Good Morning, Sunshine

It is a very good morning,  the rain has ceased for a spell, the sun is shining, and there are patches of blue.  So  when I walked into the dining room, I just had to bring all that color inside!   I  absolutely adore yellow and blue,  two of God's most  glorious  colors in nature!

The first thing I  did was go out after the rain and cut  the largest of the hrdrangea blooms that were  dragging the plant down..

Then I   put  my   Portland dinnerware  away and  brought forth  my    blue and white transferware. I think  blue and yellow look spectacular together..  each enhances the other!  I got a bit carried away with my  fleur-de-lis napkin folds.  I mean if one looks good,   why not  three in   coordinating  patterns.

I changed up the  order of each  napkin layout to make the most of the   pattern display,  it was  fun, and I think  even though they are a bit over the top,  they look terific!!!

I have various  patterns  of  blue and white  transferware  as I love to  shop for it in consignment  and anitque shops.  I have two  actual   matching sets for dining and today I am using  my Wedgewood   Pottery, entitled, Countryside, but I am not adverse to mix and matching  the   serving pieces  from other  patterns.  That adds a  lot of flair to the table  I love  coaching scene  patterns.  

And I only  purchase English scenes.  I love collecting dishes, and  I now have   it in blue, red, black, and green.  

Hydrangeas have always  reminded me of growing up, whether at  home or at Grandma's ... 

they  remind me of  country scenes,  bluebirds and  butterflies.  They speak the very best of God's creation.

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In all the   turmoil  that we have been going through, what  with the Covid 19  and now the   horrible unrest following  George Floyd's  murder  ..all the   rioting and  on-going destruction of property...life and limb,  we take pause to  consider that there really is an evil behind all of this.   Our Creator is not the author of choas and confusion,    but there is one  who  is ultimately behind it all and that is the enemy of our souls,  the one who  was  cast out of paradise  eons ago and whose   main purpose in  all these  centuries has been to  kill, rob, and destroy.  May we all   take time to  seek  the one who holds all things together,  our Lord Jesus Christ,  in  prayer  that   the  Great Deceiver will be  thwarted in his evil schemes, and that in the name of  Jesus Christ he must bow  to a greater authority and  cease  from his  attempts to  take domininon    of this world..   he is a defeated foe and only  gains any power when  he  can tempt people to believe his lies.  

Meanwhile, here in blogland,  on my  page  I try to live by    God's Word..Philippians 4:4-9

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

In that effort I   want to share  about my  redressed  dining room.  

Last week  my granddaughters sent me  the most lovely  bouquets of flowers  just to say I love you!

These bright and beautiful  colors inspired me to    redress the   dining room   with sunshine and  a  rainbow of color! So out came the  sunny yellow  table cloth!

The  placemats  added just the    explosion of color needed    for   my mood and theme!  I had purchased these  back in later winter  at a sale at Pier One!

  The china  is that,  that I inherited from Hubs  family..  it is  just  exactly  what I had always wanted in tradional style and  in  the  vibrant   hues!..

This   is an antique pattern   by Syracuse China    and the  firing and glaze on it is  equisite after all these years!  I used  some white plates I  had formerly purchaed from Tuesday Morning  as  chargers.  We,  usually,  dine from  salad plates  all summer,  so    this  suits us to a tee!!!

So the table is set  for both a sunny morning brunch,  or  a late afternoon  luncheon.

Some  healthy and delectable  luncheon ideas are found here!!!  I am going to stop myself  now and  write up a grocery list  so I can make  some of these  amazing and beautifully tempting    luncheon creations!    And you have a  blessed rest of your week and  upcoming  weekend  as we enter into Covid Phase two..  Be  smart.  and stay well!!!

Spring Serenade

Please enjoy the spring serenade while  you  are here!

Everytime I  get this  tablecloth out to use  I  am reminded of a musical serenade..  the  ebb and flow of the notes of a page  mimicking the swirls and  twirls of the pattern in  tones of my favorite color...aqua blue!

This color better than anything I can think of  exemplifies the onset of spring..   I see this color in the beckoning morning sky,  and the rills of gathering  rain on the walk. The color  shimmers   in the air  as insects flitter by, and I definitely see it in the    prism of light gifted us in springtime rainbows! So it has  necessarily been a color that inspired my collection of   vessels to use  at this particular time of year!

Above  the plate is Johnson Brothers,  Vintage Charm , the gorgeous blue salad plate is  a Matceramica pottery  made in Portugal!  On the side settings the blue plate is actually Melamine  which is always good to have available  when young ones are dining  at the table.  All of the above I picked up for a song at Tuesday Morning... one of my favorite  shops!

I still love yellow for my accent color this time of year!

 and this plate I found at a flea market   is so reminsicient  of  our spring trip to Ireland a few years ago!

The springtime birdcage signals that the birds  have  mostly arrived from their southern climes..  and I will  be on the lookout for some birds to scatter around the room  as I dig through the  storage bins.

So I bid adieu to you for now  as  evening  draws in and the lights will go out..   and we  will look to the morrow for more  springtime in the air and  and perhaps a   lovely stroll to enjoy  the birds'    lovely songs!  For me it will be my first venture out  away  from home in a while..such a strange world  we live in lately,   but at home things go on as usual...  Praise God!

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A Country Style Table for Spring

It is always good for me to  change  things up following a major holiday..  The  table had been set for Easter  for   about a month and  I was  kicking up my heels this afternoon,  to change it up for late Spring!

I chose yellow and blue because it reminds me   that I have country roots,,  and  I do miss my opportunities to  spend my weekends in the country.  My mom and grandparents lived in the country all those  years and I thing  as I climb the rock behind grandma's house to survey the gorgeous countryside  that  this is all mine! I have free domain to   roam where ever I want... Everyone knows who I am  and  I have  a certain authority to skip  through the fields and roam the woods at your leisure!

Then suddenly it all vanishes..  Gramps have passed,  mom and dad  have sold out to   move closer to us and now they  are in heaven,, and all I'm left with  are sweet memories..  I can drive by the houses,  but strangers live there now..  best to not ever  go back there...  just remember..  But I can   recreate the mood  here at home and for me it is yellow and blue!!

I  began with a   a lovely soft yellow cloth,,  like the color of sweet creamery butter. 

 I used the mx matched   transfer ware in blue...  Countryside by  by Enoch Wedgewood plates  and Mason's  Denmark cups and saucers.... meaningful to me  because my  grandparents were of ancient English heritage.

who  migrated to England from France..  I love my  napkins, made in France, folded in the   Olde French Fleur di Lys  pattern..

Note the antique  glass pitcher and compote.. both  I inherited from my great grandparents  who taught my grandfather  the carpenter trade so he could build the marvelous farmhouse on his  dairy farm in the early 1920's. 

I can feel a bit of Country French  with a bit of  shabby British thrown in for good measure  in this  setting!! 

 The centerpiece  is a hold over from easter... A bird's nest intertwined with dogwood boughs  and wild flower debecked candles in pewter  candle sticks!

 All together  I think sets a lovely  late spring table  heralding my  loving memories  of life in the country with my family!

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Grace at Home, Violets, Love, and Easter!!!

Today I am sharing on Grace at Home. You can click the icon to return to our hostess!

I was looking up the meaning of these violets and I was really taken aback by what I read

"A purple violet would symbolize that the giver's “thoughts were occupied with love” about the recipient."And I immediately thought of how these first harbingers of spring is God's special gift to us to being us out of the doldrums of winter and give us hope for brighter days... but there is so much more in that promise. For even as the Creator spoke his violets into being upon the earth, He set their order to coincide with His most passionate, tumultuous event in history.. 

The death and Resurrection of His own beloved 

son, Jesus Christ.. Who, although he knew no sin, offered his life as atonement or appeasement for the sins of the world.

How can a sweet tiny violet stand for such a violent act, an atrocity.. a death of the cross was torturous and cruel. Yet, John 3:16 states," For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him, Christ Jesus, should not perish, but have everlasting life. "

What great love , that God would send His son to come to earth to die that we may live..God's plan was unfolding throughout the ages , since Adam gave over the authority given him in the garden to the great deceiver. Death came into the world and would only be overthrown by the greatest gift God could bestow, the gift of Salvation, by the greatest Sacrifice, the spilling of innocent blood of His precious Son. 

The Bible says, "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved." Romans 10:9-10.

The Bible is an awesome book of Truth and Love and presents the most important thoughts man can ever begin to think and adhere to..

It proposes the most important decision a man, woman, boy or girl can ever make... to deny theirself and their own way of futility and take up Christ's cross and follow Him... For the burden of the unrepentant man is heavy, but Christ's burden is light..Because His Way is smooth and and straight while unrepentant man's is crooked and leads to death. If you haven't considered this life changing path, now is the perfect time to begin again to ponder it and make that decision! We are not guaranteed a tomorrow!

In my exuberance for this spiritually rich season, I have been captivated by the glory of Spring's bounty.. the colors and fragrances of springtime flowers!

The sweet aromatics of spring have permeated our downstairs and it is a solace for the soul!

Just Around the Corner!

“Spring is when you feel like whistling, even with a shoe full of slush.”

— Doug Larson

This pretty much sums up  our lead in to spring!
We have had so much rain  this winter  that the ground continues to be  saturated..  I  wanted to  cut some daffodils, but  I need   waders to get over to them.. Maybe I can tomorrow..

But  with the  spring -like feel to the air,,  it really  makes me want to  get  the house all spruced up!

Enter spring,  and the  heavy dark colors in the living room  call out to me to be lifted.. so out come the  white  afghans  to  subdue the  navies and  maroons.  Last year I  removed the  tapestry for cleaning and    didn't put it back until fall...  But,  I missed it.. so  it will stay and  enjoy the  liveliness of spring and summer!!  Besides it is full of  beautiful springy flowers!!

“The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size.”
— Gertrude S. Wister
To  bring out the  flowery  glory of spring I  happened to be at Pier 1 yesterday  and  found  gorgeous pillows for the  sofa!!!

So Easter Bunny found a home nearby!!

My geneaology table,, actually is  the antique  gateleg table that my grandfather made for his new farmhouse he built   following WWI.  I  like to keep it  vintage looking  in tribute to my  heritage!

Young Lambs by John Clare

The spring is coming by a many signs;
The trays are up, the hedges broken down,
That fenced the haystack, and the remnant shines
Like some old antique fragment weathered brown.
And where suns peep, in every sheltered place,
The little early buttercups unfold
A glittering star or two--till many trace
The edges of the blackthorn clumps in gold.
And then a little lamb bolts up behind
The hill and wags his tail to meet the yoe,
And then another, sheltered from the wind,
Lies all his length as dead--and lets me go
Close bye and never stirs but baking lies,
With legs stretched out as though he could not rise.

Spring time puts such a spark in my giddy up... I have found   a spring in my  step...  a  praise in my heart and a love for   the One true  Creator of all things... Spring is a tribute to His  great majesty.  Tomorrow when we  host  a prayer   vigil in this room,  we will be reminded to  praise  Him for the Beauty of the Earth !
For the beauty of the earth
For the beauty of the skies
For the love
which from our birth
Over and around us lies
Lord of all to thee we raise
This our joyful hymn of praise
For the beauty of the hour
Of the day and of the night
Hill and vale
And tree and flower
Sun and moon and stars of light
Lord of all to thee we raise
This our joy ful hymn of praise
For the joy of human love
Brother, sister, parent, child
Friends on earth
And friends above
For a gentle
Thoughts and mild
For a gentle
Thoughts and mild
Lord of all to thee we raise
This our joyful hymn of praise
For each perfect gift of thine
To our race so freely given
Graces human and divine
Flow'rs of earth and buds of heav'n
Lord of all to thee we raise
This our joy ful hymn of praise

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