Sunday, September 30, 2012

From the Beach to the Mountains

Well, good afternoon and come on in Through My Back Door. It seems like forever since you visited. I am absolutely happy as punch to see you. Guess what? The pumpkin spice is on!
That is what is in this cup. I made a pot, just in case you came. I am so sorry, there is nothing sweet. In case you haven't noticed,lol, I have been on vacation. Again. Just got home this afternoon and there is no food. Sorry. This boy was happy to be home.
He ran and jumped in the car, when we came out of Laura's house.
On the 21st Michael, Deb and I drove down to SeaGrove Beach, Fla. for a week. Beth flew down on Monday and stayed the rest of the week with us. The weather was perfect. We had so much fun and really got to rest a lot. We have taken other family trips this summer as you know, but this one was just the most restful trip ever. We slept late, stayed up late, ate sea food every day at our favorite places, and played games every night. I read 4 books also. We went to the beach every morning, which was almost private, and to the pool in the afternoon, which was also private.
Here are the four of us at SeaSide.
Isn't Beth a cutie? She sure doesn't look like a doctor does she?
The view from Dewey Destins, one of our 3 favorite places to eat.
Beth and I at Deweys. We absolutely love eating here.
Beth, Deb and Michael. You order, go sit down and they yell your name when the food is ready. I wish I had taken a picture of the size of the shrimp. I will do that next year.
In the condo playing games. Beth, is just like me and always throws something over her when she is sitting.
We saw this in Panama City and I think the worlds best son in law, would like one for Christmas. It was a beautiful car.
This was taken at the Back Porch, the night before we left. Beth had never been to any of these places so it was fun to share them with her. One of the places I didn't get any pictures, that we love, is Stinkys Fish Camp. It isn't anything like it sounds. The chefs are superb and the valet parking makes it easy. They have the BEST key lime pie, you ever ate. We are always too full from our meal, and so we get our pie to go. We always get it, though. They are on the beach road from Sea Grove into Destin. I don't remember which beach it is. If you go to Destin, google it and go visit. I promise you won't be disappointed.
I hope I haven't bored you with "Family" again, but wanted to share our good times with you. Heaven knows I shared the bad this past year.
We got home late Friday evening and I was to meet friends in Pigeon Forge early Saturday morning. The four of us have been doing this weekend for six years. We go over to Townsend to the craft show, then back to PF and spend the night at the Inn at Christmas Time. This year one of the girls was sick and couldn't go. I couldn't make it to the craft show, couldn't get up and around that early, lol, but made it up to PF by 12:30. We met for lunch, went to the outlet mall, back to the Inn and then out again for dinner. We went back and did the art tour at the Inn, had coffee and went to our rooms and visited. They serve a delicious breakfast there, so of course we ate, then I left to go get Dasko and come home.
We have been friends for almost thirty years. I laugh and say between these friends and my family, they keep me young. Linda, the one on the left, is always saying, she will NOT let me act old.lol
She, Deb, Beth, and Amanda laugh and say they will make my sure my blush isn't too bright. With friends like that, I need no enemies!lol
Well, I have so enjoyed sharing our wonderful week with you all. I love it when you come Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: I will have to share our week of hunting for pink cowgirl boots and a pink cowgirl hat next blog. I think you will enjoy it.
PSS: My house is still on the market and I have had a couple of serious bites. One is considering it. Will you pray that if it Gods will, it sells and I get settled before winter?
PSSS: BTW, I am home for awhile. Dasko and Boo are sooooo happy. I am having company from Ohio this week to visit, so I am excited about that. I have got to get to cooking!lol









Monday, September 17, 2012

Simple Joys

Good Monday morning and come in out of the rain. Have a cup of coffee and lets just be. There are no cookies, like at my friend Carols, but plenty of coffee. She finds simple joy in baking cookies just to make her house "smell like cookies." I was over there yesterday but didn't have my camera. Can you sense a field trip? lol Anyway back to the title of this post. Simple Joys. Most bloggers are simple people.No, I don't mean we aren't smart!!!!lol I mean we love God, home and family. Simply. Doesn't take a lot to make us happy. Every one knows Trace over at Granny Trace Scraps & Squares. 
 She blogs almost everyday and is such an inspiration to the blogging world. Her love of God, family and home just radiates. Any way, after my morning devotions and after I have read the paper,(on line) I go over to Trace's. I like to start my day reading her joys for the day. This morning she was talking about Simple Joys. I want to share some of mine with you.
Sitting on my porch on a cool fall day, drinking coffee or hot chocolate looking at this.
The leaves are just now beginning to turn.Before long they will so full of color.
Another simple joy is having this fellow follow me from chair to chair or room to room. This is him this morning.lol
Reading my devotion and writing in my prayer journal.
Some miracles have come from prayers, God chose to answer some in another way. Lots of names in here I am still praying for. Janie in my domino group gave us these one year. Who would think that Arthur, her husband's name would have been at the top of the list for several months? Yes, he is one of Gods miracles.
Another simple joy. Smelling apple butter cooking in the oven. Baking stack cakes for Christmas.  Looking out this window and seeing the old smokehouse and barn.
A spider web that  is so big you wonder how she did it
A certain smell that takes you back to someone you love or someplace you visited as a child. So many smells remind me of loved ones.
A song or a picture. Simple Joys. Another of my Simple Joys is  after decorating for Christmas, getting up early, turning the lights on drinking coffee and just "being."
Another Simple Joy is this old yellow bowl. You know the story.
The phone ringing and it is a friend you haven't heard from in a long time.She called just because. Sometimes in my case it is a grand child just calling to tell me they love me. Voices of loved ones that we can hear, ahhh, Simple Joy.We don't miss voices until we can no longer hear them. (They don't have to die to be taken from us, either.)
Another Simple Joy for me is Boo. We found her in the creek, remember. She is still not a loving cat but she is loved.
 One of my Simple Joys is just being. Not DOING anything. Of course it involves a cup of coffee.lol There are many, many more simple joys, that warm my heart. I will post more another time. One of my most important simple joys is seeing family. Sharing, laughing, yes and sometimes we cry. You know why.
Life is short, lets all strive to take time for our Simple Joys. Share with me some of yours if you like. One of my Simple Joys is your visits to my blog. Thank you. I guess I left out another one of my favorites. It is smelling the first cup of coffee in the morning. MMMMM.
I will leave you with just a few more fall pictures.
Love fall books. Especially cook books. Well thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: If you are wondering why I didn't include pictures of my grands. They are HUGH joys, not simple.
PSS: For all of you who prayed for Dale, he has gone home. God is good. Another miracle. You can still continue to pray as he gets better. Don't you love miracles and happy endings?
PSSS: As soon as we can co ordinate our schedules and get pictures taken we are going to Amanda's. Here is a sneak from Easter.
It will be a while, but so worth the wait. As her house just makes you smile..







Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Down The Road and Across The Highway

to Debs house we go. Finally our field trip is ready to start. First come on in and have a cup of Judy's (or Tom's) coffee and I will share a bit about my daughter. And her house.
When she was a little girl, she wanted to grow up, live in a "camping out trailer" and be a Mommy. There would be NO antiques for her. She was over them, having grown up with a Mama who loved them.
Fast forward many years and she did grow up, become a Mommy, 3 times over, but she did not live in a camping out trailer and she DOES have antiques. I am glad you came by today and are going to visit her.(Yes, she is a coffee drinker, so we'll get coffee there too.) She and Michael built their house with the help of his Dad. If you saw the Country Sampler, Dec 2011, issue, you know that already. Over the years they have built on, redone, and redone again. If Deb can dream it, Michael can build it. Deb and I share so much. We belong to the same forums, and share a lot of the same friends. Her friends invite me, my friends invite her. So not only are we Mother/Daughter we are best friends. I am happy to say, that her girls treat us the same way. However neither of them are antique/prim lovers. Any way, in the early days of their home they had a terrific oak collection. Over the years they decide to go to earlier pieces and now like the same things I do. So I hope you enjoy the field trip to their home today. It is indeed a home filled not only with wonderful antiques, more importantly  filled with love of God and family.
This is the outside. There are steps to the left too.
One end of the living room.

The other end of the livingroom. These cabinets were given to Michael years ago and are KeeneKutter display cabinets out of a hardware store.At Christmas she fills it with their Snow Village collection. Now it holds her collections of Transfer Ware. She has several different colors. Purple, red, brown, blue and green. The door to the right goes into here.
The master bedroom. she has just removed a lot toile and incorporated the Family Weaver bedding. I like it so much better.
The window nook.
This is my favorite bedroom in the house. They have a huge room they call the Victorian Room, that I have no pictures of today. We will visit it, the other upstairs bedroom and Debs bathroom next visit.
I love this room. The bed is one that belonged to Curtis and I. We sold it to a friend. Bought it back, now Deb got it from me. It is a cherry rope bed, circa 1835.
Michael built the corner cupboard in the corner.Yes, I have one exactly like it. See why I like this room? Peaceful.
This is the eat in part of the kitchen.
Another view. I love this little table and the cupboard. On the right is the dining room and it's great wall of china.I think most of you are aware that Deb got the antique dishes from my Mother. She asked her for them when she was child and was drying them one night after supper. They were my Mothers everyday dishes. Mother packed them away shortly after and gave them to her when she got married. They are Royal Staffordshire Clarice Cliff Tonquin. She has added to them over the years, but knows exactly which were "Non Nons", as she called my Mother.
There is a story about the table too. I sold it to a friend, and when she died Deb bought it from her husband. It is a wonderful old 3 board walnut table. Curtis made booties to raise it high enough to eat off. She has a beautiful dining room and lots of meals are eaten there. Even though it is used everytime we have a get together, Andrew thinks it is special.
Another view. She didn't send one of her corner cupboard, but she has an Early (1790's) walnut one, full of pewter.
Well I will show you her dry sink that we found on the Worlds Longest Yard Sale last summer. It is in a corner of the livingroom as you come in the front door.
I hope you have enjoyed the field trip to Debs. don't know if you noticed but all of their ceilings are beadboard. Even though they have a house full of neat things, these two have the run of it all.
I love this picture, taken at Curts wedding!lol
Deb and the worlds best son in law.
Well thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: I think I will take you to Amanda's one day. She is not prim, but vintage"y"? Is that a word? She has the brightest, cheeriest house ever. Would you like that? It would be different.lol
PSS: I have to share my joy that Linda Rebtoy is doing so well and back to blogging! Please check her out:Simply Country Seasons
PSSS: Thanks for the continued prayers for Dale. He is improving and is off the ventilator.The progress is slow, very slow, but he has had, a couple of short walks, with all kinds of assists, but he is walking. This man was who I called the energizer bunny, and my prayer is that he will be again, soon. Thanks for the prayers and please continue them.












Sunday, September 9, 2012

200th Post Who'd a Thunk it?


Welcome this afternoon Through My Back Door. Get a cup of coffee and come visit with me on my 200th post. Who'd a thunk it? lol Not me. I know I promised a field trip and it will start tomorrow, but I wanted to do some reflection on my 200th. Okay. If you started with me 2 years ago, I had this ugly old header. That was before I was blessed with my blog fairy.Have I told you how much I love my blog fairy? She is awesome and I am so blessed to have her.
This scene changed with the seasons. I love the one I have now. I had nothing on my sidebar, because I didn't know how. I remember my first post. I didn't craft, I don't sew, I didn't create, so what would I blog about? I didn't know. I still don't until I sit down with the computer and start typing. I think I told you one time I fly by the seat of my pants. Anyway I actually got a few followers(I prefer to call them read a longers) and by November I had 50! I started in October and couldn't believe I would ever have that many. I had my one and only give away. Andrew drew a name out and it was my friend Sandi Stevens(who wasn't a friend then). I do remember in my first post promising I would never make anything to sell or give away, so you could relax.lol
I introduced this boy to you and he was an instant hit. Still is, except now he has his own Love Dasko button.(thanks to BF)
BTW, he  has a couple of Rottie blogs, he follows.lol
I shared my churn collection, my basket collections, my pewter, my lighting, but most of all I have shared my life, my family, my happy times and my sad. Most importantly I hope I have shared my faith and love of God. I have cried with people who have lost their loved ones, been diagnosed with illnesses, I have rejoiced in promotions, births, graduations, awards, and healing. You were with me through the dark days of Amanda's diagnosis, and following treatments. You offered prayers and they were heard. I have become close friends with so many of you and have entertained you in my home. Who would have thought that 199 posts ago? Not me. So to all of you who are still with me 200 posts later I say a huge thank you! To each of you who have read my meandering words, who have commented and who have accepted me into the world of blogging, I am humbled and grateful. You have been an inspiration to me in so many ways. I have formed prayer partners, (the cyber world is not all bad) and have made as I said earlier some life long friends. I consider it a privilege to pray for you, laugh with you, and cry with you. 200 post! Who'd a Thunk it?
Well, I must say I would never have known what a blog was, until I saw in Country Sampler,where Linda Rudman had a blog, Behind My Red Door, and I started reading it. Then through, Linda's I think, I found Karen Martinsen's My Colonial Home.Karen had a whole bunch of blogs on her sidebar, so Hee Haw! Up until that point I had never HEARD of a blog! So thanks you two for opening this world of blogging up to me.
Thanks to each of you who come Through My Back Door where life is good. I am honored.
betty
PS: Our coffee today is thanks to my church friend, Judy Lewis. Or maybe to her husband Tom. She bought decaf K cups and Tom won't drink decaf, so she gave it to me! Thanks Judy. Or Tom. lol
PSS: Dale is pretty much the same. Please continue to pray for him and the family. Lindsey was to start a new job in Nashville tomorrow, but can't. She should be having fun decorating her apartment, choosing wedding pictures, not having to endure this pain. So please continue to pray.I will share this with you. This is a family of great faith and a love for God. They are prayers and believe in the power of prayer.
PSSS: The field trip to Debs is on for tomorrow. I didn't want to share my 200th. Not true. She hasn't sent me all of her pictures yet!lol She is just like her Mother!!!!!!!

Friday, September 7, 2012

Trace's Prayer Request Friday

Good morning blog friends and I am so happy you have come for coffee. It is urgent that you visit today, because I am following Trace,Granny Trace Scraps & Squares
Today Trace is having prayer request Friday on her blog, and I thought I would follow her lead. SO many of us have heavy hearts today for one reason or another, so what better way to help, but to pray. Bloggers are good at praying. I know that for a fact. Trace is praying for her sweet friend Maria who is having breast cancer surgery today. I am praying for my new granddaughter in law Lindseys father, Dale Pingle. He is athletic, and until last week has been very healthy. I will not go into all the details, but this healthy, God Loving family man is in need of all our prayers right now, in CCU. He contacted an infection that has caused heart damage and he underwent open heart surgery yesterday. So join Trace and me in this prayer request Friday. Leave any request on my comments and I too will pray for yours. If you want to know more about Dale, go over to this blog. Keeping Up With The Bandermann's
Thanks and we will have a fun, 200th post field trip this week.
betty