Happy New Year!...........

Happy New Year

to all my blogging buddies!

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Merry Christmas to All...

Merry Christmas to all!

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean



Little Fellas....

I love these little guys!!

A little history:  They are Roy Des of Fla  (c) 1970 banks.  These were given out as premiums at banks, as an incentive to open a new account.  These two belonged to my younger brother, and spent a long, long time in my Mom's attic.  I was up there quite a few years ago and found them.  I got the OK to bring them to my home and have had them for about 10 years now.  I keep them out all year long because I like them so much.  They just make me smile!

They are residing in my DR corner cabinet for the holidays and they feel right at home there...

Really, they do!  I asked them!   haha

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Kitchen Vignette...

A little arrangement in my kitchen...
'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Jar of lightbulbs.....

Here's what I did with the lightbulbs from a string of lights that I was about to throw away.

I didn't want to keep the set any longer, but decided to keep the bulbs.

I think they look cute in my big jar.  What do you think?

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Mini Present....

I've been making miniature presents.....
And trying to perfect the tiny little bows that go on top.
I finally have a procedure in place to make them.
They take a good 6 hours for the glue to dry. 
I can make 1 or 2 a day!
Patience is a virtue!
haha
'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Our Christmas Tree.....

When we took our old tree out of the box and started to put it together, most of the lights didn't work!  So, a new tree was needed.  We had the old one for about 15 years, so it didn't owe us a thing!

So we found this beauty at Lowe's.  It is a 6 1/2 ft. Colorado Blue Spruce.  It has a bluish tone and has a white spray at the ends of the branches.  It has lights that twinkle and pinecones on the branches.  We decorated it with glass balls only.  I love the whole thing.  Here's to another 15 years!  haha

And now all we need are the presents!

'Til next time.  Love ya,  Jean

Correction!!!.......

I made a monumental mistake here,

so I am making a correction !

I forgot to add the flour!!!

Now it looks better!

And I feel much better!!!   hahaha

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

New Furniture.....

I made some new furniture...
Miniature, that is...

 The first piece is a buffet...

Baking some gingerbread cookies...

These pieces are for a project
that I've been working on.
It is finished and I can relax
and get some other things done now!
I will show it all after Christmas!
'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Light up the night!!!..........

I absolutely love the new LED string lights for outdoors.....

Now I don't need to rewire the house to have lots of Christmas lights out there...

These lights use very little electricity and the bulbs last forever!

As you can see, I've used quite a few  around my yard.

I found it difficult to get some really good pictures, but I think you can get the idea.

This is my favorite tree--a Dwarf Alberta Spruce.

                                   

This Teddy Bear is 6 Ft. tall...Love him!!

The front of the house~~
all ready for Santa!

P.S.  I am asking for more lights and extension cords for Christmas!!  lol

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Happy Thanksgiving .......

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

I hope your Thanksgiving is a very happy one.  I hope you will be with the ones you love, and if you can't, that love will fill your hearts.

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Minis.....

Just showing you some little things I made.

I will use these in some future projects. 

Pops and cinnamon rolls are made with clay.

The pitcher is made of paper and it's the first one I've made. 

( I hope to improve as I make more of them.)

I'll be going to the Handcrafters of Miniatures Show on Sunday, Nov 13, at the Holiday Inn in Dedham, MA.  I will be showing my latest creation there.  I am quite excited about this!  I can't show it on here yet because it is a Christmas gift and the recipient may see it!   I will have pictures for you after I give it to her.

My BFF, Lady Jane (For the Love of Minis) encouraged me to get back into minis after about a 30 year hiatus!  I have become so addicted to this hobby and enjoy it so much!  Thanks, LJ, you are the best!

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean 

SWEET.....

Is this the life or what?

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Fabulous Giveaway!!!!........

There is a fabulous giveaway about to happen!!!   Shop Cinderella Moments is hosting this one.  Hop on over there to find out all the details.

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

I'm Ready for Halloween!.....

Are you?

Hello, my Sweet!

Beside my front step...

The emerging head...

 The cemetery.....

I love how it looks and it is lit up at night.....

Now we're just waiting for the big night.....

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Cookies!!!!.............



Second rainy day in a row!

Good time to make some cookies!

Oatmeal Raisin is our favorite!

I made this recipe into some bars, extra good!

And of course, some traditional...

The dough...

The ingredients...

Here is the recipe>>>>       

               Oatmeal Cookies (from the Quaker Oats container)

1 cup margarine or butter, softened

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1- 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)  I use the old fashioned.

1 cup raisins

1.  Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  Beat together margarine and sugars until creamy.

3.  Add eggs and vanilla;  beat well.

4.  Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well.

5.  Stir in oats and raisins; mix well.

6.  Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.

7.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

8.  Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.  Makes about 4 dozen.

Bar Cookies:  Bake 30 to 35 minutes in ungreased 13 x 9 inch metal baking pan.

ENJOY!!!

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Autumn Joy..............

I'm so glad Fall is here!  Cooler temperatures, some rain off and on, not too many bugs out there ~~

and

just look at the Autumn Joy Sedum now!!!

Gorgeous!!!

So much bang for your buck!!!

This is a great plant.  It takes no care, is drought tolerant, is easy to propagate, and it comes back every year.  Who could ask for more?

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Welcome...............

to all my new followers.  I hope you enjoy your visits here and I hope you will come back often to see what is happening in my little world.

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Look what I won!..

This little guy came from Robin over at Coombe Crafts.  She is a very talented artist.  She handcrafts these little people in tiny 1/24th scale, 1/12th, and even 1/48th scale.  She is celebrating her 100th follower and is way past that now.  She also handcrafted the little chair that you see with the boy.  So, pop over and see what she has to offer.  You'll be amazed!

Thank you so much, Robin.  I will create a place for him to live.

I had computer problems, and had to put it in for service on Monday.   I got it back on Friday night and I'm slowly getting everything put back.  I'm happy to get it back and it's working so well now.

I hope every one of you had a fabulous weekend.  We had the family over for dinner last night and that is always so much fun, not to mention the great food that my DBF makes.  We had pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes, peas, and a good crusty bread.  I made a pineapple cherry cobbler that was so delicious.  I served it with some vanilla ice cream. YUM.....  I didn't take a picture, but here is the recipe:

Pineapple Cherry Cobbler 

1 medium size can of pineapple slices, cut into small pieces
8 ounce jar of maraschino cherries,  with about a tablespoon of the juice
1 stick of margarine or butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup flour
1 cup whole milk, I used skim and it was fine.

Combine pineapple, cherries and 3/4 cup sugar.  Let stand 20 minutes.  Melt margarine in 1 1/2 quart baking dish in oven.  Sift together flour, 1 cup sugar, and baking powder.  Add milk and stir briskly-lumps will remain.  Pour into baking dish of melted butter; top with pineapple mixture.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min.  I have made this with frozen peaches, canned peaches, blueberries and apples as the fruits, and it is always delicious!  Enjoy!

'Til next time, Love ya,  Jean

Mini Birdhouse...........

I would like to have one of these bird houses in real full size.....

(And the policeman is pretty cute, too!)

 

The bottom part.....

                                                    

The top part.....

I made this for a miniature garden scene

that I will be making pretty soon.

What do you think, LJ?

'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean



Bees, Bees and more Bees.....

There are bees everywhere in my garden.  They especially love the "Autumn Joy" sedum.  It must taste very sweet to them.  The flowers are still rather pale in color.  They will eventually turn a brilliant red.  I will show more of them in a few weeks, when that happens.

  

I wanted to show the upright habit of the plants.....

 I have lots of these plants..... they are very easy to root in the spring.  The clumps get bigger every year!  This is one of my favorite plants.
'Til next time,  Love ya,  Jean

Fire hydrants in my Etsy...

I made some of these fire hydrants to sell in my Etsy shop. This one is unpainted, so that it can be painted in the recipients choice of colors.

I showed one like this previously along with a picture of the real one over on the corner near my house.....

And I have since seen some red ones in other towns..... I listed these in my Etsy shop this evening. You can find the link over on the right side of the page. Just click on "sweetgirlythings" and my shop will come up. So, go take a look! Thanks!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean