The Fun Of Collections

Are you a collector? I didn't mean to collect all of the salt and pepper shakers I have, but the antique store just had so many and once I got started, I enjoyed the journey. Right now I have enough and more. Pretty soon, I'm going to have to be in that "one in, one out" mode. There is just no cabinet space for more and I don't intend to build extra shelves to hold my collection. My dad made this little white shelf about twenty years ago. It has housed many things in its time. I have some S and Ps on the windowsill and I love to use them for holidays.

If I put them on the table, my husband expects there to be salt and pepper in them so quite a few of them are filled. My favorite ones are either a holiday theme or a couple: boy and girl, man and woman, etc. I like each one of the pair to be a little bit different like the little Irish girls. They can be the same if they are spectacular like a set of little green Sprite bottles I have.

I also collect old books that I loved as a girl, little brightly painted juice glasses, and I did collect Toby mugs. These are little English men with tricorn hats. I'm pretty filled up with the glasses and the Toby mugs. One thing I'd like to find is a white primary color fruity table cloth like the ones from the 50's. And it needs to be square. I don't want to spend a lot, so there is that element of the hunt left for me. I only need one or two of those.

Do you collect anything? What kinds of places are the best for the hunt?

I am off to Tennessee on Friday to visit my daughter who moved down there with her husband last August. We are so excited to see her and visit Nashville again. So I will not be posting for approximately two weeks. See you then. It will be almost spring!

One Backward Look

Something new happens all of the time. This time my scanner decided to have fun and make the picture very small. It is still big enough for me to make my point. See that little girl way over on the right of the group. This is a picture of my grandparents, Mom and Dad, and sisters at Niagara Falls. I must have been way into something else to miss the spectacular falls and be looking at my shoes.

The funny thing is that I do remember the falls and that trip. That little girl was different. She didn't always think the same way as other people. She often had a best friend but few extra friends. She loved books and dolls. She loved animals. She even loved church.

I have recently been on a search for Grace. I want to give myself permission to live and live without guilt or all of the negative things that used to occupy my brain. This idea of letting God love me and having everything else move from that point is rather new for me. I was always a doer, a striver. Now, what I do comes from this place of peace and joy.

I would love to go back in time just this once and hug that little girl and say, "I love you. You will be just fine. God loves you and that's the best kind of news there is." And then I would come back to my family and my everyday life and just live in the contentment and trust of the Lord that I have been given. This is my new thing. I'm looking to Jesus to help me go forward and not go back again, except to rejoice in the wonderful things He has done.

Valentine's Day Rests Softly In My Heart

I guess you could say that this is my Valentine's Day blog II. Since that is my favorite day of the whole year, I'm going to go ahead and let myself have a sequel. I was putting off making my cards this year. Getting started and getting things out is the worst part of any job for me. But once I "made a mess" all over the table so I could be creative, the fun started. I usually do each card differently. This year I decided to do one basic design and use various papers. Since they are home made, no two are exactly alike. Oh the fun I had and they were made with love for each person concerned.

I told a family member that what I love about this day is that it's so simple. My husband and I don't buy expensive gifts. One year he gave me a selection of red objects from the dollar store and I loved it. I just feel like a kid all day. I love to look at all of the "penny" valentines they still make. They aren't as cute as they were when I was a girl, but I still get my kicks looking at them. I love the store windows in lace with red and white confections of every type. We will be going out to eat and I like to dress up and think lovely romantic thoughts like - how did I get such a wonderful person to share my life all these years? Well, that was God's grace, pure and simple. Hoping you will have a wonderful Valentine's Day. Nancy

Colors Of The Year

It's finally February. Oh, I love January with its fresh beginnings and brand new year, but even without the snow we usually have, I'm tired of white and ready for red. Yes, my months come in colors. January is white for snow, February is red for Valentines Day, March is green for St. Patrick's Day, April is pink and yellow for Easter, May is purple for lilacs, June is primary colors for sunny beach days, July is red, white, and blue for the fourth of July. Aug. is orange and yellow for crops, September is brown, red, and yellow for the leaves, Oct. is black and orange for tradition, Nov. is purple, brown, and orange for the cornucopia, and Dec. is red and green. These aren't exact, but when I was a teacher, I needed to do a seasonal bulletin board and these were my basic colors.
I love February. There's Groundhog Day, Valentines Day, Abraham Lincoln's birthday, George Washington's birthday, and it's the shortest month. What's not to love?

I will love every day this month because next comes March with its unpredictability and strange weather changes. I'm loving our "spring thaw." But green is a great color, so March has something going for it. Hope you liked my calendar color coding. We elementary teachers have to do something to keep the cute little rug rats smiling.

Do your months come in colors? When you turn a page, do you just think "white?" Any other teachers think like I do? Anyway, have a very colorful day.