To Inspire, To Be Peaceful, and Be At Home Where I Reside

I have always love other people's blogs where clever people show all the stuff they bought, how they used it in their home, how they decorated, their clothing finds, what they made, how they did it, why they did it, where they bought it, how they cooked it, and on and on.

I will attempt to do the same, but please be kind, I am a newbie at this. I will include things that I found, bought, cooked, created, and things that I love, plus sometimes photos of places I have visited during a previous 5 years traveling and living and working out of my RV, out west.

I more recently have landed in a house, a small cottage 5 minutes away from the water. I love this tiny house, with all it's defects, blemishes, pipes that sometimes leak, windows that leak, but it has beautiful wood floors (that need refinishing), walls that are slowly being painted beautiful colors, rooms that are being made into more useful spaces now that I am living here almost 3 years. I am slowly making my own footprint here.

I love to entertain my friends here. I love to cook for them trying out new recipes on them, they don't seem to mind at all. So I suppose you might say that I am a good cook, if not a inspired cook. Last Friday night I had some friends and my daughter and her partner over. I cracked open a jar of olives marinated in herbs, a bottle of very good champagne (a gift, I would have bought a much cheaper one) , and roasted some almonds, pepitas, and cashews, and used Martha Stewart's recipe for spiced nuts, using fresh Rosemary from my garden, butter, salt, sugar, and two T. of the finely chopped fresh herb. All in 10 minutes. The nuts were fabulous and we ate and drank the bubbly and salted thingys and talked and laughed and had ourselves a good time. I love my daughter and her honey and I love my friends. I like to eat interesting foods.

I love to buy things for my home, my dogs, my bedroom, for myself to wear, and I haunt the man local Goodwills, TJ Maxx, Marshalls and Ross stores to find things that I like. I confess I am a bargain hunter, and some of my finds are pretty cool, and came real cheap and some came free from the street. My daughter found a large hutch in the alley and now it sits in my house. Free.

Like today, I knew I needed tall candles for a candle holder that was a gift from my daughter. It's in my new dining space so I went looking for candles at Goodwill, and though I did not find candles I did find some wooden candle sticks in wood, carved and heavy.

As if that was not enough, another pair just about jumped out at me, later while in Marshalls, green glazed ceramic, that sort of looked like they had been worn gently by use, chipped and paint rubbed off. Can you believe that they make this stuff to look old and abused. I love it.

The irony of today's adventure is still no candles, but great candle holders. Thus, anther shopping expedition will have to be done. Someday, but not today.

Got to walk the bad dogs now. Two bad dogs, not really, actually quite funny and sweet.