Memorial Day Table: In Loving Memory

Memorial Day is a day I pause and think about the men and women and their families who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.  

My father was in the Air Force and served in Viet Nam, and later in his life worked as a civilian contractor during the Gulf  War.  I  grew up a "military brat"  who moved more often than I would have liked.    In hindsight, however  I am so grateful that I was able to live in so many different places and even overseas.  I am a better person for it and have very electic taste as a result! It is not without  hardships though having a parent in harms way is  stressful to any young child.  Even today a lead story on  AOL was reporting about the hardships to families and to their finances, always having to move and setting up a home every few years. 

I hope you express your gratitude to these brave men and women!

Today I wanted to set a patriotic table  in honor of my father.  He retired from the military and later served in a civilian capacity before he and my mom  retired  to a beach home in Florida.  He passed away  nine years ago this past week.  He loved his country and he was an incredible man and I was priviledged to have him as my Father!  

 He would have loved this table as many of the items are from Goodwill...he loved a good bargain and taught me the value of hard work, being thrifty and being a do-it-yourselfer!!!

  Red, white and blue is the obvious choice for this table and I was fortunate to find a set of dishes with a friend of mine at GW.  ( We found these plates in the dead of winter-totally off season) The set of eight was $10 and we split the set between us...so our service for 4 was only $5.00 a piece.  Each place setting included a dinner plate, bowl and desert plate.  I love the Americana pattern and it's perfect for a Fourth of July table too!  

The Independence Ironstone teapot was another $5.00 GW find.  I was so excited to find this piece in perfect condition.   

I used the apple topiary as a centerpiece to coordinate with the apple on the border of the plates.  The topiary was also from GW for $3  along with the red runner for 99 cents! 
Both were brand new!

I found the blue placemats for $1 at
Wal Mart and they are made out
of the same ribbed fabric

as the runner.

The silver napkin rings were $3 from an estate sale and I can't remember where I found the napkins...but I'm sure they were on sale or I probably would not have purchased them!  LOL

I used my cobalt blue goblets and my favorite blue and white candlesticks from Hobby Lobby.   

I had a lovely dinner with my husband and son today.  I prepared roasted chicken, fresh corn on the cob,  fingerling potatoes and ranch potatoe salad.  We had watermelon and ice cream for desert.

Remember to please pray for our soldiers and their families not just on Memorial Day but everyday!

I'm linking this week with:

Marty's Tabletop Tuesdays

Lady Katherine's Tea Time Tuesday

2nd Time Around Tuesday

Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays

Tablescape Thursday

Pink Saturday and a Silver Lining

This Memorial Day weekend I'm joining Beverly's Pink Saturday.  My garden is usually full of pinks but after the recent hail storm it is still recovering.  These pink knockout roses were in full bloom prior to our storms. 

These hot pink peonies had just about finished blooming for the season.  

The  hail shredded the leaves off the trees, shrubs and pounded my newly planted annuals literally into the ground.

My son is holding almost baseball sized hail..the hail was larger than this when it fell  and by the time  we went outside had began to melt.  There were up to softball sized as well.

We have spent many hours cleaning up the mess and I'm just now starting to replant a few things.  While I was outside cleaning up my hydrangeas I got a pleasant surprise...

Mr. T (our resident turtle) came walking out of  some branches and leaves that had been knocked to the ground.   I was so thrilled...we don't keep him caged or penned up..so we never know when we will see him.  I needed a positive lift as I was a little down from having to clean up so much damage to my garden...and out came Mr T!! I haven't seen him since last fall...I guess he hibernates.   

I was reminded of God's care and concern for us...how much more does he care and love us than this little turtle that he placed in my path...and yet Mr T survived the storm and harsh winter.   He knew I needed a special reminder and it just made

 my day!

There's always a silver lining to any of life's storms  we face.  Sometimes we just have to rejoice

in the small things! 

Hope you have a wonderful Pink Saturday and Memorial Weekend!

Bavarian Tea Service

Originally posted 2/15/09
This week I'm joining Chari's Sunday Favorites Thrifty Treasures at Southern Hospitality and Lady Katherine's Tea Time Tuesday.   


Last week a friend and I went to Goodwill and she spotted great buys immediately!  She has a great eye and wonderful taste!  This tea service for six was unbelievably priced for only $10.   She passed on the set so I purchased it.  Since it was from Germany and it was porcelain china I knew I couldn't go wrong.

Later I looked up the markings ,  Hutschenreuther, Tirschenreuth 1838 from Gruppe Germany (I had a hard time with spelling) and indeed I did get a bargain!

I love the shape of the teapot and all the gold trim.  The set has no chips or cracks and the color is so pretty and perfect for Valentine's or Christmas teas.  

I still haven't found the pattern name yet..guess I need to send a picture to Replacements.com.

I think it is lovely for a Valentine's tea by candlelight.  

  

Aren't these little birds sweet?

I also found this wonderful silver basket for $5.00 at GW.   I had to do a little cleanup on it but I think it would be great to use as a little bread or muffin basket.  I love the detail on it and it is quite heavy. 

The handle and edging have grape clusters and leaves.  I could see this on a Napa inspired tablescape too!   

  Don't you just love Goodwill?!! 

This week I am linking up for the first time with Second Time Around Tuesday at A Picture's Worth a 1,000 Words..can't wait to see everyone's second hand treasures! 

   

Tempest and A Teapot

Living in Oklahoma has many advantages but our severe weather is always a challenge to live with.  I am not afraid of our weather but have a healthy respect for it.  We have the best meterologists and warning systems in the country !      

Last week we had damaging tornadoes and today we had baseball size hail that shredded trees,  foilage in most of northwest Oklahoma City and broke out windows in our neighbors home.  Car damage is widespread and our son's car was heavily damaged.  My garden looks like a weedeater went wild in my flower beds.  Oklahoman's are resilient people and even though I'm not a native I've been here long enough to be affected by their positive attitudes and willingness to always lend a helping hand.   We are fine and thanking God for keeping us safe...(others nearby lost everything last week)    We know things can be replaced and homes can be rebuilt, so as long as we are safe we are thankful.  So in Oklahoman fashion we go on and put it behind us, roll up our sleeves and get to work. 
 I'll have much more gardening to do in the

 next few weeks but in the meantime I needed a little tea time.   

So with that said, after the hail storm had passed I was determined to get back to my routine.  I set a pretty table for two and choose my favorite color scheme -blue and yellow (always cheers me up)  

Almost everything was purchased at an antique mall or thrift store over the past year.  When I travel I always check out local thrift stores in the area..it's fun to go to new places and I have fun memories that go along with my purchases when I get home.

The tablecloth was $6.00 at a craft mall in Austin, Texas and I love this shade of blue with the tiny white flowers.  The napkins and matching placemats were purchased at Chick-a-dees in Wimberly,  Texas one of my favorite Texas towns to shop in!   I was so excited to find them as I already had the perfect plates to coordinate with them.   

I layered  beautiful blue plates from Portugal with these fabulous Furio plates from Italy!  I bought all four Italian plates for $5.oo at an antique mall in Ardmore, Oklahoma.   I saw the same plate for $9.00 each on ebay.  I am still looking for more matching pieces.

I used my lemon yellow topiary from Marshall's bought on clearance for a centerpiece.   On each side I placed a blue and white candlestick I purchased many years ago at Hobby Lobby for half-price. 

The cobalt blue teapot was purchased at the Fiesta factory outlet store in Canton, Texas.  ( all the girls I work with went on a little "road-trip") What a shopping extravaganza are the Canton Market Days!  Take comfy shoes!!

I love my Pier One sunflower plates and thought it would be fun to use them as saucers for the teapot and teacups.   

My mom gave me an entire set of cobalt blue stemware that I use with many of my dishes.

A friend spotted these cute little egg cups for me at a fun store called Bad Granny's Bazaar for $2.00!  Let's just say the store is "interesting"...even a live band in the back.   The cups appear to be fine china and the little yellow band on the egg cups coordinates with my plates..and cute for a breakfast table as well. 

I hope whatever tempest storm passes your way you will work through it and not let it steal your joy!
Have a cup of tea and count your blessings!


This week I'm linking with:

Southern Hospitality's Thrify Monday
Lady Katherine's Tea Time Tuesday
Marty's Tabletop Tuesday
Susan's BNOTP Tablescape Thursday

Nature-Inspired Table

I love bringing the outdoors in...birds, nests, eggs, garden tools and other natural materials  I've collected from here and there just make me happy.    This weekend I gathered some of my favorite things from around my house to create a nature-inspired table for one.  

The green transferware teapot was a gift from a friend..she brought it to me from a trip to Williamsburg.  I love the bird pattern motif!

I made a simple burlap tablecloth.   All I did was purchase several yards of burlap and threw it in the washing machine.  It frayed all by itself and created this wonderful natural hem.

I found the green "runner"   at a thrift store. It's actually a Waverly valance panel and I love the fern pattern.  Old window coverings make great runners or tablecloths and are usually inexpensive at garage sales and thrift stores.  

The bird is from Goodwill for $3.00 and it still has a Stein Mart price tag of $19.99 on the bottom.  The little cloche with the robin's egg I made from odds and ends I found at a thrift store.  The dome was $1.00 and the clear candleholder was .75 cents and they fit together perfectly!

This adorable old bee hive creamer was half-price at an antique store that was having a closing sale.  Later that same day I found another honeypot on sale and thought they would look cute together.

The old vintage garden book was from a friend's mother's estate.  I love garden books!  The art on this old cover is very sweet.

I love my green cabbage plates and a nest is always welcome.

A little bird and garden stakes are welcome too!

My garden tea table was a treat for me on Mother's Day weekend!  Take the time a set a beautiful table just for you!

I'm linking this week with:

Marty's Tabletop Tuesday

Lady Katherine's Tea Time Tuesday

Susan's BTNOP Tablescape Thursday

Linda's Costal Charm Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays

A Picture's Worth a 1,000 Words- 2nd Time Around Tuesday
Martha's Tea Cup Tuesdays
Cindy's Romantic Home Show and Tell Friday

Have fun at all the parties!!