Who Do You Think You Are

 

I sometimes wonder how many of us go through life saying to ourselves that we aren't good enough.   How many of us talk ourselves out of things because we're convinced that we can't really do this or that...I mean shoot, who do we think we are anyway, right?!

And I wonder if other animals sometimes have these same thought processes, or if it's strictly a human trait.  Do race horses who don't win think they aren't good enough or deserving enough to win?  Did they have a trainer or someone along the way that said, "hey, who do you think you are anyway, you can't win the triple crown so why bother trying!" 

Did Secretariat have someone who said, "you can do whatever you want, win whatever you want," so that's what made him a winner?  He was foaled not far from where I live actually, as the crow flies anyway.

I was fortunate to grow up in a household where my parents did believe that we could accomplish anything we put our minds to and worked hard to achieve, but no one can live under the protective umbrella of a parent's love forever.  And some people  never knew that kind of love to begin with, so they are at an even greater disadvantage.

I pass by these gorgeous horses every time I come and go from my house.  They are some of the most well cared for and beautiful horses I've seen during my lifetime.  And that's saying something since I grew up with horses, my daughter rode for many years, and I've even visited the Kentucky Horse Park, so I've seen a lot of horses in my day.

When you look into their eyes, it's as if they say to you, you can do it, whatever it is you want, I will believe in you.  The same way our pets do that for us, and maybe that's why we love them so much.

I've passed by this horse farm countless times over the past 4 years, and I've never stopped though I've always wanted to.  I've said to myself on more than one occasion, "who do you think you are stopping and asking to take pictures of their horses?" 

But I finally did, and the owners couldn't have been any nicer.  On top of that, it turns out that we know some people in common, both in and out of the horse community.  They told me that they raise and train horses that then go all over the country and sometimes the world.  And the husband, who is originally from Ireland, told me how he used to help fly horses around the world, something Mr. Tide's grandmother used to do for a living up in Canada.

I ran into a very talented artist friend recently, and we chatted about how she was now selling her work at The Vintage Source on the weekends when they are open.  And I told her how great her artwork is and how happy I was that she was now selling it there.  Her husband said that she wasn't sure anyone would want to buy it, even though she's been a very successful mural artist for years.

I told him that I say the same thing to my husband whenever I think about selling some of my fine art photography.  I tell myself, "who would pay you for that, and why would anyone want to buy your work, there are lots of other wonderful and highly skilled photographers out there...so who do you think you are trying to sell your stuff?!"

This week I'm going to change all of that.  I will begin working on a website to sell my photographs.  And instead of selling them for very little money in hopes that maybe one day I'll die and someone will find value in them...as if I were Ansel Adams or something...hah...I will price them accordingly, and similarly to other photos I see advertised as fine art photography.

Now please don't misunderstand, I've not taken some magic ego pill or created some imaginary inflated opinion of myself.  I'm simply going to quit saying "who do you think you are?," and replace it with "why the heck not!"

It's time to stop listening to anyone around me (thankfully not my immediate family) who wants me to stay where I am because it keeps them feeling more comfortable about their own choices.  Some friends, and sometimes even family mean well, but they can sometimes, without even saying a word, bolster that whole who do you think you are notion.  You see, people rarely give you advice which is good for you, they simply tell you what they would do given your situation...and they bring along all of their concerns, fears, and insecurities right along with them.

So I'm turning off the external filters and turning on my own opinion that will now reign supreme.  Not in an arrogant or superior fashion, but in a "hey kid you only have one life to live, so you better go for it now while you still can."  If watching the tragedies unfold around the world these past few weeks and months hasn't proven that life is short, than I don't know what else will.

So who do you think you are?!  I hope from this day forward you are everything you think you can be and more!  The more you share your talents and gifts with this world, the better it will be, and the need for regret will disappear!  That is my dream friends...and that is who I hope I am!

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Sweet Cottage Dreams


Casa Dule Hogar


Blondie's Journal

Wishful Thinking and Winners

When I wandered in to my living room today, I had a moment of insanity.  One where I thought I lived in a time where I could just sit in my slipcovered wing chair and maybe pen a letter on lovely monogrammed stationary to send to a friend in a far flung land.

A letter that poetically spoke of the changing of the seasons, my latest dalliances into painting or needlework, and about the latest fashions being made for the grand garden parties I would soon be attending.

Sitting in this wing chair, next to the window with just a hint of sunlight streaming in seemed so inviting.  But then I noticed the dust on the fern stand, my cell phone went off, and I was snapped back into reality!  I have things to do today, places to go, people to see, and I'm already behind and it's not even 12:00 o'clock noon.

So instead of petticoats and pearls I'll be sporting jeans and something I don't mind getting paint on.  The dust on the table will have to wait, maybe the house maid will attend to that while I'm gone?!!!

But before I go, I wanted to announce the winners of my latest Giveaway.  Instead of doing the random.org thing since I'm pressed for time, I asked Mr. Tide to tell me the first 2 numbers that popped into his head and this is what he chose...

#4  Sugar and Spice in the land of Balls and Sticks who chose Sailing print #1

and

#32  Trish from The Old Post Road who will now have to decide between the orchid print and the sailing print.

Congratulations ladies.  Just shoot me a quick email with your mailing address and I'll get the prints ordered and in the mail to you!

I hope that everyone has a relaxing weekend.  I'm still fixated on Japan and in utter disbelief about the loss and devastation.  My heart continues to go out to their entire nation!  My husband works disaster sites for a living, so in today's effort to Spread the Love I will be linking to the American Red Cross, an organization which he himself has benefited from on site many times.  On their site is information about how you can locate loved ones, and it provides a link where you can donate to help the people of Japan.

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The American Red Cross

Blissfully Unaware

This morning I got up early to let the dogs out and to see my son Bugs off to college.  Today is the first day his eye is back to a point where he can safely drive again.  I took the dogs outside for some play time and even snapped a few photos of the minor flooding we experienced here after the torrential rains we had all day yesterday.

I began thinking about a post and even thought I would brave using the laptop again so that I could let you all know who won my latest giveaway.  I thought I would title it something like "let the river run" or "opening the flood gates," something catchy that would tie in to our high water levels.

When I came back inside I sat down at my computer to start getting caught up on work emails and things I needed to get done before the day was through.  Just then my phone rang and it was my dear friend Fifi O'Neill.  She had called to check on my son's eye and to talk to me about a few homes I had in mind for some shoots this June and also to talk about her new book project.

As we chatted about work things and life things I mentioned our minor flooding.  That is when she asked if I had seen the news about Japan.  

About a year or so ago I gave up watching the news on TV and every so often I quickly skim CNN online, but not every single day.  I simply can't stomach the steady stream of bad news and I really can't stomach the way the media often covers meaningless topics like what a celebrity is saying or doing 24/7 when there are so many more important events going on around the world!

The result of my blissful ignorance is that I sometimes am just that...ignorant, about what is happening in the world or even my own backyard.  I've asked my children and Mr. Tide to try and keep me at least a little up to date on the major events in the world, but today I was blissfully unaware of the complete devastation in parts of Japan.

My heart goes out to those affected by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami!  I quickly emailed my daughter to see if one of her closest friends, who lives in Japan teaching English, was ok.  I got an email back saying that she was and for that I am thankful!  But I'm sure that as time goes on we will find that many people were not so lucky, losing everything they own, or far worse, their loved ones!

I will be back soon to announce the winners of my giveaway, but right now I just want to get caught up on what I've been missing.  You can't live in a bubble for too long it seems!

I Give Up

Thanks everyone for all of your wonderful well wishes for our son Bugs.  He was at the ophthalmologist's office bright and early this morning and they said that although he has a ways to go, his eye is healing!  So thank you for sending so many wonderful emails and good vibes his way!

You may have noticed that you haven't received a reply to your comments or emails and that would be because my desktop has once again gone to a place where no one can communicate with it!  A bad, bad land where computers rarely come back from without some intensive care or a transplant of some sort!

Now I know a lot of you just LOVE your laptops (Connie dear) and swear by them.  Well I don't, and I usually swear at mine, not by it!  So I'm going to be taking a little hiatus while Mr. Tide wrangles with the video card company and tries to sort all of this out.

I'm taking it as a sign to get some things done around here that need doing, and I might even make my bed every day, but don't hold your breath on that one.

In an effort to make myself feel better, I've bought enough flowers to fill this house and make it feel like springtime, even if it's been a little on the nippy side outdoors.  And after having lunch with a friend yesterday, I came home with yet another beautiful flower, she gave me a pot of tulips in the prettiest shade of tangerine.

Buying flowers has to be cheaper than therapy for blog withdrawal right?!  And I'll sit around sipping tea and wander around this place prettying things up a bit.

And I might also learn to slow down just a little so that I don't keep putting the wrong words into my posts...thank you Bird for catching my mistake.  I have to tell you that Mr. Tide and I both looked at the word pension and thought, why doesn't that look right?!  I've corrected it to penchant and I appreciate you letting me know.  I may be a writer but when our fingers are flying and we're tired, we writers love the fact that we have wonderful editors to double check us...Mr. Tide is now officially relieved of his editing duties since he's missed maniac and pension in my last 2 posts!!!  Somehow I think he's ok with being fired!

So for now, I will leave you with this pretty little gerbera daisy, because I give up!  Maybe I'll learn to like this dang laptop, but I'm an old dog friends and I have to say that I'm not loving learning these new tricks! ;-)

And thank you to everyone who has already entered my current Giveaway.  If you haven't yet, you can stop by HERE to enter.

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Talking Trash

Le Domaine des Bruyeres

Lakehouse

Manic or Maniac and a Giveaway

 Orchid #1

Yesterday after posting about my bedroom, I casually read the post again and saw that instead of the word manic I had written maniac.  I had to laugh because I did it every single time I was supposed to have written manic, so I went back in and corrected it before you all thought I was a maniac.  And after the last few days I've felt a little like a maniac, so I think it may have been subliminal!

Orchid #2 Original
(this is for Sherri! or those of you who might not be in to textures)

I loved reading everyone's take on making their bed or not making their bed.  I try to keep the public areas of our house nice and tidy, but the bedroom often takes a back seat!  Sorry if this spoiled anyone's illusions that I'm the perfect housekeeper, I just know how to position a camera so that you only see the good stuff! ;-)  I think a lot of us bloggers do that!  And it's why you don't get to see my bedroom that often.  I figure you probably don't really want to see my unmade bed and the pile of laundry waiting to be done!

 Orchid #2

Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments about my bedroom and the wall color.  It's funny, the paint color was something I chose almost 4 years ago and I'm SO tired of it!  I'm amazed that I've kept it this long with my penchant for change, so as soon as the weather warms up and I can throw open the windows, I'm thinking the walls in there will be sporting a new color.

I've been so inspired by some of the beautiful white rooms I've seen in blogland and in Fifi's new book Romantic Prairie Style, especially Maria's beautiful home from Dreamy Whites, that I'm thinking I might try white walls in there for a change.  I know I couldn't have an all white house, not with 3 mostly black dogs and my love of color, but my bedroom might be just the place to try my hand at living with and loving white!

 Sailing #1

And speaking of Dreamy Whites, be sure to stop by Maria's to see the wonderful giveaway and interview she did with Lori from White Flower Farmhouse.  I've long admired Lori and have even purchased things from her shop, so you won't want to miss this wonderful giveaway!

And speaking of Giveaways...

 Sailing #2

You may be thinking that I've completely lost it by posting such a hodge podge of pictures, some of which are repeats.  There is a method to my madness though I assure you.

You'll notice that all of the photos have a name underneath them and that's because I'll be doing a giveaway of one of these prints to 2 winners and you'll be able to select which photo you would like to receive.

 Iris #1

The prints will be your choice of either one 5 x 7 or one 8 x 10 print on archival paper and then mounted on single weight matboard.  The matboard adds to the sturdiness of the photo and makes it easier to frame.  The print also won't have my lovely watermark on it!

 Iris #2

So all you have to do is pick out the picture you like the best and leave me a comment letting me know which one you would like and in what size, either 5 x 7 or 8 x 10.  If you don't like any of these, you can visit my Etsy Store and pick one of the designs from my card selection instead of one the ones pictured here.

I will announce the winners on Thursday March 10th.  And I have another surprise giveaway coming up soon too, so keep your eye out for that one sometime this week too!

Iris #3

And before I go, I would like to ask you all to please send some healing thoughts our way.  Last week, our son Bugs did something to damage the cornea of his eye, but he didn't realize it so by the time he was in any sort of pain his cornea had become infected.

Thankfully it was caught early on Saturday and he is now undergoing intensive treatment with antibiotic eye drops and ointments to help his eye heal and to prevent any permanent damage.  Our wonderful ophthalmologist even opened up her office this morning at 9 am just to see him!  You don't often hear of doctors going out of their way to see a patient on a Sunday morning anymore, but she is truly a great doctor!  He's not out of the woods yet with this nasty infection, but he's not contagious and he's doing well.  Any healing thoughts would be greatly appreciated, thank you!!!

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Homeroad.net

Pigtown Design

Our Sears Kit Home

Bedlam

I've shown you my bedroom and the bed my dad made before, but it was quite awhile ago.  There's a reason for that, you see I don't make my bed very often, so the photo ops in my bedroom are few and far between.

The definition for the word bedlam is...

–noun

 

1.  a scene or state of wild uproar and confusion.

2.  Archaic . an insane asylum or madhouse.

Sometimes both of these definitions fit this room perfectly.  It is the place where we rush around getting ready in the morning, sometimes at 4:45 am on the days Mr. Tide goes into the city for work.  And I think that anyone who has to get up at 4:45 am is a bit insane, so that makes this room meet the qualifications for an insane asylum or madhouse.

Some might say that it's a place of uproar and chaos too, since I choose not to make the bed each day, preferring to roll out of bed and leave the rumpled mess of sheets and blankets behind.

Growing up, we made our beds every day.  It was one of our chores, and we did it dutifully each morning.  We would wake up, put our feet on the floor, and pull the bedspread up in one fell swoop.  I could make a bed that even a drill sergeant would have been proud of.

My mother loved a neat house and beds that looked as though no one had really ever slept in them.  She wasn't mean or harsh in having us make our beds but instead taught us the fine art of making a good bed.  This meant that our home was always welcoming but also pulled together.

I didn't inherit that gene.  Oh I love a nice clean house with everything in it's place, don't get me wrong, but bed making has never ranked high on my list of things to do.  When my children were little, I helped them make their beds, and most of the time all of the beds in the house were made.

But as I got older, and so did they, well bed making kind of gave way to just asking that I be able to see the color of their carpeting!  Teenagers never seem to mind a messy room, and my daughter had messy down to a science!

My son is more like me.  He can let things pile up for awhile, but then he has to take control and do something about it.  While my daughter can find order in the madness, and she truly can, I need order to stem the tide, and my son is the same way.

I've termed my style of cleaning manic depressive cleaning.  When I'm in the depressive phase of cleaning I can walk past dust, dog hair, and dirty clothes for a period of time, but when the manic phase takes over...look out!

Thankfully, the depressive cleaning periods don't last for more than a few days, and the full on manic cleaning days have gotten fewer over the years too.  Now I find that I am somewhere in between.  But today was a manic day.

Mr. Tide and my son Bugs were gone this morning, so I took advantage of the quiet and began stripping beds, and cleaning out stuff that needed to go!  It's that time of year after all, when we are poised to throw open the windows and enjoy a freshly cleaned house.

When I get into one of these deep cleaning moods, I also like to rearrange and move things from one place to another.  Like the jewelry box that belonged to my mother.  I decided that instead of keeping the costume jewelry I inherited in a box hidden away, I would open up the jewelry box and fill it up so that I could enjoy seeing these pretty pieces all the time.

And the little angel that used to sit on my vanity now sits next to my bed.  She's been with me since I was a very little girl.

And wherever you go in my house, you'll find beach glass.  So it only makes sense that there would be some sitting on the cherry bedside table my father made.

When I was in Yorkshire with my daughter a few years ago, we stopped in a lovely little shop and I picked up this small stone.  I love the quote by Buddha, and it reminds me to clear my head each night before it hits the pillow.

I love this photo of my mother when she was a little girl.  It makes me laugh since she didn't like cats and was actually afraid of them.  Something must have happened after this picture was taken, because she looks pretty content with her dolls and that little kitty cat.

Also in every room in our house, you will find something to read.  Magazines and books provide me with inspiration, and I love having them around.  I change up the selection on my nightstand so that I can just reach over and grab the latest magazine or a favorite decorating book to peruse before bedtime.

And of course I have to have fresh flowers close by.

Yesterday I stopped by one of my favorite Mennonite farms and purchased this gorgeous orchid.  I also picked up a primrose and a gerbera daisy that I have in other rooms.  I can't wait until my rose bushes are in full bloom and I can simply wander outside and cut flowers to fill my house with fragrance and color!

Now you may be wondering why I don't make my bed more often if the end result makes me feel happy and calm.  Or how I can leave the beautiful family bedspreads and linens stacked up and looking forlorn.  After my mother died almost 7 years ago, my sister and I had a long conversation and while we were talking I asked her if she made her bed every day?  She said, "Heck no, look at how mom spent all those years making beds and where did it get her?!"  

Though I'm happy to have a nicely made bed, and a roof over my head each night, I no longer feel the need to have a perfectly pulled together bed in order to start the day.  I can leave the covers strewn about, dog beds tossed all over the floor, and a shirt or two draped over the chair and still know that I'll have a very good, and even productive day!

Sometimes we just need to let go of the little things in order to enjoy the big ones.  I hope each of you lets go a little today and does something that makes you happy.

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Lavender Garden Cottage

Coastal Charm

New Blessing Everyday

Charmed Life

Last night my computer got the blue screen of death.  For those of you who have ever experienced this, you know it's NOT good!  Thankfully Mr. Tide is kind of a whiz with computers, and he worked tirelessly to get me back online today.

I think we all have days like that, when things don't go right, and you wonder if the world is conspiring against you.  Last night I had lots of work stuff to do, and emails to return, but the universe had other plans for me it seems.
When I did get back online I realized how great this world of blogging is.  Several of you replied to my last post to let me know that several of my crystal "ashtrays" may in fact not be ashtrays at all.  One of them definitely is, but I'm thinking my mother and grandmother are shaking their heads a little and wondering how they raised someone who can't tell a candy or nut dish from an ashtray.  It appears that two of the pieces are from the Victorian era when cut glass reigned supreme.  And they are likely part of the American brilliant cut glass craze that took place from the late 1800s until the early 20th century.  Thanks Tom for telling me I might be barking up the wrong ashtray tree and encouraging me to look into this more, I learned something new!

This evening I wandered in to my living room just as the sun was setting and I realized that even when life throws us a curve ball like a very sick computer, (and trust me I've had plenty of them in the last 7 years), there is always something to keep us going and make us happy.  We all live a charmed life in some way, shape, or form.

I grabbed my camera, and aside from cropping and straightening these pictures, this is what greets me every time the sun is setting in this wonderful little place I call home.

It was the perfect ending to the perfect day, sunny and slightly warm, and most of it spent outside with my favorite furry friends.  

I apologize to those of you whose email I haven't returned or the comments I haven't replied too.  Forgive me, but I was busy enjoying this out my front door, and living a slightly crazy, but oh so very charmed life!

I hope each of you has a charmed life kind of day tomorrow!

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Digital Photo Walk

Sugar & Spice in the land of Balls & Sticks

The Old Painted Cottage

Where There's Smoke

Can you believe it's already March 1st?!  I've been dreaming of Spring for months now, but I still can't believe that it really is right around the corner.  It seems like just yesterday that I was wrapping Christmas presents or tromping through snow.  When I was little, I would sit around and lament how slowly time passed and my mother would always say, just wait until you get older, time passes in the blink of an eye, and she was right! 

Today, it was bright, sunny, and seasonably chilly, but the daffodils are peeking their little heads up through the soil, the birds are singing loudly, and the trees are all starting to bud out, so I'm happy as a clam.  It was the perfect day to bid farewell to Roamy, The Roaming Gnome.  After drawing a name he is headed down south, so he'll be experiencing springtime even before I do, lucky fella!

Now we all know that smoking is bad for you, though I see an alarming number of young people puffing away each time I visit our local college.  But there was a time when it was considered the height of fashion.  Elegant women with cigarette holders graced the covers of magazines, and handsome actors in television ads charmed us with their rugged good looks all with a burning cigarette in hand.


 

My grandfather was a pipe smoker, and I still have a fondness for the smell of a pipe.  I also like the aroma of a good cigar.  Neither of my parents smoked, and I've never smoked either, but we always had plenty of ashtrays scattered around our house.

I grew up in tobacco country and my mother was from Virginia, so smoking was pervasive among our extended family and friends.  Whenever out of town guests or family visited the house was a veritable chimney with people laughing, smoking, and of course with an ashtray in hand.

These weren't just any ashtrays though, they were intricately cut crystal works of art that were heavy enough to injure someone with if you so chose to.  Trust me, I dropped a few from time to time while dusting when I was a kid, and they could break your toe, or dent the floor!

My mother was an only child, so when her parents died she inherited all of her mother's cut crystal ashtrays, and later my siblings and I got them.  I keep mine inside the big black glass display cabinet in my dining room.  I honestly can say that we've never had anyone visit that needed an ashtray.  We've had people visit who were smokers, but knowing we didn't smoke, they've all opted to go outside when the urge to have a cigarette hit them. 

Along with the cut crystal ashtrays we had growing up, my mother and father also had a fondness for brass ones.  They loved Virginia Metalcrafters, a brass manufacturing company that is synonymous with Colonial Williamsburg.

They made a series of ashtrays representing different leaves, like the mistletoe ashtray above, and I think my parents had nearly every single pattern they made.

As a child, we would make the pilgrimage to their sale and my parents would stock up on more ashtrays, candlesticks, and trivets.  They also owned a pair of VM andirons and door knockers.  Our house was like a mini showroom for the company, but my parents truly loved their wares and enjoyed having them around our house over the years.

The lotus leaf above was one that often got used by visiting smokers, as you can see by the wear and tear to the finish.

Others were strictly for display, like the tobacco leave pictured above.  My parents gave each of us one to display in our own homes, and they often gave them as gifts as a reminder of our area's tobacco growing heritage.

I have about 10 of these brass ashtrays, all were gifts from my parents, or ones that I inherited and I love each of them.  These, along with cut crystal ones I now own all bring back happy memories.  Kind of ironic really when tobacco has ended the lives of so many over the years.  But these ashtrays take me back to a time when my parents entertained and our home was full of family and friends enjoying one another's company.  

I guess even a gray cloud can have a brass or crystal lining!

Spreading the Love...

Forget Me Not

Double shot of Espresso

May Days