Magnolia, Jewel and Bulbs

I don't watch television much at all but on occasion have seen

this couple's show, Fixer Upper. Aren't they so cute and talented?

I discovered today, their premier magazine issue. Maybe you want a copy and nobody has told you about it? 

I haven't bought a magazine in years until today! 

You know how sometimes you see something in a magazine and you are envious? As if you could never have something as you see it. I was pleasantly surprised today, the dishes used in the Thanksgiving table story...I have already! What's funny is, they didn't tell the name of the dishes in the story and I know people will want a source if not the name of the pattern.

I'll tell you :) It's Spode, Jewel. 

I got mine from my grandmother. I mean, they were hers. My aunt had gifted them to her one Christmas. 

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Every year (okay, winter of every year), I wish I had

remembered to put some flower bulbs in the fridge to "force" them. 

I want those fresh potted flowers without waiting for old man Spring to show up. 

Miraculously, I remembered yesterday.

I have Paperwhites (Narcissus) and purple Hyacinths chilling for the next six weeks. You probably know that Paperwhites smell horrible...and that Hyacinths smell wonderful. Maybe if I put them on display together, the good scent will outweigh the bad. 

Well, I'm just reminding you, in case you wanted to force some blooms and had forgotten. 

Hugs!

Paint and Oats

 I chose a paint color yesterday, for our family room and hallway. I did not get opinions online. A lot of bloggers write about paint colors and you can view them in rooms but I just was very careful in the store and took my time in the choosing of Sea salt. We will be covering up a yellow we've had for years. It should be a really fresh look. I hear you saying you'd like to see when it is finished. Sure! 

I typically do our painting but we have a couple of hired ladies this time. 

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 Oats can be bland things, however good for you they may be. I have the ability to avoid them for years. Recently,  I had these for breakfast:

I added some chia seeds which not only are action-packed with nutrients but also help in filling you and helping you to make it to lunch. I also added vanilla and cinnamon.  At this point, I have to tell you that oats are really good! I did not look at the sugar content. Some things are too difficult. 

confession: yesterday in the afternoon, I had a sugar craving that begged me to stop at the Dollar General store for M&Ms (or a Snickers bar). Finally, I met myself halfway...I did stop at the store.

You won't believe what I allowed myself to get. I got a can of black beans and a can of Ro-tel tomatoes. I went home and snacked on beans and tomatoes! 

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Hi, Punkin!

Happy Halloween! 

Bullet points du jour

On the table tonight: 

• oven-baked BBQ Beef Brisket
• Cauliflower Gratin
• mayonnaise slaw with apples
• corn cakes 
• Pumpkin cream cheese roll

Learning on ukulele:

• Away in a Manger
• Infant Holy, Infant Lowly (where has this song been all my life? I discovered it on You tube and love it! It is in our hymnal too, yet we have never sung it!)
• picking each note rather than just strumming chords 

Reading:

• several older issues of October Country Living magazine 
• the book of Matthew

Listening to:

• soundtrack from the Amelie movie (Yann Tiersen)
• soundtrack from Nightmare Before Christmas (Danny Elfman)

Happy recent purchases:

• Miss Moon: Wise Words from a Dog Governess  Every home should have a copy of this precious book. Janet's creativity with oil paint has me giddy!
• Lost on a Mountain in Maine  The true story of Donn Fendler as a twelve year old, a friend of ours who died last week. He loved telling his story to school kids who were always surprised after reading the book, that he was not a twelve year old boy!
• a kayak and a paddle (I'm patiently waiting for some rainfall...we are in drought conditions) (I know too, when it does rain, it will be flood waters and I still won't be able to go out) C'est la vie. 
• a capo for my ukulele You'll have to google it. 

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I was reminiscing about a trip I was on with my class, to NYC when I was sixteen. We stayed in a guest house run by German nuns. When I took my mother to visit NYC many years later, I booked the same place. It was safe, clean and inexpensive. It had an impressive breakfast spread. Yesterday, I decided to see if the Leo House had a website, which it does. I was so excited to find out that Mother Teresa had stayed there in 1960, a day before JFK was elected president. This was two years before I was born! It has no significance, just fun to know. 

Wouldn't it have been funny to be the clerk that day? What would you have written where her name goes? M. Teresa! Haha! 

I have sort of been in that spot...having sold eyeglasses to Amy Grant and Marie Osmond. Fun memories! 

Bless your heart for visiting my page! Isn't this the next best thing to being there? 

                                              

Awe-ctober

  A few weeks ago I bought a used camera (somebody's gonna ask "what kind?" ...I don't know...it has buttons..a Canon Rebel of sorts)
We live on a tree farm...hardwoods my father-in-law had planted as a legacy for future generations (sweet, right?!!) There are rows of them on 200+ acres. So, one day I was walking, hoping to take a photo (I had only taken one on this "new" camera, then stored it like it was a jar of green beans, no, sauerkraut). I don't like reading manuals or directions. 
 Something I thought was a free-floating cd (the music kind, not the bank savings kind that brings a whopping 1.5 % interest, locked in until your first knee replacement) appeared before me. One half of a step back or forwards and it disappeared or reappeared. Intrigued, I took my lens cap off. (I do still have it, wonder of wonders). I tried several times to capture it as it made itself known and then not. Back home to my laptop, I was able to zoom in and edit to the point I have decided, man, this is a great photo! Not only can you see the "cd" some spider has lovingly woven, but there is BOKEH! 
Bokeh is/are those lovely bubbles in the background which in the photography world means you get respect for capturing. This photo has been cropped to fit the blog but let me tell you, there is bokeh aplenty in the original sized one. There is also a mighty tangle of web where the spider must have practiced and practiced before finally producing the organized circle of glory. I'm thinking she probably also had a team of "helpers". As soon as they left her to her idea, she nailed it. 
 There is just no telling how many sermons are in this photo. I learn tons in nature, you? I don't destroy spiders and webs, they have their reasons. On the other hand, I am not anxious to walk face into one. The web wouldn't be so bad but wondering if that homeowner landed somehow down in your collar and steroids will soon be in order is a thought. 
 Happy 1st half of October.  Print yourself out my photo if you want. Prop it on the bookshelf. Don't be grossed out, it's some of God's creative work which has me awed! So are you! I am in awe of you, too! 

Petals to the metal (get it?)

still life I did while working at at a coffee shop in Appalachia 

Welcome to my newest venture :)! 

 After deciding to leave Facebook, I've created this spot to share my watercolors and other things. Thanks for being here friends, old and new :) I need you. 

So...a place to share happy things...I'm getting reacquainted with placement of photos and words on here. I haven't blogged in years. 

I had fun naming my blog :) I saw somewhere, the Vanity Fair magazine and immediately thought, "Sanity Fair" but tweaked it by adding an "e" to "fair" because in French, "faire" means to do or be. To keep our sanity in this bad world, let's do and be! Happy busy, sharing our lives and hobbies (hopefully to the glory of God, creator and sustainer!) 

Some of my readers are fun people from Minnesota I met 
on a mission trip to East Ky. As they left in three vehicles, I tossed rose petals on them. It is a happy memory for me and I hope this watercolor helps keep the memory for them, although (these art people do not look familiar...it will have to do). 



I hope you are able to leave me a comment (only if you want to!) You will probably have to do a little sign in of sorts. I shall try not to be self-conscious concerning the former teachers present from that Minnesota group. While learning new tricks (i.e. ukulele playing...), I am sure I have forgotten several of the old ones (i.e. grammar). 

I have to stir my turnip greens! See you soon, I hope :) 
              
                                                                                  Phyllis