done with Love."

1 Corinthians 16:14

The Weather, etc.

Can you believe this exceptionally gorgeous weather today? Didn't you just want to sit out there and bask in that gentle breeze? Oh my...that was wonderful. And now they are saying 2-6 inches of snow tomorrow. Yikes! Though it won't last since they are also giving flood warnings, so it is all going to melt hopefully as it falls :).

I finally bought the formby's for my table and removed the finish. Then I stained the top. Tomorrow I will look it over and if all is well with it, I'll put the finish on and get it back up into my room.

I found an unfinished wood frame in the basement that was the perfect size for my olde time picture. I cleaned it up, stained it and put on a finish. The picture is in and it looks really nice (Well, at least I think it does :)). I don't have it hanging yet though. Draggin' my feet on a few things. But it is all coming together. I don't have any new pictures to post yet but I will soon.

Interactive games...check them out!

Interactive Historical Games and Puzzles
How good is your memory? Test it out with our Jamestown memory game, just one of many interactive games, puzzles, and quizzes you can try on our special Jamestown Games and Quizzes page.

Updates on Gran Cru and Giant Calla

Here are my latest pic's. The Gran Cru has been in bloom since about
February 20. My complaint about amaryllis bulbs is that the blooms don't last very long. But if it has more than one flower stalk they can bring color and enjoyment for weeks. I did have both flower stalks open all together for one day but didn't get a picture.
This will be the third week the Gran Cru is in bloom.

The Giant Calla is coming along very nicely. It has two buds...very exciting for me since I have not been very successful at growing Calla's in pots.

Not much going on here with these freezing, bitter cold temperatures here. Just makes me want to hibernate and cozy up near a nice warm fire.

Been slacking a little on the New Room. I need to get to the store for some Formby's furniture refinisher and I have an art project going for the frame for my picture. You know, the one that booted Grandma Wilhelmina out of her frame. :) Time to get to work.

Art for the New Room

So far I have two pictures to help in the transition to another time period. I remembered seeing this picture in the basement and thought I could use it. I went down to dig it up, yikes!!! It was filthy. So I took it all apart, cleaned the frame the best I could using q-tips to get into the finer recessed areas and cleaned the glass on both sides. This picture is done with chalk and is of Dave's great grandmother, Wilhelmenia. If you zoom in you can see the frame has some damage but I am going to try to fix it and then repaint the edges. Hopefully I can find the right color paint. These older frames I believe were made with wood and then coated with plaster in order to get all the ......cut work which is really made from a mold. Since it is just the edges that need repair I think I can do that. Time will tell.

Yeah, I gave Grandma the boot.
:-))) So, what do you think? I need a frame for this picture. I think it looks great. Of course I am not giving Grandma the boot. I couldn't do that but as I was cleaning the frame and the glass I thought...this looks close to the size of my picture and sure enough, it was. I had to try it...didn't I :). I do have a few options for a frame for this picture. Will be working on this next.

This picture (8x10) is of my dad and his family, my grand parents, aunts and uncle. It is on a slight angle to reflect the glare from the glass. I don't have any pictures in the New Room yet. I'm afraid to put any holes in the walls :). I am also trying to gather some pictures first and see where I want to hang them before putting unnecessary holes in the walls. I will hang them soon. I have to put the above picture in a frame and then find an appropriate frame for a new picture that my cousin found of my great grandmother, Pia. It is a smaller 5x7. She is unbelievable. Once I have that I think I'll be ready to hang them all.