Full Recovery

In case you have been concerned, the arm I broke while patting myself on the back over my success with the slide show is fully healed! I need to be careful about that as old bones are easily broken you know...
Thankfully I had the use of both arms Saturday when Sheila and I went north to discover what our friends in that part of the country were up too. I had met Cheryl

in line last month while we were waiting to pay at Barn House. And next thing you know we are the best of friends and she came last weekend to my Open House and this weekend I went to her sale!! Yip friends are FUN!! Everyone said this was a great sale, that happens only twice a year so we didn't want to miss it. We met up with Lisa and Isabel and stood in line with them, met some new friends and got some great treasures.

Then off we were, off like a herd of turtles to Barn House!

It was nothing short of the blind leading the blind! No one knew how to get there, so first Lisa and Isabel would lead and then it was Sheila and my turn. I kept saying this looks right, I think I remember this tree... I know that telephone pole looks familiar... Yeah this looks right, turn this way (it was the only option) then I saw a sign that I really did recognize, whew that was close, but we made it!

Did we ever see some scary characters once we got there!

And of course we weren't disappointed in the merchandise either!

Sorry that's Michael Jack, I mean Prince, I mean Joe and he's not for sale!

I know Jermonne will have the most wonderful slide show of this posted soon so check it out. His pictures will be, before the buying frenzy began!
It was good to see Charmanie there, she made a long trek across the mountain to see for herself what all the buzz about the Barn House Boys was about. Here is the purse she bought from

Little Byrd.

We had a great time there and as we were leaving, who should we run into but our buddy Timmi and her friends

from Snoquomish, Washington... We chatted awhile and then off again!!

We caught a couple more sales and saw other friends.
visited with Tiffany, she and Lisa are happy and they have a secret so be watching their blogs to hear what it is...

Next off to Monticello where we ran into Timmi and her friends again! We joined them for a late lunch.
All in all a great day!
Here was a sign outside Barn House that I keep thinking about,

I'm glad I got a picture of it and if I was half as clever as I wish I was, I would have it playing on my play list that Miss Molly did for me, but... not so clever

And So,

After months and I do mean months of persistantness and yes I know that is not a word, but nothing else can describe what it took. I want you to NOTICE... The slide show!! Oh, I feel so proud!! I know I didn't do it the way it was suppose to be done, and the pictures aren't as perfect as I would have wished but, I FINALLY did it. Whew, now I can get on with my life... I seriously hate obsessing on things, but sometimes I can't help myself.
Tomorrow I am going out and about I will have my camera in hand so beware, now that I can, I will definitely wow you with my barely adequate photography!



Have you ever had one of those most embarrassing moments that is so embarrassing that it is funny even to you... Probably not, but I get them a lot. Take this morning for example.

"Okay Sam, let's get going time to get up and ready for school." This is not as fun as you might think since he has to be ready and waiting for the bus by 7:20, but we manage. And by Friday, it is less fun than other days... So I get his lunch ready, and put it in his back pack. I notice his Friday folder is in there but when I ask him about it, he says the teacher was getting things ready and did it yesterday... Whatever how strange he also said she had a cold, so I'm thinking maybe she is going to be absent today and got it done for the substitute..

So off he goes to the end of the driveway and I go about my morning business with one eye on him, but still doing things around the house. I can hear the bus when it stops so I look out and watch him get on. Yeah I know, I probably should be standing out there with him, but I don't...

About 7:45 he comes back in the front door. He says, "I quit, I'm not waiting for the bus any longer..." So naturally I let him know that won't work and for some unknown reason the bus was about 20 minutes late yesterday... I watch out the window for a few minutes and then decide to call the bus barn and get to the bottom of this... Of course I tell them where I live and ask what's the deal?? Why is the bus so late?? And then...she tells me there is no school today...huh? Why did I not know that? Could someone let me in on the secret?? I mean really everyone else must have known... Do you think I need to read those notes in the back pack?? Now I'm wishing I hadn't told her where I live, but I can always hope she thinks I'm the mom from the only other house on our street.... I guess I should just be happy I didn't take Sam to school and drop him off... I would have thought we were really late and all the students were already inside. Most likely would have gotten a phone call that I needed to come get him... Probably followed by a home visit...

Meet Dawn

Thought you might like to meet my friend Dawn. She came home with me from the Coburg Antique Show. I meet her early in the morning, dawn to be exact. She has been anxious to make he debut as a model, but I have been busy and preoccupied, so I am just now getting around to introducing her. She loves jewelry and I am constantly finding MY jewelry on her!
Today I finished this apron. I got the fabric on Monday, my sister Terri and I made a quick dash into my friend Celia's fabric store located downtown Silverton. She found the perfect fabric for an apron in the first 2 minutes and I hemmed and hawed forever, but finally decided on this combination. I loved the little crows, kinda a fall theme going on here, and then I had to find the perfect floral to go with it...

The name of the apron is Lily. I made it about 5 inches longer and changed the pocket around. I'm happy to have a new apron and I'm hoping Dawn doesn't think I made it for her!

Dawn thought we should show you some of the areas in the house, since she is wearing the fall apron all dolled up with no place to go, she might as well give a house tour.
Here is Dawn, standing near the back door.

This doily is one that one of my customers brought me that came from Belgium, where they make lace. She saw that I use lace where ever I can find a spot and thought I should have some real lace, so she brought me some of hers. I was delighted!
I love this metal basket holding the tin can, at times I wonder what makes things appealing to me.

Dawn is in the dining room now, she is eying the chocolate malt balls, but everyone who lives here knows the candy is decorations, and we don't eat decorations!

The collection of ice picks has nothing to do with the don't eat the decorations rule...
Ironic though that they are next to one another on the cabinet.

Have you ever seen the candles that look like fruit? I have seen pears, apples, peaches...
These are actually fruit that are suppose to look like the candles of fruit... Does that make sense??

Dawn is a little bored with the tour so she is turning in for the night...
With any luck the rest of the house pictures will be a slide show you can see soon!

Ta-Da

Whew! That was a close one! It really is too bad the rest of the world doesn't come to an abrupt stop when we are busy and have lots to do with very little time to do it. It's unfortunate that all our regular obligations won't wait for us to finish what we want to do for the big event, to need attention. Thankfully Lisa and her sweet girl came an hour early and helped put away (hide) all the extra merchandise (junk). All I can say is THANK YOU! to all of my friends and family who helped me pull it off. Then of course, thank you to all of you that came and ohhhed and ahhhed, and of course bought prizes to take home, so I can buy more treasures and all this craziness can keep spinning for ever and ever... Just joking guys, next time I will be ready sooner and won't get quite so wigged out! Don't laugh, I can have my fantasies can't I??

As is my normal excuse when things get a little harried I know, you know, so why am I always surprised, I couldn't find the camera and then when I did the batteries were gone... blah blah blah. Fortunate for me Isabel arrived early and with camera in one hand and vacuum in the other managed to get some pictures and I am borrowing them from her post. She is a wonderful photographer not to mention a whiz with the vacuum. Her pictures are better than any I would have taken anyway, so here are a few she took and if you want to see more check out her blog. With any luck I will get some pictures of my own taken and wow you with the slide show...
This is the wall that was last the dining room and is now the entry.

Looks like I should have arranged the books there on the bottom shelf...



This is the living/family room, the mantle is one thing that didn't move. Well... I moved it a lot of places, but decided where it was looked best.
The old family room, that is now the dining room. I had intended to glitter the pumpkins... I think I still will, I think they would taste much better...
I also need to find something either yummy or cute to put on that empty dish... what was I thinking??? You can just barely tell but I made new curtains, I used a drop cloth, with what was left over I used for the table cloth with burlap over it.
I moved the furniture all around in the guest room, but it is much the same as before since I didn't put anything "new" in there.


This is the front of the shop. I don't know if I ever have taken pictures before of the outside.

Here is the inside, I didn't notice the crows had landed...gee, I will have to get them out of there before they make a big mess!! I loved having the sunflowers, pumpkins, cornstalks and tons of other garden goodies to use for decorating. Tomie (aka the good brother) and his wife Judy definitely the good sister-in-law delivered those for me to use.
What fun I had seeing all who came, it was a real treat meeting Timi and Emily friends from blogland. Again, thanks for all the help everyone!



P.S. Here is the recipe for the pumpkin fudge. I know you must have thought I whipped that up myself, but no I must confess it was Pam.

Pumpkin Fudge

3 cups of sugar

3/4 cup butter

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1/2 cup solid pack pumpkin

1 pkg butterscotch chips

1 sm jar marshmallow cream

1 cup walnuts

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

In saucepan over medium heat add sugar, butter, evaporated milk and pumpkin. Stir and heat till 234 on candy thermometer. Remove from heat and stir in butterscotch chips, marshmallow creme, nuts, vanilla and spice. After mixing well, pour into greased pan. Cool, cut and eat!! YUM

Then since you have a half used can of evap milk and pumpkin you might as well make another batch!!!

Guest Blogger-Emily Colvin

A Different Point of View
Hey, this is Emily, or Miss Molly, Joy's niece. I have temporarily taken over the blog writing. You may remember that I was the one that helped start this little addiction of hers. At the moment she is too busy to write, she is trying to get her house ready for her open house that is at 10 on friday. As you can see she still has some work to do, but she will have it finished. . . at 9:45 on Friday morning (have no fear, she always does it!).
So yesterday Auntie was having a difficult day. At midnight, while at the 24 hour market, she about snapped under all the pressure. She started questioning why she even bothers decorating, wondered if anybody cares, and was ready to cancel her open house all together. In this tramatic time of need she headed to the magazine aisle for some theroputic inspiration. Now mind you, she selected this particular magazine for absolutly no reason, it is not one of her favorites, but when she opened to a radom page she found the sign she was looking for. She found a picture of HER house. There was no name and the picture was four years old, but those were minor details. It was all she needed to get her spirit back. Now I would like to point out again how this discovery was meant to be, she does not typically read this magazine and pure spontaneity was the only reason she picked up that certain issue.

Now I would like to tell another story that happened to her at a 24 hour market, yet was not so positive an experience. As she was in the fast food line at 6 am she ordered a small Diet coke, which costs a dollar. So to her surprise the cashier gives her back 40 cents. She is so confused until she realized. . . THIS LADY HAD CHARGED HER THE SENIOR CITIZEN RATE!!!!!! As traumatic as this experience, she does seem to have bounced back and has returned to her normal crazy self.
And now a quick note on the spoon blog, this was a joke, she DID NOT glue all of those spoons on the barrel; she was only stating how long it must have taken. Although she is crazy and does spend inordinate time on projects, she does see the craziness in that particular project.
This picture is of me, dressed up for my school's homecoming dance. This dress cost 13.99, I must have inherited the family gene of buying cheap stuff. I liked it because it looked vintage, that must run in the family too. On that same day we dressed Addie up as a pirate and took a picture on this old tractor, it was such a cool tractor and she looks so dang cute i could not resist adding this picture.
Well this is my goodbye to all her avid readers!
xoxo Miss Molly

P.S. I hope you like my song addition to her blog

The Count Down Continues...

Actually I have been so busy I lost count of the days until the Open House. Quick do the math... ummmm....8 days actually 7 it is after midnight!! Oh gee I have to go, only 7 days!! Just kidding, what the heck I have important news to report!! And to think I was going to post every day for the 2 weeks prior to the Open House...


Have you ever noticed, especially when you have lots and lots to do how it all takes a lot more time than it should?? Or shall we say, a lot more time than you planned? For instance, who would have thought it could take so long to glue a few spoons around a barrell? And such a clever idea...

Then there is the little pumpkin, that I am constantly going to the garden to check its progress... at least it looks like a pumpkin and that is where last years jack-o-lantern was carved...


I have been encouraging it along, hurry little pumpkin, hurry!

I'm not holding out much hope for the little guy, he has a way to go..

I won't bore you with the details of, how long could it possibly take to paint 2 rooms, or how many ways can furniture be moved around and on and on and on.

Mr. Sam kinda summed it up last night.... I'm working on a shelf under the chalk board, which I moved to the kitchen above the stove. The one that was by the back door, which when I moved it I discovered, I should have moved it last time I painted... Because now that wall has to be painted ...

But back to Sam... "Mom, is there a judge?" Hmm, I ask.. "Will there be a judge to give a medal to who has the best house?" Well.... I'm thinking, have I taken this just a little to far??? No, I assure myself, I wouldn't be a little compulsive about all this, maybe I'm just hoping for a gold??? But I did go ahead and let him draw a picture on the chalkboard, even though what does a train have to do with harvest??

So you will be happy to note, that we went to Toni's for dinner tonight so we could, take five and see Brynne and Addie. We had a little treat for the princess...

We were so glad that Sarah one of Brynne's, best friends from college was going to be there with her husband for dinner. We had a few prizes for her baby too. She's at the melon stage, and Bee's baby is at the avacado...

Such a fun time to be with them, glad we took the time...


And I ask, what could be more precious??