boots and a skirt...

Never underestimate the power of boots and the perfect twirling skirt...

via Pinterest

cant wurk...

via Pinterest

a good answer...

No matter the question, hot pink rain boots are always a good answer... even when it's not raining.

via Pinterest

charisma....

  who needs a brush when you have charisma...

via Pinterest 

Sensible sort...

Perhaps the sensible choice would have been to choose the flats... but she simply wasn't a sensible sort of gal.

via Pinterest

making it happen...

She wore a size 7 shoe. The kind man at the shoe store brought her the last pair they had - size 6.5. "I'll take them!" ...And with that she discovered the true meaning of determination.

via  Pinterest

Cherry Berry Plum Water

I was in the mood for something sweet and came across this recipe for Cherry Berry Plum Water. Yum! Maybe the fact that it is 65 degrees outside and sunny but I am craving a springtime treat. I just love making fresh juices in the warmer weather. Need to stock up on supplies but this one is on my list. Thanks for posting this yummy drink, Vintage Bleu!

Cherry Berry Plum Water
6 Strawberries, diced
1 Plum, diced
18 Cherries, pitted
4 C. Filtered Water
2-3 Tbsp. Agave Nectar or Honey
Mesh Strainer

Directions: Simply blend/liquify your fruit in your blender along with your water. Strain into a medium sized bowl. Be sure to press out the juice from the pulp with a spoon to get as much juice out of the pulp. Sweeten your water with agave nectar or honey. Serve chilled or over ice cubes. Garnish each glass with whole cherries!"

not Irish...

heehee. This cute free printable comes by way of The Fickle Pickle.

so classic...

my very first real grown-up perfume. It was Christmas when I was 12 years old. For the first time, there was a present under the tree for me with only "Daddy" on the from space. What?... not  Mama and Daddy? My daddy had bought a present  for me and was pretty proud about it, too. (poor, Mama!... all those kajillions   of gifts that she bought for every occasion all through the years and she, of course, put his name along with hers on each and every tag! But she was a trooper about the whole thing... )  What in the world was in that little box? Shaking and shaking it didn't help one bit. "Daddy!, pleeeease just give me one itty-bitty hint!" I begged for a few days... So he did. "It has something to do with TV", he admits. "Something that you see on TV on a show or commercial?" I try to clarify. "No. It has something to do with TV", he states.  I RACKED MY BRAIN FOR DAYS. It's 1969, people. I can't think of one single thing that has to do with TV that would fit into a box that small. Christmas Day finally arrives and I am so excited to rip into that mystery box. When I do, I am GIDDY! ... my very own real grown-up perfume! ...no more sneakily having to steal my Mama's. (haha... like she couldn't smell it on me.) yipee! yipee! yipee!... Wait a minute. "Daddeeeee...! TV? This doesn't have ANYthing to do with a TV!".... "Sure it does. It says channel 5 right there on the label."

Puh  

Roomph

Boomph.

You nut! I miss you!  

beautiful image via Pinterest.

warm weather...

have a seat, spring, and stay a while.

they're magically delicious...

Here's a "charming" little cupcake for St. Patrick's Day! 

1	box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow or devil's food cake mix
	Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for on cake mix box
1	container (1 lb) Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy vanilla frosting
3	cups Lucky Charms® cereal
	Green edible glitter

1. 1Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for 24 cupcakes, using water, oil and eggs. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
2. 2Frost cupcakes with frosting. Top each cupcake with 2 tablespoons cereal; sprinkle with glitter.

felt bunny tutorial...

Isn't he sweet? This delightful vintage inspired bunny tutorial can be found at Hazelnuts.

making some rose water...

You will need 12 or so roses for this project. I plucked what used to be my beautiful Valentine's roses from Sweet Hubby. (Let me insert a step here if you use roses from your garden, some suggest to soak the buds in vinegar first for about 15 minutes to kill any insects and to clean the petals... then rinse well with cold water and pluck apart.) Bring three cups of water to a boil.

Remove from heat. Add your petals and stir to wet all the petals.

Let cool completely. You can even place it in the refrigerator overnight and finish the next day. Strain the cooled liquid into a jar or bottle with a spray or spritzer top. Squeeze lumps of  petals to get all the water possible! Isn't there such a delightful aroma!

Spray on after your shower! My dark red buds made dark liquid. As you can imagine, pink buds will produce                                                                            pink rose water. Soooo easy peasy... and it smells divine! 

let's eat...

ummmmmm ungh...

everyone should know what it's like to love an animal this much.

image from Pinterest

burlap and bows...

I want to makes this pretty burlap pillow. I adore the the big cream bow tied around it. This little pretty will adorn a vintage child's rocker I recently lucked up on at a recent estate sale. The seat of it looks just like the one in this picture! Don't you want to make one, too?!!

image is not from Sissie's Shabby Cottage !

I thought it was. Sissie says it's not. I guess she would know.

Day 14...

I am not a dieter. I never have been... (cue the image of me to the right. In my simple I-live-in-Mary Beth-land  mind, the HUGE camera makes me look very thin...). According to a couple of so-called doctors that I've seen over the past few months, I need to lose some pounds (whaaaaaa?) and ...get this.. start exercising! (WHAAAAAAA?) Geeze Louise, I watch "Dancing with the Stars", "Survivor", "The Amazing Race" AND was a cheerleader in high school!.... What else could I possibly do?!!

Well, in an effort to get my blood work numbers looking better, I started checking out all the diet programs out there these days. Being a used-to-be-home-ec teacher (with a minor in nutrition... haha) I knew that my program would have to be  nutritional sound, easy to understand, use real food and hopefully not leave me miserable every day. From "The Doctors" show, I learned about a doctor developed "17 Day Diet" program that offered a plan that changes every 17 days and seemed to meet all of the qualifications that I was looking for. I ordered the book and started to get excited about the changes that might be coming in my direction. After reading the first few chapters, I was ready to begin. I am happy to say that this morning on day 14, I have lost ELEVEN pounds! ...and I have to say that I have felt very content every day. I already feel so much better and more energetic! Next 17-Days, I'm coming atcha....   

you're so vain...

You're so-o vain. I bet you think this post is about you. Don't you? Don't you?

image via pinterest

hindsight equals...

hindsight = coulda + shoulda + woulda

plain and simple math

image from pinterest

mama's gonna snap....

free print download in turquoise, orange or pink at MaryJanes and Goloshes

linking up to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound

Suess-isms...

Dr. Suess

March 2... Happy Birthday, Dr. Suess! ... you are loved...

national pancake day...

March 1 is National Pancake Day!

Here's several yummies I've recently collected and thought that you might also like to try...

From I am Baker , these pretties are regular pancakes (made smaller to be different) then topped with either strawberries or blueberries. Instead of syrup, she used powdered sugar mixed with milk, a drop of vanilla plus a drop of either red or blue food coloring. 

Also from I am Baker, this delightful stack alternates regulars with red velvet pancakes! WHAAAAAAA? These are served with Blueberry Syrup  and  blueberries. Call me when these are ready! Her Red Velvet Pancake recipe can be found here.

How about these mouth watering Ciinnamon Roll pancakes from Baked Bree! She says "When people tell you that these are the best pancakes they have ever eaten, then you know that they are good.  These pancakes are exactly what you want when you are craving a cinnamon bun but do not have the time to make them.  These are sweet, cinnamon-y and fluffy.  To make something delicious and over the top, instead of maple syrup (which is also delicious), top them with cinnamon bun icing.  Nothing short of amazing!"  Get her recipe here.

A pretty rainbow stack can be made by simply adding food coloring to the batter!

How about this fun idea? Lay your cooked bacon on the griddle and then cover each one with batter to make delicious long pancakes!

I made these for my College Daughter, Libby!... (here for original post). Add some batter to an empty squirt bottle. Writing backwards, pour name into pan. (I wrote it backwards onto paper first so that I had something to look at and to follow.) Give it a few moments to start browning, then pour a pancake on top of the backwards name. I also made faces and hearts.

This last idea from I am Baker will have to wait until fall. She divided her batter among three bowls. One bowl of batter was left as is to make regular brown pancakes. Yellow food coloring was added to one bowl and orange to the last. After the pancakes were cooked, they were cut into leaf shapes and served with maple syrup. How clever!

I hope you have a delicious National Pancake Day! Use these ideas or get inspired to search out others for a scrumptious breakfast or supper.

For more terrific recipes I've been collecting, checkout my boards on Pinterest.

only with a dress...

oh, those clothes from the 60s...I was in the 4th grade before girls were allowed to wear pants to school! They let us start that winter because it was unusually cold. We could only wear them IF we wore a dress or long top (like the one on the left) over them. Mine was just like this one but in brown corduroy. I was sooo excited AND warm..... 

don't forget...

right now... i'm enjoying being cheap, quick and easy. 

one ringy dingy...

We had one of these years ago. My mama was the town operator. We "went dial" when I was in the 3rd grade and she chose my high school graduation year to be our phone number.... which is still my phone number today in the same house at age 53.

even if...

from my daughter's blog,  I'm Just Saying...

a bushel and a peck...

I adore this print that I found on Pinterest. My mama used to say this when I was little, but she always added, "and a hug around  the neck." ...sweet memory!

This was made as a printable by Kelsey at Tattered and Inked. Kelsey has kindly invited us over to her place for a visit. What a sweetie! ...Now I'm off to visit Miss Kelsey AFTER I text my grown children that I still love them a bushel and a peck.... 

gonna make some more...

hahaha... enough said.

delightful image from Pinterest.

unless you sell Thin Mints...

If I still had my shop, I'd make this tonight for my door.  I just love it!

This fantastic door signage came from Becca at Blue Cricket Design .

Welcome the New, But Forget-Not the Old...

image found on Pinterest