tea cups and sweets for the last day of March.....

Happy March 31st.....

couldn't resist...

found this cup on my last shopping trip to anthropologie

please have a sweet...

HOW CUTE ARE THESE? ...

the little girl reminds me of my girls when they were younger... hair always in braids...

another treat from france....

molly shares....

i myself have never been to France so i am living vicariously through my daughter and having a lot of fun doing so....

Molly gave me permission to post some of her photos ....

so of course i jumped at the chance....

being the good daughter she is.... she full filled her mothers wishes and headed straight to Laduree to buy those yummy French macaroons....

she could not bring them home without disastrous results... so enjoyed every last one..... but she did bring me the sweet box they were in ...{i can't believe i got so excited over a box}...

which is now being displayed proudly in my china cabinet ....

{she spoiled us all with many many beautiful French gifts...not just a box}

as mother requested she took a photo of the window display at Laduree...

those are her macaroons which are now in her tummy....

my box is just like one of those....isn't it lovely???

i knew it was going to be a good weekend.....

ingredients for a wonderful weekend.....

feet up....favorite tea cup {now you know!!!....check a few posts back}....good book....clean house...good company...all children home...good food..everyone pitched in to help...{syd is still cooking tonight's special dinner...smells great...3 daughters that like to cook ...how lucky am i!!!}....lots and lots of laughs......
...apple crisp...an all time family favorite...made with love to welcome Molly home

yummy...topped with vanilla ice cream
{this photo is for my dear friend alanna....she loves my apple crisp....wish you were here!!!}

this weekend = relax

will be busy all weekend....

reading this book....

listening to molly's adventures of her France trip...

and cooking/baking yummys for us all!!!

fashion feet friday....

shoes...shoes...shoes...us girls so do LOVE them...

so thought i would show you a collection borrowed from

the cherry blossom girl

her french blog is amazingly adorable

enjoy!!!!

a sneek peek....

Molly is back from France tomorrow...YAHOOOOOOOOO

i thought i would let you take a sneek peek at her room...shhhhhh

{she will not be happy with me}

she is planning to take up costume design once out of high school ....

she amazes me with her sewing abilities....

the perfect one....

thought i would have some fun today....

i am totally a mug/cupaholic...

i use to have only one shelf in my cupboard which was the designated home for all my cups/mugs....

now i have two full shelves and i am finding myself out of room again....

i just brought another one home from Seattle...

i can't throw or give any away....i have tried.... but i love them all dearly....

i am very picky when it comes to shape...rim and handle size....feel of it in my hand...weight...etc.

the mugs/cups that make it into my cupboard have to be perfect for me...and me alone......the rest of the family has to put up with my preferences...though my husband has a hockey mug which i allow to join in but i have been soooo tempted..... many a times....to accidentally break it....shhhhh...it just does not fit in with the rest of them...so i usually hide his ugly mug at the back.....

we use mugs/cups to hold a lot of different foods...not just for tea (which is all i drink) or coffee...we eat our cereal out of the big latte ones... desserts...soup...basically anything that could use a bowl....soooo....

i have a few of my favs here...

it was very hard to pick which ones to show you... because i love them all...basically these were some of the clean ones when i decided to do this....but....i do have my all time favorite one mixed in...the one i always pick first..she is the perfect one for a good cup of tea.....i love her so very much...(i know i am getting silly now)

anyways....take a guess?????

which one is she?????

let me know what you think.....

i will post her image in a few days.....

do you have a perfect mug/cup that you can not live without?

a peek at Seattle....

pike place market
this market is second to none...the sights and smells remind you of what an European market must be like...
i love wandering through the flower market..
the blooms of color are unbelievably gorgeous ...the little old women that tend to their flowers are adorable...heads covered with bright scarves...just tall enough to peek over all the blooms to flash you a wink or two....


at this very french bakery we were delighted to find macaroons...all lined up in pretty pastel colors...i chose pink...Syd chose green...we kinda felt guilty eating them because i sent Molly on a mission in France to find them and here they are at our backdoor...shhhhh we will not tell her...though i am sure the ones in France do taste better.... however... these were very delicious.. melt in your mouth... die and gone to heaven... want to eat 100 more...kinda treat..
lucky we only had one each..
ps.....i didn't find the perfect dress but i did find the perfect skirt/blouse etc..... so all ended well...

it's all about the dress.....

off again

going for a sleepover to find a dress

heading to one of my favorite shopping spots

downtown Seattle

i love that city

i would even pay to sleep on the floor surrounded by these beautiful vintage gowns

imagine what you would dream about

{ found at shabby chic }

see you in a few days

wish me luck....i really need to find "the perfect dress"

toast with this fashion friday breakfast...

i was enjoying a little toast with my morning breakfast...

"toast"...as in the new catalogues that arrived in my mailbox yesterday...

EVERYTHING in both the home and fashion catalogue is amazing...

so i had to share some of my favorites with you....

check it out for yourself here

and good luck choosing just one!!!!

a little peek at Oliver....

Oliver.....relax...visit....eat...walk...read....
not much else to do in this sleepy town....that is why i love to visit...
Mom and i would walk everyday around this little lake they live by called Tuc-a-nu-it..
it is still frozen solid and it is still very much winter in this little town...
the only "spring" happening was inside...
we celebrated mom's birthday with flowers and doughnut birthday cakes....

one more day.....

map..check

journal...check
funky suitcase....check

Eiffel tower...2 more days


Laduree for mom....
i am so hoping molly will find a way to bring back some of these for me.....
{google images...eiffel tower..laduree macaroons}

our majestic maple....

i admit it....i am a tree hugging..nature loving....critter caring type of girl....

i love our huge big maple in our front yard....

the above image is a day in the life of our tree..early morning to sunset...

photos were taken this past Sunday...

this is our tree in late summer when the leaves are just starting to fall....

sydney and molly enjoying our crop of leaves last fall...
we love our tree... all of us...it really is part of the family...
we would all agree that it is one of the best things about our home....

.......well something is happening in our neighborhood that we do not want any part of...in the last two weeks three neighbors have cut down their beautiful old maples....why???? good question...but our little street looks so different and bare...it's not the same....
our tree will be the last one standing.....
we will stay cool in the summer
have leaves to jump into in the fall
have the beauty of snow clinging to it's branches in the winter
and it will be a home to all local birds in the spring
thank you tree

au revoir my sweet jam.....

today is a very sad day....alas...we opened the last jar of our raspberry jam sydney and i made this past summer

we have a jam day every July...we pick the berries early in the morning....come home and set aside the rest of the day to clean....eat some berries....crush... eat...add sugar...eat more....pour.....eat .....make scones....laugh....eat some more.... we finish our day with a tea party.....it's a tradition!!!!

but today saddens me....our jam is gone...this is my last bit until this upcoming July when we do it all over again.... every year i make more and more batches but always seem to run out around this time of year....my husband devourers it...... so i will blame it on him.

sweet scotties....

my find for the weekend... these incredible sweet black licorice Scotties

i really have to control myself or the whole bag will disappear

i only like the sweet licorice...forget about the salted unsweetened...how do people eat that stuff???...sorry if you are one of those folks....i am sure it has something to do with your upbringing...especially if you have any Dutch blood in you!!!!

couldn't resist ... scotties and buttons....


this is the blackboard in our kitchen...my daughter Molly is counting down to Paris...Lyon....Normandy....Amsterdam...she goes this Friday for 2 weeks...lucky lucky girl...she is my world traveller ...... this is her second school trip overseas..... when i was in school our Big trip was to the ice rink...

simple elegance

i am so excited to share this beautiful website with all my creative blog friends ..... i know you will appreciate the simplistic beauty of each image

Linnet located in Kyoto Japan

{the company is named after a type of bird that likes to eat the seed of flax..the significance being that flax is the main material in linen..

linen is one of their main product...linen ribbon, fabric, yarn etc.}

if you create... you will fall in love with all the wonderful sewing goods...

if you find beauty in the purity of everyday items....you will be visually delighted by the charming images ...

pale blue linen yarn




simple beauty
all images from Linnet

vintage finds Friday....

vintage finds on etsy...what would marilyn wear

....this lavender dress pulls at my heartstrings

but it is sold!... the waist was 21 inches and would not of fit me anyways ...some lucky tiny waisted girl is wear it right now ... is it you???

another adorable find... a 50's cotton baby doll sundress... the pretty blue floral print is what caught me eye..

found on etsy at the green wallpaper

what are you wearing today? ....i hope you feel fantastic in it!!!

some of my day off shopping finds....

look what i found today.....some really cute bargains i wanted to share with you....this sweet little bird nest..
this adorable bluebird plate....all found at pier 1 imports...both a steal at under $5

a new magazine to collect...

i just discovered this beautiful Australian magazine i had to share...Donna Hay

the photo images are amazingly beautiful

i think this magazine will be another one i will be collecting

petit amour....dainty little cakes....strawberry....vanilla cream..

honey and golden syrup meringue....candied lemon...

which one should i make first?...i think... the vanilla cream...i will let you know how they turn out!

from the pages of Donna Hay issue 41....labeled Once Upon a Time......

blue + white + floral = take me home please

a few corners of my home...anything blue and white usually makes it's way into my world...especially if it is floral...

pastel collections...

thought i would start this week with some images from around my home....this is my china cabinet which changes constantly....right now i have added my new rose dishes and a few pieces to celebrate springtime.....my home is filled with pastel shades...washed out cotton prints... lots of faded floral........ stay tuned....i will continue adding images of my home all week..