Friday Five

1. Color Street Nails

I found out about this product from a Floss Tube Friend. Her cousin, Kaylyn sells them on her Facebook page A Pop of Color Nails with Kaylyn.  I got plain colors but I have been very happy with the ease of application and the longevity of the nails. It is real nail polish so you just take it off with nail polish remover. I have never been able to paint my fingernails without making a mess. These are easy peasy.

2. Art

I changed up my dining room art. I had a print in the dining room that I moved to the Livingroom. In fact I did a good bit of just moving things around. I will do a post on that next week. I found the print and the wooden trays at a local consignment shop and they were 20% off on the day I was shopping so it was a win win for me.  I used 3M command strips to hang them up. so far I am pleased....I will let you know how I like them after they have hung there a while.

3. Magic Eraser cloths.

These are a new product at our grocery store. I love Magic Erasers but I never felt that I got my money's worth out of the sponges. These clothes are perfect and you can use them to get into nooks and crannies.


4.New Ort container

I found this at Hobby Lobby in the Sewing section.  I have a thread problem. Or an ORT problem is you are a stitcher. Little threads left on the table beside my stitching chair in Decatur and at Grimmwood. So I am trying this and so far I really like it. I am thinking of getting one for Marvin's car to use as a small garbage bag.  I know I am dating myself but remember those slim plastic garbage containers that used to hang on the cigarette lighters in the cars when we were young? We need something like that for our cars today. Maybe I am just a messy person but I need a place to put my gum wrappers and other little bits of garbage. In the Nanavan, I cut the straps off a smaller shopping bag and hung the tag on  the purse hook. Works great.

5.Fall at Hobby Lobby

I could not believe the fall things were coming out but then I walked around a corner and I saw Christmas ornaments being placed on the shelves. Frankly I am hoping and praying the second half of 2020 is better than the first half of the year.

The Stream

No deep thoughts here my friends but rest assured I am praying for many things right now. Take it to the Lord and leave it there as the old gospel song says. This stream is not deep or wide but I hope you enjoy wading in for a few minutes this first Wednesday morning in June.

1. Many of you wanted to know what makes up a Starbucks Medicine Ball. Well it is a mixture of hot lemonade, honey, Citrus Mint and Peach Tea. Unfortunately the grande has as many grams of sugar as a can of Coke, so take your pick. There are several recipes on line for making it at home. They do suggest you purchase Teavana Tea. I did not realize that this is the Starbuck's brand of tea so it is a bit more expensive. You can also have the barista add a pump of peppermint to enhance the  drink. I will only be getting this drink if I have a cold. It would be very soothing. When I was a little girl I got pneumonia frequently and our family doctor suggested Hot Lemonade for me to help with congestion. So the Medicine Ball would be approved by Doctor Meacham.

2. It was the high light of my week to see Audrey and Joshua. Audrey is learning to read. Isn that always exciting? To see her world expand as she realizes the power of the written word makes this Nana very happy.

3. I finished reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.  If you read the Hunger Games series you will find it interesting to see what made President Snow turn to the Dark Side.( Pardon me Darth Vader for stealing your phrase!)  It also gives some insight as to why President Snow did not like District 12. In fact, it has made me consider reading The Hunger Games again this summer. I also finished An Episode of Sparrows by Rumer Godden. It is a sweet story with a happy ending but not my favorite book she has written. It is a reminder that the world was very different in London in the days after World War 2.  Her main character, Lovejoy, is one that will remain with you after the last page is turned. And finally I completed Jane Austen At Home by Lucy Worsley. It was as if Ms Worsley was reading this book to me. If you have ever watched any of her programs, shown here on PBS, you will remember her distinctive voice.  This book relates to Jane as a woman of her times, Georgian versus Victorian. I would recommend all three books.

4. In my redecorating, I had a few questions....Where did I get the turquoise tray on my coffee table? That was  a Hobby Lobby find and purchased with a 40% off coupon. You could find any wooden tray you like and it is easily painted. I think the "Chippier" it looks with other colors showing through, the better.   Another question, Where were my sofa cushions? I had removed the cushions I had there as I just did not like them. They found a home on the bed in the guest room. Those cushions were just a bit too big for the sofa. I am still looking for replacements.( maybe those roosters from Tractor supply would be a fun design choice.lol)

5. Speaking of decorating, check out two blogs on my blog roll.  One is We Bought a Farmhouse. Sam and Josh bought an old farmhouse in upstate New York quite a few years ago now and they have been working on renovations. They just completed their living room and it is so pretty. Check it out. Welcome to Paige from Farmhouse Vernacular. I just added her blog to my roll. She and her husband purchased an old farm house in Kentucky and they are renovating it but sticking to an early 1900s style.  She just posted a tour of her house on the blog.  I admire people who have the guts to take on a renovation and do most of the work themselves.

6. This week I am anxiously checking my mailbox for one of my birthday gifts, The Hits of John Denver. It should arrive any day now. I can put it in my Nanavan and I can listen to John Denver whenever I want to hear Thank God I'm a Country Boy. No mean children in my house who will hide it from me at every opportunity. I think I have mentioned that my mean teen agers put my John Denver tapes in the freezer wrapped like some sort of frozen food.  All they had to say was Mom, we don't want to listen to John Denver AGAIN!!

Have a good week my dear blog friends.

On Grimmwood Time

When we are at Grimmwood we live on Grimmwood time. We stay up late, sleep late, eat when we please and just have a good time.

Marvin and I went to Tractor Supply to get some Fish Food and I found some cute home decor.

I love this Rooster. I should have placed him over the coffee bar.

My Rooster Pillow.:)

And I was able to use the dish towel that Deborah gave me for my birthday.

Our honey bees seem to be doing well. So far so good.

Friday I was out and about doing some errands and I noticed how pretty the mountiains looked that day. The sun was making such beautiful shadows.

I tried to capture the moment but a picture never does it justice.

On Saturday our Canton Grimmlins came up.

As Marvin put it, their parents were there as well.lol

Me and my boys.  Nancy was there, we just did not grab a photo of her. Because as you grandparents know, it is all about the Grands.

Joshua is SO Big.

Audrey was so happy to get her own bucket of fish food to toss to the fish with Grandpa.

Moher loved seeing the great grands. It did her good. As my sister said, it was good to see her smiling. She has been inside except for trips to the beauty parlor.

It was good medicine for all of us to be together. Charles said that the social distancing  is especially hard on himself and Audrey as they are extroverts.  I think prolonged social distancing is hard on all of us. We need each other.

Saturday Stitching

First off let me congratulate the winners of my Birthday Giveaway.

Winner of St Patrick's Day Hoopla  is   Mary.

Winner of Easter Hoopla is Nancy

Winner of 4th of July Hoopla is Margie.

Thanks to all who entered. Please send me your snail mail address ....agrimm55@hotmail.com  I lost some of my contacts so I am going to have to start over. Computer issues. Technology....lovely when it works, maddening when it does not.

A gentle reader asked about my Magnifier.

You can purchase it from Amazon. It is Daylight UN91101 Mini Flexi Lens.   I would not be able to stitch if I did not have this handy helper.

Now for a WIP Parade.

Three out of nine of the Grands ornaments are stitched.  Prairie Schooler Christmas Alphabet.  Stitched on 14 count Aida.

Lindy Stitches.   36 count linen.

This is such a fun stitch.   Light Ash Lugana from Jen's Stitching Niche.  DMC color conversion per the chart.

Pumpkin Hollow Farm   I am stitching this on a piece of 28 count even weave from my stash. I am only doing the house and the sign.  One of my older WiPs.

My oldest WIP....My Christmas List by Silver Creek Samplers. I need to just finish it. For some reason that angel was giving me fits and I put it away.

Riley Harbor by Kathy Barrick....Jane Austen needle minder!  I did get one more house done as well as the tree. Once I complete the house on the left, I can do some of the water!! Lots of houses left to stitch on the Right.Ugh....

November Word Play by Brenda Gervais. 28 count Aida that I coffee tea dyed.

Let Freedome Ring by Abby Rose Designs. Not sure this will be complete by July 4th of this year!

I love this one.....cant wait to get it all stitched and made into a drum.

I finally started Kringles.   I dilly dallied about starting in the middle or at the top. My friend, Brenda, said just start at the top and get all that snow stitched first. So I followed her advice.

I have a few more stitches I did not show because they have not been touched since my last WIP Parade.  I do hope to finish Two White Houses this week so I can make it into a drum.  it is good to have several things going at the same time.   If you get bored with one stitch you can find another one that is speaking to you!

Happy Stitching.

Friday Five

1. New Insulated Glass for Summer.   $10 At Kirklands.I love Blue and White. This just says Summer to me.

2. New Book .... A prequel to The Hunger Games. How this author can make Coriolanus Snow sympathetic, I am eager to see.

3. New Starbucks Drink....my sis in law told me about this hot drink, A Medicine Ball. It is delicious but would be better in the winter time or if you have a cold.  She says she drinks one every day as it is supposed to be an immune booster.  I still prefer my favorite Pink Drink for Summer. This photo was made in my car...see my hand sanitizer that I keep handy?

4. Newly Dyed Cross Stitch Fabric....I took some time on Saturday to dye some bits and pieces I had as well as one large piece of Evenweave from Hobby Lobby.  Something about dyeing the cheaper fabrics makes them nicer to stitch on. It could be all in my head but that is my story and I am sticking to it.

5. New Book Basket  I got this for $12 at Kirklands. It was on sale the other day when I shopped there. I needed a book basket to place beside my cozy chair. ( Margaret named my bedroom recliner the cozy chair as she likes to sit there when she visits.) My side table was beginning to look like a disaster.  I really like this gray basket with my initial. I am thinking of going back to Kirklands and picking up some Christmas gifts while their sale is ongoing.

Wonderful Wednesday

While sitting in my house, I got the hankering to do some sprucing up.  As I told my friend, Sharon, in North Carolina, " I need to do some degrannification."

I hear the word Grannified used a lot on HGTV.  It is not complimentary.  While I love the way my home looks, I had gotten into some ruts.

I did not want to spend my birthday money on home decor....let's face it, I spent it on stitching.:) So I referred to some of my favorite You Tube channels. Simply Lake and Lace, Lynette Yoder and Adaline Zook.  All of these are young women who have a fun decor in their homes. And one thing they all say is that Paint can really change a piece of furniture.

My coffee table was purchased second hand several years ago and it had seen better days. It was dinged and the color really blended into the room, nothing special.  So I decided to chalk paint it. I did the top and left the bottom the old wood color. I lived with that for a week for so before deciding that it was not the look I was wanted in my living room. So I decided to paint the whole table. I knew if I did not like it, I could sell it on Facebook Market Place and get something else.

I headed off to Hobby Lobby for more Lace Chalk paint as well as dark wax.  Chalk paint is great because it does not require primer and we all know I am a lazy girl.  I spent most of Friday working on the coffee table and I am glad to say, it is what I was going for and I will keep it.

It looks a little bright in this photo so here is a close up so you can see the wax.

The wax really gives it a distressed look and hides some imperfections while emphasizing design, mainly those curvy legs.  I used to watch Matt and Shari on Room by Room on HGTV and Shari always said a room should have one thing that was unexpected. My coffee table is my unexpected piece. I  do have several painted pieces in the room. One table is black, and in the background of this picture you can see a teal piece I picked up at a restaurant.   At a restaurant you may say...well it was really a coffee shop and this small teal table was in their cute bathroom holding a brass spittoon that was full of paper hand towels.  I asked the owner what color the table was painted because I was going to "steal" his color.  I was totally surprised when he asked if I would ike to buy the table. The price was right and I took it home.  Turns out he used his coffee shop to showcase pieces that he had redone and this was his side hustle.

So for about $15 I got a whole new coffee table and if I choose to sell it later, I think I will recoup my investment.

I also spent some time moving some lamps around as well as changing some vignettes. It may still be grannified but I am enjoying my nest.

Happy Memorial Day

And today we remember all those who gave all so that we can enjoy our freedom every day.  Several members of our family on the Tankersley and the Grimm sides have served in the Armed Forces. Today we remember Marvin's cousin, Emory Morel Smith who gave his life in Viet Nam.

No big plans for Memorial Day here at Nanaland.  It is hard to believe that Summer is here. Even though these quarantine days seem to move slowly, time is still marching on.  We are slowly getting back to normal here in Alabama. Marvin and I are choosing to limit our going out and about.  I never realized what a gadfly I was before this virus! But Deborah and I are planning to go to Mr Henry's for breakfast on Tuesday. The last time we were there was the beginning of March. We sure miss our waitresses, Monica and Becky.  They always provide service with a smile.  Another step in the road back to normality for me.

I want to leave you with this cutie pie...no not one of my grands.

A Foothills Farm baby.  Leta took this photo and the Facebook page, Udder Surprise, posted it on Saturday. My sister is famous! At least in the farm world.:)

Have a blessed day friends.