THE TWO P's OF DECORATING...

There is one letter that is very apparent in my decorating alphabet.  It is the letter "P", and while this isn't River City and it doesn't stand for Pool, it does stand for two other words...     

Pretty..and..Practical

Case in point:

A few years ago, almost twenty to be exact, there was a sun porch in the Cottage fixed up as a sweet room for a new grandson...

It had clean white walls covered in little boy pictures, blue wainscotting, a child size white iron bed, colorful quilts, and a wallpaper border with frolicking teddy bears.

Very Pretty...and...Practical

The ceiling was painted like the evening sky with shining stars that glowed after the lights were turned off.

There was a shelf around the room holding all sorts of vintage toys.

Very Pretty..and..Practical for sweet dreams.

A poem was stenciled above the toys...

"Between the dark and the daylight

When the night is beginning to lower

Comes a pause in the day's occupations

That is known as the Children's Hour."

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1860

Very Pretty.

As the years passed that little boy outgrew the pretty room and so, little by little, the pretty things were removed and replaced with boxes and bits and pieces of things and was no longer...

Pretty..or..Practical

So now the room has been taken to task.  Everything has been boxed, labeled and stacked so it is readily available when needed and the floor is cleared for easy access.

Not very Pretty...but very Practical

Remember the Snuggery?  A very pretty little spot to get away from it all.  It was practical as well, as it stored a few collectibles and was a light filled sewing spot.

But as time passed, and I was still using the dining room table for certain projects and needed to move the comfortable chair into another room...

...and the painter's cloth skirt was not convenient to access the drawers and cubbies of the work bench...

...it became less Practical and not at all Pretty...

...as it started to fill up with the overflow from the storage room next door.

Not very Pretty..and..far from Practical.

So now the Snuggery has just become the plain old work room...

More Practical than before.

We have brought in more storage and everything is in sight and is easily accessible.

There is more bench space readily available to sit and work on a project...

...there is still a light filled sewing area...

...and Mabel has a new pocket book to hold all the "change" that has occurred in the room!

Not as Pretty...but certainly much more Practical.

I am so happy with what we have turned these two rooms into.

But, along with all that Practical...you simply still must have a little Pretty...

...Judy...

I'm sharing today with everyone's pretties over at:

What's It Wednesday at Ivy and Elephants

...and..

Home and Garden Thursdays at A Delightsome Life

GOOD MORNING...

Good Morning, Sunshine...

"My name is Margalo," said the bird...

"I come from fields once tall with wheat,

from pastures deep in fern and thistle;

I come from vales of meadowsweet,

and I love to whistle."

E. B. White, "Stuart Little"

I'm really not trying to be mean...I know that some of you are still in what seems like the throes of winter...but, here for now anyway, we are throwing open the windows and letting in sunshine and bird song.  Can't you hear the screen door slamming?

The lilacs are blooming and soothing our senses with their sweet scent...

...and Lady Banks is spilling her soft beauty over the garden gate...

...and Cecil Brunner is preparing for a grand opening...

...and...

"White silver bells upon a slender stalk,

Lilies of the Valley deck my garden walk."

- from an old song

The wisteria is once again putting on a show up in the 'sky garden'.

To celebrate all nature's beauty, and to send along the warmest of wishes at this Easter time, I have set the table with a nod to the sights and the sounds of Springtime.

Chirp bowls:  Magenta Exclusive - Home Goods

Yellow salad plates:  Cramisia - Italy - Home Goods

Nest and Chirp small platters - Rae Dunn, Artisan Collection - Home Goods

Yellow napkins - yard sale

Eyelet edge napkins - Pier 1

Chicken napkin rings - I made years ago

We, at Gold Country Cottage, wish you all a beautiful and happy Easter...

...and after a small brunch of cheerios, soft boiled eggs and freshly squeezed orange juice, we are off on a ray of sunshine to spend a few days with the kids.

I'd like to tell everyone how much we appreciate all the kindness that you shared with us over the loss of our sweet boy, Buddy.

We can never tell you enough how much all of your support and compassion means.

Thank you.

...Judy...

I'm sharing today over at:

Simple and Sweet Fridays at Rooted In Thyme

SAYING GOODBYE...

Sadly, we said goodbye to our beautiful boy, Buddy, on Friday.

His journey here on earth has ended and he is now safe and happy on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge.

Buddy wore many hats during his stay with us...

He was our good and loyal friend...

Our teacher...

Our peace maker...

Our protector...

and...

...he made us smile most of the time.

When he came to us he had so many behavior issues.  He was six months old and didn't know how to walk on a leash.  He and Jerry formed a strong bond from the very first and, I am afraid, that if anyone else had been that lucky to find him, it would have been a short lived relationship. 

It was a long, and sometime seemingly impossible, task to teach him some good manners but it was so well worth the effort.

He was a large boy with a large personality and an even larger heart.

As he grew older he had some health issues.  He had breathing problems and nerve damage in his rear legs, but he never complained.

He was always willing to go for a walk or a ride and was so happy just to be with us.

Over the last month he started having problems with his left front leg and after x-rays, he was diagnosed with bone cancer.  It is one of a list of ailments that affect Golden Retrievers, and amputation of the leg would have fixed it, that is if the cancer hadn't spread to other areas.

Because of his age and because he learned how important his two front legs were to being able to lift himself to a standing position due to the nerve damage in his back legs, we opted not to pursue this route.

His leg became weaker and it was becoming harder and more painful for him to get to his feet.

It was so amazing that it snowed the week before.  Buddy shined when it snowed.  He loved the cold weather the best and he could really make some serious snow angels!

I tried to get a good picture but he was so happy to go outside he wouldn't hold still long enough.

How could these actions be those of a sick dog?  It was so hard to comprehend.

We are so grateful and blessed that we had these fast and short thirteen years with him.

We know he is running free now but can't help feeling selfish enough to still want him here with us.

Only in our hearts will he remain forever, along with the great lessons of love that he taught us.

"We give them the love we can spare

The time we can spare

In return dogs have given us

Their absolute all

It is without a doubt 

The best deal

Man has ever made"

A quote that hangs in our vet's office by: Roger Caras

  

Good job, Pooh

...Judy...

NOW YOU SEE HER...NOW YOU DON'T...

A few days ago Spring peeked her head around the corner to say hello...

...but today she is nowhere to be seen.

And, just like the postal service, the Captain won't let sleet nor snow stop him from doing his duty.

These beautiful, deserving creatures need a little TLC even on days like this.

Disclaimer:  No photographer was hurt during the filming of this post.  She somehow managed to stay warm and cozy!

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Meanwhile, back at the homestead, I'm still able to share with you a little bit of Spring prettiness.

These dishes are put out by TarHong.  They range in price from $1.99 to $3.00

I came across these dishes for the first time last Christmas at Raley's Supermarket (here).  When I picked one up I was surprised to find that they are melamine.

I normally don't go for plastic in tableware.  I don't even carry them in the motor home, but these were so pretty that I couldn't resist picking up a few.

Fast forward to Spring...TarHong, and Raley's, have once again put out a delightful pattern.

They are perfect for late morning brunch or a luncheon.

They are so reasonably priced that I just stick a couple in my grocery cart each time I go to the market.

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Remember when I put up that disclaimer at the beginning of this post?...

...well you can forget that!...

I left the heater and wipers on without running the engine and ran the battery down so the car wouldn't start. 

You can imagine what a blow that was to the person who just spent 2 hours out in this:

I can still say that the photographer didn't get hurt, but she sure got a lot of dirty looks and would have been better off to stay at the shelter as she was really in the dog house!!

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Update:  I saw the cardiologist yesterday.  He did another EKG and after looking over all the tests I had in the hospital, he proclaimed that I have a very healthy heart.

I do have a fast heart rate though, so he prescribed meds to help with that and will have me back in one month to check.

Thank you for all your concerns.  I am feeling great and very relieved.

...Judy...

I'm sharing today with:

What's It Wednesday at Ivy and Elephants