Favorite Thing Saturday

This little picture hangs in  my kitchen. I have no idea who gave it to me. When I was packing up my house some years ago...when I married Joe I found this on the front porch after everyone had gone. I had lived in this little town for 26 yrs and I made many friends. I picked out what I wanted to take to my new home and then let my kids take whatever they wanted. After that I had a big sale. The sale went for 2 days and when the last thing was gone I looked around and on the front porch I found a package with this picture inside. It was just there with no card. I still wonder who left it. I love the sentiment.

Today I'm linking with Claudia at http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com

Favorite Thing Saturday

This garden was one of my favorites this past year.You can't see it all in this photo. It's part of my herb garden on the west side of the house.Our yard slopes down to the woods in back. So when I work here I do it on a slant...kind of hard to do sometimes. I sit on a chair to weed and it tilts to one side...almost tipping over when I get up.I plant things that don't require as much water at the top of the garden, because the rain water runs down the slope and those plants at the bottom get more moisture. This past  year we didn't get much rain...so the herbs loved it. I've never seen the rosemary, sage and oregano do so well. This garden pretty much takes care of itself. The plants are so close that weeds don't dare move in. It goes on down along this side of our sloping yard. There are several different kinds of thyme as well. There are a few perennials mixed in...mostly natives. I've found that native plants and herbs do well together. I added a few new plants of Japanese Anemones on this side of the house too. They bloomed well for the first time this past year.It's funny that I love the herbs the best. Most would want luscious flowers, but I really like foliage plants. I enjoy the different textures and shades of green. I'm looking forward to gardening again this year. My gardens don't have many annuals...I'm growing old and can't do what I used to do. But I can keep these beds tidy.
I'm linking with Claudia at http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/
Balisha

Favorite Thing Saturday

Before I begin, I want to say that my heart is in Connecticut. Prayers are needed for the victims and families affected by the senseless school shooting yesterday. There are no words that can help. So, please pray.

Balisha

It's that day again...a Favorite Thing Saturday. Doing a weekly event like this...seems to make the week go faster. Join Claudia http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/  to see some of your favorite bloggers favorite things. It should be really nice this week...full of Christmas.

Some of my favorite things are Manger scenes or Creches. I have a couple that are really special to me. The one at our Church is beautiful and huge. Last week I mentioned that I have done some painting in my past and a little bit now. Several asked to see something that I painted.....so I searched through my old pictures and found one of my favorite things that I painted. It was a gift for our Priest. A Manger done in folk art and painted on a piece of slate. He really liked it and hung it on his wall. I hope you enjoy seeing it this Christmas season. I never made one of these for myself...maybe I'll have to do that someday. Well, we have another Favorite Thing Saturday before Christmas. If I don't hear from you again...have a Merry Christmas. Thanks for your many lovely comments.

Balisha 



Favorite Thing Saturday

Here it is Favorite Thing Saturday again. I thought of what I would put here today...and thought about a hobby that has lasted since the 1970's, when I took a painting class at our local college. That class led to many more classes. I was hooked and this began a( rest of my life) pleasure for me. I earned money to supplement our income in the early days...selling to shops and craft shows in our area. Sales at our house and the little Art Alley in Hampshire were so much fun. I've been in people's houses and I  see something that I painted on their walls without us knowing each other before. A restaurant has my things on the walls. I have painted hundreds of saw blades. One year a man came to my door and told me he wanted me to paint his Santa sleighs for him. We had a little partnership where he would make the sleighs and Santa's, and I would paint them. Another fellow wanted me to paint a picture of his kid's house on a shingle...and that started a whole new thing. Shingles were collected from many old buildings in our town. I started painting nature on a shingle. Birds were a favorite of mine. I stopped painting for income, when I married Joe. I had a big inventory of painted teakettles, pans, saws, shingles left over. I was reading the paper and found that a little school in our area was having a big sale to help buy some equipment for the school, and they were looking for donations. I called them and they came and took the boxes of things for their sale.Now, I paint occasionally for myself...and friends. I paint on clocks for a fellow in Hampshire. He refurbishes the old clocks and I do decorative painting on them. It's  a hobby now...one that I wish I could do more of, but my eyes are not as good as they used to be and they get tired easily...so I just paint for a little while. The picture above is my setup when I was painting a folk art creche on a triptych (three paneled board) for our former Priest.
I taught painting in my home for a while. Everyone that I taught went away feeling proud of their project. Anyone can paint...there are so many tricks and techniques in painting. If you ever feel that you would like to paint...take a class you'll love it.
Balisha

Join us at Claudia's http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/

A Favorite Thing Saturday

It's favorite thing Saturday again. I'll bet many will be showing something to do with Christmas this week. I've been visiting all around blogland during the week and touches of Christmas are showing up everywhere. Some are decorated inside and out.....trees in many rooms and the sweet smells of Christmas baking already coming out of their kitchens. I have a hard time picking out a favorite this week. I have bins and bins of Christmas decorations. We've downsized our decorating and many favorites didn't make the cut....but there is one thing that has been in my "holiday house" for many, many years. It's a little worn out, plastic Santa. Just a tiny little man, who has a new place to sit every year. His beard is stretched out and thinning, his felt suit is getting tattered, one of his boots falls off, if I'm not careful, and his hat has lost it's pom pom. Many would just give him a toss...but I will never do that. He belonged to my wonderful mother-in-law and I fell heir to him after she died along with so many pretty things.I have no idea how old he is. He wasn't ever her favorite or anyone else's, for that matter.......but he is a favorite of mine.
Claudia is hosting this week. Go over and see some of the favorites of many bloggers. It's so much fun to see what is a favorite for someone. You can find her at   http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/ .You can join us too, it's easy to do. Just follow the directions at Claudia's.
Thanks for visiting, Balisha

Favorite Thing Saturday

It's time for a Favorite Thing Saturday again. Time flies. My favorite thing this week is a place in our town. It sits on the corner of our Church property. A place for people to sit awhile and pray, meditate or just remember . This is the Sacred Heart Memorial Grotto on the grounds of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Byron, Illinois. It was built in 2010. I wrote about it in it's own blog while it was under construction. You can find it in my blog listings. It was quite an undertaking and the results...you can see in the pictures below.

 Here it is on a summer day. A beautiful addition to our Church. Many families take pictures here of their kids who are being confirmed, first communion, and weddings.

The architect drew up these plans after seeing the drawing that was the dream of one man. He certainly wasn't an artist, but he had an idea in his mind of how it would be.  He hired the best craftsmen to build this and sat there supervising everyday.

The statue of Jesus arrived by truck on a cold snowy day. It was ordered from Italy and would be the focal point of the Grotto.

The surrounding gardens were planted and cared for by several ladies of our Church.Some flowers have done well and others had to be replaced. The roses are doing especially well.

The Grotto at night, is a beautiful sight. Drivers going by stop to look at it. Children leave little mementos for Jesus. Once in a while a flower is just lying there. The benches are inscribed with names of family members. The benches sit on pavers where members of our Church have put their family names for remembrance.

This Grotto is very personal to me. It was the dream of my husband, Joe. He thought about it and drew it up for the architect. He was the general contractor for this project. He was there everyday helping when he could. It is a memorial to his first wife and all of our deceased family are remembered with a paver. This gift to the Church will live on after we are gone. It's one of my favorite things.

So, join in with us on this Favorite Thing Saturday...just visit Claudia at http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/ and see some really interesting favorites.

Balisha



A Favorite Thing Saturday

Here is someone who greets our visitors at the front door each day. Her name is Goosey Lucy. I wrote a short piece about her just yesterday. She had a little repair work being done, so she could be dressed for the holidays. She came to live at my house many years ago. A gift from my son John..and his family. For a while she seemed to get so many outfits....I used to kid that she had more clothes than I did. Then one day last year, a visitor (a tiny mouse) crept into her box of clothes and nibbled a wee bit. A little hole here and another over there.....leaving her with a very small wardrobe. The little visitor didn't bother her Christmas attire, however. So right now...she has been bathed and touched up with paint. She stands ready in her Pocahontas costume for Thanksgiving and Christmas will be next. She stands proudly greeting people who go by and entertaining the kids in the neighborhood...who always ask, "When is Goosey Lucy going to change her outfit...and can I help?" She's one of my favorite things for Favorite Things Saturday. Why don't you go over to Claudia's and see some of the favorites of bloggers. Soon we will be showing lots of holiday favorites..
Balisha

http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/

A Favorite Thing Saturday

Join Claudia and many others today at Favorite Things Saturday. http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/

My favorite thing for this Saturday is a work in progress. I have special places in my home where I sit and relax...One place is next to the sliding glass doors in the breakfast nook. I have a rocker there and a small table with my bird books and binoculars. I love to sit there early in the morning, after I have filled the bird feeders...and watch to see who comes first.I have a throw on the back of this rocker...in case it's chilly.

My other favorite place is in the living room in a chair next to the fireplace. I have a couple stacks of books there that I am reading...or want to read and a floor lamp for good light. I can see the TV from this chair and on the back is a cozy afghan for chilly days.

Another place is in the dining room...next to the dry sink, where I keep all my books on my Faith. My little collection of Willow Tree Angels sit there.There is a statue of the Blessed Virgin also and some seasonal candles as well. I can sit at the dining room table and read with the chandelier giving good light. This is a bright room with windows to the front of the house.

 The favorite thing is the new plant window in my computer room. I sit here at my desk for so long some days...so I wanted a more beautiful spot. The last couple of days, have found me hunting up things to put in this window.So far, I have some amaryllis bulbs that were just potted. This is a sunny window...one of the only ones in the house, so they will do well here. Every year I grow these beautiful flowers, but they are placed throughout the house and not where I spend much time. Now, in this window, I can enjoy the blooms, while I watch the bird feeder outside. The window is tall with a floral valance at the top. No other curtains...just blinds that are usually pulled way up and out of view.I have a small table there. It is one that I bought years ago at the plant sale at the local botanic gardens. It is made out of concrete with pine cones and needles imprinted on the top. I put little mini pumpkins along the sill with my black metal cat. A berry wreath hangs there...I love wreaths made of berries. A wooden cabinet, a recent garage sale find for $2 sits empty for now. A favorite painting from my mother-in-law of a woman at the Louvre...painting. An inspiration for me to pick up my paints. Red birds, a gift from my daughter. I have a couple of stacks of garden magazines on the right...all in one spot for easy reading. A red pepper plant for fall, and a concrete planter with a sedum, brought in for the winter. I know that I will change this many times over the year. I have a couple of plants to add already. I can put seasonal things there with the one restriction...it can't spoil my view of the birds.When I was taking pictures there were only sparrows eating, since then a blue jay, cardinal, and some nuthatches have visited. Maybe they are wondering, "Whatt in the world is she doing to our view inside the house?"
Balisha

A Favorite Thing Saturday

I'm joining with Claudia  http://mockingbirdhillcottage.com/ today...A Favorite Thing Saturday.

I was looking around the house for something to show and then I thought ...our weather will soon be snow and cold.Everything outside will be covered and put to bed for the winter. I  have a favorite little corner of my garden...right by the front entry and the driveway. It's the first thing that people see, when they come to visit. I have a purple chair with a concrete planter on it. A neighbor friend made the planter with concrete and a hosta leaf. I wondered what to plant in this and decided to plant hens and chicks. They have thrived in this shallow planter. There are other tiny sedums planted there as well. Just a sprinkle of water to keep it going and it's happy. I put it in the garage for the winter, but it's really not necessary.I think that I have had this for 5 or 6 years with the same plants in it. 

I was out early this morning...it was cold!!! I had to come in and put on my favorite gardening jacket. I first emptied the pot on the deck and then went down to pull my tomato plants out. We put the green tomatoes in the basement on newspaper, with a cover of newspaper. Last year this worked well and we had tomatoes for a long time...with only 2 not ripening. I put the cages in the garage and went to work on Mary's Garden. Cut down some hosta stalks, and tidied this little garden up. I started putting a few garden accessories away, but left out the favorites. Filled the bird feeders  and sat on my bench to watch a squirrel coming down from the top of the tree. I had just been watching a nuthatch in the same tree. I thought he was putting a sunflower seed in the bark. Sure enough, that scamp of a squirrel went to just the same spot and ate the seed.  Just like hiding a favorite treat in the cupboard and just when you want to enjoy it...it's gone.

I'm going out and take some pictures a little later, when the sun is just right. The road leading to our house is just beautiful this year. Last year it wasn't so colorful and we thought that fall might not be so pretty this year either....and surprise, when we turned the corner...fall beauty at it's best. 

Have a wonderful day...and please go a visit Claudia and her pals. You'll be glad you did.

Balisha