~Winter Ice Storm~

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beauty

need i say more

Photos taken by my son, for me :)

Sunday "Date" Day! ~ Highland Park

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Sunday is mine and hubby's date day! Hubby works very hard 6 days a week, so when Sunday comes along we love to go into the city (Dallas) together. Today we had the most wonderful brunch at Bread Winner's Bakery Bistro. Let me just say....... "egg custard quiche filled with cheese, onion, and ham chunks all baked on top of a potato crust and topped with Hollandaise sauce and a mound of french fried onion rings. And if that isn't enough to clog the arteries, homemade pumpkin spice and lemon almond breads! OMG! Be assured, I had the other half for dinner :)

But I must tell you about the STRAWBERRY that came with our brunch! Now, you have to remember, we are from California now living in Texas. Since 2005 we have been yearning for a "real" piece of fruit. As much as we love living in Texas and the Dallas area - our experience with the produce here is horrible. The meat is HEAVEN.... but we need our fruit too!

Lucky us, today was the day! A California Strawberry on our Texas plate! As soon as hubby and I reluctantly bit into our strawberry.....we knew it~ A #2 California Strawberry! We told the waitress our story about being from CA and living for 3 years without any real fruit and does she know where these strawberries are from ...and ....and ........... Needless to say, she didn't seem to darn interested in our "lacking for fruit story". But ...... as all Texans are - HOSPITABLE TO A FAULT- she shows up with 3 more strawberries and says the chef gets them from California - and she even told us the grower..... but it went in one ear and out the other..... all we needed was the affirmation that they were, indeed, - our beloved California Strawberries!

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Then we went antique mall hopping! No, I didn't forget the "s". No shopping, just hopping! French Antiques everywhere!!! But the cost .....yikes! So we looked, and touched, and pondered - and when all was said and done - I got some great ideas for the "inspiration" dining room that I posted about earlier.

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Next stop, every girl's favorite....... Anthropologie! Love the hardware area, so I had to grab these..........

and then......

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Can you guess where these pretties come from? Williams Sonoma! Sweet as can be.

This was a great Sunday Date Day!

I invite you all to Dallas. This place is a love fest of eating and shopping!

Until next time ~Cheryl~

Inauguration of a President

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father,

who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy Name,

thy kingdom come,

thy will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

and the power,

and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

The Star Spangled Banner

Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

red

1. frozen at the red barn, 2. Raspberry - Swirl Cheesecake, 3. Well Heeled - Talon Fou, 4. Red 1956 FORD Pickup, 5. Juicy :-P, 6. red window and snow, 7. Cherrish the moment HBW~, 8. Red Shutters 01, 9. Red phone booths

I have had enough pink for a while with the pink giveaway and pink saturday....that I needed to move into Red! Red things that I adore : Red Barns - (old barns, new barns, small barns, big barns....love barns)! Red Raspberry Cheesecake - (actually any darn cheesecake)! Sexy Red Shoes - (though I don't wear them)! Red Vintage Trucks - (all vintage trucks, especially from the 50's)! Red Cranberry Bogs - (how amazing are those bogs)! Red Windows - (such a statement of courage)! Red Cherries - (on a hot summer's day)! Red Shutters - (the chippier, the better - and hopefully with other colors peeking from underneath), European Red Telephone Booths - (just classy)!

What Red things strike you? (click "red" for the definition - interesting)

The Red Dress by Dorothy Parker

I always saw, I always said

If I were grown and free,

I'd have a gown of reddest red

As fine as you could see.

To wear out walking, sleek and slow,

Upon a Summer day,

And there'd be one to see me so

And flip the world away.

And he would be a gallant one,

With stars behind his eyes,

And hair like metal in the sun,

And lips too warm for lies.

I always saw us, gay and good,

High honored in the town,

Now I am grown to womanhood....

I have the silly gown.

soft blue craze!

1. Sun tears on the soft blue, 2. soft blue 4, 3. Soft Blue Sea Glass Necklace , 4. Waiting here, for you! ... Boats in moorings, 5. Blue Soft top antique car, 6. Blue Door by Ron Whorton, 7. Turquoise Beads (Before), 8. soft power, 9. SPHERE STAR TURQUOISE_05

Tastes change. I have never been a fan of the color blue (just me), until I came across "soft, muted, robin's egg blue". Now, if you are anything like me, when you get a color in your mind, whether for decorating or buying clothes, the only thing you see - is that color. It is like when you are pregnant, you see pregnant women everywhere. And when you have the baby, all you see are infants, or when you buy a new car ........ you get my drift ...... it is funny how our minds work. Well, I am in soft blue mode. And the reason for this is ............

My "inspiration room" for my dining room makeover! I have had this magazine page cut-out for many, many months. As I mentioned in previous posts, my dining room set is french country pine which we have had since 1984. It has been calling to be painted for years now. With all the painting of furniture I did for my CottageCharm business.....do you think I would have painted my own dining table? You all know how that old story goes.


Here are my current silk dupioni drapery panels. They are a cross between a "soft robin's egg blue and an ice blue".

I am creating a new color. "Iced Robin's Egg Blue" ! I would like to add fringe and attached valance to the top of the panel, like the "inspiration room".

All the walls in my home are the same color. They are a lovely soft gold called "tropical straw". None of the walls have been faux finished because I am not sure I want to darken any of them yet. While building the house we wanted to make it very simple for the painters. I made sure this color went with everything I owned. I put the paint strip behind every piece of wood furniture, every fabric, every accessory and so on ...... it blended with everything. That is how I choose my paint colors. Because of the flannel lining in these drapes there is a hue of gold behind the blue...especially when the light shines in. The color is so soft. They are perfect!

This is the current "sage" cotton damask fabric on the dining chairs.

And here is the new muted, "iced robin's egg blue" chenille damask I found this weekend! I told my hubby, it is soooooo soft it is just like "butter"......he didn't get it. lol The paint strips shown are sage/grey in color. One of those will be my choice for the paint for the table and chairs. I wanted to stay away from painting the table white......partly, because I have painted so much white in my days ...and secondly, I want it a bit softer, and a bit more muted. Of course, it will get a slight antiquing done - to tone it down even more. I got this color idea from a vendor at Canton Flea Market. Her furniture was stunning!

A closeup of the fabric. The color is so gorgeous & yummy! I am in love. I have always been a HUGE fan of chenille damask fabrics.

I wanted to share this with you who love to decorate. Off to make my purchases. It will be a while before I will complete this room. We will also need to find the chandelier, accessorize the walls etc .....but this fabric and paint have got me motivated!

freezing rain........

I only had a moment today to blog and I did not want to miss documenting and sharing this beautiful freezing rain day! This is North Texas for you......80 degrees two days ago and 32 degree freezing rain today! Every little twig of every little branch of every tree is covered in ice....it is a sight to see. I hope you enjoy the pics! ~Cheryl

2009