Romancing The Porch

This evening while most people are watch Superbowl XLV I am daydreaming about romancing my porch.

I am joining Gypsy Brocante and the Porch Club and sharing my ideas for my romantic porch.

The first thing that I thought of was having privacy (of sorts).  

My porch would be attached to a big ol' house sitting in the middle of about 100 acres.

It would have a constant breeze blowing across the porch so that the gauzy curtains would billow in the breeze.

A few shade trees.

I would not have the usual porch swing.

No..I have always wanted a swinging bed so I can go out and nap in the afternoons when it is too hot to work out in my yard.

I would have lots of plants so the air would hang heavy with the smell of lilacs, roses, and maybe some wisteria.

There would be an outside fire place fireplace for those cool fall evenings when snuggling is in order.

Lanterns and candles for mood lighting.

And lots of blue flowers just because I love blue flowers.

These are just a few elements of how I would romance my porch

 but the most important thing I just have to have is...

My rugged, handsome Mr. Fix-It.

As long as he is with me he makes any porch romantic.

Case In Point

A Pillow Case in Needlepoint.

My sweet little Mom has been keeping herself busy.

Here are a few samples of some of the sets of pillow cases she has made in the past few months.  

This is the one she is working on right now.  It is one of my favorites.  She has made a set for me and my sister and all of the grandkids.

She has had this old box as long as I can remember.  I  love all the colors.

My Momma's hands.  My new favorite picture.

 Primroses.

A hint of spring!

My Southern and Eclectic Self

When you decide to write a blog you in essence decide to share a little of yourself, allow a peek inside your life.  It represents something about who you are.  

My decision to start a blog was a way to fill a lot of free time.  

Now I do it because I love blogging and I love reading other people's blog.  I have learned so much.   

You decided to start a blog and the first thing you did was to chose a title.

Do you have a story behind why you chose the name for your blog? 

 I read some of the names of the blogs I visit and I think the names are pretty self-explanatory.
 Some I look at and go "hmmmm."

 I thought I would share how I came about mine.  Not by the obvious as you may expect.

Not because I live in the south but because I am southern...

right down to my red cowboy boots.

But it is so much more than that.

A few years ago I found a book that I love because it expresses what I love about the "south."  

The book is called
  My South: A People, A Place, A World Of Its Own
by Robert St. John.  

When I was thinking about naming my blog this book is what I thought of.  

The feeling that I got the first time I read it.

One of my favorite parts from the book is:

"My south is where it is a yard sale, not a garage sale, not a tag sale-that advertises an 8 a.m. start but really starts at 5:30 in the morning when that first car pulls up, knocks on the door askin' why nothin' set out yet." 

That is where the "Southern" came from.

The "Eclectic" came from one of the best compliments I think I have ever received.   

A few friends and I were talking...a few years...and we were trying to choose 1 word that
described each other best. 

 Out of the blue, a male friend (and I specify male just because it surprised me coming from him) said that he thought of me as eclectic.
A little bit of this and a little bit of that.  

That has stuck in my mind ever since.
I like the word and what it infers. 

Source

To me it says that I am not a "cookie-cutter" kind of personality.

Southern + Eclectic = Me!

So, how did you decide what to call your blog?

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Update: Mr. Fix-It and I have continued to work off and on this week on painting the living room.  We still have some finishing touches to do.  It has not went as fast as we  (or should I say I) had hoped.  Most of my time has been spent going between work, to doctor appointments, having Hospice come in...etc..etc..

I had hoped to have pictures to post by now showing you how fabulous the new colors in the room look (and we all do love it) but that may not be happening this weekend. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Squirrels, Sunshine and Sundays

I hope you had a great weekend!  I spent my weekend bringing my mother home from the hospital and getting her settled in AND painting my living room!!  Da-daa-da-daaa ...Superwoman!

Saturday I got Mom settled in.  It took us most of the day to get her discharged from the hospital.  

 I woke up to a beautiful sunshine-y Sunday!  I had a nice time having a cup of coffee with my Mom and watching my squirrels play in the woods that border our yard.   It was even warm enough today for her to sit for a while out on my front porch.   Then I finished painting my living room and I am so excited about it.  I love the colors I chose.

Cathedral Gray-for the accent wall

Silver Sateen-for all the other walls

Why is it you find so many more cobwebs when you paint than you do when you dust?
 How do I miss them and yet find them when I am painting?

My living room is still a mess and I have to do a few more touch ups before I take any pictures.  I haven't quite finished painting the accent wall yet.  Then my sweet Mr. Fix-It is going to hang the flat screen on the accent wall.  

 I am trying to sort out what rooms I want to put my furniture in.  I still have so much that I need to get out of storage.  I have completely changed my whole decorating style and I am trying to change my furniture to match my new style.  Trying to decide what to keep, what to paint and what to sell or give away.    

Here are a few pictures of the house we sold.  See how country it was.

I can't wait to get a roof built over my front porch at the new place.
 In true southern tradition I paint my porch ceilings blue. 

 Funny but I don't miss it at all. 

Now I am trying to incorporate my furniture and accessories into the remodel of the house we are living in now.  The kitchen that we remodeled here is very different than the house we used to own.

A totally different look for me.   With this kitchen I got to choose everything where in the old house I had to decorate around what was already there.  I guess there are some good things about buying a home that has been completely stripped of everything.

My living room is definitely a work in progress.  The new paint color really makes me ready for the new furniture that we have picked out   See the furniture I want  here.

I will take some pics of the new colors in the living room sometime this week. I still need to get some things settled back in place and pictures back on the walls.  

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great week!

Linking to:

Debbiedoos Newbie Party
Gypsy Brocante Porch Club Monday

Wishing for a Mudroom.

I have been painting for a little while each evening after coming home from staying with Mom at the hospital.  I love the color and it is completely changing the way this place looks. 

I want to make an area in the living room that resembles a mudroom...just a stopping place right inside the front door.  This modular home has no mudroom.  This is kind of what I am thinking of...

This I can do.  I have an old toy box bench that I could use and I have a shelf made very similar to this one that Mr. Fix-It built me a few years ago.  I can paint them the same color and make them look like a set.    This will have to be my next project once the walls are finished.

 I will be bringing Mom home from the hospital tomorrow to live with me for a few months.  We did get bad news again.  Her cancer has spread into her lymph nodes.  She will be going from Palliative Care to Hospice Care.   I took today off and spent the morning with her at the hospital and then cleaned up her bedroom and got it all ready for her to come home tomorrow.   There is no real space for any decorations in her room.  We have her hospital bed, her wheel chair, a bedside potty chair, a dresser, a bench and chair for visitors.   I try to make it as nice as possible because she has to spend so much time in there.  Any suggestions for making it more pleasant, let me know.  

 
By the way, cancer sucks.

Ideas Abounding.

I picked out my paint colors finally and bought paint today.  I am so excited!
It makes me feel like I am getting things going again.  

I picked out two different grays for the walls in my living room.

  

The darker color is called Cathedral Gray.

The tallest wall I am painting the darker color and will be moving our flat screen to that wall.

The lighter color is called Silver Sateen. 

The other 3 walls I will be painting the lighter color.  

I am debating about the darker color.  I have the test patch of the Cathedral Gray next to a paint chip that I was considering and we (Mr. Fix-It and I) really like it too.   

It is called Cobblestone by Martha Stewart.

It has a little more brown in it than the other grays.  

I would never have picked any of these colors a year or so ago.  But from blogging I have learned so much.  I love the way that gray makes brown furniture "pop."

Pottery Barn

Decor Pad

If I do not use the Cathedral Gray in the living room I will use it in my master bath.  

I am thinking of doing my master bath in yellow and gray.  

I really like these two colors together.  

I think it is just because this color combination is not something that you see everyday.

I will be painting in between working and trips to the hospital.  I will keep posting pics as I get things done.

I also want to share with you this little update that I did on my lamp.

  I have mentioned that I used to decorate in a very primitive country style.  

I paid quite a bit for this lamp many, many years ago and I still like it  

So I was a Hobby Lobby a week or so ago and they had this great sale.  

Lots of items 66% and 75% off.

I purchased a lampshade on clearance for $10.00.  

And also bought a pretty tassel for $3.99.  

So this is my updated lamp for about $15.00.

If you look close in the background you can tell the wall is painted two colors.  A test paint spot.

 The lampshade is a taupe linen.  Also notice the table it is sitting on.  

I bought it from Goodwill a year or so ago and I have been waiting to choose a color to paint it.

Thinking about painting the table soon too.  

I like it a lot better with the new lampshade.  

  

I get started on something and it never fails that I get more ideas.  

Sometimes I sit and make a list or draw out ideas so I won't forget them.

  

I needed to take a break from all the other stuff going on in my life. 

 It was good to think about decorating and working again.

Thanks for stopping by.

Linking to:

Not a decorating post.

I ask for prayers  This sweet little woman is my mother.  Her name is Rebecca and she has cancer.  What was supposed to be a 1 1/2 to 2 hour surgery turned into a 7 hour surgery.   They could not take her off of the ventilator till mid-morning the following day.   She has a long way to go to get through this.  Today the doctor told us that he could not get all the cancer.  Mom does not know that yet.  He also said that tomorrow and Monday would be the worst days for her so far.

Today was not a good day.  She told me that she was going to be buried alive under the ceiling tile and that she saw the ceiling slide down and the huge post that are around the nurses station sunk into the floor.  That some men knocked off  the door to her room and replaced it.  By this evening she said she was seeing a little girl on her knees playing with a doll.  They are telling us that they believe her to have what is called ICU Psychosis and that when she gets out of ICU and in to a room that she should be back to normal.  It does not help that she is on the highest dose of morphine.

Again I ask for prayers for her and the rest of us.  It has been a tough few days and we have a long road ahead.

By the way...Cancer sucks.