Is it too early?

Call me crazy, but I have started a Christmas Wish List. The way I look at it is if something catches my eye and I can't get it right now, I need to take a picture so I don't forget it later. It's a great way to get Christmas ideas if nothing else. Here are some things I saw the other day that I am wanting. One is this square skillet. It is the new craze of ceramic and titanium cookware. Supposed to be fantastic.

I also love these new cake pans and muffins tins that Target is carrying.

I still haven't bitten the bullet and purchased the new Vintage Charm Pyrex bowls. I may do that for my birthday.

I keep wanting to take homemade soup for lunch. But I always worry about it spilling out of plastic or worse yet, the plastic not heat good in the microwave. May just have to invest in one of these mugs.

There are a few things I am looking for between now and Christmas to use during the holidays. One is this Pyrex bowl. I love this size of bowl. They are awesome for leftovers and storage. I have several including some for Halloween and Valentine's, but I only have the snowflake one for Christmas. Now I want the trees.

And I am on the lookout for some Corelle Christmas dishes. This is a new pattern and if I can get them at the Corelle Outlet I may pick up a set.

It may be early, but at least I am planning ahead.

The House up the Hollow on Sunday's

Oh what wonderful memories of Sunday's when I was a young girl. 

Sunday school and church and the long one mile walk back to the house up the hollow (pronounced holler if you are a country gal).

Mom in the kitchen frying chicken and making mash potatoes, veggies and sweet tea. Dad in the living room in his favorite chair watching his beloved Cincinnati Reds on TV.

After lunch, there was usually either a walk up the ridge, in the woods behind the house or in the trees around the golf course. On really hot days, we would traipse back home and head straight for the fridge to pour a glass of ice cold well water that Mom kept in a pitcher in the fridge.

Sometimes it was simply just laying out in the sun in the yard and reading. Or playing ball in the yard or challenging Daddy to a game of badminton. Or as we got older watching our kids play ball like we did. It seems like there was always cake and sliced peaches, or a nice lemon meringue, chocolate or apple pie.

Supper was just a simple affair of eating what you wanted when you got hungry. You could have a sandwich or leftovers, but Mom always made sure you ate. And since there were only three channels and one TV when we were younger, we were usually gathered together in the living room watching Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, Ed Sullivan or the Wonderful World of Disney before Disney was even popular. 

Then it was off to bed after getting kisses from Mommy and Daddy and those nightly "Night, I love you." to every member of the family. Such sweet, sweet memories of growing up on Sundays.

Plastic Canvas Projects...

It's time to start working on my plastic canvas again. I have gotten rid of most of my old yarn that was pastels and leftovers and bland colors that I knew I would never use again. So my stock is getting low. I have found several projects that interest me for fall and Halloween. Now's the time to get started. I see a trip to Hobby Lobby for some new yarn. Here's some things I am considering as my next projects...

Coasters are my favorite thing to make because you can make on in under an hour. They make for quick an easy gift ideas. And you can even make a cute box to store them in.

I love the checkerboard pattern because it is one of the fastest ways to complete a project.

This napkin holder is cute, but if you make it the right size, it could also be a coaster holder.

This is an adorable idea for a coffin to hold candy at Halloween.

This is cute for all you tic tac toe lovers. 

This pattern would be super simple. I may have to try it.

Another cute box for candy.

This is for Christmas but I think it is the most adorable project.

Check out the ribbon candy. Talk about easy. Wouldn't they look cute in a vintage Christmas candy dish. 

This one is a little more detailed and a higher level of skill than I normally do, but I may try my hand at it because my granddaughter, Alexis, love owls. Not sure if I could master but I may try.

My find for Friday...

I went to an estate sale on Friday. There was so much to see that it was overwhelming. I let a few bargains slip through my hands by not snatching them up when I could. But I did find something that I liked. It was a tea pot for just $5.00. The owner had passed away this spring and had been in a nursing home for awhile. Not to mention she had a lot of things in storage so some dust and grime were to be expected. 

When I got home, I grabbed my trusty Bar Keepers Friend, Mean Green, a sponge and a soft toothbrush to start the clean up.

It wasn't long till it was returned to its former glory. It is absolutely beautiful.

I put it on my tea cart with my Royal Dalton set.

I'm very happy to add this little $5 tea pot to my collection. I have them all over my house.

Be sure and hop over to Friday Foto Friends for more wonderful posts.

You just gotta love a bargain...

I went to Kohl's the other day which always makes me happy, especially when I find what I went there looking for. I saw they were having a good sale. I especially wanted to look at tablecloths. I have been looking for "the one" for a year now and can't find what I really wanted. Until the other day. It was perfect. And it was the colors I was looking for. It was $39.99 on sale for $18 and I had a 15% off coupon. I got it for $15.30 and I was thrilled. If you know linens you know that Laura Ashley is excellent quality. 

Next, I needed a new loose flowing sleeveless top for an upcoming trip. I fell in love with this yellow. I haven't owned yellow in a long time. This was $24.99 and on sale for $12.99 so my cost after the 15% off was $11.04. 

The other thing on my list was new flip flops in a neutral color, but not white. My light tan broke and I can't find any I like. But I knew they carried a brand I love that I have in black, brown and blue. So I went back to check. Sure enough they had what I was looking for. They were $19.99 on sale for $9.98 and at 15% off, I got them for $8.48

Add to that the fact that I had $5.00 off my purchase thanks to my Yes2You rewards card. That means retail value was $84.97 and I got it all for $29.82. Saved $55.15. Now that is something to WOO HOO about!

But my bargains didn't end there. A quick stop at Walmart to look for a new beach towels brought me this one for just $4.00. A savings of $1.77. And of course, I picked out the one with the flip flops. 

I also needed some new slippers. These were on clearance for just $5.00. I find slippers at Walmart on sales all the time in size 5/6. I guess a lot of people don't buy the 5/6 size. These were $12.97 originally. So I saved $7.97.

I think this counts as a great bargain day!

My happy mail....

My UPS man is my hero again. Got some goodies to get ready for fall.

One box was an order I just turned in a couple of weeks ago. Lots of goodies for my guest plus I was the hostess so I earned some free product and some 1/2 off. 

My favorite that I got for having the party was my new purse, wallet and the mini zipper pouch. Even though the wallet is trimmed in lavender, I picked raspberry for my B and the little heart because I love pinks a lot more than purples.

I also got this product called a swap it pocket. The premise is you can put things in it that you keep in your purse every time you change your purse and then just pull it out and put in the next purse, tote or bag you carry. I have a lot of ideas for what I can use this for. 

In addition I got one of the pretty pink boxes which means it was my add-on kit to kick start me for fall. This is the new Deluxe Zip-Top Organizing Utility Tote. It has a lot of room in it. I will definitely be using this for packing on an upcoming trip.

This little mini catch-all bin is so cute. I'm think I may use this to put all my nail polish and nail care items in. 

But my favorite is the new Super Swap It Pocket. I have been longing for a bag that would be good to keep my current plastic canvas craft project in but couldn't find exactly what I wanted. Until they came out with this one. They picked the personalization for it and I love the thread color.

It has a center section that hold my yarn with little pockets for my scissors, needles, etc. The other two outer zipper pockets are perfect for my patterns and pre-cut plastic canvas for each project.

I love the the way they let us get new fall items in advance to help our business.

Finally......

When hubby became ill, we no longer needed two vehicles and it was a stretch to cover two car payments so I parted with my car because the payment was considerably higher and I started driving his SUV which was a Ford Explorer Ironman Edition. It was a beautiful vehicle and he loved it.

But looks can be deceiving. First off, I have never driven an SUV other than to use his Suburban he used to have when I went on trips or needed to drive it for a few days for one reason or another. I have discovered in the past 18 months that I am NOT an SUV individual. I despised driving that thing. I did not like the way it handles compared to the smaller cars I was used to or the way it sat up. I like my down on the ground little cars. Always have. Always will. I like to zip and zoom and bop around in a small car. So a couple of months ago, I went looking for a car. I finally found one and brought it home yesterday. 

It's a Volkswagen Jetta. I have never owned a car this color and I am in love with it. She handles like a dream.

I love the sun roof or as they call it the moon roof. That was about the only thing on the Explorer that I liked.

And for a little car, it has a lot of trunk room.

I couldn't be happier with my purchase.