January 31, 2013

The Lemon Life


Life gave me lemons...just look at them.
Aren't they wonderful?


 Even though they appear to be oranges,
the Meyer lemon is a special treat during the cold months of winter.


It's so cheerful in the house.


I love the smell of the blossoms.


 The lemons are ready to pick.


You may remember that Bruce enjoys eating citrus trees,
so we'll keep our fingers crossed that this one survives.


I have recipes planned for these beauties...
and some hot lemonade to sip by the fire.
Hope you enjoy your weekend!


January 30, 2013

Sourpuss






Sourpuss in the yard...and I feel just like him.
It's one of those days that I'd like to 
find wings and fly away.

Ever feel that way?






January 28, 2013

*NEW* Tongue In Cheek Tuesday





Welcome to TICT...ticked?

Tongue In Cheek Tuesday!

For example~
A family goes out to dinner with their grandma at a restaurant called Dick's... 


Grandma: I love Dick's, they're so delicious. I think I need seconds.

Kid (tongue in cheek): Hey grandma, why do you like Dick's so much? 


Grandma: Oh, well I'm not sure... they just make my mouth happy!

Source: Urban Dictionary


Cheeky. Wink Wink.

Thanks to the other TICT bloggers who get my humor 
and don't just think I might need more medication.
I have fooled you all.
High fives all around.

My thought for today is this~
So many times I am asked what kind of blog I have.
Well, that's a conundrum.

I haven't been able to commit to a particular category in blog land.

I can squeeze into Home Decor, Photography, DIY, Animal Lover, Crafting, Vintage, Embroidery, etc.
I am interested in so many things and I like it that way.

Some days I feel like a nut, some days I don't.
Are you feeling me here?
I simply don't fit into these categories.
And that's okay.

I've come up with a plan.

I started thinking of words like HodPodge, MishMash, Mixture and Mess.
Assortment and Medley and Salmagundi.
Uh huh, how do you like that one?

Looking at synonyms I noticed words like Pastiche and Melange.
Fancy restaurant names...those work.
Then I see these...
Deranged, Disordered, Clutter, Chaos and Salad.
Now we're talking.
Salad?
Tossed salad and scrambled eggs?




There are clearly millions of us out here.

What say you?
2013...
The Year of the Deranged and Disordered.

Yeah, Tossed Salad and Scrambled Eggs sounds much better.


Go on and visit the other cheeky ladies~

Pat at Corn In My Coffee Pot

Jean At Backyard Bungalow

Amy at Buffalo Roam

Bliss says this event may occur once a month or never again.
She also says that you can contact one of us if you'd like to join in next month.
Or never.

So that's it.  We're TICT.


January 25, 2013

Nothing Will Happen Club Giveaway Time!




Here we are again...giveaway time!
This time the winner will receive four burlap wine bags from Wisteria
and an original KnobStopper.
These items are from my personal collection.
No affiliation with Wisteria or Knobstoppers exists.
(They are free to call me...I should own stock in both by now.)


I have an obsessive disorder about these..each one is different.


It's like bottle jewelry.
I can't help myself.


There are so many ways to use them.
They look beautiful on any kind of slim neck bottle.
Think water, bubble bath, tequila or umm...wine. 
Unfortunately for you, that bottle is long gone.
It was delicious.


I've been trying to come up with a fun way to make you jump thru hoops to win...
I'm not clever today.  No sleep.
So!

All you have to do is pledge allegiance to the 
Nothing Will Happen Club
and promise that you will remember that it's okay to embrace 'the quiet and the still' once in awhile.
Nothing Will Happen!
No pretenders...Commit To Quit!
I just made that up.


Leave a comment below and I think I'd better hear some pledging.  

I'll pick a winner next week.

Now go enjoy your weekend!

***NEW***
I have added a Club Member Button
for those of you who'd like to join.
Club Members will receive 20% on purchases
from my WWK Etsy shop opening soon.


January 22, 2013

Liar Liar Pants On Fire









Aren't you?
Just once I'd like to see it happen.
Like to the guy who says it wasn't his fault that he smashed into your car while you were stopped at the light.
He'd be a good one to start with.
(No, it didn't happen to me.)


So I won't tell you that my house is in order yet.
One corner of my house is clean.
One.
The holiday stuff is almost put away and the three inches of dust has been vacuumed.
It's so sunny outside that I feel like I'm already suffering from the spring cleaning crazies.
After the flu hell I'm ready to get things accomplished.
If you look closely you'll see that I neglected to remove the mistletoe from the sconces.
It's hiding behind the topiaries on the mantle.
It was too late to drag the ladder back in last night.


Baby ostrich is in place...what?  That's freakish you say?
He's cute and I live in the nut house instead of on a farm, so he's very appropriate.
He amuses me.


Mistletoe gone, ladder put away, morning light thru the windows
and satisfaction is approaching.
But, oh...there's this.



The truth shall set you free...and stop your pants from bursting into flames.

I can light a fire under my butt and get moving when I need to.
Like now...so I can watch Addison and Jake get married on the final episode of Private Practice.
Gotta run...

BTW, the new giveaway starts this Friday.
Stay tuned!



January 16, 2013

SHOP POSH HOPS





Last summer we stopped in at a barn sale in the middle of nowhere.
We had a wenture, which is what we call an adventure.  
Horse Girl came up with that when she was three or four ???
She was just a tiny little thing and decided she liked wentures, too.

These letters were full of wasp nests and the O had occupants, but I was determined to have them.
My problem now is this...they are huge and I have no idea where to hang them.
I took out all the old broken neon bits and plan to light them somehow.
Rope lights? Christmas lights? Single bulb?

I also can't decide if I want to paint them or leave them black and white.
So they just sit in the floor in the black hole of my sewing room.
I can always spell SOPH for my little Sophie girl.
We had HO out for Christmas.
I have to decide before they are hung because they are large and I only want to do it one time.

Someone please make a decision for me.
I beg you.

Before I have a hissy fit and load up for the Goodwill.


January 11, 2013

Butter My Biscuit & Lazy Day Soup




I love biscuits.
I love bread in general.  I prefer bread over most meals.  I've got a son just like me.
So when I saw this recipe a zillion times on Pinterest, I was intrigued by the photos of the fluffy biscuits.
All the photos look so different, but all looked good.
But, I was a doubter.
Yes, I'm talking about the 7UP biscuits.
What?  How have I never heard of such a thing?  How can that taste good?
Who wants lemon-lime flavor in their biscuits?  Not I.
Am I the last person on earth to know about this?
Just look at it, my friends.
It's delicious.

Now for the lazy day soup...


With lots of holiday ingredients left in the refrigerator that needed to be used,
I threw together this soup.
It made the perfect side dish for my biscuits.

Spicy sausage rolled into small meatballs, bay leaf, yellow potatoes, celery, onion and sage.



My bay leaf wreath hangs over the stove for a quick grab.


We like our food very spicy.
I added chopped garlic, course black pepper, red pepper
and an organic seasoning blend that I love from Costco.
See all the great stuff in it?
Browned those meatballs up...


If you back up to the bay leaf photo, you'll see that I use a lot of those spices.
The copper lid  looks good enough for keeping out by the stove and within easy reach.
The quality is great and the price is terrific.
I buy loads of spices...buying these bulk sizes for the ones that I use daily saves so much
and I don't feel like I sacrifice the flavor for a lower price.


You guessed it!  I always add jalapeno.
I throw it in with the spices so that the oil and seeds can really flavor the sausage.
If my eyes water and I start to cough...I know those babies are extra hot.


Add your veggies and toss with all the spicy good stuff.


Cook for about 10 minutes, tossing often.
Then add your chicken broth or whatever broth you have on hand.
I had this.
I'm too lazy to make my own broth...I said this was lazy day, remember?


Simmer  for a bit.
Just before serving I added a pat of butter and a squeeze of lemon.
To the soup, not the biscuit.
You'll butter that biscuit in a minute.


I put the focus on the biscuit, since it is the main course.



Add a dollop of sour cream or greek yogurt if you like,
then let the stuffing of the faces begin!


Be warned...
You are going to hear "Mom? I need more biscuits!"
This recipe made four big biscuits in an 8x8 square pan.
I don't even use a biscuit cutter...why?
Why bother? 
We all like rustic food, right?
It's a lazy day.


Biscuit recipe:
2 cups Bisquick
1/2 cup lite sour cream
1/2 cup 7UP or Sprite
(I used Sprite the second time I made them)
1/4 cup of melted butter

Preheat oven to 450.
Put the butter in a 9x9 (or 8x8) pan and pop into the oven to melt while you mix the dough.
Cut the sour cream into the Bisquick, add the 7UP and mix.
This makes a very, very soft dough.
Sprinkle some Bisquick on your board and pat the dough out.
Get your pan out of the oven.

Cut biscuits out or just place dough into the pan with the melted butter, like I did.
Bake at 450 until golden brown.
Then watch them disappear.

Have a great weekend!

PS.  This biscuit recipe or a slight variation is everywhere on the web,
so I'm not going to link it to one specific site, as I'm uncertain of the origin.
And as a disclaimer, unless you like food that's 'so spicy it makes your nose run'...  
this soup is not a good option for you.
Just don't do it.
I warned you.

Linking up with:
Rooted in Thyme
Tickled Pink @ 504 Main
Cowgirl Up

January 6, 2013

A little more Christmas




Yes, I know that I am waaaay late on these!
Humor me, please...these photos are the only memory I have of Christmas and NY's.
This flu is not for sissies.

I've had a few emails about the basket around the tree.
It's from Terrain.
It's no longer in stock online.



The fluffy owls are from West Elm...no longer in stock.
I only used a few glittery acorns and the three owls (3 sons) this year.
I love this twiggy tree.
It's so cheerful that I don't want to take it down.


This photo is in reference to my Papaw, who loved chocolate covered cherries every Christmas.


The wood carved letters are 18" tall and you can order at Southern Proper Monograms.
I left mine plain this year and last, but will probably paint it soon.


The mantle was simple and held our stockings.


The old bread board that I did last year...

    
The Peace Dove is painted wood and I got it on Etsy from Slippin' Southern.


Yes, I painted that table. In 2011.
I'll post about it another day.
Ha!


Another version of the wood tags from Pick Your Plum.
I LOVE these.
I hope they offer them again.


Squirrel lamp from Anthropologie.
He sits on my desk.


Double sided chalk board was an offering on One King's Lane.
I can sit on the floor in my pajamas and pretend I'm still in kiddie garden.
Why is that still so fun?
Then I meticulously clean up the chalk dust,
if Bruce doesn't beat me to it....he licks the board when I write.
Goofy dog.

So that's it...time to put it all away.
Tomorrow is cake day...at last.

Enjoy your week!