Vintage Saucers

I picked up the cutest set of 6 saucers this week. I think they will look great in a fall tablescape.

The mark on the back is:

I've looked on-line and cannot find the pattern name. I'm hoping one of Coloradolady's readers will recognize the pattern and share the name with me!

I'm joining Vintage Thingie Thursday. Click on over and join us!



Updated: The Husband, of all people, found the pattern name on the internet. It appears the name is Largo. Thanks, honey!

Couscous Salad - Version Three

When the heat starts blasting, I start looking for cool foods.

I took a simple couscous recipe I've posted here and here and changed it again. This version has diced red/yellow/orange peppers, cucumber, tomato and feta cheese.

Pretty, isn't it? Tasty too!

What is one of your "cool" foods for the heat of the summer?

I'm a Dreamer

I've told you before that I am a wild dreamer. You can read some of those doozies by clicking on the word "dreams" in the "labels" category on the right side of the screen.

My dreams frequently incorporate elements of what I've recently seen on TV or in movies, what I've read and or what I've discussed with family and friends. I'm currently reading The Passage, which is one of those "post apocalyptic" books I enjoy so much.

I read several exciting chapters last night in bed. Once I turned out the light and fell into a deep sleep, I started dreaming and suddenly Babcock* was speaking to me. SCARY!

How about you? Does what you watch, read or discuss influence your dreams?

*Babcock is a main character in The Passage.

Air Conditioning Is Our Friend

It's hot outside.

When it's hot like this, I want to stay inside. However, since my last post I've been to a number of garage and estate sales looking for great items for Cindy's Cupboard. It's very hot (and sweaty!) work, but I found some lovely things.

Let's see, what else has happened?

Saturday night we attended a birthday party for a fantastic woman. (You know who you are!) We enjoyed visiting with friends and I met some new people. We had a great time.

On Sunday afternoon we went to Conrad Farms to pick up some fresh corn on the cob, tomatoes and cucumber. On Sunday evening a very good, very old friend came over and we served the vegetables with grilled ribeyes. Mmmm, mmmm, good!

This morning I went to one estate sale, followed by a quick visit to Cindy's Cupboard. The afternoon was spent at home cleaning and pricing new items, which is cool work!

What have you been up to? And, how are you keeping cool?

Breakfast in the Backyard

Would you like to join me for breakfast?

The table is ready.

Look, there's a chicken watching us.

The sun is smiling on us.

I can't wait to pick ripe Cherokee Purple tomatoes from those plants! 

In addition to the happy sun, it appears as if the frog boys will be watching us from afar.

I didn't make coffee. I thought we'd have some juice and a big glass of ice cold milk.

Would you like orange juice or apple juice? Whole, 2% or skim milk?

How do you want your eggs prepared?

We have strawberry or apple jelly to spread on our toast.

I'll be right back with the bacon!

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day.

Thanks for joining me!

Tablecloth: Estate sale

Napkins: Estate sale

Glasses - Forest Green Depression: Estate sale

Glasses - Red, White & Green: Estate sale

Silverplate: Maternal grandmother's. I need to research the pattern name.

Plates: Bed, Bath & Beyond, Fitz & Floyd Everyday Bone China, Nevaeh White

I'll be joining Susan at Tablescape Thursday. Come on over and join the party!

A Hot Mess

I mentioned in this post that my hair had suddenly become a hot mess. The last time I had my hair done (cut & color) was approximately 10 months ago. Yes, that's right, 10 months ago!

I became really, really tired of the maintenance of my hair. Since I was no longer working in a corporate role, I decided to let it go. Go it did.

My hair has always grown thick and fast and this time was no exception. In the two weeks leading up to our Canadian trip, my hair had become so hot and heavy I was using a very attractive clip (not) to keep it off my neck.

When I returned to Tulsa, I scheduled an appointment with Sam at Samuel Grayson Salon & Spa and here's how I look today:

Better don't you think? With the length at my shoulders and a little judicious thinning, I am so much more comfortable.

I like it!

The Husband also likes it. He said he was beginning to think I was going to become one of those religious women who never cut their hair. I told him I could become a lot of things, but not that.

What do you think?

NOTE: My mother has always said of her gray hairs, "I earned every one of them, why would I cover them?" I have now officially adopted my mother's policy. :-)

Where Have I Been All Day?

Where haven't I been is the question! I left the house at 8:30am to do a few things. This is a list of my stops for the day:

1. Lottie's estate sale
2. Fikes-Parkhill Liquor store
3. Office Depot
4. Estate Sales Plus sale
5. Gardners Books
6. Home to unload the car and eat lunch
7. Utica Square post office
8. Lowe's
9. Target
10. Reasor's
11. Back to the Utica Square post office because I thought I left my sunglass case there
12. Hicks Brunson to buy a new sunglass case because it wasn't at the post office or in the car or in my purse
13. Home to unload the car and put away the groceries
14. Home Depot
15. Phoenix Cleaners

And suddenly, it was 4:30pm and I still had not been to these places:

1. Credit Union
2. Goodwill to drop off donation
3. Hobby Lobby and/or Michaels to find frames for a couple of new prints, since I haven't been able to find anything at the estate sales

I'm pooped, but I need to cook dinner and then sort through my estate sale purchases to separate the items I'm keeping from the items I'm planning to sell. (If you speak to The Husband, don't tell him I'm keeping anything. Thanks.)

Being a housewife is tough and tiring. And the vacuum cleaner is still staring at me. I'm just going to ignore it this evening. I'll speak to it tomorrow.

How about you? Where did you go today?

Happy Father's Day

My Dad in August, 1994 at my wedding to The Husband:

The Husband's Dad, at our wedding in August, 1994:

Unfortunately, they are no longer with us. We miss them both, very, very much.

They would so enjoy the grand and great-grandchildren who have joined the family, both by marriage and by birth, since they have been gone.

They would also enjoy all the travel stories, education stories, and home move/purchase stories by family members.

Bill and Jesse, we miss you every day, in ways big and small.

Thanks for being our Fathers. We could not have asked for anyone better.

Highlights from Banff

A fun part of my trip was The Husband and I spending the weekend in Banff.

We stayed at the Banff Springs Hotel.

 The view from our room.

We used the bus system to go between the hotel and town. Here's The Husband at the bus stop in front of the hotel.

We walked the town, stopping in lots of shops and restaurants. The following photo is for my mom. We made her sit at the bar in this restuarant in Calgary in 1998. You gotta know my mom to know why that's so funny.

We revisited "the scene of the crime." I can't give you details, but if you ever meet my brother-in-law be sure to ask him.

Back at the hotel, from our room we saw a bride and groom having pictures taken.

Can you imagine this scenery as the background of your wedding photos?

The next morning we drove around and saw an elk by the gondola.

We were surprised to see only one elk. We used to see herds of them in town. Maybe we just missed them on this trip.

We drove behind the hotel to a scenic lookout and took a self portrait. Wow...my hair is a hot mess! And where did all that gray come from? Something has got to be done about it! (The hair, not the gray.)

Here's the hotel without us.

We left Banff and headed toward Calgary, driving through Cochrane. Of course, we had to stop for MacKay's famous ice cream!

It was fun for us to re-live all of our previous weekends in Banff. 

Monday was my last day in Calgary. I didn't do much while The Husband worked. I walked and walked. And, I read quite a bit. Monday evening we went out for a nice dinner, which started with this Duck Trio. 

Foie Gras Terrine, Smoked Duck Breast, and Duck Rillette with an Apricot preserve and Red Currant Jelly, served with Crostini.

Yum, Yum.

I was up at the crack of Calgary's dawn on Tuesday and saw the sunset in Tulsa that night. The Husband is also now home. 

My new question is, "Where are we going next?"

Highlights From Calgary

The Husband has been on an extended business trip to Calgary and I was happy to join him for a few days. It was a trip down memory lane for us, since we lived in the city from October, 1997 to October, 1998 on a "temporary foreign assigment."

Have I ever told you that I had never lived anywhere but Tulsa until October, 1997? No? Well, it's true. When we married in 1994, The Husband said to me "I'm going to move you out of this town one day." He did. He moved me in a big way. Out of the country!

We drove by the condo building where we lived. We were lucky that our company leased us a place in this great location.

We walked to Olympic Plaza

We admired the beautiful flowers on the plaza.

We wondered why they had pink gophers on the plaza. Anyone?

We took photos of the bronze statues on the plaza, celebrating The Famous Five.

I visited the Glenbow Museum one day. My favorite piece of art there was Hunter's Campfire by Corneilus Krieghoff. Unfortunately, the link is to a black & white image of the painting. Why I liked it so much was because the colors were so vivid, it was like you were right there at the campfire and could see it flickering. Very realistic!

I strolled Stephen Avenue while The Husband was at work. By strolled, I mean shopped. For two days.

I love this piece of art on Stephen Avenue.

We ate at fun places every evening. And drank. The martini gave it away, didn't it?

This particular evening, a group of 15 or so people came by with their dogs. It was an obedience class. It was fascinating to watch the dogs being put through their paces in a public place with lots of people and activity. Check out the following picture of the dogs sitting on the large concrete balls. Each dog had to sit there for 4-5 minutes regardless of the distractions going on around them. There were 3 balls on each side of the avenue, which meant six dogs at a time were sitting there patiently waiting to be released. Very entertaining!

We enjoyed being back in Calgary, but we also enjoyed our weekend in Banff. More on that part of the trip to come in the next post.

Hello, my name is Cindy and I'm an...

Overpacker!

If you follow me on twitter, you know that this past week I have been in Calgary, Canada.

I arrived home this afternoon and immediately unpacked my suitcase. I had the expected dirty clothes, but I also unpacked the following CLEAN clothes:

• two pairs of pants
• two shell tops
• one cotton, 3/4 sleeve top
• one set of "unmentionables"
• one swimsuit and cover-up

All of this after The Husband challenged me to not pack too much and I removed several items from my suitcase before leaving last week.

I'm better at packing than I used to be, but I still think I need to take extra items for "just in case." This is not a good thing nowadays, since the airlines are so strict about suitcase weight and are quick to charge extra fees.

How about you? Are you an overpacker? If not, how do you decide what items you need to pack?

P.S. Photos and commentary from my trip will follow in a day or two!

Cindy's Cupboard is Open for Business!

I've been absent from here because I've been busy with my new venture! Cindy's Cupboard is open as of today.

If you live in the area, I'd love for you to visit my booth.

If you don't live in the area, I think you need to take a vacation to beautiful Jenks, OK and shop the local antique scene!

In related news, I'm exhausted tonight. I haven't done this much physical labor in one day in years. Years, I say!

P.S. I'd love for you to become a follower of Cindy's Cupboard blog, Twitter and Facebook. Thanks!