Our family has had quite a blow this weekend. We lost my dear Aunt Debby. She was only 55 and it was a totally shock. She had a few health issues but had been taking care of herself and had even recently gone to the doctor and they said she was fine. I am done talking about her death I want to talk about her life.
As far as I can remember she has been there for me. When we were little my sister and I were her girls. When my cousin Keith came along that never changed, we were still her girls. She treated us like her own children and loved us without missing a beat. I want to talk about her more, there are so many great stories to tell, but right now it is too painful.
I know she would not want me to be so sad, she would want me to do things to occupy my time and clear my head. She always encouraged us to invent, create, redo, reuse and basically keep on keeping on. In fact, I am certain she would get on my case for the amount of tears I have shed, she was just like that. So I have still been doing things, mostly half hearted but I have been busy.
I love the magazine "House Beautiful" in the March 2008 issue they talked about color matching and they specifically mentioned matching a Tiffany box. I decided it would be a fun thing to do and try it out myself. What a perfect match! Behr is by far my favorite paint.
I think Tiffany blue will be a great accent color in the wedding section at the store and I did get the cardboard trays the other day at the thrift store. 
They are sturdy and were only .29 each, how can you pass up a bargain like that?
Sorry that the picture is so blurry, I took it in a rush this morning as I was running out the door. I plan on painting some pretty white scrolls onto the trays to tone them down a bit. See how well the paint matches the Tiffany box.
So... if you want this color here is the recipe. Remember accent color is the word with this one.
Hakensaw Boys
Mt. Vernon Trail- Alexandria, VA
Well, time went by and the marriage did not last. The husband took the skillets and sewing machine. I guess he really wanted them. No matter what, they have been replaced and all is well. Thankfully, he had no interest in the dishes. I was at a Goodwill in 2000 and found a set of dishes almost exactly like my first set so I bought them for ten bucks. The new set was made by Gibson and sold at Target in the late 90's. So I had a 20 piece set give or take since a few dishes had been broke throughout the years. I was happy happy happy with the them.
Then in 2003 I got an insane cat that loved to jump on the counter or table and knock down dishes. All of a sudden my set started to dwindle. I had a quest to scour the world to obtain as much white embossed dishes made by Citation or Gibson.
I have done it. I have really done it. I have 30 place settings, a turkey shaped soup tureen, 4 serving dishes, four platters, salt and pepper shakers, a teapot, sugar bowl, creamer and the butter dish (not pictured). In short, I have plenty of dishes. I will now stop looking for them at thrift shops.
I am always trying to find interesting ways to add more cruciferous vegetables to my diet and this has become a fast favorite. I can read your mind. You are saying, "Brussels Sprouts... gross, no way". That is what I thought too before I learned that roasting turns them into little bites of yum. I am a big fan of 
Pour enough olive oil into the bowl to lightly cover vegetables, add salt and pepper and lightly toss.
Carefully transfer ingredients to the hot pan in a single layer. Flip vegetables after ten minutes and then check every ten minutes until potatoes are tender and sprouts are fully roasted. Do not overcook or the sprouts will end up soggy.
One thing that I did do was decorate the door. I know I will just have to take it down in a couple weeks but coming home to a pretty door makes me happy. I bought the wreath the week I moved into this place and I have had it on the door every spring since. You can tell too, it is getting a little worn. I am so excited that I will have the freedom to paint the door at my new home, so so excited.
I will miss the Cherry Blossoms
Isn't it funny that I will miss certain plants so much? There are so many people that I will miss much more but it is easier to tackle the goodbyes to things that cannot say goodbye back. 