I AM THANKFUL ...

My grandpa served and fought bravely and lived proudly until his 90th birthday. He was one of my greatest heros -- a beautiful, loving, generous man who would not talk about the atrocities he saw. I'm so glad he fought for me!

In Flanders Fields
by John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead.

Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

GOOSEBERRY GIVEAWAY

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I just found out about a wonderful giveaway at Gooseberry Patch! My bloggie friend Kathy at
http://homesteadersheart.blogspot.com/ told me about it. And as much as I appreciate her pointing me in the right direction, I completely disagree with her logic.
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I should win these 3 cookbooks.

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Why?
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#1 - She already has lots of lovely Gooseberry Patch cookbooks while I have none.
#2 - I'm older and deserve her respect and her acquiescence!
#3 - I know more big words than she does (aka acquiescence -- see below*)
#4 - Because I'm older & could possibly pass on to the big cookhouse in the sky before she does, I could (and possibly would) will them to her.
#5 - She has a husband and I don't and therefore, am lonely and bored and have much more time on my hands than she does to give due regard to these fine cookbooks. (Do you think I've possibly used that little chestnut too much over the past 12 years??)
#6 - I'm pretty sure I can whine and/or cry louder than she can.
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*Acquiescence is the term used to describe an act of a person in knowingly standing by without raising any objection to infringement of his rights, when someone else is unknowingly and honestly putting in his resources under the impression that the said rights actually belong to him. ...
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And if I should win said desired cookery books, here are the three I think I choose:


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So pop on over to Gooseberry http://gooseberrypatch.typepad.com/blog/2009/11/calling-all-bloggers.html and check out their beautiful items.
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And despite the fact that I highly covet these cookbooks, good luck to everyone who's entered!

THRIFTY WEEKEND

When a gal is surrounded by flu bugs & dirty tissues & empty apple juice containers...... When the sounds that ring through her house are hacking & coughing & snorting and sniffing ..... When she's spent most of her time at home feeling hot foreheads & cooking pots of soup & fetching extra blankies .... Then a gal needs a break!

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So, what does a gal do? She goes thrifting!!!

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There was a wonderful yard sale this past Saturday in Lunenburg. I was a smart little cookie and got there just after they opened; and I wasn't disappointed. Here are my finds:
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I paid $2 for this pretty plate (made in Japan)

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The 2 Newfoundland highball glasses were $1 total
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The necklaces were $3 (silver) & $2 pearl

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Candleholder $2 & the friendship plaque AND brand new, genuine leather change purse 25 cents each!

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CD's $2 each

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This beautiful cup & saucer was only $2!

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They had a wonderful selection of art, framed & unframed. I couldn't resist getting a couple of pieces. This watercolor was $1

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and this one was 50 cents

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This was also 25 cents
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But the "piece de resistance" was this purchase.

It's a complete hand-made double-sized quilt top in Dresden Plate pattern. It even has the strips to finish the sides when you attach it to the backing.

And I paid a huge $10 for it! Can you believe it!

(What you see on the white is not dirt; it's the pattern on my bedspread peeping through.)

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There were lots of people walking around with bargains that I'd missed and wished I hadn't!! But here's one that I snagged and they didn't get. And I'm thrilled about it!

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And, seeing I was in Lunenburg, I then visited the new Frenchies that opened that day. I found a few nice items including a brand new Tommy Hilfiger bathrobe for $3.50 (Xmas gift for one of my girlies)!

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I was feeling so satisfied with myself!

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I woulda high-fived myself and smacked my own boodie!

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But instead I bought myself a tall, frothy, foamy hot chocolate to drink on the way home! And I sang along with the oldies station really, really loud and boogied down as much as possible -- while driving and being 55 years old and white!

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Why?

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Sing along with me now ...

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Because I'm Bad, I'm Bad - Come On

(Bad Bad-Really, Really Bad)

You Know I'm Bad, I'm Bad - You Know It

(Bad Bad-Really, Really Bad)

XMAS THRIFTY FINDS

And so I was browsing "The Daisy" thrift store the other day looking for a black skirt; when all of a sudden I hear:
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"Hey hey hey! Ho ho ho!

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You there!

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Yes you! The good little girl from Newfoundland! (And aren't you a cutie too!)

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You look like a gal who might need a couple of good old fellas around the house. Two fat jolly boy-toys with roguish grins and twinkly eyes (and high black boots and a belt!). A couple of guys who will lavish you with gifts this Christmas. (Did we mention yet that it would be at your expense?).

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And don't worry -- we promise to only smoke our pipes outside (and that what we smoke will be legal). And really -- our red cheeks and nose are not from excessive drinking -- you have our word on that!

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You see, we need a good home where we'll be lovingly washed and put in a place of honor and fondly admired during the upcoming season before being carefully wrapped up and gently packed away for 11 months. And you look like the kind of girl who could really care for a guy!

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What do you say? Our arms are open just waiting for you to take us home!"

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Well, how could I say no! I mean, at my age, a girl's got to take a man (or two) where she can find them. And at this price (50 cents), these good-time Charlies were a real bargain!

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PS -- I just have to ignore the holes in the back of their heads and the plugs up their butts! But then, we all make concessions for the men we love, right?

INTERNATIONAL NAPKINS

I've been following a lovely little blog from Italy called "Il mondo di Iris" or The World of Iris. http://ilmondodiiris.blogspot.com
Angela is fortunate to be able to understand English: and I try my best (along with my faithful Google translator) to get the gist of what The World of Iris has to say. I enjoy this blog very much; and quite often, we will comment on the others posts.

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I took part in a giveaway in early October. And although I wasn't one of the winners, because Angela knew that I loved napkins, she offered to send me a few -- all the way from Italy! The package arrived last week, and it was such a wonderful treat to open it and see over 5 dozen different napkins!

How was I to share them with the bloggie world? Then I decided that I would create a "cover" for my couch. Just look at these beautiful napkins!

Here are some close-ups.

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I also got an unopened package of Christmas napkins. In Canada when you buy a package of napkins, you get one design per package. So, this again was a real treat to open it and find 4 different designs.

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I've been blogging for a little over a year; and I'm still finding out just how generous and loving and encouraging and kind most bloggers are.

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Thank you Angela!

Grazie mille. Siete così gentili.

A NEW LOOK

As you can see, I've changed the look of my blog site just a little; I thought I'd like to look a more Christmas-seasonal. (I'm pretty limited as to what my choices are though. )

It's not perfect (like some of your bee-u-tea-ful blog sites out there). If any of my bloggie friends can tell me how to pretty up my site, I'd welcome your comments.

In the meantime, as they say - a change is as good as a rest!