Friday Flower and a sneak peek...

I told you I'd be back and, as it's Friday, I just had to post a Friday Flower. While on blogging hiatus, I had stopped my weekly tradition of bringing blooms into our home and, I have to say, there was definitely some sparkle missing around this old place.

The garden is in a transition phase at the moment, as the spring flowers give way to the showy blooms of summer. Even though their petals are tightly-wrapped, I know it's only a matter of a week or so before my hydrangeas display all their beauty... and, let me tell you, I have quite a number of hydrangeas packed into my little garden, so I'm itching to see them in all their glory! Most were picked up and planted at the end of last summer... taking full advantage of the end of season sales. It's always touch-and-go when I do this each year, as I hope that they have established themselves before the onslaught of winter... but, hey, enough of this talk of winter... It's June, the sun is shining, the sandals are on, and the freezer is stacked with juice pops!

Anyhoo, while I patiently await the hydrangea arrival, I popped to the supermarket for this week's Friday Flower and picked up these... not from my garden, but beautiful all the same... I just love the delicate shade of pink (yep, the girls picked the flowers this week)...
... and, this week, my flower is dedicated to all you lovelies... Thank you so much for sticking with me while I've been away and a B-I-G thank you to all my new followers. You guys jumped on board during the lean times, and that just warms my heart. I hope to keep you with me... I so enjoy this little tete-a-tete we have....

Oh, and next week, I'll be showing you the old kitchen cabinets... that's them, there in the background... want a closer look? Check back next week!
Take care all and have a great weekend!
Lx

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An anniversary bench...

Hello, poppets.
Oohhh, have I been busy? The answer to that is yes! My day-to-day life has ripped me away from my little blog, but I'm back.
My evenings have been spent painting... every single weeknight from 8 'til 11. This is usually my blog time, so my poor old blog has suffered. But, you know, when I started this old blog, it was to document the renovation of this old place, and so, sometimes, I'll have to take a break to get those projects done. I hope you understand and forgive me for neglecting you... I have missed you all...

Anyhoo, the other Friday was my wedding anniversary. Six glorious years with the hubby, and you know what? He makes it easy... We always like to celebrate our anniversary with a traditional gift. The first year being paper, second year, cotton, etc. Well, this year was iron, so we decided to pick up a little bench for the garden. The hubby wasn't completely sold on this one, but once we brought it home and popped it in our little garden, it looked as though it had always been sitting there underneath our pear tree.

I'm thinking vintage floral cushion. What do you think?

A rose was planted in the front garden, a gift from the hubby (no cut flowers are exchanged during the planting season) and a glass of wine shared... the perfect anniversary.

Righty-o chaps, as I'm back on board with the old blog, I'll be sharing tales from this little old place once again... starting with the kitchen cabinets. Yep, you heard right. I have finally finished painting the kitchen cabinets and am ready to share the spoils of my labour!
Watch this space... Oh, and did I mention that I've missed you all??
Lx

Shared with Sarah at A Beach Cottage - Good Life Wednesday

Gardening makes me happy...

Hello my dears...
Here's a question for those who write a blog... do you ever have an idea for a post, mull it over and then find that the very thing you were thinking about, was blogged about that very same day?? Happens to me often. A friend of mine read a book, which says that as soon as we have an idea, it goes up into the ether and is then out there ready for someone to act upon... I guess that's where my problem lies... I'm not acting on my ideas sharp enough, so, they are floating around in the atmosphere ready for someone to catch... like a butterfly, in a net....

... or, on the other hand, I could just be very unoriginal....

Anyhoo,  I just wanted to share a little of my life... I was pottering around the garden, watering in my new additions and babying my new rose, when I had one of those moments... the one where if you were able to see my aura, it would be all yellow and glowing (I'm not sure if that's the right colour, but I'm assuming yellow is happy).

Yes, I was happy! Happy with my little plot of land, happy watching my little girls playing at the water table... watching the birds zipping through through the trees... the colourful flowers slowly unfurling their delicate petals, ready to display their summer glory...

... and even though, we have a long way to go, before this little old place has the garden I envisage, it sure has come a long way from the chain link fence and crab grass days (although there is still some of both remaining)...

... and so, while I have been away from this blogging malarkey, I have been a busy bee, planting moving and digging...

... and there's still plenty to do out here, but that's the joy of gardening... come July I'll be able to sit back and enjoy the fruits of my labour.

Take care all.
Lx

Here's one of the cat... she was desperate to get in on the action!

A Sunday flower for mums

Hello lovelies,
I know my posts have been very sporadic lately, but I really have been cracking on with projects around this house, so poor old me has had no time for anything (other than resting my weary head at the end of the day)...

So, this past Friday, I was off at a neighbour's on a play-date when she offered me some of her Lily of the Valley to plant in my garden. Who could refuse that offer? If these flowers are good enough for a princess's wedding bouquet, then they are certainly good enough for my little garden. So, they were promptly transplanted two doors down and are now residing in the raised bed. The neighbour said they do really well here, so I'm hoping I'll be overrun with them come next Spring.

Anyhoo, while I was busy digging up said flowers, my eldest was merrily picking them and making the perfect Mother's Day posy. The smell is divine... I so wish you could take a big whiff through the computer, but, as it is, you'll just have to make do with the beautiful image...

... the perfect Mother's Day flowers. Collected by the little hands of my 4-year old, on a beautiful Spring day... dedicated to all the Mummies out there. Whether here in the States celebrating, or in the UK (or any other country), where it's just another Sunday... but, hey, it's Mother's Day here! So, go tell your loved ones to pop the kettle on and treat you like the queen that you are. Because all Mums are queens, deserving flowers fit for royalty!
Take care all!
Lx

Friday Flower & a right royal knees-up...

Okay, I was supposed to post this last night, but preparations for our Royal Wedding Tea Party ran over...

As I just missed out on the action back in Blighty, I figured I would bring a little of the Blighty hullabaloo to New Jersey. Granted, it's not the same as the street party I experienced as a child for Charles and Diana's wedding day, but I didn't want the day to pass by unnoticed by my little ones. To this day, I still remember the build-up to our street party... making the decorations, hanging the bunting, and then, the wonderful party which followed.

On the day of the wedding, our telly blew up, so we all sat around a neighbour's and watched the ceremony before spilling out onto the cul-de-sac and partying...

Oh, the memories... I dressed as a fairy for a fancy dress party and we still laugh at the pictures of me, with my skinny legs encased in white tights... ahhh, good times...

Anyhoo, now that we have watched and celebrated, and (between you and I) shed a little tear, I can now share my belated Friday Flower with you...

... beautiful and simple snapdragons... it won't be long before I'll be planting these in our garden to enjoy all summer long, but for now, I'll take them in the kitchen...
Today's Friday Flower is dedicated to Deborah over at A Fisherman's Cottage. The title immediately had me hooked. I couldn't think of anything more romantic than living in a little fisherman's cottage in one of my favourite places... Norfolk... and then, added to this is the fact that she takes beautiful pictures of her wonderful cottage, flowers, and anything else that takes her fancy... each picture, so beautifully put together and inspiring...  Her blog is a must-read, and I guarantee if you pop over, you'll be just as enamoured with The Fisherman's Cottage, as I am.

Righty-o, I best get off as I have a weekend jam-packed with beach clean-ups and painting (naturally), but, before I leave, I just have to say how my heart swelled with pride as I watched my beloved country come together and celebrate such a beautiful occasion. It really was a treat to watch every last minute of it... and, as the BBC news anchor ended the show, my youngest daughter turned to me and said 'It's the happy-ever-after part, Mummy'... cue small tear rolling down my cheek...
Toodle-pip!
Lx

Sorry there's no opportunity to link up this week folks, but for some reason I was unable to get the linky widget to work... apologies!

A day in the garden...

Hello there,
I was planning on posting on Sunday night, but I've been knuckling down with the painting of the kitchen cabinets... I think I've mentioned this project before... cough, cough... So, the bases are all ready and awaiting the completion of the doors.... I've got to say, though, that when I started out this job, I really didn't take into account just how tedious a task it would be. Needless to say, come Sunday morning, I was in the 'it will just have to do' frame of mind, desperate to get in the garden, enjoy the sun, and hunt for Easter eggs...

My wise owl, nestled behind some creeping phlox...

Our garden is ever-evolving... when we moved in, it was bereft of any plants... not even a stick... nothing, nada. In those days, it was the 'yard.' But, over the years, we have attempted to create a 'garden'... it sounds so much better to have a cup of tea in the garden than to sit in the yard... the latter conjures up images of sitting outside a terrace-house up north, surrounded by concrete, and a coal bunker at the back... not that I'm knocking this, as I spent many an hour in a yard just like that growing up in Nottingham!

Apple blossom... here's hoping for apples!

 Anyhoo, while away in Blighty, the hubby procured a ginormous swing set for the back of the garden... now, I did have romantic notions of a summerhouse there, complete with bunting and sling deckchairs, but the kiddies come first... so, that idea will have to go on the back burner until they are  older, we move, or we acquire more land... whichever comes first... for now, though, it serves it's purpose... the girls are occupied for hours while I potter around the garden, and that is something you can't put a price on!

The plastic chairs are a stop gap, until we get our Adirondack beauties!

Oh, and while pottering this past Easter weekend, I popped in some Forget-Me-Nots.... these grow like weeds all over my brother's garden in Blighty, sprouting up in any crack, giving off a lovely display of delicate blue flowers. While in the UK, my eldest daughter became quite enamoured by the beauty of the little Forget-Me-Not, so much so that, while at our local garden centre, she actually spotted them and correctly named them.... I guess they are a flower that you just can't forget... (get it? too lame?) Anyways, in attempting to foster a love of plants in her, we picked some up and planted them in the raised bed between the two gardens. A permanent reminder of our trip back home.

I popped a few pictures of our garden on here today, but we are currently in the process of digging up a lawn at the moment and replacing it with gravel (I'm not a lawn lass, as I just haven't the time or the know-how to maintain one). When that task has been completed, I'll share some more pictures of our little English garden... but before that, I best crack on with those cabinets...

Tulips standing to attention and a honeysuckle to attract the hummingbirds in the summer...

Ta ta for now...
Lx

Shared with Sarah at A Beach Cottage - Good Life Wednesday

Friday Flower returns...

Hello there, lovelies...
I'd like to say I achieved a lot this week, but the old jet-lag really took it's toll on me... so, I've done nothing more than mooch around, take the kiddies on a bike ride, a spot of gardening and a little bit of baking... it's good to be back at the helm and serving up dinner again. I actually missed dishing out food to my very appreciative husband... I think he missed it, too ;-)

The old house is looking a little dishevelled at the moment... partly due to my landing and unpacking all my goodies from England... even though this little old place is pretty much tapped out on space, I still managed to haul even more stuff across the Atlantic on the premise that I would simply find space for it on my return... that's where I'm becoming a little unstuck, as there just isn't any. So, for now, my kitchen counter tops have that cluttered look, but what the heck, I think that's the look I'm going for anyway...

Anyhoo, I added more jobs to my ever growing list of things I need to achieve / complete... of course, the kitchen cabinets are still midway through... the garden now needs tending to and I picked up some dotty fabric in the UK to make a Roman blind for the back door... the hubby has laid down the law, though, and said that no new projects can be started until the kitchen is completed... the "open shelf" look is beginning to grate, I think...

Well, I'm starting to waffle, so I'll wrap up this post by telling you that these lovely blooms were my welcome home bunch from the hubby... he's such a sweetie... and the jug is one of my trans-Atlantic finds, although no money was transferred for this (the best type of purchase), as this was my grandma's. Apparently, it used to sit underneath her kitchen sink. It was on it's way to the charity shop until I salvaged it out of the box... along with some other treasures... seriously, an afternoon in my Mum's attic is the best day spent thrifting!
Okay, chicks, wishing you all a beautiful, relaxing weekend. If in Blighty, enjoy the Easter break and sunshine... a rare gift!
Catch you next week.
Lx

I'm back...

Hello there,
It's been awhile, hasn't it? I've been off enjoying the delights of England in the springtime... My favourite time of the year back home.

There's a quintessentially English spring-time smell. What it is, I don't know... maybe the Hawthorne... but, whatever it is, I breathed deep lung-fills of it.

I was blessed with sunshine, and really got to see my home in all it's beautiful glory... so much so that I landed here in the States with a bit of a heavy heart... and a bad back, but that was from dealing with a tantruming child for 8 hours on the plane... Yes, I am the Mummy that you just dread being placed next to... apologies if you were the (rather smart) lady sat behind me that had a cheese stick thrown at your head and orange juice spilt on your fancy bag... kids, eh?

Anyhoo, I'm back in a bit of a jet-lagged haze... mulling over what stories to tell you and what projects to get finished... or started... The hubby is home for a week, so I fully plan on utilising this time, letting him reacquaint himself with his daughters, while I just 'do'...

Good to chat to you again... I've missed our little conflabs.
Take care.
Lx