Parfum

{This post linked to 
From My Front Porch To Yours}

Wisteria.

One of the most wonderful natural smells

Mother Earth could provide.

As the days progress,

the trees are bursting with the beautiful

purple flower.

The air is perfumed with the most amazing scent.

Today, it's a bit windy so it's wafting so wonderfully,

you just can't take a deep enough breath.

All of these photos were shot in our backyard.

{click on photos to enlarge for better viewing}

These two photos are looking out over

 the hill behind our home.

We are literally in the tree canopies.

The photo above and below show the vines that 

wrapped themselves around the trees, 

sometimes strangling them to death

which is a shame, as these trees are so 

very old. There are some very majestic

Oaks on our lower property, some to

be said that are registered with 

the National Arbor Society.

I hope your Spring has sprung as ours has.

xo, Amber

{almost} Done!

Oh, my aching body!

The day before yesterday, we finished the front of the house

with body paint and trim {except the eaves}.

We were determined to get that iron up!

That was the iron piece that I found on CL 

that came off an old Victorian.

I'd say it was worth the $50 and an hour drive!

The curved trim above the window

was not there ever.

Bruce did an amazing job (as usual)

making that trim piece.

Up and down the ladder a bazillion times 

makes for a great workout.

We had planned to add shutters 

but since the windows are trimmed out,

we decided against it.

Trim boards to be added where the arrows are

and I planted two climbing roses on the right 

side of the pop out.

Next weekend we're having some

tractor work done to level all the humps and bumps

so we can either re-seed or sod

then, it's serious business for me...

gardening!

 

 These little white flowers are so cute.
I think it's Monkey Grass. Too cute to cut

 (although I desperately want to trim around my roses).

It was been fun watching all of the surprise pop-up flowers.

And the Wisteria is just starting to bloom.

I'll be going around snapping photos of that.
Truly a sight to be seen because it is
everywhere! So happy to see it growing
in our backyard trees!

We have loved the surprise of every season

since we've been here.

I think our house is smiling now.

She sure is purdy. 

Now, on to the next project!

See ya soon,

Amber

Cozy

The scarf that turned into a blanket...

{Thanks to the handiwork of hubby's Mama}

Although it's technically MINE,

everyone likes me to share (of course).

{Maybe Nana will make some smaller ones

 for each of the kids.}

Yeah, that's a hint. 

Just trying to be subtle about it.

Haha!

The daily musings of the cozy blanket...

am: Boys snuggle in it after they wake up and

luckily it's large enough for the both of them. Later

on, if it's one of those days, they lay and watch TV

with it snugly around them.

pm: Dear daughter snuggles under it while she does 

homework or peruses the web on her ipad.

pm, pm: Mama finally gets her turn. I snuggle under it

till my world turns dark and my husband 

so sweetly caresses  smacks my forehead to tell 

me to go to bed.

My rules for my blanket...

NO DOGS ALLOWED!

And boy, do they ever try!!

Especially Mia. 

She is not the sweetest smelling dog in the world so

she's forbidden from my blanket. 

Thank you Evelyn!

We all love MY blanket!!

xo

Have a good weekend everyone 

{still can't bring myself to say ya'll}!

xo, Amber

My Kind of Jewelry

Are you a jewelry kind of gal?

Me, not so much.

Well, personal jewelry, not so much.

My normal wardrobe consists of 

blue jeans and a t-shirt or tank top,

my diamond stud earrings, 

my favorite vintage spoon ring and 

my wedding set. 

Of course there are times that I go naked...

no rings. 

Hehehe....

Sometimes, I will put some pretty stuff on.

It's usually handmade pieces from

friends that I love.

But that's only when I "dress up", 

which is rarely.

Now if you entice me with some house jewelry,

my eyes get wide and I get a dumb goofy smile going!

The Mr. picked up some jewelry this weekend

since I've been slowly painting doors

and purposely leaving the beautiful

gold knobs off. 

{I dislike taping!}

Just a couple of weeks ago,

we were still deciding what finish to go with.

Oil rubbed bronze won.

It looks great with the color scheme and really stands out

against the light color.

Things are starting to look good around here and I can

almost envision what it will all look like once

it's complete.

Oh, that will be a happy day.

xo, Amber

I Finished a Project!

Yay! One more thing checked off the list.

The fireplace surround is done and 

I love how it looks.

Once we paint the back wall, the richness

of the fireplace will really stand out.

Whitewash = washed out.

The blue tape... laziness in removing. I was going to paint that little strip of wood but the thrifty person that put

it in used the tongue side of a tongue and groove board

and it looks hideous so that will get replaced SOON.

And yes, the logs are missing. We took them out because they stunk the house up when we lit the fireplace.

They were made out of some funky foam and were probably

caustic (probably not but dang, they stunk!). 

We're in the market for some new, concrete or ceramic ones.

My supplies...

-French Linen Annie Sloan Chalk paint

-Valspar glaze in Asphaltum*

-Annie Sloan soft wax (clear)

*I love working with this particular glaze

and have used it for years.

I know lots of ladies use stain for the 

antiquing but I love the ease of use with 

this glaze. You can't mess it up!

And the French Linen paint, LOVE the color!

It has a grayish green hue to it

and it works VERY well with

our cottage and compliments

the Nomadic Taupe we have else where.

I think I am going to paint over 

the red wall with a shade very similar to 

the French Linen. It's a great neutral.

We still have lots to do but at least this part is done!

Here's before:

And after:

Looking forward to the mail tomorrow because

my MIL crochet me a big chunky throw that is

going to look amazing in the living room.

As for right now, I think I'm going to 

brew some coffee and sit

in the living room and enjoy my new

fireplace!

See ya soon!

xo, Amber

TICKity Blah!

Ah, the joys of living in the country.

With a couple of days of warm weather (70's),

it seemed to prompt some disgusting

critters to venture out to play.

Mix that with two little boys that like to 

kick leaves and bushes, 

play in the dirt and venture off the cleared path and 

you have the perfect makings of a tick party!

Yuk and double itchy yuk!

I would have taken pictures but just looking

at those things gives me the

heebie jeebies!

As a Mama, getting them off

as quick as possible and doing 

body scans is the only thing on my mind,

not getting the camera for show and tell.

Today, I will be investigating to see if 

there are some natural

tick repellents for man

and yard because I ain't having this!

If you have any suggestions,

DO TELL!!!

This reminds me of our late Summer/early Fall

adventures at my Grandparents lake cabin

in Minnesota, when I was a kid.

I was the lucky one that always got them.

Go figure.

So....

during my absence, I've worked on 

the fireplace only a little

(You know, because the weather).

The yard got spruced up instead with a 

straight and perfect picket fence

and the walkway arbor is now complete by

Petunia's painting hand (of course a little "green"

persuasion always helps).

Mr. FPH built a deck with

recycled material from a job

and the iron gazebo has a

new home in the yard.

The boys and I planted two

Cecil Brunner roses on opposing

sides and I cannot wait until we get some new

shoots stretching up!

These two potted roses came with us from CA

and have so patiently been waiting

to stretch their roots (eight months?!) :)

Today, we work on the fireplace since

we have a rainy day!

I was going to paint it white then

antique it but I ventured into

Perfectly Imperfect a few days ago and picked up

some chalk paint in French Linen.

Time to get to work! 

See ya soon

xo, Amber