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Things I am loving Fridays...and house updates!!

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Good morning, enjoying my second full day back in blogland.This will not be as lengthy as my usual Thursday post. Lets face it this has hardly been a conventional week!  For one, we have been without power and generator at new house, so though they have been working, its been limited but despite the weather hiccups, they have made quiet a bit of progress so I am excited. Didn't go out and about and explore too much this week for obvious reasons but am sharing what I am loving and of course some house updates. Many have asked when we are going to move in. We hope to move in later September (my optimistic reply) to late October/early Nov. (husbands overly cautious and conservative reply). So figure somewhere in that window! Hope you are dong great and for anyone who was in Irene's path, so hope that you have since been blessed with restored power (if you lost it to begin with) and that you are getting back to a sense of normalcy. So here we go,.......

HOUSE UPDATES. Things continue despite Irene's disruption, to hum along. It is soo true that the finishing stage is though the most fun, the most drawn out. No doubt, I can see we are going to be "finishing" this house for some time now, its all the little things that really take time. But the painting is moving right along, moldings on first floor getting done, kitchen is getting there though it may not look like much progress is being made, they are there every day and it will be a full 2 month installation process when all said and done. Its taken 2 days just to install all the little magnets on the doors, but its the kind of progress you really don't see. Patio foundation was laid...that was pretty exciting:) Enough talking, here's the low down.....

Slowly but surely it IS coming together...pay no attention to the temporary stove (had to put it in to get the CO)
LOVE my limestone hood
Drawers getting put on today, so I can try my hardware samples! Electric just came back on...


This is a sample of the limestone cladding that will be put up in the "tower" entrance

1st floor hallway getting its moldings done....










Looking in from back entrance/mudroom
How do you like this color for my closet? I really like it! Its a very pale silvery/gray/blue.


The bathroom cabinet/niche got installed in my  kitchen, its just primed for now until we start finishing everything 


Going into hubby's bath...

The patio foundation being laid....
Back staircase is done!
Living room has lights!

Rear patio in process



WEDDING CAKES AND AMAZING COOKIES. This is totally random, yes I know. It also has nothing whatsoever to do with design, decor or any of the above but I will confess I have an obsession with gorgeous over the top wedding cakes and flowers. I often gravitate towards many of the wedding books in bookstores, so I can pour over pictures of the flowers and wedding cakes only to have a salesperson greet me excitedly "Oh, you must be planning a wedding"!  In my next life I must become a wedding planner extraordinaire because I seriously love looking and dreaming and creating them (in my mind of course) I have been a long time fan of Sylvia Weinstock, wedding cake maestro. But in addition to her out of this world creations I found a few other amazing goodies worth sharing....I know this is totally random but they are just too beautiful to not share!!






How amazing are these Wedgwood blue cookies? Makes me want to have a party in their honor!

A FUN ANTIQUE STORE. One thing I love to do and rarely get to do anymore is visit antique stores..you just never know what you will find. The thrill is in the chase!  Well, there is a place not far from me that can get some great things, they are only open 3 days a week and I hadn't been in years, so about a week ago...I jumped in my car and headed over one Saturday morning. I did score a beautiful collection of 12 dessert plates and bowls by Noritake, I love mixing and matching pieces and these would look stunning with my gold rimmed Limoges dinner service. On top of that she had some other really interesting tidbits, and some real steals. Above all else it was just so much fun being there and not knowing what I might discover! Here are a few highlights......

This is the outside of one of the three buildings....
How pretty are these older French bistro chairs? 4 for $125! (and that without negotiating)
Wish I had a place to use four!!

This was huge...almost 4 feet tall, needs some work but its so pretty for a loggia or porch!
These were interesting metal screens, could be gorgeous for a doorway, a closet door or a table top with glass and a base


This place consists of 3 separate buildings, here is the main building which houses all the smaller items, china and crystal

And my plates....





BISCOTTI Do you like it? Well, I have turned my husband unknowingly into a biscotti addict/connoisseur. Now he has to have his little fix every night!  In our days of darkness (and boredom) we got to try several brands, and one which I must say is really really good is Bastoncini. It taste comparable to those that good Italian restaurants give out at the end of a meal. Its quite good, so if you are in need of a little sweet something and like biscotti too, you may want to give this a whirl! (Best part these are the minis, which translates to less guilt)



Well, folks that's about it for me this week. Its been a pretty uneventful week in terms of discovering anything too terribly exciting! I know wedding cakes and biscotti are not too thrilling but compared to the week we had, they are! Would love to know if there is anything you are loving this week! Wishing you a wonderful Friday and start to the Labor Day weekend!!
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Special Guests

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We have some wonderful friends coming for Labor Day  Weekend.

The sewing of the master bedroom curtains has been put aside for a few days.

The pillows have been fluffed. 


The chocolates have been placed in a vintage transferware teacup on the night stand.


Fresh flowers have been brought in.



I am off to great my guests.  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!  See you in a few days.
Welcome Home,
Penny

Special Ladies for Tea and a Tour

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Hello everyone,
     Today was another beautiful day and I had some very special ladies for tea and a tour of the garden.
So, I quickly made some cranberry scones and set a table for tea in the terrace.
A bit of a pink theme today.

an old vintage tablecloth and some pretty teacups.
Some comfy chairs with pillows.
I did some tidying up in the garden-mainly deadheading.

Hoping it will still look pretty for them as by September it is past it's prime you know!
I picked some flowers for a bouquet for our table.
Dahlias,petunias and hydrangeas.

And here they come now the nicest ladies you could meet.-Mary (left) 94 years.Myrna, Erna 93 and Edith 95 years old.Myrna is Erna's niece and she was the driver today but a couple of these oldest ladies still drive a car.Erna has been my neighbor for many years and I admire her greatly. She is a wonderful gardener and has made many beautiful quilts and would always be the first to help a neighbor in any way she could.When I made my first quilt she drove down to help me put it in the quilt frame on a cold and blustery night when she was about eighty years old.What a great role model she is. Now, the other ladies are lovely of course too but I don't know them as well as they don't live in our community.
They joked about getting married in the garden if they could find a suitable fellow!
We enjoyed tea and a visit.
We toured the garden cottage and they thought it would be lovely for a honeymoon-IF they could find the right fellow! Oh, they made me chuckle with their wit and spunk.

So, that was my fun for the day and I hope your day was good too!

Tomorrow night we are having our grandchildren and their parents up for a family camping night. We are planning a bonfire,boat rides(rubber dories) in our new duck pond(still duck less but it is only a few weeks since it was made).Some of you commented on it from my last post -it was made by Ducks Unlimited in our field and we are happily planting some new trees around it. Now back to our plans- an old fashion game of hide and seek when it is almost dark should be fun. I think it will be a fun night for everyone! I also have a request for some peach cream pie and breakfast on the porch -hm! what should I make? The weather is supposed to be lovely but the evenings are getting cooler so the season will  be grinding to a halt soon so I want to enjoy it while we can. I do love all  the seasons but summer is sometimes a little hard to let go off, for me anyway and it always goes by so quickly.Before we know it we will be talking about Christmas!

I am joining Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.

Thank you for visiting me today.

Carolyn
  

would you ever...

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wake your friend up on her birthday with a pie in the face?  Or rather, drive your daughter to her friend's house to shove a pie in her face first thing in the morning on her birthday?  Oh, to be young again...