The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas.
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,

As the party goers came dancing, dancing, dancing,
as the party goers came dancing up to the Fanciful One’s door.

Yes! In case you have not guessed…
It’s that wonderful Fanciful time of the year when our Beloved Friendling,
Vanessa Valencia hosts her Halloween Party!!!

I am so looking forward to it!!!! I hope you are too…

The when and the where:
Saturday, October 22, 2011
We’ll be blog hopping all weekend long
and probably into the week.
Hope to see you then!!!

 

I borrowed a few lines from Alfred Noyes…
I hope he doesn’t mind

Things that are Lost

I have spent the last few days obsessing over those boots. Obsessing to the point of even calling my mom to see if she had them stashed somewhere in the back of one of her closets. She just giggled at me and said, “Oh, Lainey, that was over 30 years ago.” Yes, I know, but it seems like yesterday or maybe just a year ago.

But then, it made me think of other things that have been lost with the passing of time. Objects once loved then passed on to a new owner for safe keeping. Will they cherish them as much as I once did?

My mind moved from objects to people. Friends who have come and gone. I’m not talking about friends who have passed from this life into eternity, but friends who have stayed a short while only to move on due to circumstances or neglect. You see, I’m an excellent listener and all my friends know this, but when it comes time for me to talk no one listens, so I retreat into my own little world neglecting those around me.

Last week I was cleaning my guest room and ran across an empty envelope from a friend postmarked some 20 years ago. I’ve often thought about her over the years but somewhere in between her moves and mine we lost touch, so I decided to look her up on the internet. Marvelous thing this internet. Low and behold, I found her and sent a quick email. In a short time she emailed back. Many things in her life were the same but there were also many changes. Heartbreaking changes.

My mind then went from lost friends to those who had become lost to Him…The Lover of our souls. Some have walked away because we’ve been hurt by the church or disillusioned by the tedium of life (is that a word…tedium)?
But it is He who has come to save the lost, to find those who have wandered away, and to restore us and make us whole again in Him.

And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham;  for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
LUKE 19: 9 & 10
So He spoke this parable to them, saying:
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
LUKE 15: 3-5

(More images from The Vintage Marketplace)

SweeT!!!

Well, Hello again!! The last time we were here I told you that I was going to show you some pictures from the sweetest little vintage trailer I think I’ve ever seen. It belongs to Two Wild Roses, a mother daughter collaboration of vintage dry goods…isn’t that the sweetest name?

Here are just a few of the pictures I took while at The Vintage Marketplace. This little gem made my heart skip a beat.

Don’t you just love this PINK oven???? I believe I could spend many happy hours baking cookies here while listening to the waves crashing along the sea shore.

The white on white color scheme made the interior seem larger then it really was.

A pair of lacy pantaloons and other unmentionables were hung from a small clothesline and left to dry in the cool of the morning.

Who would have thought… a Victorian Cottage on wheels and all the gingerbread!!!

Some of Christie Repasy’s beautiful rose paintings were displayed throughout the little trailer along with many other wonderful trinkets.

Here’s another view of that lovely tin ceiling  and more gingerbread.

I think seeing this little trailer was one of my favorite inspirations of the day and maybe one day I’ll be able to have one of my own.

Well, I’m off with my camera to take pictures today while the light is still good.
Do you have any fun plans?

Until next time…xoxo, cori

The Vintage Marketplace

Have you heard of the Vintage Marketplace? It’s held once every three months in a small town called Rainbow somewhere in between Temecula and Escondido, and is hosted by two very talented women, Christie Repasy and Rita Reade. 


This is my sweet friend, Janet, who decided to join me at the last minute. Just as we were getting ready to leave the blue sky disappeared while thunder clouds started rolling & rumbling followed by lightning bolts. It was kind of fun and exciting in a strange sort of way.
My hubby was on his Saturday morning bike ride, with some buddies from church, when it started pouring down rain. So they hid under an overpass for 20 minutes until it stopped. When they finally reached Seal Beach they were pelted by hail. Weird weather we’re having.
Sorry for my little bunny trail…now, back to the market place.


 The very first thing I saw, as we rounded the first row of booths, was this old pair of Tony Lama boots…chocolate brown with wing tips and buck stitching. It was like seeing a dear friend for the first time in 30 years. How I LONGED to wrap my arms around them and twirl and dance like I did many many years ago!! Maybe even give them a kiss or two, but I was afraid people would think me odd.  You see I owned an identical pair back in 1976 when I was in the 8th grade.  Each day after I wore them I’d give them a nice little buff with a soft cloth and place them in their special spot in the closet. How I loved those boots and how I miss them now!!!! This pair of boots represents some of my most cherished childhood memories. Summer days spent on the racetrack in Prescott Arizona. Mucking horse stalls. Climbing the fence on the backside to watch the horses do their morning workout and just spending the weekend with my mom.
I stood their staring at them for the longest time thinking they had to be the very pair I once owned. A woman suggested I try them on and so I did, but I was unable to get my heel in. If you wear boots you probably know what I’m talking about. The point where your toes are in but there’s that last tug before your heel drops down. I felt just like one of Cinderella’s ugly step-sisters trying to force her foot into the delicate glass slipper. Now that I’m writing I think I could have tried a little harder and maybe, just maybe, I would have been able to get them on, however my shoulder was causing me too much pain and the idea of having to wrestle the beloved things off my feet were just too much for me at that very moment.  I’m still convinced that they are the very pair of boots I once owned, size six with the same marking where a horse once stepped on my foot.
I wore a size six up until about ten years ago when my toes, not so politely, informed me that they would prefer NOT to be smashed into such a tight shoe. Alright enough about the boots. Beside, my heart is breaking at the thought of leaving them behind…sigh.

Had I been able to squeeze my heels into those gorgeous boots I would have bought this lovely pink gown to wear with them. Wouldn't that have made a lovely ensemble? Yes, I believe it would…double sigh.
This was the sweetest display…all white with burlap and silver jewelry.

The tents were all so gorgeously decorated. One even had a Tutu dangling from the cross bars and a swing behind it ready for afternoon tea. I think this was Rita’s tent…I  had to borrow her sock to try on the boots so I’ve decided the next time I go to one of these lovely events I’ll take along a pair of my own, just in case ;-O.

I loved the expression of this solemn angel as she watched the shoppers moving about.

There were so many lovely displays filled with trinkets and treasures and
the day turned out to be perfect with a cool breeze and white puffy clouds.
In my next post I’m going to show you the sweetest little gem of a trailer all dressed up with a tin ceiling and Victorian Gingerbread…It was so delicious I thought I was going to swoon and faint from it all.
Until next time, I hope you all have a great day
xoxo

9 months later

As you know from my last post, I tripped and fell the other day right in front of two of my favorite people…Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse.
But what I didn’t tell you is that I fell on my left shoulder…or did I?



You may be wondering, "what's up with her shoulder?" Well, I'll tell you.  It all started 9 months ago, December 2010, when Hubby decided to buy me a new PINK mountain bike for my 49th Birthday.


Yep! That’s Hubby with his bald head . We shaved it after I made a mess of his haircut.


And here’s my PINK bike that sent me to months of physical therapy. How did this happen? On a short little bike ride through the Fullerton Loop, a well known mountain bike trail in our neck of the woods. In fact, I think it’s the only mountain bike trail in our neck of the woods.
Anywho we were out riding one beautiful Saturday morning and rode past a house that looked like something out of a dream. Me being the curious sort decided that I needed to take a closer look. So I rode my new PINK bike up the narrow precarious hill. Did I mention that my new bike is PINK? Cotton Candy PINK to be exact.



Back to the hill. Within seconds I was at the top of said hill, however, being the short sort that I am, I wasn’t able to get a good enough glimpse into the backyard. And yes, I do peek in peoples backyards and on rare occasions I even try to peek in windows…to see furnishings and wall treatments and architectural details…not the people.



Hubby was below the hill telling me I shouldn’t be peeking in peoples yards, while I was standing tip-toed over my bike and balancing against the fence. The next thing I knew I lost my balance and started toppling to the right. Trying to keep myself from going over the precarious little hill I quickly jumped to the left while grabbing my bars. I came up right, but in that moment I felt the strangest sensation in my shoulder.



It was as if the muscles in my upper arm stretched an inch and a half. It didn’t hurt, but at the same time it didn’t feel right.
I didn’t notice anything at first but as we continued down the trail  there was a huge tree stump followed by a dip. It was then that I noticed my shoulder and arm refused to do what my brain told them to. It just hung there limp, barely able to grip my handle bar and it was a bit scary to see my arm in that condition. Not wanting to alarm my Hubby I decided to tell him that I thought we'd gone far enough for the day and I was ready to head back home.



For several months I ignored the pain, thinking it would go away, until one day Hubby bumped my shoulder which sent searing pain through my entire back.
Off to physical therapy I went.
My shoulder is better in some ways and the same in others. I still can’t stand “Peter Pan” style with my hand on my hip and my arm refuses to go above what I like to call “10 o’clock.” So this is the shoulder I fell on the other day and I’m feeling the pain today. My Dr. was afraid I’d re-injure it on my bike, but leave it to me. I can hurt myself anywhere…HA!
Oh! none of these pictures were taken with my new camera .

I can’t I can’t…

I can’t!!!!

I think those are two of the worst words in the English language, don’t you?

 

But today I learned that there are a few things I “can’t” do with my new camera…

I can’t take picture with my glasses on

I can’t take pictures while wearing a hat…

and I can’t remember how to set my aperture

 But I’ll tell you ONE thing that I “CAN DO”…

I can trip over the curb and fall to my knees then gracefully roll to the left before my shoulder slams into the pavement. All this was done while balancing my camera by its lens (and perfectly, I might add) to keep it from hitting the ground. Did I mention my legs flailing in the air while my shoulder made contact with the concrete?

Maybe I should have left that part out.

Anywho, I’m off to ice my swollen knee caps…

I hope your day hasn’t been as exciting as mine…she says with a giggle.

Can You Feel It?

Autumn is in the air!

We awoke this morning to a wee bit of rain, multi-colored skies, and the tiniest bit of a chilled breeze. So, the puppies and I wandered out to the vineyard to sit beneath the copper colored vines. The Blue Jays were collecting their morning rations of peanuts and the hummers where dipping and diving in and out of the Budlia bush. It was a glorious morning.

I think I’ve said it before, but it’s well worth repeating…

AuTuMn is my FaVoRiTe TiMe Of YeAR!!!!!

What’s yours?

Oh, by the way, Happy Labor Day!

just Playin’ aRoUnD

 

I’ve been playin’ around with my new camera and
DO I HAVE A LOT TO LEARN!

Who would have thought there would be so much to a Digital SLR.

But, I found this great website (which I’m sure you all know about) that has made the wee light bulb go on in my brain. After reading many articles I think I finally understand what an Aperture is…now onto LIGHT!

Oh the website…
The Pioneer Woman 
Of course you’ve all been there, right? I thought so .

Back to my reading.  Happy Friday

Bye Bye…for now