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Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Bomber Jacket




Happy Wednesday, y'all!  (I refuse to call it happy h day.)  Today is nice and dreary.  To cheer me up I went with a neutral colored sweater with a lacy camisole, cozy leggings and boots, and my bomber jacket.  I'd been wanting this jacket from Target for so long.  The first Black Friday I actually got out for was with Husband and Rayah Sunshine and her husband.  This was their Christmas present to me.  I have loved it and used it a lot ever since.  For a pop of color I added a bright turquoise and gold necklace that I got at Vintage Market Days when it was here in town earlier this year.
  The iPhone case is another one that I made myself. You can read about it in an earlier post here.  It's my Halloween case.  I guess I'll have to be coming up with a Christmas one before I know it.  This hear has been going by so quickly!  Our one year wedding anniversary is going to be in 12 days!!  That's so hard to believe.  It hasn't felt like it's been that long.  I told Husband that there must be a time conspiracy afoot and that it's been increasingly getting faster.  Thanksgiving, then Christmas will be here so soon!  But until then, I think I'll enjoy my Halloween decorations just one more day.  Then I'll be putting them away and beginning the process of sorting through my Christmas decorations!  I have a lot of fun new ideas for this year.  I can't wait to share them with you!

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Applesauce, Applesauce, Applesauce!


















When Husband and I visited his other set of grandparents that live in New Hampshire, not only was I very excited to finally meet them, but I was also very impressed with all of the food that we had while there.  They live in a beautiful old house up in the mountains.  Their land, which is across the road from them has maple syrup pipelines that they have someone harvest and bottle.  We got to take a couple of them home with us and we have been enjoying it ever since.
  That night for dinner we had some delicious slow cooked ribs, a plate piled high with potato salad and a bowl of homemade applesauce of which I couldn't get enough!!  For breakfast the next day we had homemade waffles heaped with strawberries, whip cream and Maple syrup.  Mmm, it all makes my mouth water just thinking about it!!!  I'll share the applesauce recipe with you.  It's so easy!

Ingredients
About a dozen apples sliced and cored. (My crock pot will probably hold only 15 sliced apples.)
2 cups water
Ground cinnamon
Sugar (as always, I used Splenda)

Directions
1. Slice and core apples and put in crock pot. (As pictured above, I used a handy dandy apple corer/slicer.  Made it go by a whole lot faster.)
2. Pour water over apples, and cover.  Cook on high for 2 hours.
(The house will start to smell pretty good!)
3. Being careful to handle the hot apple slices, mash through a colander (of which I did not have so I used a strainer,) to make sure all of the skin is removed.
4. Pour apple mash into a saucepan and bring to a boil.
5. Stir in cinnamon and sugar to taste.
(For added presentation when serving applesauce, garnish each bowl with a cinnamon stick.)


ENJOY!





Monday, October 28, 2013

Red Phone Booth- A Tardis?









What a good weekend!  Got some shopping in with mom and one of our dear friends, had a concert, attended our other church's Fall Fest and got crafty. (I'll show pictures once it's completely done!)

  I was excited to break out one of my Halloween shirts.  I don't know why I haven't been wearing these all month.  Last night, I broke out my little orange and black owl nightie shorts.  The shirt I'm wearing in these pictures is one of my favorite ones.  I got it at Target back when they had really cool Halloween shirts.  I haven't seen many like this in a while.  Then again, I kind of stopped looking when I didn't find any cool holiday shirts two years in a row.
  The green upholstery-looking coat I got from Wal*mart yeeears ago.  I haven't found one like it since.  I snatched it up while I could.  the first coat I picked up to try on like it, I stuck my hands in the pockets and found a couple of pills. *gross*  But that didn't deter me from such an awesome coat.  I simply chose a different one from the rack.  Problem solved.  It actually came with a detachable faux fur collar that I stopped wearing because I felt a little ridiculous wearing it.  Maybe since my style and tastes have changed I can try it again.  Now all I have to do is find it...

                                                3 days til Halloween, y'all!!!

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Open Season








Tulsa Oratorio Chorus (of which I am a member), and led by Dr. Tim Sharp held its first concert (joint with Tulsa Symphony) of the season this weekend.  Mortality Set to Music contained music from Saint-Saëns, Ravel, and Fauré. The showcase piece was Saint-Saëns Requiem.  It was beautiful! The sounds in First Presbyterian have gorgeous overtones that helped lend to the eeriness of the last work of the evening.  The soloists were amazing and talented.  During rehearsal, I once got lost in listening to them and forgot to come in!  After dress rehearsal the morning of we were detained getting to our cars by the Tulsa Run.  That led to a very frustrated attempt to leave downtown and go shopping! (I won't even get into the hysterics in which I broke out to Husband.) But I am glad so many people were running it, as I hope to do maybe next year!


Have a blessed Sunday!  This is the day that the Lord hath made.  Take a moment to think of all that God has done for you and thank Him.  I know I wouldn't be where I am nor who I am today without Him.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

More of Merona













I'm taking this time to introduce the newest member of my accessory family, this Merona purse from Target.  I love it. I can fit everything in it; a pharmacy, a library, a cosmetic counter and of course my trusty Taurus .380. Paired with a good comfy outfit in which to run some errands.

In other news, I can't believe Halloween is next week!!  I have a few exterior decorations out.  The black cat in the window with the pumpkin holds a special place in my heart.  It was made by my grandpa, who has since gone to be with the Lord several years past.  I still miss him.  This is one of the fun little reminders that I have of him.  I love breaking it out every year.

I hope you all have a fun Saturday!


Friday, October 25, 2013

Sloppy Bowls

Here is a nice easy recipe for when you're trying to make a real quick but delicious dinner. (or lunch.) This is a recipe I found on Pinterest the other day while browsing.  I couldn't find the original recipe but ended up changing it anyway. (accidentally.)  It takes just 4 ingredients. 1. Pillsbury biscuits (or similar,) 2. 1 lb. ground beef, 3. Taco seasoning, and 4. Sloppy Joe Hickory Sauce. (the original called for a can of Manwhich meat.)I thought I was getting sloppy Joes mixed meat but just ended up getting a can of the sauce.)  It still turned out deliciously!!  Okay, I forgot a 5th ingredient: shredded cheese!  All I had was Italian blend and it was still really good!  Husband thought it would have been better with shredded sharp cheddar cheese.










Directions
1. Turn large muffin tin upside down and spray the bottoms of the cups.
2. Stretch and mold biscuits over the bottom of the cups and bake according to the biscuit can directions.
3. While the biscuits are baking, brown ground beef in a skillet, drain, then add taco seasoning and hickory sauce and mix it all together.
4. Scoop meat mixture into biscuit bowls and top with shredded cheese.
5. Enjoy!!

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Retired Insulators

 I'm not sure where my fascination for these beautiful insulators came from.  I just know that my collection grew and grew until both window sills in our Florida room were covered.  You see them everywhere.  I never noticed them though until I started antiquing with my husband.  (Which when we started we had just started dating.)  He helped fuel my  passion for these little turquoise pieces of glass and would periodically buy me ones while he was out and about.  they come in all sorts of shapes and colors, but my love is for  the turquoise and clear ones.  On our honeymoon in Branson, we were taking a scenic railway tour between Missouri and Arkansas when we saw some lonesome turquoise insulators still clinging to their telephone poles in the mountains!  It was neat seeing them in their native environment that seemed to be trapped in time.
  I've included a few pictures that I found of them being used in beautiful Fall displays.  I've seen many more uses for them and hope to experiment a little more with them.

                                {Here they are lining one of our Florida room window sills.}

{On our trip to Vermont last July, we found the mother of all insulators!  It was nestled on the floor of a cute little antique shop, (which happened to be right across the street from the Ben & Jerry's factory!!) and was of course pointed out to be by Hubby.  I couldn't leave it!  It was a bargain for $7.  Of course, it was the heaviest thing in one of my carry on bags on the flight back to OK... it was worth it.  Our checked bags were a different matter entirely.  The New England area had so many different types of antiques to offer than OK had.  It was hard to resist the allure of so many antique places.}



{This is a display I saw on our recent trip to the War Eagle Craft Fair.  Such cute craft ideas!  And I loved the combination of turquoise and orange for the Fall display.  The combination of the lighter shades of turquoise and orange brighten up the display and add a bit of cheer.}



A beautiful Fall mantle from Nici at Posed Perfection.  She has tons of fun projects and ideas on her blog.  When you all have a free minute, you should check her out!  This mantle includes a few of our wedding colors; orange, turquoise, cream and brown.  Brings back memories.  She included a couple of my favorite kinds of insulators to tie in to the Fall display.

Here's another fun use for insulators from Patti at Old Things New.  Maybe we should have one made or make one to hang in our Florida room??  That would also free up a little window sill space to make room for more!  Have I mentioned that I'm obsessed?

Monday, October 21, 2013

War Eagle Mills

This weekend was a fun-filled weekend.  I went on a roadtrip to Rogers, AR with my mom, grandma and sister to visit the War Eagle craft Fair.  It was tons of fun!  This was actually the first time we'd been in years.  The first picture is the view of  the fair from the above winding road to get to it.  Traffic wasn't all that bad either.  Only a short wait to get into the parking lot.  We went through row upon row of tents filled with fun goodies, crafts, lots of Halloween decor (of which I managed to leave without having bought any) and many other things.  The day started off cool but soon warmed up a bit as the sun climbed higher in the sky.  It was good getting to spend time with the ladies of my family while we jostled through the crowds to see what all our eyes could take in.
  We ate lunch at the beans and cornbread restaurant located on the 3rd floor of War Eagle Mill.  It was delicious!  The perfect meal for a cool fall outing.


 {I have bad luck with sunglasses, with them breaking so we had to make a pit stop at Walmart once we rolled into Springdale so I could get some new sunglasses.  While there, Mom spotted this wonderful sock bun ring for only $2.88 that I had to buy!  It came with the ring, several bobby pins, a couple of hair ties and instructions.  It only took about 10 seconds to whip up this hair creation.  I loved it so much that I wore it the next day as well!}
 {I realize that my sister and I, along with all of the others that we saw doing it were minorly exploited, but it was worth it.  When Mom was younger, she had this beautiful silver ring made out of a recycled spoon handle.  I don't know what happened to it, but it seems to have been lost forever.  It was always fun to wear.  At the fair, there was a booth with an older gentleman selling this exact type of ring!  All sorts of varieties.  Above his booth, there was a wooden sign that said if we showed him our hidden tattoo and let him take its picture that he would give us one of these rings for free.  Apparently he was making an album of the tattoos he'd seen at the craft fair.  I have a fall tree on my side with Psalms 23, my favorite scripture written beneath it.  It's the first time our tattoos have paid off, Mama said!}
                                                         {War Eagle Mill, which is still a functioning mill}



   {Cooler Fall weather meant I got to break out my winter tub of sweaters and throw on boots and a scarf!}


            {Sister and I listening to a good bluegrass band that hailed from our part of Oklahoma!}

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Misty Morning

God is love.  Love is beautiful.  God, the god of love makes beautiful things.  Sometimes something happens in nature and I'm just left speechless and in awe.  Saturday morning was one of those moments.  A long moment.  As I was driving to my grandmother's house at 6am I was fascinated by all of the fog and mist that was suspended in front of me and around me.  On our way to Arkansas we saw misty fields where you couldn't really see into them beyond the roadside, beautiful ponds that had mist suspended in little clouds above them, and then the sun making its magnificent rise to start another day.
    How can you see all of this beauty, all of this wonder without knowing there is a god.  The God.  The same god that made the smallest molecule all the way up to the vast, vast outer space.  Planets, stars, all light years away.  I am thankful for the diversity, thankful for the creativity, and thankful for the care with which my God created everything.
  I don't even remember the last time that I was up before 7am, let alone before 6am!  But if I hadn't been, then I wouldn't have been able to witness the beauty that God created in the 'quiet, misty morning.'  Next time you're up earlier than you usually are, take a  moment to just observe and soak in the creations that you wouldn't normally get to see.

  Happy Sunday, everyone!  This is the day that the Lord hath made!!


Friday, October 18, 2013

Happy 100 Posts!

It is with excitement that can say I've finally reached 100 posts!  To commemorate, I am going to repost some of the milestone posts from our lives.  These were some pretty exciting moments!  Proposal, getting our house, decorating house, our puppy's first birthday... So many wonderful things and big changes have happened since starting this blog way back in the day. Hard to believe I've had it for about 3 years now.  (Though really it's like it's been one since I wrote in it mostly this year.  But 3 years sounds better.)  I hope you all enjoy the walk down memory lane.  Thank you for reading and I'm glad you could join me today in celebrating my 100th post!


         September 26, 2011
"David and I spent most of the 4th of July at my grandmother's house popping firecrackers, baking cookies and spending time with my family.  That night, we went to Riverpark's big fireworks show.  My cousin and a couple of mine and David's friends were in attendance.  One of his friends happened to be taking photos of the fireworks.  David casually asked his friend to take pictures of us.  So we stood up and hugged for the pictures.  David began digging in his pocket and before I knew it, he was kneeling down on one knee!  With the fireworks blossoming in the background, David asked me to marry him!!  I squealed as tears sprang to my eyes and said YEEEESS!!  That was the happiest moment of my life!  I was completely and utterly surprised.  I cannot wait to spend the rest of our lives together.  I could not ask for a better man to be my husband and take care of me.  Say hello to the future Mrs. Linde!!"

February 1, 2012
       The house is ours!! 
"We closed on Tuesday.  And by 'we' I mean David.  I was unfortunately stuck in Edmond doing mundane things such as choir and opera rehearsals...(during which we did get a lot accomplished.)  It is move in ready and we (and again I mean 'we' as in David and my Parents) have begun moving things in.  My parents came down yesterday and help load up the bedroom suite that we got from EARC Thrift store.  It's very nice!  A 5 piece set at a very decent price.  We also got to enjoy a delicious dinner at Earl's Rib Palace, (home of Oklahoma's best BBQ!!)  Though I will be going there this weekend to help with the moving process.  Maybe now would be a good time to clear out a few of my holiday decoration tubs that are sitting in my kitchen in Edmond and taking up space in the shed out back... Surely there's room for 4 tubs somewhere..."

                                                              January 31, 2013
"Pardon the mess, but it's almost heard to believe that this is the same living room.  Everything in the house was white, white, white!  We needed some color in there ASAP.  The paint color is Pomegranate I believe, and it was a perfect match for our red barn paintings.  The paintings actually have a fun story behind them.  The first one shown in the corner with the table lamp (from Kirkland's, love that place) was from a place in Tulsa called Persimmon Hollow Village.  It's a neat place full of rustic buildings containing anything from wood working to Coca Cola memorbilia.  We got it for about $5!!  The 4 small ones, we found on one of our antique excursions somewhere in Oklahoma. They are all 5 painted on what looks to be linen, or a fine burlap, all bearing the same signature.  I call this my Christmas room because of the red and the snow pictures.  Decorating this house was just so much fun!!"

                                                                       February 17, 2013
"Today, our little puppy turned 1 year old!! Back in September, we adopted him from the SPCA. One of the best decisions we made! He is so precious. We couldn't have chosen a better dog. Actually, he's the first dog I've ever had, so naturally we spoil him rotten! Both of his grandmothers came over today with precious gifts for our precious puppy! I baked a cake for the special occasion. (None of the ingredients harmful to dogs.). And it was super easy to make!! And it didn't taste half bad, only a little bland: natural peanut butter, flour, shredded carrots, being the main ingredients.  The recipe can be found HERE."

Thursday, October 17, 2013

"Olive juice!"




   Have you all ever tried the mouthing of "olive juice" across the room to someone?  It's supposed to look like you're saying 'I love you.'  Kind of like in the movies apparently all of the extras on set when filming busy cafe scenes or need filler words, they're supposed to say 'rhubarb' or 'watermelon' to give filler sound.  Ever notice how you can never really understand what any of  the extras are saying in the scenes?

    This dress is one of my favorite pieces of clothing.  Not only is it a beautiful shade of olive green, but it's good to wear in the warmer months and the cooler months.  Not to mention it goes with practically everything!  It's one of the few articles of clothing I own from Anthropologie.  It was on major sale.  $10!!  Paired with an animal print scarf and warm boots, I felt very fallish in this outfit.  Apparently Mom had the same idea!  We both showed up at choir last night wearing matching animal print scarves!  This is another case of the 'twinkies.'  I love these moments. I'll have to go back through my old pictures and find some of my favorite twinkie moments to share with you all!  though I believe one of my favorites had to have been several years ago when I got together with a group of friends and not only was there a set or two of twinkies, but there were 3!!  That's right folks.  3 sets of twinkies walking around my house.  How often does that happen?  Can't say that I've seen it too much.  But it really made my heart happy.

 What are some things that really make your heart happy?  Twinkies? Spending time with friends?  Making goofy faces at your friend across the office?  I'd love to hear what it is!!