There goes the neighborhood!

Crazy times at Lisa's Little House! But it is all good...

New water main installed. Check!
Mom here. Check!
Cruise taken and enjoyed immensely. Check!

But the craziest news of all...Henry and his parents are going to be moving into the house NEXT DOOR to me at the end of the month! I know! Can you believe it? Pinch me!

We have the best neighbors. We hang out, barbeque, share special holiday traditions like our annual Progressive Dinner. So it is bittersweet that Greg, Courtney, Katelynne and Taylor are moving. They found a larger home for their family and were looking for renters for their old house. They offered it to Henry and his parents first, bless their hearts. And it worked out for everyone...especially Auntie!

We are beside ourselves. How often in this day and age can family live so close together? Henry will grow up surrounded by family and friends 24/7. And since I am going to be his primary care-giver while his parents work, my commute will be a dream.

God is good!

Celebrate...

Oriental poppies from my mom's garden.

...each milestone, each achievement, each day!

Today I am celebrating a few things.

It is my one year blog anniversary. I opened up the doors to my Little House a year ago and it has been delightful sharing, visiting and getting to know all of you. Thank you for your kindess and support.

I had big plans to celebrate my blog-iversary but unexpected things happen to people everyday and that leads me to the next thing I am celebrating today...my husband, Doug!

Saturday I brought him home from the hospital after he was diagnosed with several pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in the lungs). Thankfully it was caught early and the clots ended up in the lungs and not in his heart or brain. I can't even begin to process or comprehend the situation much beyond that.

So today I celebrate: new friends and adventures, old loves and my beautiful everyday life!

No longer a Space Case!?

Well...my Space in a Case is now a Booth on the Loose at Town Hall Antiques in Bothell's Country Village!

A before shot...just for fun!

After 2 1/2 days of hard work, several helpers (thanks Mom, Caroline and Kate!) and some fun items from my buddies, Judy and Colleen, my new booth is open for business! It was great to graduate to a larger area...goodness knows, I got junk!

Momma and 2 little babies!

Pop in, feed the ducks, browse to your heart's content and most of all enjoy the sun this weekend!

Hello Henry!

Henry is in the house! He was born on Saturday, May 21 and we have been so busy snuggling him and just looking at his darling face that I haven't had time to blog about it.

What a blessing he is to our family!

Gotta go...my turn to hold him...if Grandma will give him up! ;)

Fluffed!

I popped into Country Village's Town Hall Antiques Wednesday and fluffed up my Space in a Case, filled in a few gaps and added some Vase Necklaces I made from silver-plated knife handles. A great gift idea for your Mom or you, because all you Mom's out there deserve it!

Happy May Day!

We love May Day around here. I always send my Mom a basket...it surprises her every time!

I made these bouquets out of old metal juice cans and an assortment of flowers and greenery from my garden. Then gave them to four of my girly-friends I met for breakfast.

Happy May Day to you!

A year ago today...

...my step-dad of nearly 40 years passed away. I can't believe it. Some days it feels like yesterday.

Rod fell head over heels in love with my mom and wasn't a bit daunted by the fact that she had two little kids, 7 and 5 years old. He was still head over heels in love with her on the day he died. He told her so that day, like he did everyday. Important lesson here. Tell people you love them; every chance you get.

We tell stories; we always have as a family. We reminisce...a lot. We have so many stories to tell Henry, the first grandchild, when he gets here in May. He will never meet his grandpa, but he will know him. He will know what a practical joker he was, how much he loved books and learning and how much his family meant to him.

Mom is doing good. She recently drove herself to Salem, Oregon for a visit with my in-laws. A very big and brave step for her. Ophelia is getting ready for her first wedding anniversary and Henry's birth. I have been working on this junking business of mine and reconnecting to my home and garden.

We are adjusting to our new 'normal'. But still missing him so.

But I hope that Rod would be proud of 'his girls'...

Back to Basics

This week between Christmas and New Year's is always a reflective time. After the parties, presents and festivities of the preceding 6 weeks are over, I am always ready for the peace and quiet. This past year has left a lot to reflect on.

After a long, fun run of Salvage Studio retail goodness and book writing over the past several years, I was looking forward to slowing down a bit. 2010 was slated to be a year to renew my soul and spirit; work in the garden and 'just be' in my nest.

But, as we all know, sometimes the Universe has other plans for us.

In the early spring, we decided to officially retire the Salvage Studio and I started Lisa's Little House.

And in April, Rod, my step-dad of nearly 40 years died unexpectedly a week after retiring, shaking our family to the core.

My beautiful, baby sister got married 3 weeks later.

And I spent most of the summer traveling back and forth to eastern Washington, helping my mom with long-overdue projects at her house.

In the fall, I prepared for my first solo show. A huge success, but stressful nonetheless. And then I did it again in December.

During this roller coaster ride of a year, I learned how strong and determined I could be. And I learned what my family is made of. My Mom and sister are amazing women and the men in our lives are amazing, too. My friends have been angels on earth; listening, loving and ready to help with a meal or a perfectly timed hug. Gifts to offset the grief and I am so grateful. My family is too...

And I realized that my original goal for 2010 was true and valid and worth another shot.

So....it is time to get back to the basics...

2011 is slated to be a year to renew my soul and spirit; work in the garden and 'just be' in my nest. Amen!

2nd Saturdayz was #1

Loved being a vendor at last weekend's 2nd Saturdayz Holiday Show!

The lovely organizers, Linda and Deb, made us feel so special...even shared a beautiful and delicious dinner by candlelight with us...Ham and scalloped potatos from Geff and treats from some of the rest of the vendors. And the table was decked out, of course.

A few shots of my booth.

And some of my tiny treasures.

 I made the necklace from a drilled out serving spoon and attached the porcelain rose and added green rayon ribbon to suggest the stem.

The stockings were made from wire and then wrapped with silk Midori ribbon.

My friend Sara makes the best handmade soap...

This display by Dawn of Great Findz was breathtaking. She is so very talented.

Mom and Ophelia helped me set-up on Friday...Love them! And Doug was on duty for tear-down...Love him!

And a big thank you to all my friends that came by to say hello! Hope you had as much fun as I did!

Happy Holidays!

Hooray for Craft Days!

Tuesday was going to be an 'outdoor' project day, but Mom and I just didn't want to be out in the rainy rain. So we gathered up the shrunken, felted wool and a couple of cats and crafted all afternoon.

Spicy watching the thread go in and out...hard to resist.

Bunny just chillin'...

Mom has been working on these pretty 3-dimensional Christmas trees.

She hopes to have enough for a little forest on her coffee table this holiday.

I worked on pillows for the upcoming 2nd Saturdayz sale. I have always loved this wool blanket with its creamy dreamy background and soft rose flowers and holly leaves.

Now it has become some comfy cozy pillows.

Hooray for indoor craft days!

Dressing vs Stuffing

What do you call it? There are lots of websites that discuss this, for instance, Serious Eats. Entertaining to say the least.

Our family calls it dressing. Mom's Sausage Dressing to be exact. Ambrosia. I have made the dressing for my family for the last several years without Mom to taste it. She will be here for Thanksgiving this year (yay!) but I am still going to make the dressing. Why? Because I can finally have her fine-tune my attempt. I want to KNOW how to make this dish.

The basics are easy peasy with a simple ratio of 1:1:1:1

Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage
large chopped onion
chopped celery bunch, including top
loaf of cheap bread, cubed
Cook sausage, add onion and celery, season with sage (lots!) and pepper and cook till done. Add to bread cubes in big bowl. Mix. Add chicken broth until all is moistened and combined really well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bake in oven at 350 for 45 minutes or surround turkey with dressing and bake. We then love to crisp it up in a pan, folding the crispy bits into the dressing over and over. And we add turkey juice and chunks of turkey or the giblets (not the liver!) to the crispy dressing. And the next day...forget about it!...even better. That is why I make a triple batch!

Enjoy your family this week...and your food!

Mom is here!

Vintage stitchery on our mantle...a picture (with words) is worth at least 1000 words!

Mom is here for the month of November...we are so excited!

Doug flew over there last week and helped Mom winterize the house. And then they drove over together.

Hopefully we can convince her to stay into December.

Keep your fingers crossed!

We are having a baby!

Well, don't get too excited...it is the "royal" we...but exciting nontheless! My sister, Ophelia and her husband, Micah are expecting their first baby! We are all aflutter here. I FINALLY got the A-OK to tell the world.

Ophelia is through her first trimester, so felt comfortable with announcing it. It has been so hard to keep my mouth shut...and as some of you know (who 'knew') that wasn't easy. I was even telling strangers at the grocery store! That seemed alright...because 'they' wouldn't tell anyone we knew, right? And if you didn't know, don't feel bad...I must have been having one of my 'good' days.

Well, this is Mom's first grandchild so it is really big for our family. And since I was twelve years old when O was born she is kinda like my quasi-kid. No spoiling for this baby, huh?

I got out my scrapbooks the other day, looking at some early days photos...

Ophelia barely walking, waving to us 'big kids' playing outside 1976

O hanging with me at my first apartment. She loved coming over to spend the night! 1983



Ophelia and Micah on their wedding day, May 1, 2010



I got to hear the baby's heartbeat at the midwife appointment last Tuesday. Still takes my breath away!

Baby is due mid-May...we can hardly wait!

It's a theme



Autumn crocus with a houseguest

I am thinking it is all about the garden this week. Does your life run in themes sometimes? Mine must. Interesting. I will think on that some more.

I took some of these photos at my Mom's over the seasons. She has instilled a love of nature and an awareness of the little things that are magical in our lives. Stopping to admire a spider's web; watching a bird make a nest; foraging for wild berries; the subtle color changes within a flower; planting spring bulbs in the fall and enjoying the surprise of them poking out of the ground in the spring.



Snowdrops...in the snow!

Arum Lily...tried and true family favorite

I love the little things!

Feast

Doug and I have been visiting Mom in Dayton, Washington all week. Besides all the delicious food she fixes for us (every family member has their favorite requests!) we have enjoyed a few restaurants in town. For a town with a population of 2500-ish, the fare is world-class.

Patit Creek Restaurant is a family favorite. Not only is the food delicious (5-star) and fresh, fresh, fresh; the garden is a feast for the eyes. Each season is stunning...and they grow a banana tree (heavy on the winter mulch) which is unheard of during Eastern Washington winters.

front of the restaurant

planter with papyrus

amaranth in the front garden

yummy clematis...quite a beauty

Then we ate for the first time at Manila Bay Cafe...oh my! Beautiful decor...my favorite colors; deep reds, yellows and blues.

sunflowers in an assortment of glass containers

daily specials

And the food was dreamy.

our lumpia appetizer was delicious

kalua pig...so succulent and love the banana leaf steamer pouch

and my side salad looked like a flower arrangement...but tasted better!

And the local beer was tasty, too!

We love our time in Dayton...slower pace, time with Mom, beautiful scenery....A Feast for the Soul.

Facelift

House painting time. I just returned from a week trip to visit my Mom in Eastern Washington. Our goal was to totally finish the front of her darling Cape Cod. We did it!

As usual it was 95+ degrees. It's a family joke that we can only paint something in or around her house if it is during a sweltering heatwave.

But the new blue shutters and blue and red detail around the doorway have provided a much needed facelift to this darling house and lifted our spirits at the same time. You see, my step-dad died in April of a brain aneurysm just a week after he retired. We are shocked and a little (no, a lot) at a loss. He was a part of us for 40 years and he and my Mom were still so much in love and had so many plans.

Mom and Rod at our Salvage Studio book signing party, October 2008

So, we are painting, crying, sorting and laughing together. The usual. Only different.

I know Rod would love the new paint job. And I know he would hate that he wasn't there to work along beside us.