Happy Holidays!

Picture Courtesy of Country Living Magazine

Just stopping in to wish you all a wonderful holiday! I am headed to California again. I have been so busy lately and I have been a horrible blogger...but after the New Year it will be another story! I promise! I miss you all so much. My New Years resolution will to be more organized and set aside an amount of time to blog every week.

Hope you all have a cozy holiday with family and friends. See you soon!

While cleaning up the garden....

I picked some fresh rosemary to dry but then I had another idea. :)



Voila! A fresh Rosemary wreath. :)

It made the kitchen smell so good!

Hope you're all having a wonderful week! I just bought my tickets to fly home to California for Thanksgiving! I can't wait because I am always missing my family and I am so thankful for my family during this holiday season. :)

Still here....

We've just been healing from our loss of Miss Mocha...and being sick for weeks on end. Quincy and Emma have taken wonderful care of me. :) The kitties have even gone through a change since Mocha has been gone. Quincy went through a bit of a depression and became VERY needy with mommy for weeks after. Emma on the other hand turned into the happiest little kitten you'd ever seen. She plays now and runs around like a happy go lucky cat. Lol! Mocha and Emma never really got along so I think Emma is probably happy she is the alpha female now. I, on the other hand, still tear up to this day. Even yesterday, driving to work, it hit me without warning and I sobbed in the car while driving. I know this will take time but life goes on! We have pretty much gotten back to a normal schedule and I will be posting more. I have missed you all and I'm so sorry I haven't visited you more often!

I hope you are all doing wonderful and not sick like me! This past weekend I literally watched The Hallmark channel ALL weekend long. You know, those holiday movies that make us all have the warm fuzzies and wish life could really be like those movies? Well, I watched them all twice now. I'm waiting for the new ones next weekend but I probably don't plan on watching them twice. Oh who knows, maybe I will. I love weekends home, especially on cold rainy days where I can snuggle in with the kitties and drink a hot cup of tea in bed with my favorite chocolate croissant from Trader Joes. :) xoxo

Goodbye My Sweet Mocha (1996-2011)

I am crying as I write this post. Mocha's beautiful soul went to kitty Heaven on Saturday morning. After a two year battle with IBD, she gave up her fight. She had such tenacity and stubbornness about life that she truly was my other half since I am the same. It's hard to put into words what she brought into my life. She saw so many transitions of my own life and followed me wherever my road went and stood by my side without a single word of judgment. She only gave me love and acceptance. She was a part of my soul.

I was so fortunate to have her come into my life at 7 weeks old and to think that I almost turned her away. God had a plan when he gave me that little push to take her in even after I had picked another kitten out to take home with me. When that young pet store attendant begged me to take the screaming ball of fur because no one else would, it broke my heart. The words "no one else will take her" was the deciding factor for me. So, fleas and all, I brought her home to my little studio apartment that I had after my divorce and we bonded from that moment on.

No words can explain what it feels like to lose one of our fur babies. They don't judge, they don't hurt purposefully and all they want from us is love and to be taken care of. I did the best I could as her mother and I only pray she is now in a field of all the food she wants and all the furry friends to play with.

I love you, Mocha. There will always be a hole in my heart that can never be filled with the love that you gave me. It will take me a very long time to get used to not doing the things I do when I see you....to not hear that little meow saying hello to me and especially to no longer feel you kneading on my stomach for your own comfort. It will be hard but I hear time heals all wounds so until it does, I will hold your memories in my heart now and forever.

Rest in peace my sweet baby.

Despite the short summer we had....

The tomatoes turned out beautiful! I really was never a fan of fresh tomatoes but as I grew older my taste has somewhat changed. Isn't it funny how our tastes change throughout our lives? Why is that? I still am not crazy about the big beef steak tomatoes but these tiny little sweet tomatoes are so perfectly sweet and easy to just pop into my mouth. When I harvest, at least half of them end up in my mouth before I bring them in. :)

Herb Window

Remember the "fern" window I painted similar to this several years ago? Well, I'm starting my herb window. :) I found some old windows in a sweet little antique shop near the tea house my girlfriends and I have tea at. I'm having tea on Saturday, so I may pick some more up.

P.S. Can you send prayers for my little Mocha. She's been doing so well, even through her ups and downs, but the last few days she has been a little down and has lost weight. She has rallied for the last two years and despite visits to the vets, no one has been able to pin point what her underlying problem has been with her IBD. I realize our little fur babies don't live forever but if it's not her time, she could use some prayers. Thank you, everyone!

Romantic Earrings

My favorite statement piece. I always feel so beautiful and feminine when I wear my vintage, black chandelier earrings. I have several pair now but I'm always on the lookout for more to add to my collection!

Do you have a favorite piece of jewelry?

Update in a Nutshell

Hey guys! Sorry I went on haitus for awhile but summer was so busy! In fact, I'm still in busy mode. Traveling, crafting, growing and tending to a garden, traveling some more but somehow the summer FLEW by and just now, JUST now we are getting some summer weather at 90+ degrees. I'm not complaining.

Anyhoo....here's a quick update!

Buying cats their own drinking fountain...

Amazing finds that I could possibly craft on my own?

A weekend in Seattle!

Great food at the coast!

Craft night with the girls!

Still going on therapeutic horse rides. :)

And this weekend another trip to California (home) to watch my niece in one of her biggest horse jumping competitions. The whole family will be there so I'm really excited we will all be together again!

Hope you all had a great summer! I'll promise to not stay away for so long. I was just having too much fun! :)

Remember Decoupaging?

I haven't done it in years! My girlfriend and I had a craft night, complete with Mojitos (since summer finally decided to come) and I made this fun frame! I used magazines, dried herbs and flowers from my little garden and good 'ol Mod Podge!



I want to do more now!

Yep, it was Quincy that I was walking...

Isn't this a sweet photo? Look at how curious he is, all big eyed and bushy tailed. Normally we take walks around eleven or midnight...but this day I thought I would try and take him for a walk to the mailbox which is only a few yards away AND during the lighter hours. He was being so brave and I proudly walked him like dog. We reached the mailbox and I proceeded to open it up. He sat like a good boy..... eyes humongous at the different sounds during the day until...that one little leaf rustled by him and then...it was like the world had ended!

Quincy jumped so high and backed out of his leash. I didn't even know what hit me. Mail was flying everywhere, my hand now carrying an empty leash. Quincy was like a blur! I was like a blur running after him like a crazy cat lady screaming out his name, running as fast as I could after him (oh my God, I hope no one saw me). Thankfully Quincy ran straight for the condo door and tried to scratch a hole through it to get in. Lol! When I came upon him he got a little scared and ran the other direction but as fast as he turned around I opened the door and he darted in and up the stairs!

Phew! That was enough for five hair raising minutes, we both had to rest the entire afternoon after that but we survived. :)

So much for looking fashionably trendy walking my cat. I'm not doing that again for a long time.

Crazy Cat Lady?

Maybe? Who do you think has bravely learned how to walk on a leash? Granted, they are midnight strolls when no one is around and no cars can be heard or seen but...I might just be the crazy cat lady now.

I will try to get some shots of our late night excursions into the wild. :)

Flowers, flowers and more flowers!

My friend, Susan, and I went to the Oregon Gardens, one of our favorite places to visit and relax. They have a cute little gift shop, plants for sale and a tram that takes you around the 80 some acres of botanical gardens. Visit their website to really get an idea of how many gardens there!

Artichokes!

Have no clue what flower this is. Anyone know? Let me in on it please!

The beautiful iris.

The dainty foxglove...

The vibrant lily!

The mesmerizing maple!

The luscious lavender

Summer has been amazing so far! I'm going through my pictures from Montana and will report back!

Introducing the Enchanted Chicks!

Okay, time to let the cat out of the bag (no pun intended). If you've noticed I haven't been posting a lot lately. I've been focusing on something so much more exciting! Here it is......introducing The Enchanted Chicks blog! Click here!

If you want to learn to live life filled with enchantment, join me and three other Chicks on our journey to living and breathing an Enchanted Life. We hope you will too! Follow us!

Off to Montana for a few days!

To meet sis and family for a fun filled trip of horseback riding, good food, great family time and more! Emma is going to be a good sport and make sure everything is taken care of at home. Even her little dolphin buddy. Don't you love it when kitties let you do anything to them? :) She even cleaned the little dolphin key chain.

When I get back I have an announcement to make on a grand introduction of *something* but I can't tell right now. :) I'm so excited. It's been in the works for sometime now but until then you will have to hang on tight! :)

Hurry It's Lovely Up Here!

I'm not just the crazy cat lady, you know? I'm the crazy plant lady. I actually sing this song to my plants and flowers (okay, I whisper sing it because my neighbors will think I'm nuts). I really think it has helped them grow. Seriously! I've memorized every word. :)

My favorite actress, Barbra...from a great old movie called On a Clear Day You Can See Forever!

Weekend ramblings...

So as I was having breakfast this morning on my deck....

I noticed something really creepy invading my peppermint. I seriously thought the body snatchers were coming to get me. Alas, it's just that darn spittle bug...

But my lavender is doing great....

And I promised myself NO MORE but look at those eyes....and no I am not taking her. :) A new kitten at the shelter reminds me so much of my Mocha when she was little. She's only 3 1/2 weeks old and fits in the palm of my hand. Cuteness overload, right? *sigh*

Have a great weekend!

Atrium Green

One of my favorite movies is Green Card with Andie McDowell and Gerard Depardieu. Have you seen it? The movie has the most beautiful atrium/conservatory that I've dreamed of having...so I decided to compile some images that will be in my dream book. The rooms are all airy and mainly adorned with the colors green and white. How much more refreshing can one get with decorating?






Happy Hump Day!

Scenes of Summer...

Well, it feels like summer anyway. :)

Fresh strawberries and lime...

And a cat with a partial haircut. He got tired of hearing the scissors go snip, snip and proceeded to try to kill my hand.

A little fun, a little growth and a good breakfast

A great ride with the boys...

Watching the strawberries come up....

And a little cilantro, parmesan scrambled eggs...

Equals a great weekend! Hope you're having one too. :)

Stevia and weekend activities

First off, I wanted to post this weekend but had issues with my blogger account and couldn't. Grrrr..it was very frustrating but I finally figured it out this evening. I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and thanked all our veterans, active duty soldiers and heroes who gave and are giving their lives to protect our great nation.

I've been looking for a Stevia plant everywhere and I found it at the chicken festival held by the cat shelter this past weekend! We had so many great vendors there and very fanciful chickens. You know, the ones with the big mops on their heads. I love those chickens. We even found a home for a chicken that was given up to the shelter. As soon as we brought the cute little bugger out someone offered to give him a home with their other chickens. I love happy endings. Anyway, I digress. So, one of the vendors was a local lavender farm and, of course, they brought some hen and chicks (the plant) and several other herbs. There was a single Stevia plant that had my name all over it. :)

Stevia is known as the natural sweetener with ZERO calories. The plant itself is from the daisy family. The Native Americans in Paraguay have used Stevia for hundreds and hundreds of years not only for it's natural sweetness but for it's medicinal properties as well such as controlling high blood pressure and diabetes..mainly through the lack of calories. Stevia has also been widely used in Japan over the last three decades.

You can find more info here on Stevia's website. The best part about Stevia is....it's all natural.

Anyway, a few fun pictures to share from this weekend...

The cute little chicken that got adopted...

My deck is turning green! Guess who sits on the ground?

My newest Hen and Chicks plant (middle). It looks like a lotus flower. :)

And just a little artwork I made for the chicken festival. It sold! All proceeds going to the cat shelter. :)