The Lazy Meme

The instructions with this are to bold the ones you've done, leave the others in normal type. So here goes. I'm in a meme mood tonight, I guess.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain. (not a full-on mountain, but I've been hiking quite a bit, especially in college)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped (I would totally do it; Doug thinks I need to wait until the kids are older, so I'm waiting...)
12. Visited Paris (No, but I flew through there once.)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon (want to... need to build up to be in better shape for this; maybe in the next 5 years?)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29 Seen a total eclipse (can't remember; I think so?)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33 Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41 Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. Visited Africa (Egypt is in Africa)
45 Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (no, but I've been drawn)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie (only the home movie variety-- birthday parties, children being born, etc.)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class (only a self-protection class)
59. Visited Russia
60 Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason
64 Donated blood, platelets, or plasma
65. Gone sky diving (would love to do this too... but I'm waiting...)
66 Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67 Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London (no, but I watched it in Moscow)
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79 Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book (no, just a photo book, not the same thing at all!)
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Several of these I had to ask Doug about, because I couldn't remember! What about you? If you do this "Lazy Meme", sign up & link back here:

Hope you're enjoying a great summer; we sure are!

Enough About Me, How About You?

Via Rachael Phillips, Pinterest

"Your blog is your unedited version of yourself". ~ Lorelle

As you've probably noticed, I am pretty diligent wrt popping into my blog each day and rabbiting on about something/anything. It's a daily habit now.... over 3 years of espousing my opinions on everything.... are you sick of me yet? Hmm, dangerous question. I have had a few life setbacks recently and to be honest, some days/weeks I have struggled to be here. Some days, when I just want to bypass the computer and head out the door, I ask myself, 'why DO I blog? what draws me here?' I am sure you ask yourself the same question, especially when the blogging mojo flies out the door, as it often does.

Why do I blog? First and foremost, I put something up most days as I know that many of you join me for breakfast and coffee in the mornings. I know you are there waiting for me. I receive your emails about how my blog fits into your life. I am grateful that I can be part of your day in some little way.

Secondly, the friendship. You are my friends. I have met many of you in person and I share my day with you, long after my blog post in the morning. We tweet, we email, we share, we scheme, we support each other, we meet for coffee, I stalk your building sites!

Thirdly, I believe blogging has helped me discover me. Through my interactions with you, I have discovered more about myself than ever before. I also think I tune in each morning to 'be with me'. This is where I can be me. Funny isn't it. This blog is me.

And lastly, I am going to build another house and I want you there to help me again. I couldn't have done it last time without you. Honestly. Wait for me, will you? It's gonna be a beauty.

I feel like a bloggy rest this weekend (although I will have to post tomorrow just quickly when Katrina and Amie finish their first room on 'The Block'. Have to put in my 2 bobs worth).

So why do YOU blog? What keeps you going? What inspires you to check in every day? How has blogging changed/shaped you as a person? I am so curious to know what YOU think.

..... and Happy Friday!

Here are a few of my favourite things...

One of the best things about taking Halfpenny Home out and about to a craft fair is the packing up of all our most favourite things...this Aspalls bag has been used an awful lot and not always just for the lovely Aspalls Cyder bottles it was originally designed to carry - it's also perfect for transporting the handpainted knitting needles that we love using!

It was my turn to choose which of our favourite goodies from HH HQ I wanted to take along to the Saint's Fair in Ipswich, a BRILLIANT craft fair organised by the rather wonderful Jess and Chris combo imakefunstuff - it's always a lot of fun!

As you can see I decided to show off just some of the ribbons, ric rac and trimmings that we have along with some rather wonderful Knit Collage and Gedgrave Flock yarns!
It was lovely to meet people that had read about Jacqui and I in the EADT piece by Steven Russell 'The Tweeter and the Tax Investigator' BUT the highlight (for me!) was meeting up with a fellow Tweeter @katiewardwriter ! Katy has just had her first novel Girl Reading published and as we are all local writers Ipswich Waterstones have been so very supportive and organised events for us!
Twitter brings the most unlikely people together - crafty girl meets a proper author! Katie is as lovely in real life as she is on Twitter! (as this bit of the blog is all about my obsession with twitter I should add a :-) right about now...) as I also met up with @katyark who I have met a lot in real life but didn't realise she was her...and she dodged the camera, tsk!

Look at those scrumptious yarns...irresistable!

The other great bit of Sunday was that on arrival I found that the HH stall was right next to a great friend of both Jacqui and I! Anita is a glass blower and she runs amazing workshops where you can transform old glass into beautiful pieces of art for your home!

Some of the fantastic cheeseboards that Anita makes from old wine bottles.

All this socialising and chatting about craft can build up quite an appetite but I never bother with taking along a picnic (unusual for me!) for the Saint's Fair as the food on sale there is always fab!

The lovely stallholders even delivered...

What a lovely day, Nic x

Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood

image here

It’s not just a hop, skip, and a jump away to the nearest neighbor out here in the country.  That’s why we never expected to get to know anybody… not in a real personal way.  So imagine our surprise when in the first week of moving in, we got not one, but TWO full-out dinner invitations (which we accepted).  For our family of eight, it’s no small feat having us over. 

When a neighbor saw our moving truck hurtling down the road, he and his son sped over on their bikes to help us unload. Another neighbor brought us a plate of home baked cookies, and another brought us a box of chocolates.  That sweet couple even brought a pen and paper to write down all the children’s names and ages so they wouldn’t forget.  

As someone who likes everything just so before inviting people in, it’s been a humbling experience for me.  Everyone wants to see the fixer upper in its “before” state.  Oh my!

I never expected how much this house would stretch me… physically, emotionally, and even spiritually.  I also never expected the blessings we would receive through the kindness of strangers we now call friends. 

Recipe Swap Roundup - Main Course Salads

The theme for this week's recipe swap was Main Course Salads. With the heat of summer in full force, as well as an abundance of gorgeous fresh produce in supermarkets and farmers markets, we can all use some lighter, healthier recipes.

I always hope whoever gets my recipe likes it, so I was thrilled to see that Katie's whole family liked the BBQ Chicken Salad:


Moviegirl03 loved her recipe for Southwestern Chicken Salad:


Jaida's recipe for Quinoa and Roasted Sweet Potato Salad introduced her to not one but two new ingredients:


There was supposed to be steak in the Cookaholic Wife's recipe for Steak and Artichoke Salad, but unfortunately her fridge didn't cooperate and she had to leave it out:


Heather really enjoyed her recipe for Chicken Salad with Strawberries & Dried Cranberries:


Jey's recipe for Chinese Chicken Salad didn't disappoint:


Even though my husband wouldn't touch my recipe for Strawberry, Orange and Grilled Chicken Salad, I loved it:

Pop

Image Courtesy House and Home

All it takes is a 'pop' of colour and a rather plain room transforms into 'just gorgeous'.

I'm obsessed with yellow at the moment. Nothing says 'happy' more than yellow, I reckon.

Good morning! Coffee is on. Another lazy school holiday morning. My big boy has been so sick but he is over the worst of it. Took him to hospital yesterday just to be sure. Little one was wringing his hands, "I don't want my brother to die", rabbiting on about swine flu and Hendra virus (I need to temper his news bulletin viewing). He is just so grateful his big brother got the all clear. He is currently lying in his big brother's bed, rubbing his back for him. Heartstrings.

Have a great day.

Recipe Swap - Strawberry, Orange and Grilled Chicken Salad

Want to see what other Main Course Salad recipes were made during the swap? Here is the link to the Main Course Salad Recipe Swap Roundup

This week's recipe swap theme was Main Course Salads. I know a lot of people like to eat lighter, healthier meals in the summer but still want a meal that's substantial enough to last until morning. My recipe was Strawberry, Orange and Grilled Chicken Salad:


In the interest of full disclosure, SP didn't even attempt to eat this one. As soon as I told him what I'd made for dinner he said he "didn't do fruit in salads unless it was a fruit salad" and promptly heated up some leftovers. Oh well, more for me. I really enjoyed this salad. I happen to love fruit in salads and the combination of the strawberries and mandarin oranges was perfect. I added some blue cheese and sliced almonds and I think they were great additions that helped cut some of the sweetness from the other ingredients.

Strawberry, Orange and Grilled Chicken Salad
Adapted from The Cookaholic Wife

6 cups baby spinach leaves
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
2 cups strawberries, diced
1 cup mandarin oranges, chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup blue cheese, crumbled
Raspberry vinaigrette (recipe below)
Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a large bowl. Add desired amount of dressing, toss well to coat. Season with pepper, to taste. Serve cold.

Raspberry Vinaigrette

1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon raspberry preserves
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Fresh tarragon, minced
Black pepper
1 shallot, minced
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Honey, to taste

Blend all the ingredients, except the sugar or honey, in a food processor, adding water as necessary to adjust the consistency. Add honey to taste at the very end.

52, EYES OF BLUE...

Actually they're hazel...

But that doesn't rhyme does it?

Yesterday was my birthday...

I turned 52...

52...

Don't get me wrong, it really is just a number to me. I'm not bummed out, freaked out or burned out.

Really I am mostly amazed. How did I get to be 52?

My daughter~in~law asked me how it felt to be 52...

Well, pretty much like it felt to be 51 the day before...

I'm not getting older...

I'M GETTING BETTER.

Virtual Gardens

Well, this is it for me, when it comes to having a garden/foliage, now that we live in an apartment....

.....my weekly cheapies from Coles. I am rather drawn to yellow these days. 

No, I lie. I do have this rather bedraggled orchid in the corner of my balcony. 

But that's it. That's the extent of my garden these days.

Thank goodness, some of my most favourite blogs happen to have some of the most beautiful gardens ever. I thought I'd share them with you today. These are the 'virtual gardens' that I delight in daily.

My future garden is out there, somewhere..... being 'minded for me' I'm sure..... until I have the time to love it and tend to it.

Enjoy! (links under each photo)

A Country Farmhouse

Brabourne Farm

Faux Fuchsia

For The Love Of A House (Hi Ella!)

French Essence

Tara Dillard Landscape Design

Let's Go Moerkabout

Low Tide High Style

The Views From My Valley

Deep sigh.... click on all these beauties and I guarantee your blood pressure will drop at least 20mmHg.

For now though, while I sip my morning coffee, I will just bury my head in my yellow lillies.

Happy Wednesday!

Terrific Under Ten Tuesday #20

Welcome to Terrific Under Ten #20!

Where we show off our thriftiness and creativeness for $10 or less!

Here are a few projects I would like to feature from last week's party:

Dresser Makeover from A Simple Klassic Home

Beach Mat Lined Bookcase from Harbour Breeze

Bedside Table Makeover from Make The Best Of What's Around

If your project was featured today, please grab a featured button on my sidebar to add to your blog! Thanks!

Now it's time to link up to this week's party!

<center><a href="http://athomewithk.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff267/MommasPrimitives/linkypartybutton-1-1.jpg"/></a></center>

Here are the rules:

1. Your project must be made or bought for $10 or less. Crafts, Makeovers, Thrift Finds, Recipes, Kids Projects...
2. Please do not link up Online Shops or Giveaways.
3. You can link up multiple projects.
4. Link to the specific post and not to the main page of your blog.
5. Add the Terrific Under Ten Tuesdays button to your post, side bar, or linky party list.
6. Visit at least one other project and leave a comment. We all love comments!

Then I'll feature some favorites on the next Terrific Under Ten Tuesday.

*By linking up, you give me the permission to use your photo(s) from your post.

Oh Dear....

Katrina and Amie's House

... did you see the state of the houses the contestants moved into on 'The Block' last night!!!!!

I did not imagine they would be that bad. And they only have 8 weeks to renovate them.

Images Courtesy Katrina's lovely publicist (yes, she has a publicist!)

"If only you could smell these images" .....the title of the email in which I received these photos! 

Kudos to Katrina and Amie for removing those floor coverings without gloves. I would have had a Norsca towelette shoved up my nose and at least 4 pairs of gloves on. 

Katrina and Amie are so entertaining to watch and come out with some absolute 'pearlers':

"Smells nice. It's nice, it's unusual, it's different"

"Is that... like.... poo?

"It's freezing" 

"No, no, no"

"This is a thousand times worse than I ever imagined"

"I mean, there's no walls"

"Where's the... umm.... bathroom?" Ok, where am I going to brush my teeth?"
"There's a shower head?!"

"What about the toilet?!!!"

"Ohhhh, yippee, yi, yey"

"I'm back at a B and S"

"Are my earrings ok, should I change them or do they match?"

"This is a shithole"

"I kept thinking last night, how can I get out of this"

"You need your Mum to sign you a note to say you're sick"

"If I was doing this at home, I have a husband..... I'd say pick it up and he'd carry it"

"We're country chicks but not country hicks"

"'Treens' doesn't know how to cook, she doesn't even know what a sifter is"

"At the end of the day, we're just normal Australian chicks"

"Inconspicuous. It's a good word. You sound really smart when you say it" 

Makes for absolutely GREAT viewing. That's it... this family is now officially.... totally.... addicted.

See last nights episode HERE. 

Time to slow down? Don’t think so!

So this afternoon I’m doing my Summer Newsletter for my website and I sent out e-mails to all of my contacts. I had done up the Newsletter and turned it into a PDF file for an attachment…yep, you guessed it. I forgot to attach it and everyone got a blank e-mail.
So I repeated! See what I mean by needing to slow down. I’m getting ahead of myself.

Anyway on with the busy…between Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Birthday’s, 2 Graduation’s and 2 Graduation Parties, 2 funerals and then the procedure which has kept me rather quiet…all of this was in a bit over a months time!

I’m ready for a break…we’re going to Arkansas the middle of July for a Cousin’s Reunion so that’s going to be my first break…not sure that Arkansas would be my first choice for a getaway but I’ll take what I can get at this point.

I think I’m trying to do too much at once…maybe it’s because I’m feeling better – not good, but much better since the procedure last week and that gives me some ‘faux energy’…I think I can do more than I can!
Not sure when the full effect will kick in all the way but the Dr. said 4-8 weeks…well, I don’t have that kind of time to sit still. Anyone who knows me knows this is killing me.
My backside looks like a pincushion – and very black and blue. I was really under the anesthesia because I don’t remember a thing except asking them to give it to me nice and strong and the next thing I was back in my room and then I slept the rest of the day. I was numb from that point on down to my toes for two days. This weekend I finally started getting the full feeling back in those areas. Please let’s hope this thing works!

Our Granddaughter’s Graduation party was Saturday – had a good time and there were lots of family and friends on all sides.
I took lots of pictures but to you they would just be ‘people milling around’ so I won’t bore you with them.

Alexandra by her cake and photo table

Alex’s Stepmother Jamie made her cake – she wanted a Marble cake with Strawberry filling and so Jamie being the ‘best Stepmother in the world’ made her very first one! She did a wonderful job didn’t she?

I’m not for Tattoo’s but Alex decided she was going to get a hip Tattoo with her 18th birthday money in honor of her baby sister who was a still birth late in the pregnancy – I think it turned out quite nice.

Naturally we don’t have a family gathering that I don’t get a photo of Aidan.
One of the guests brought her 4 week old puppies to show everyone.

 

And as Angie his cousin was leaving he got a ride with her.
Alex’s dad Dan and Alex in back

DON’T FORGET TO LOOK ON THE LEFT
SIDEBAR FOR SOME ITEMS I HAVE ON SALE ON MY SITE.

I have also added some new size
President Canvas Prints to the Primitives category
I had many requests for smaller sizes to tuck back in a shelf
I’m also offering them in a Sepia tone as well
5x5 Stretched Canvas and 5x7 Stretched Canvas

If you want to be on my Newsletter list just e-mail me

I think I’m getting crazy the longer I’m in this business - I’m considering signing up for a very large Craft Show in Lititz, PA for next August. It’s a bit late for this year to make new designs and different products but if I’m accepted I’ll have the better part of a year to prepare.  So I had better get my creative ideas flowing.

I’m getting my ‘lost blog list’ back on my sidebar. I forgot how to do it the easy way so it has been a one by one process…again, I need to slow down and these things won’t happen!
Thanks to everyone who contacted me and if you aren’t on and want to be…please e-mail me.

Oh and I forgot…at the top of my blog where the tabs are…I put my Amish Fiction book list – I’ve already had people e-mail me asking about information on some of the books. So if you like to read Amish Fiction go check it out.

We’ve eaten so much ‘party food’ the past month I’m ready for a steak so that’s what is on the menu for this evening…time to go get it ready.

Karen